Trying not to lose muscle while appetite goes quiet

2026-10-08 1720 views 2 posts

2026-10-08 02:47

Hi everyone, I’m very new here and on my first week. I’m 34, 5'8", around 186 lbs, and I lift three mornings a week before work.

My main worry is that as my appetite gets quieter, I’ll accidentally under-eat protein and end up smaller but not stronger. I’m not trying to do a big bulk, just hold onto muscle and maybe add a tiny bit of lean mass over time.

Right now I’m aiming for a palm of protein at each meal, Greek yogurt after lifting, and a slow walk on rest days. Is it too early to think about this, or should I just focus on protein and showing up for now? Sorry if this is a silly question.

2026-10-20 18:51

Honestly, welcome — three-year vet here, also lift 3 mornings. What saved me was setting a protein floor, not a goal: ~35g at breakfast, lunch, dinner. When appetite goes quiet, I stop chasing calories and just hit that floor.

Pre-cooked chicken, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, edamame in the freezer. I also track my main lifts; if top sets hold, I don’t panic about the scale. There was a thread last winter, “smaller but not stronger,” and the takeaway was: keep the heavy sets, cut junk volume first if recovery dips.

Are your three sessions full-body or a split? I found full-body 3x much easier to defend when intake drops.

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