Building muscle

momoisgorgeousss

Hello everyone! I just want to make sure I'm on the right track so please let me know if I am!

I am 20 years old, female, 5'3, 123 pounds. I started going to the gym about 2 weeks ago. I am going 4 days a week. Here is what my routine consists of; everyday we do 20 minutes of cardio, then we stretch for round 10 minutes. Monday's is back and bis, Tuesday abs and legs Friday shoulder/chest and tri, Saturday abs and legs.

As far as calories, my maintain is 1700, normally I eat around 2000 calories a day, that's not restricting myself, I just eat because I'm hungry lol. On gym day I burn about 200 calories so my calories are normally right about maintain.

I've noticed that my weight had been going up, I started around 120-123 and now my weight goes from 124-126. Is this normal? I've only been going to the gym for 2 weeks, and I wasn't counting my calories before and I stayed around 120,121, now, all of a sudden my weight has shot up, I've never weighed 125 in my life before. It's a little shocking to me.

My goal is to build muscle and 'tone' my body. Am I on the right track? Should I be gaining weight this fast? Am I doing something wrong? Is there something I could do better? Please let me know! Thank you!

Ps. When will I start to see the results I want to see?

sardelsa

Since you say you want to build muscle and tone, I would imagine your goal is to recomp/maintain, right?

You could be gaining weight due to water retention, when most people start increasing their exercise, especially with lifting their muscles hold on to water for repair. OR.. you are eating above maintenance. How are you looking, how are your clothes fitting? Are you taking measurements?

As for when you will start to see results... well... days, weeks, maybe more.. it depends on your goals and expectations. Recomp can be a pretty slow process for many, patience is key!

psuLemon

momoisgorgeousss wrote: »

Hello everyone! I just want to make sure I'm on the right track so please let me know if I am!

I am 20 years old, female, 5'3, 123 pounds. I started going to the gym about 2 weeks ago. I am going 4 days a week. Here is what my routine consists of; everyday we do 20 minutes of cardio, then we stretch for round 10 minutes. Monday's is back and bis, Tuesday abs and legs Friday shoulder/chest and tri, Saturday abs and legs.

As far as calories, my maintain is 1700, normally I eat around 2000 calories a day, that's not restricting myself, I just eat because I'm hungry lol. On gym day I burn about 200 calories so my calories are normally right about maintain.

I've noticed that my weight had been going up, I started around 120-123 and now my weight goes from 124-126. Is this normal? I've only been going to the gym for 2 weeks, and I wasn't counting my calories before and I stayed around 120,121, now, all of a sudden my weight has shot up, I've never weighed 125 in my life before. It's a little shocking to me.

My goal is to build muscle and 'tone' my body. Am I on the right track? Should I be gaining weight this fast? Am I doing something wrong? Is there something I could do better? Please let me know! Thank you!

Ps. When will I start to see the results I want to see?

Regardless of your goals, I'd recommend first getting onto a structured routine to maximize frequency and strength/muscle gains.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1

Second, you need to prioritize your goals. Do you want to gain muscle or do you want to be toned or both, but you don't care the timeframe. If you want to maximize muscle gain, you want a surplus but you will gain fat as well. If you want to be toned, you'd have to cut calories to be in a deficit to cut body fat. If you want both, you will have to realize that it might be a long time and need consistency for recomp.

ldwatene

As far as your workouts are concerned...

If you are going to do legs twice a week I'd split them between quads and hamstrings one day and calves on the other day. So just a slight adjustment to what you have.

Quads / Hamstrings
Chest / Tris
Back / Bis
Shoulders / Calves

Also weights before cardio so you utilise most of your energy for weights. Stretching isn't really needed but do a warm up set on each exercise before stacking on the weights. Finish with abs every 2 to 3 days and cardio

rybo

I'd follow a better program, something full body 3x per week.
And like already mentioned pick a goal that's most important. Gaining muscle or "toning" by losing fat. If you have patience, just lift and eat at maintenance. Otherwise you might need bulk/cut cycles.

Int3rceptor

rybo wrote: »

I'd follow a better program, something full body 3x per week.
And like already mentioned pick a goal that's most important. Gaining muscle or "toning" by losing fat. If you have patience, just lift and eat at maintenance. Otherwise you might need bulk/cut cycles.

What he said.

As a new gym user, you will make more progress doing full body routines 3x a week.
Body part splits are really more suited to advanced lifters.