How do I gain mostly muscle ?
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liliguis
Posts: 12
Hello everybody,
Tl;dr : I lost more weight than I wanted and would like to put 1.5 kg back on (3 lbs). How do I do it most efficiently and preferably with muscle gain (rather than fat gain) ?
Last October, I decided it was time to change and lose those kilograms that made me feel uncomfortable. At that point, I was a 172 cm and 71 kg girl (5'6'' and 156 lbs). This morning, after 4 months of cutting and almost 2 months of going to maintenance I was at 56.3 kg (124lbs). And as I took pictures all along my journey, I noticed that today's one looked worse than the precedent : I realized I looked to skinny.
I don't know exactly if I continue to loose weight because I have miscalculated my maintenance level or if I'm just underestimating exercise calories, but I would like it to stop while continuing to be healthy and controlled. During cutting, I was at 1200 kcal/day, I am now at 1800 kcal/day + exercise kcals (and training for a 20K --> running 4 times/week).
How do I - temporarily - change my diet to gain that weight as more muscle than fat ?
I would really appreciate some help, because I really have no idea of how to do it
Thank you very much
Tl;dr : I lost more weight than I wanted and would like to put 1.5 kg back on (3 lbs). How do I do it most efficiently and preferably with muscle gain (rather than fat gain) ?
Last October, I decided it was time to change and lose those kilograms that made me feel uncomfortable. At that point, I was a 172 cm and 71 kg girl (5'6'' and 156 lbs). This morning, after 4 months of cutting and almost 2 months of going to maintenance I was at 56.3 kg (124lbs). And as I took pictures all along my journey, I noticed that today's one looked worse than the precedent : I realized I looked to skinny.
I don't know exactly if I continue to loose weight because I have miscalculated my maintenance level or if I'm just underestimating exercise calories, but I would like it to stop while continuing to be healthy and controlled. During cutting, I was at 1200 kcal/day, I am now at 1800 kcal/day + exercise kcals (and training for a 20K --> running 4 times/week).
How do I - temporarily - change my diet to gain that weight as more muscle than fat ?
I would really appreciate some help, because I really have no idea of how to do it
Thank you very much
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Replies
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Add some iron. The heavy kind that you pick up and put down. Couple that with a slight increase in calories.0
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Thanks for your answer By "slight", do you mean 50, 100, 150 kcal ? 0
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How much weight do you want to gain? You can set your goal on mfp to gain and use that calorie goal to start with. Eat back all exercise calories. Lift weights on your non-running days. Some good programs would be strong curves, stronglifts 5x5, and ice cream fitness--any of which can be easily googled.0
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First, if you gain muscle you are going to gain fat there is no way around that.
second, set MFP to .5 pund per week gain and eat to that number.
third, get on a structured lifting program like strong lifts, starting strength, etc.
OR
do a recomp and eat at maintenance….0 -
About 1.5 kg / 3 lbs. So not that much. Thanks for the advice though.0
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why do you only want to gain three pounds? You are not really going to gain any muscle doing a three pound bulk ….ideally, you should be aiming to gain around ten pounds or so ….0
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I was 123lb when I started my first bulk. I'm now 127lb and low bf and in great shape, with more perkiness than at 123lb. I had to go to 132lb to gain the muscle though.
Accept the fact that women can't gain more than a quarter of a pound of muscle a week, and you CANNOT AVOID FAT GAIN.
Eat 250 cals over your maintenance per day, lift heavy 3 x week, for 12 weeks (6 pound gain), then slowly cut the fat by eating slightly under maintenance for as long as it takes.
All the while .8g protein per lb of body weight progressively heavier lifting while bulking, and maintaining your strength while lifting moderately/heavy while cutting.0 -
@ndj1979 Yeah, read the "Easy Guide to Bulking" (might not be the exact title), said that too The thing about MFP values are that obviously they kinda underestimate for me : my maintenance level is supposed to be 1756 (or smth like that) although i'm eating 1800 and still losing about .4 lbs a week. sooo maybe setting it to + .5 lbs per week wouldn't change much ? 0
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autumnblade75 wrote: »Add some iron. The heavy kind that you pick up and put down. Couple that with a slight increase in calories.
