Why is weight gain never linear?

serapel

I have found that in my bulking cycle, I will gain nothing for 2 or 3 weeks and then jump 1 lb overnight. Why does the body do this?

cwolfman13

serapel wrote: »

I have found that in my bulking cycle, I will gain nothing for 2 or 3 weeks and then jump 1 lb overnight. Why does the body do this?

weight loss works the same way...so does maintenance...it's because body weight isn't static and is always in flux...weight management is about trends over time.

It could also be that you're not actually eating enough to efficiently bulk...1 Lb could easily just be a fluctuation up and have nothing to do with actually gaining real weight.

sardelsa

Yea this happens to me too, even when losing. I kind of have a woosh in either direction.
Here are my bulking charts. The first one is from my first bulk, the second one is current. This time I am using a trendweight app to kind of sort through the noise. Not sure if I like the way it interprets my data though.. we'll see!

Chieflrg

Sounds to me you aren't eating enough. 1lb overnight is nothing to think twice about. Not gaining in 2-3 wks might be though. Are you sure you are eating in a surplus? How did you determine your TDEE?

serapel

When I'm not lifting weights, my maintenance is 2000 cals. Now that I'm lifting heavy and hoping to gain mass, I'm eating 2250 to 2300 cals. I am seeing the muscle develop though. My butt is getting bigger for sure.

I'm also getting stronger every week? This means muscle gains, no? thanks

cwolfman13

serapel wrote: »

When I'm not lifting weights, my maintenance is 2000 cals. Now that I'm lifting heavy and hoping to gain mass, I'm eating 2250 to 2300 cals. I am seeing the muscle develop though. My butt is getting bigger for sure.

I'm also getting stronger every week? This means muscle gains, no? thanks

You don't have to build muscle to get stronger...early strength gains are more about recruiting existing muscle and CNS adaptation. Eventually, yes...you have to put on mass to get stronger...but you can go a long time with solid strength gains just recruiting and your body learning how to utilize existing muscle efficiently.

I'd say if maintenance is 2000 calories when not lifting and you're only eating 2250 - 2300 when lifting...I'd say you're eating maintenance, not a surplus. If you're eating a surplus you would definitely see an increase in weight as a trend over the weeks.

Essentially, you're re-comping, not bulking.

serapel

I should correct myself...I have been lifting since I was a baby...over 20 years

But in the past 5 months, I've been focusing on progressive overload and have built up to a hip thrust of 200 lbs (3 sets of 8, 6 and 6). I've also been focusing on progressive overload on all my upper and lower body exercises.

I am not squatting though, but doing box squats, bc I cannot get it right currently.

Mind muscle connection can only go so far right? You eventually have to be building muscle if you are getting stronger. When I hit 185 lbs on the bbht, I notice a 'pop' in my glute muscle...it just suddenly grew.

Body comp is still effective right if that's what I'm doing? Nice and slow can win the race? I'm in no hurry...I'm just a mom of 2 kids and am not planning any competitions or anything.

serapel

sardelsa wrote: »

Yea this happens to me too, even when losing. I kind of have a woosh in either direction.
Here are my bulking charts. The first one is from my first bulk, the second one is current. This time I am using a trendweight app to kind of sort through the noise. Not sure if I like the way it interprets my data though.. we'll see!

If I'm doing a body comp, then why is this a bulk? She's gaining weight at the same pace as me pretty much, no?

btw...Sardelsa, you are the queen of look fab

cwolfman13

serapel wrote: »

I should correct myself...I have been lifting since I was a baby...over 20 years

But in the past 5 months, I've been focusing on progressive overload and have built up to a hip thrust of 200 lbs (3 sets of 8, 6 and 6). I've also been focusing on progressive overload on all my upper and lower body exercises.

I am not squatting though, but doing box squats, bc I cannot get it right currently.

Mind muscle connection can only go so far right? You eventually have to be building muscle if you are getting stronger. When I hit 185 lbs on the bbht, I notice a 'pop' in my glute muscle...it just suddenly grew.

Body comp is still effective right if that's what I'm doing? Nice and slow can win the race? I'm in no hurry...I'm just a mom of 2 kids and am not planning any competitions or anything.

I think recomp is what the vast majority of people should do...most people I know who have a "fitness body" have never done a bulk...but they damn sure look like the workout.

