Weight loss can be divided into two unofficial categories - fat weight loss and weight loss. The difference between the two is that fat weight loss is directed at only reducing the fatty tissue on the body while weight loss is directed at reducing overall weight and size regardless of whether it is loss of fatty matter or muscle.
Unfortunately, many dieters do not recognise the fine line that exists between loss of fat and loss of muscle and through ignorance they often start to lose muscle while trying to diet. This has a negative impact on their metabolism resulting in the body processing a higher percentage of calories into fat. It is basically the start of a roller coaster losing and gaining weight gain ride.
The majority of people who embark on a diet do so mainly to lose fat build up in their body and not to lose muscle. However there are a group of people who are hell bent on reducing total body size regardless of whether the weight lost is muscle or fat.
The dieting techniques that are practised by anorexics and bulimics is a good example of reckless weight loss. The obsession with their overall weight leads them down a path of total destruction with rapid loss of body mass in both fatty tissue and muscle, leaving them with their end desired result of a skin covered skeleton.
The loss of muscle through dieting is highly undesirable as the entire process affects your metabolism drastically resulting in a slower metabolism which then increases the percentage of calories which are converted to fat instead of energy. In extreme anorexic and bulimic cases, their metabolism is so slow that even the slightest amount of calories will result in weight gain.
In normal healthy conditions, muscle cells die off and are replaced at a fairly equal rate or faster rate than the die off depending on age and exercise routines. This process requires energy and the body converts more calories into energy and less into fat in order to cope with the energy needs of the new cells. This increase your metabolic rate and results in better results.
A good fat weight loss routine will always consist of some light to medium exercise in order to maintain muscle cell activity and raise your metabolic rate. The higher your metabolic rate, the faster your body burns off fat and calories.