True to a point, but too vague to avoid wheel spinning and not getting any true gains, as opposed to just stronger and the same weight.
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@ndj1979 Yeah, read the "Easy Guide to Bulking" (might not be the exact title), said that too The thing about MFP values are that obviously they kinda underestimate for me : my maintenance level is supposed to be 1756 (or smth like that) although i'm eating 1800 and still losing about .4 lbs a week. sooo maybe setting it to + .5 lbs per week wouldn't change much ?
calculators are just that calculators that are based on estimates.
The only way to find your true maintain/gain/lose levels is through trial and error.
If you are losing .4 a week then at 1800 then your maintenance number is closer to 2000 which means that you would gain about .5 per week on 2250…
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@ndj1979 Yeah, read the "Easy Guide to Bulking" (might not be the exact title), said that too The thing about MFP values are that obviously they kinda underestimate for me : my maintenance level is supposed to be 1756 (or smth like that) although i'm eating 1800 and still losing about .4 lbs a week. sooo maybe setting it to + .5 lbs per week wouldn't change much ?
calculators are just that calculators that are based on estimates.
The only way to find your true maintain/gain/lose levels is through trial and error.
If you are losing .4 a week then at 1800 then your maintenance number is closer to 2000 which means that you would gain about .5 per week on 2250…
Do what this dude says. He's the Don.
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I think somehow I made a mistake while explaining what I wanted soory, my fault. My primary goal is not to build up strength : my primary goal is not to look as skinny as i do right now. BUT within that i would prefer to increase strength rather than just put on "fat" weight. 0
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so i guess i'll do what you said, just on a slighter way ? Or is it gonna miserably fail ?0
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I think somehow I made a mistake while explaining what I wanted soory, my fault. My primary goal is not to build up strength : my primary goal is not to look as skinny as i do right now. BUT within that i would prefer to increase strength rather than just put on "fat" weight.
I understand what you are saying. However, you cannot just gain weight and have it be zero percent fat, your body is not that efficient.
if you eat in .5 pound per week surplus you will gain some muscle and small amount of fat…
do you current work out/lift? If yes, what is your regimen like?0 -
Springfield1970 wrote: »@ndj1979 Yeah, read the "Easy Guide to Bulking" (might not be the exact title), said that too The thing about MFP values are that obviously they kinda underestimate for me : my maintenance level is supposed to be 1756 (or smth like that) although i'm eating 1800 and still losing about .4 lbs a week. sooo maybe setting it to + .5 lbs per week wouldn't change much ?
calculators are just that calculators that are based on estimates.
The only way to find your true maintain/gain/lose levels is through trial and error.
If you are losing .4 a week then at 1800 then your maintenance number is closer to 2000 which means that you would gain about .5 per week on 2250…
Do what this dude says. He's the Don.
does that make you the Doness???
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If "workout" in the sense of lifting weights, then no. I run 4 times a week usually 45 to 60 min (+ running when late
which happens more often than i'd like to admit) and go swimming for 1 hour every week. So pretty much cardio. 0 -
If "workout" in the sense of lifting weights, then no. I run 4 times a week usually 45 to 60 min (+ running when late which happens more often than i'd like to admit) and go swimming for 1 hour every week. So pretty much cardio.
IMO you want to get on a structured lifting program if you are going to be eating more…
I really don't know what happens to runners when they eat in a surplus and just keep running….sorry...0 -
ok ... i'll check out all the lifting programs DancingMoosie mentioned (strong curves, stronglifts 5x5, and ice cream fitness) ... any other program that you think of (even though i imagine there are thousands) ?0
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If "workout" in the sense of lifting weights, then no. I run 4 times a week usually 45 to 60 min (+ running when late which happens more often than i'd like to admit) and go swimming for 1 hour every week. So pretty much cardio.
IMO you want to get on a structured lifting program if you are going to be eating more…
I really don't know what happens to runners when they eat in a surplus and just keep running….sorry...
They get fatty bum bums.
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ok ... i'll check out all the lifting programs DancingMoosie mentioned (strong curves, stronglifts 5x5, and ice cream fitness) ... any other program that you think of (even though i imagine there are thousands) ?
starting strength or new rules of lifting for woman ..
strong ifts seems to be a pretty popular beginner program around here….0
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