What is the reasoning a well trained individual could lose (let’s just say for example) 20lbs and still remain just as strong as they were prior to losing the weight.
It is obvious to me that mass moves mass, but what able the muscles connection with the cns allows us to keep our strength even when we do lose some muscle in a cut?
Thanks.
This is an interesting assertion that I think stems from the correlation between lean body mass levels and strength. In short, LBM levels and strength performance are pretty strongly correlated at any given point and time. It is less clear how this relationship plays out over time, e.g. if people gain muscle mass do they necessarily gain strength? if they gain more muscle mass do they gain more strength? The present evidence suggests “not necessarily” and “likely no” to these questions.
There’s some data showing we can lose very little (or no) muscle during a cut, though again, I wouldn’t necessarily worry about losing a small amount of muscle mass and its relationship to strength performance.
The more general question here is, how do people get strong over time? While it is likely large increases in muscle mass over time are contributory, small changes don’t seem to be predictive. Other important adaptations for strength development include changes in muscle/tendon/ligament stiffness, max volitional contraction, skill development, antagonist muscle relaxation, etc.
We would not expect an individual who continues to train, especially on an intelligent program, to have less development of any of these adaptations. I would expect someone losing weight to continue to get stronger if the programming is appropriate.