TR0berts

cwolfman13 wrote: »

It could also be that you're not actually eating enough to efficiently bulk...1 Lb could easily just be a fluctuation up and have nothing to do with actually gaining real weight.

IIRC, hasn't OP stated that she's gained 4-5 lb in 4-5 months? If so, what wolfman posted above is likely very accurate.

sardelsa

serapel wrote: »

sardelsa wrote: »

Yea this happens to me too, even when losing. I kind of have a woosh in either direction.
Here are my bulking charts. The first one is from my first bulk, the second one is current. This time I am using a trendweight app to kind of sort through the noise. Not sure if I like the way it interprets my data though.. we'll see!

If I'm doing a body comp, then why is this a bulk? She's gaining weight at the same pace as me pretty much, no?

btw...Sardelsa, you are the queen of look fab

Thanks!

If you are gaining weight over time (not just water fluctuations), then it is my understanding that you are bulking.

How much have you gained so far, you said like a 1lb a month right? We all have normal fluctuations within our maintenance range, as you get to know your body and weigh everyday you can tell true gain from water gain (to an extent, of course it can be hard to tell even for someone with a lot of data and experience!)

To be honest, my current bulk is what I like to call a "recombulk" .. so it borders on a recomp but is technically still a bulk because I will be gaining weight just over a longer span of time. I will have to likely do a small cut in the end just to kind of tighten things up, but compared to my last bulk (10lbs over 4.5 months) it will be longer but the cutting time will be shorter. The issue with this, it is VERY easy to spin your wheels and not gain anything in the end... it can end up turning into maintenance so I have to be mindful and pay close attention to the scale and my intake

serapel

sardelsa wrote: »

To be honest, my current bulk is what I like to call a "recombulk" .. so it borders on a recomp but is technically still a bulk because I will be gaining weight just over a longer span of time. I will have to likely do a small cut in the end just to kind of tighten things up, but compared to my last bulk (10lbs over 4.5 months) it will be longer but the cutting time will be shorter. The issue with this, it is VERY easy to spin your wheels and not gain anything in the end... it can end up turning into maintenance so I have to be mindful and pay close attention to the scale and my intake

recombulk!!! Love it haha...

that's what I'm doing then... a recompbulk haha.

Bret Contreras stated in an article that over long periods of time (i.e. a year) ppl who focus on recomp end up building roughly the same amount of muscle bc during the cut phase, he said that most bulkers lose 20% of their muscle.

sardelsa

serapel wrote: »

sardelsa wrote: »

To be honest, my current bulk is what I like to call a "recombulk" .. so it borders on a recomp but is technically still a bulk because I will be gaining weight just over a longer span of time. I will have to likely do a small cut in the end just to kind of tighten things up, but compared to my last bulk (10lbs over 4.5 months) it will be longer but the cutting time will be shorter. The issue with this, it is VERY easy to spin your wheels and not gain anything in the end... it can end up turning into maintenance so I have to be mindful and pay close attention to the scale and my intake

recombulk!!! Love it haha...

that's what I'm doing then... a recompbulk haha.

Bret Contreras stated in an article that over long periods of time (i.e. a year) ppl who focus on recomp end up building roughly the same amount of muscle bc during the cut phase, he said that most bulkers lose 20% of their muscle.

To be honest for me and my goals I actually prefer to bulk/cut vs recomp.. and I didn't find a significant loss of muscle at all when I cut. I am kind of impatient though and recomp was just too slow and unpredictable (for me).

I think in the end, if recomp is working for someone.. that is fantastic. There are always a few ways to go about reaching goals.

serapel

sardelsa wrote: »

To be honest for me and my goals I actually prefer to bulk/cut vs recomp.. and I didn't find a significant loss of muscle at all when I cut. I am kind of impatient though and recomp was just too slow and unpredictable (for me).

I think in the end, if recomp is working for someone.. that is fantastic. There are always a few ways to go about reaching goals.

Yeah dat true.

There is this really muscular woman at my gym and she began to shred for her competition. She lost sooo much muscle. When she was done shredding, half her muscle was gone too. It was shocking!!!

She told me that she was eating one big meal a day at lunch and then protein shakes for breakfast and dinner.

She ended up not placing in any of her 3 comps.