How Can I Lose Weight Without Losing Muscle Mass? [Forum]

Hi,
I am a male, 5'10", 147 lbs., exercising 4-6 times a week for approx. 2 hrs per exercise. My workouts are very intensive, since I train for mountain biking races. It is not unusual for a 2 hr ride to have an altitude gain of 3,000 ft, which, when combined with technical terrain such as rocks and high altitude makes up for quite a calorie expenditure.

I do some basic strength training: pull-ups, push-ups, etc, no heavy lifting involved. My question is: what is the best approach to lose a couple of pounds without losing any muscle mass.

The reason why I am asking is because last summer I was 2 lbs lighter and that really did help on long ascents, however it had a drawback of feeling weak sometimes when overtaking a big rock or another obstacle which required raw muscle power for a few seconds at a time.

Thanks for your input!

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