When to gain?

Garfy117

I've been dieting and running to lose the excess weight. I'm now around 172lbs (just under 6 foot), with bodyfat of around 16-17% I think. (My aria scales measure it 16; I get a reading of around 17 with calipers...although I'm not too confident I'm doing it right!). A history of eating disorders (all in the past now) has left me with pretty crap muscle tone and I'd like to put things right.

I'd originally planned to get to a low bf (10%?) before considering gaining, but I'm wondering if that's sensible, or is just going to make it harder to gain muscle? I was running up until recently, and it was going ok, but my strength is pathetic. We're talking 3 chinups, 30 press-ups kind of pathetic here. I'm worried that if I continue to goal weight (10lb or so), it'll be that much harder to gain some strength.

Grateful for any thoughts!

dockholiday8234

Doing some strength training is not going to make you bulk. Strength training should be done weekly regardless of your goals. At 17% Body fat you will have no problem with recomposition. Eating about 2000 calories per day with chin-ups, push-ups, dips, body weight squats will get you in to some pretty good shape. Throw in some hill sprints.

IrfanKoric

I'm not exactly sure what you mean when you say 'when to gain'. When to gain muscle, or just weight in general? I'm assuming you mean lose fat but gain muscle. So, with your BMI being between 23 and 25 I would say gaining weight should not be your concern right now, but since you'd like to drop the body fat by 7% you should look at getting rid off that 7%. If you are looking to gain muscle you need to exercise for your goal and eat right.

Gaining muscle while dropping fat is possible. Thus you'll be gaining muscle but maintaining the same weight as you drop in fat. You may even see a slight increase in weight since lean muscle weighs more than fat. Cardio combined with slight calorie deprivation will be best for fat loss. Strength training and calorie with protein consumption will build muscle. You may also do supersets coupled with circuit training for a fat burning workout as well. Strength training burns fat as well.

Strength will come with exercise, so dont worry about gaining 10 pounds if you are seeing results in your strength. As your muscles do chin ups, the next time its time to do some chin ups you'll probably perform a little better. Muscles grow slowly, (slower than fat it seems) and they require action/stimulation. The only way you'll get better at chin ups and develop those lats, rear delts, rhomboids and other back muscles involved in that action, is by doing chin ups. As your muscles grow you may see a slight increase in weight but you should not see that as a bad thing. Body fat percantage is the number you should be concerned about, not just weight alone, since body fat percentage will tell you how much of that weight is actually bad. Anywhere between 7% and 14% for men I would say is the healthy range no matter your weight.

I hope that helped.

123im4u2c

Sweetie, you need to start lifting some weights! You don't need a 10% body fat Rating!
I was as high as 30 % and I was body building then, I am now 60 yrs old and still do strength training 3 times per week, and
walk, I have slowed down on running and heavy duty aerobic training! I went up one size in 40 years! I was always a 4 or a 6. Size 8 is to. o big depending on cuts of course! I'm at my highest weight ever othe than with pregnancy almost 40 yrs ago, Right now I weigh
127lbs, but my BMI and all other numbers are in the target range, so I just keep doing my own thing. I don't follow any ones program with the exceptions of starting my day off with Navy Seals wall pushups and wall sitting as well as planks and bird dog. I also do yoga for balance!

SamanthaH10

You may even see a slight increase in weight since lean muscle weighs more than fat.

Worst statement in the history of the world. Does a pound of bricks weigh more than a pound of feathers? No, they both weigh the exact same. Therefore, a pound of muscle is exactly the same as a pound of fat. Fat is more DENSE and takes up more room than muscle, but that doesn't mean it weighs more.

Sorry, huge pet peeve of mine.

Garfy117

Thanks guys. I'll stick with the deficit for a while then and crack on with the training!

shano799

do yourself a favour and look up boyce bros online or facebook, the program and nutrition is spot on and well worth it.
I myself have used there program and the info and support is best i have seen available to the general public.

3laine75

You may even see a slight increase in weight since lean muscle weighs more than fat.

Worst statement in the history of the world. Does a pound of bricks weigh more than a pound of feathers? No, they both weigh the exact same. Therefore, a pound of muscle is exactly the same as a pound of fat. Fat is more DENSE and takes up more room than muscle, but that doesn't mean it weighs more.

Sorry, huge pet peeve of mine.

Huge pet peeve of mine is arguing over semantics instead of offering any advice of your own.

OP: I'd say the time to start gaining weight (hopefully, mostly muscle) is when you can no longer make strength gains - sounds like you're there, at the moment, if you're feeling weak. I've just recently upped my calories for this reason. Instead of making the jump to surplus right away (because it's scary ) I'm trying a few weeks at maintainance to see how that goes.

Are you doing a structured strength programme? I'd advise this if you're not currently. Good luck with it

drefaw

You may even see a slight increase in weight since lean muscle weighs more than fat.

Worst statement in the history of the world. Does a pound of bricks weigh more than a pound of feathers? No, they both weigh the exact same. Therefore, a pound of muscle is exactly the same as a pound of fat. Fat is more DENSE and takes up more room than muscle, but that doesn't mean it weighs more.

Sorry, huge pet peeve of mine.

And so you give out mis-information .... Muscle is more dense than fat, therefore a lb of muscle takes up less space than a lb of fat ....

astronomicals

A real answer


I'd say that at your height and weight you probably dont have much muscle, but, you already said that for me. Losing weight while doing only cardio most likely played a big role in this outcome.

Anyhow, thats where you are right now, so, what are the options?

1. Bulk now because @ 10% you'll look pretty frail and weak and youll probably be displeased with your body image

or

2. Continue to cut til your around 10%. You don't have a lot of strength to lose and that would be my primary reason for getting to low body fat now. There would be a few benefits like looking leaner and more cut while clean bulking. Calorie partitioning can also be better at lower body fat percentages (more calories can go towards building muscle).

Id say bulk. You say you've had ED issues and if you;re ready to try and comfortably gain weight and put on some muscle than do it. You can always cut later. My worries are that you may try and bulk and be scared of gaining weight, but, you seem like you want to do it. My other concern is that if you keep cutting til 10% you'll never wanna put on any weight and never give bulking a proper try. Plenty of guys who never had a diagnosed ED are bad at bulking once they get trim.

drefaw

You may even see a slight increase in weight since lean muscle weighs more than fat.

Worst statement in the history of the world. Does a pound of bricks weigh more than a pound of feathers? No, they both weigh the exact same. Therefore, a pound of muscle is exactly the same as a pound of fat. Fat is more DENSE and takes up more room than muscle, but that doesn't mean it weighs more.

Sorry, huge pet peeve of mine.

And so you give out mis-information .... Muscle is more dense than fat, therefore a lb of muscle takes up less space than a lb of fat ....

And, yes, i would be beneficial for you to start strength training now, while in a caloric deficit ...

Garfy117

Thanks. I'm not doing structured training (I'm not a gym member, and wouldn't be comfortable joining and using weights at the moment), but am hitting the pushups and dumbells as much as I can at home. Just started a kettlebell class as well - hoping to get at least *some* strength before I look into proper lifting!

astronomicals

I'm not doing structured training

why not? you can add structure and programming to bodyweight exercises.

Garfy117

True. Sorry, I meant not structured in the sense of following a recognised program. I do have set exercises for set days and record results.