On Tue, 12 Oct 1999, Troy Gilchrist wrote:

> Most anyone who wants to lose excess body fat will be best served long-term
> by focusing on strength training, specifically weight-lifting. Supplemented
> by a moderate amount of intense walking (1 to 2 hours per week), a
> strength-training program will help to keep fat off by increasing
> metabolism.

I have found this to be true to some extent, but there is a law
of diminishing returns.  Much of the increase in metabolism is
the result of adding muscle mass, which continues to burn fuel
all the time.  An untrained person can expect to make substantial
gains in muscle mass during the first year of weight training.
After that, the gains taper off.  There appears to be
considerable genetic variability in this, though.

I have been lifting weights for a couple of years now, and the
increase in muscle mass is clear.  I added about 10 lbs. of
muscle the first year; after that I leveled off and as far as I
can tell have not added much since then.  My training scheme is
high-intensity, low-repetition, once a week.  A very good thing
about this is that if I do gain fat for any reason, the added
muscle makes it easier to get rid of it.  Still, my current
"setpoint" appear to be about 18-19% body fat.

I could undoubtedly devise a more demanding training regimen to
add some more pounds of muscle, but I am unwilling to do so.  I
am a philosophy professor, not a bodybuilder, and my priorities
lies elsewhere.  I continue to lift weights precisely because it
is addictive and to maintain the muscle mass that I have (about
180 lbs. LBM).

Todd Moody
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