Hey reddit, I'm 18 and have a few questions concerning retaining muscle whilst reducing body fat. I want to know what my diet should be to retain as much muscle as possible. I read the FAQ but there wasn't anything which answered this.

A bit of back story:

I'm 170lbs about 12% body fat aiming for 8 or 9%. I am getting good gains going to the gym regularly. I've begun to row competitively and do (hard) rowing related exercise 2 to 3 times per week. (One hour of circuits, one 30 minute blast on the machine with all my strength and one water outing).

I will wait until closer to summer before beginning this so I can gain the most amount of muscle possible.

I'm at university so my diet wont be perfect but I'll do my best. I have read tons of articles saying contradictory things eg

Keto is the best, carb cycling is the best, high protein and 30% carbs is best etc, etc.

Thanks for all the help fittit and I will answer any questions you have.

tl:dr 18yo, 170lbs 12� aiming for 8�, need help retaining muscle whilst lowering body fat.