muscle form question

[CelebRunay]

Hello.
As we all know there is a lot of information on the internet.
I am very overweight, probably obese. I am 185cm tall and weight in at 160kg.
Years ago I started training and I lost a few kg. I was 185 when I started and went down to 125kg. Before I wanted to look like Goku or Superman. Super big muscles as if carved out of stone. but now I would prefer to be strong and slim.
I recently read that to be slimmer and leaner and at the same time grow stronger, I need to do heavier weights and with less than 5 reps. And that would break my muscles like normal training, but instead of the muscles growing big, they grow in strength.
Is there any truth to this? how can I have a smaller thinner body size and at the same time grow stronger?

p.s. I tried to find if this is answered but I don't have that much time to browse the vast amount of data in this helpful site.
I read some of the guides about muscle growrth and strength trainings but I am still confused. Can any of the specialist here help me out?

 

[Damer]

@CelebRunay welcome to The Hive. I will give you both a short answer and point you to a much longer, more involved one. First the short answer. The human body adapts as a result to what is being asked for and it optmizes to do it better by changing its physiology to reduce the energetic cost of the activity. So, if you were to curl 40lbs repeatedly (as an example) your body would strengthen glutes, hamstrings, shoulders and biceps (which are activated by this exercise) in direct response to the pressure that is applied to each so that curling 40lbs would become easier and require less energy. The visible result of this would be bigger biceps, bigger shoulders and tighter glutes and hamstrings (for stability) in the movement. For lean, strong muscles you need dynamic workouts that promote functional strength (i.e. workouts that involve movements where more than one joint at a time are in motion). This forces the body to optimize for strength and power but not bulk (think boxers, martial artists and ballet dancers) which delivers that slim, strong, powerful look.

For a more involved discussion on training and muscles and strength ans power I would suggest you go through our AMA session here. Not just the answers but also the questions, it will help you better understand some basics, helps you see what others are thinking and going through and also enrich your own understanding with real science that is as unbiased as we can consciously make it.

I will add something else too: your body thinks that the weight you are now is what it should be. It will not want to drop it and if you force it, it will go into shock (which is why you can, initially lose weight quickly) and then change its metabolic rate to recover it and you will end up fighting it. The way around this is slow and steady. Be patient and be persistent. Take small gains as opposed to quick ones and these then become sustainable and give you something to truly build on, all the time. Fitness is really a journey, not a destination. The human body is dynamic and even the fittest and strongest of us have off-days when we don't perform as well as we should. Learning to accept this without blame and just working through those days at whatever level is possible is key to achieving what we want.

I really hope this helps.