How to burn muscle?

[wleemitch]

Not sure if this is the appropriate place to put this but here it is.

What is the best way to burn muscle without extra fatigue?
Really looking to make chest and anterior deltoids smaller.
I'm currently 6 ft tall and 155 pounds.

I went through a phase after high school where I got insecure
I guess you could say. I purchased a weight set and bench and
put on about 15 pounds of muscle.

I wouldn't mind it except that I am a distance runner and I've
noticed over the last couple seasons I get a many aches pains
I never got before when I weighed in the 130s. I currently have
some chronic pains I can't shake which I attribute to this extra
bulk that isn't coming off with running.

[Boss Man]

Losing the muscle would be a bad idea, because it could cause other issues in later life when you're old.

Losing fat would be okay however.

Where do the pains occur?

[wleemitch]

I don't think I have much fat to lose if any. Never really measured
body fat, but I've been running between 70-90 miles per week the
last four months. weight doesn't ever change, except from fluid
loss.

I have several pains. I have shin splints, which I believe is a
condition of the periosteum ( right leg ). I've strained left
vastus medialis oblique muscle badly 2 times now. And I've
had on and off issues with right hip. TFL muscle maybe? I
think it's one of the more superficial muscles cause I can
press on it hurt it.

A side not here, I NEVER would get injured with previous
weight 4 years ago and I ran more miles and at a much
faster pace. I would get the occasional knot or bout of
tightness but never anything chronic.

[Boss Man]

Shin splints are caused by heel striking when you run, os correcting the problem would be advantageous.

You might find shoe orthotics work, but also you may be aggravating the situation with the wrong footwear depnding on whether you

A: Pronate, (Ankle rolls inwards)

B: Supinate, (Ankle rolls outwards)

C: Neutral running style

So some footwear ma aggrevate the issue if it's the wrong kind relative to the running style.

Also you can get something caleld Plantar Fasciitis, which is inflamation of the Plantar, a fiberous type strip of tissue between the Heel and ball of the feet. This can be cause by excessive running, weight problems and a tight Achillies.

The problem you eluded to relating to the Vastus Medialis and the Obliques are probalby not related. Though the shin splints could be, if you're perhaps causing a sevcere jarring effect and sending shockwaves of sorts up the lower Leg, as the Vastus Medialis muscle is above the Knee area and around the Patella Tendon area.

Correct the running style that causes the Shin Splints and you could possibly correct the Medialis issue too.

This could be achieved by planting the balls of the feet, then lowering the heel down, as opposed to planting the heel then lowering the ball.

Any inflammation of muscle, shouldn't generally be due to muscle size, but the way it's used or other factors like burns, blunt trauma etc. Otherwise big bodybuilders and powerlifters would be in constant pain, with things like Myositis, (Muscle inflammation) and Myalgia, (Muscle pain).

So I'd suggest altering the running style to correct things in the lower body.

As for the Hip problem, you might have an issue with one or more of the Piriformis, Obturator Sternus, or the Inferior or Superior Gamellus muscles. Possibly one or more of the connecting Tendons, or some Bursitis, (Inflammation of one or more Bursae), in the area.

If you're complaining of an oblique type problem, then possibly it could be linked to the Iliacus and Psoas hip flexor muscles, not to the actual Obliques themselves, so a slight possibility that the jarring causing the shin splints, may be linked in some way to those issues too, depending on the severity and range of the vibrations, caused by the heel striking.

[wleemitch]

So if I'm understanding you right... you're saying I should change
running form and strengthen core and hip rotators?

I don't think changing form will be that easy. I've been running this
way for years. I'm somewhat hesitant to do so as well seeing as how
I never really got hurt before I put on this weight.

So there's no safe way for me to shrink the delts/chest a bit?

Sorry to be unclear with the vastus medialis oblique. I meant
the VMO/oblique aspect of the vastus medialis, not abdominal
muscle.

[Boss Man]

No I wasn't referring to strengthening the core and hip rotators, but changing the running style, to improve the Hip problems.

As I said, if the severity of the heel striking that caused the shin splints, is causing sufficient enough shockwaves / jarring, then I think it's a slight possibility that it could be causing the hip issues, because the hips might be in some way affected by the trauma.

Strengthening such areas may well help, but changing the running form is mandatory I'm afraid. Shin splints are caused by heel striking, so if you don't change that to ball planting instead and continue to heel strike you'll either.

A: Worsen the shin splints.

B: Stop them going away.

[frashmeet]

I don't think I have much fat to lose if any. Never really measured
body fat, but I've been running between 70-90 miles per week the
last four months. weight doesn't ever change, except from fluid
loss.

I have several pains. I have shin splints, which I believe is a
condition of the periosteum ( right leg ). I've strained left
vastus medialis oblique muscle badly 2 times now. And I've
had on and off issues with right hip. TFL muscle maybe? I
think it's one of the more superficial muscles cause I can
press on it hurt it.

A side not here, I NEVER would get injured with previous
weight 4 years ago and I ran more miles and at a much
faster pace. I would get the occasional knot or bout of
tightness but never anything chronic.

To be honest with you it sounds a lot like muscle imbalance from a lack of stretching or equal training. A lot of times people get pain and injuries from running from one side over developing and the other has to compensate for it. This causes the muscles to develop differently, strengthening on one side or the other, and pains result from the improper movement pattern they create. For instance I practice an Israeli combat system called "HaganaH" and have developed a few of these with extra running, strength training, and Kung Fu.
After a few years I've started running again in the mornings, 2-3 miles a day before an hour workout. Since then left TFL and Biceps Femoris have tightened up and so has VMO about an inch up from it's insertion point. Took me a while of diagnosing myself, but it turns out it was from the fighting stance and moving off of right foot to move and pulling back left leg to check kicks. I've toned down amount of running a lot and it's gone away almost completely. I also stretched hamstrings on left side constantly (was horrible at the time too). I would say look into less static and more dynamic/functional stretches for your workout, that would be guess.
I do have something to say about the 'shin splints' though. If you get the chance to sit down at a desk like you probably are now, work on flexing your feet up (bringing your feet to the ceiling while leaving your heels on the ground). This contracts the tibialis anterior which is the muscle that usually gets stretched out too far from running since it works in opposition to the muscle you're over using (the calf when you run).
Hope I helped.

[iamtreadmill88]

Try running in a pool and make sure you stay in your MHR

[fatman2011]

Being slim and skinny, is very hard to do especially when you have build a very large muscles. Having large muscles also gives your more weight. Proteins is the building blocks of muscles, so the simplest way to lose a muscle is to cut down your protein intake. Muscles are build are just build after doing a workout, so, if your body don't have the materials to build the necessary muscles, instead of building up, it losing down. try to have a very extensive workout, extensive cardio with just less protein intake..