Female looking to gain - Where to start?

melabelle_al

I've always been thin, but usually still on the very low end of healthy. The kind of thin where any mention of working out or passing on dessert gets me a "You'll blow away!" or "You're fine the way you are" or "Oh, you have room for this!" But not so thin that people are actually worried about my health and tell me I need to gain (if that makes sense).

I've gone through phases of eating right and working out, and eating like *kitten* and doing nothing physical whatsoever, but my weight has stayed within ~7 pounds of my current weight. I've never had a huge appetite but I always try to get the minimums recommended for maintenance. I'm unsure of my BF%, but I have no reason to believe it's above the healthy range, and I will be measuring w/ calipers this week.

In the past two months, I've been working through Couch to 5K (currently in Week 7) and doing regular body weight and dumbbell weight training. Since starting, I've lost ~1.75 total inches from my hips and waist and a couple of pounds, without intending to. I'm still eating to maintain (and eating to make up for the calories I burn) but I know my body will need more fuel if I actually want to gain lean muscle mass, especially since I have relatively little fat to lose. I just have no idea where to start since I've never actively sought a surplus or to gain weight.

I know I need more protein (1g/lb of body weight is a rec I've seen mentioned), I'm not afraid of fat (I've dabbled in Primal/Paleo and may go back to it), and I know I shouldn't just eat ALL THE THINGS, but I'd love some specific guidelines that would fit my situation. How much of a surplus should I shoot for? How quickly should I gain? What's the best way to maximize muscle gain while minimizing fat gain (I know some of the gains will be fat)?

Vital Stats
Sex: Female
Age: 29
Height: 5'4"
Current weight: 109.2 lbs (has ranged from 107-111 in the past few months)
Waist: 25.5" (-0.5" since November)
Hips: 34.75" (-1.25")

Thanks for any input!

grantdumas7

Look at the calculator provided on this site or one of these http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/
Remember the calc. are guidelines, so if you hit your calories and aren't gaining, add more calories until you are gaining about .5 to 1 lb per week. Paleo is probably not ideal while trying to gain as it limits your food choices. Protein is important but carbs should be your main choice while gaining.

Rev_Skip

Here is a smoothie recipe for you. I would vary the ingredients based on the calorie total I was trying to hit for the day. This is the high calorie version.

Two cups whole milk (or 500 ml)
1/4 cup frozen orange juice concentrate (or 60 ml)
200 grams frozen mixed fruit (Kroger, Walmart etc)
Scoop of protein powder (like Body Fortress whey protein, or veg protein if preferred)
Tablespoon of psyllium husks (option but good)
Wheat germ oil, fish oil optional but good
Water as needed to result in nice milkshake consistency

This smoothie is used in conjunction with a vigorous training program, focusing on strength training, as it was developed when I was wrestling and then later boxing. At that time I consumed large amounts of tuna and chicken breasts, and raw veg. This smoothie has a lot of sugar and so get out there and burn!

As to how fast to gain, a pound per month is quite doable, being careful to concentrate on big compound movements like deadifts. For aerobics I suggest rowing. Grip and rip.

Don't concern yourself with weight. Focus on strength. All else will follow.

JoRocka

check the women's bulking group -lots of sturff there too

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/51470-women-who-bulk

KarenJanine

As a female, the maximum muscle you can expect to gain is around 1 lb per month, and that's under ideal nutrition and training conditions.

Aiming for 0.5 to 1lb per week is about right as some gain will be water weight and some will be fat as well as muscle. Try starting at about 200 cals per day above maintenance and adjust up or down depending on how quickly you're gaining.

If you're struggling with the amount of food, you may want to cut down on the cardio as this means you'll need to eat more to make up for the burns.

melabelle_al

Thanks for all the helpful information, everyone!

@grantdumas7 When I've done Primal/Paleo, I've leaned more toward Primal and allowed full-fat organic dairy along with white and sweet potatoes and white rice, so I think I would still be able to get the carbs needed to gain if I did go that route.

@Rev_Skip Thanks for the recipe! I've been drinking a vanilla protein powder + whole milk shake after some of my workouts, since I often struggle to hit the maintenance calories needed on days I do cardio, but I'd love to add more healthy things to it. Weight itself is not really a concern to me (besides mentally getting over the fact that it's okay and good for that number to go up), but I needed to stop kidding myself that I could develop my muscles without eating more food.

@JoRocka I'll be joining that group and checking out the board. Thanks!

@KarenJanine I'm aiming to run a 5K for my birthday in March, but C25K is the only cardio I'm doing (30-35 minutes three days a week). It still does burn plenty of calories though, especially now that I'm running the whole time! Like I said above, those days are the hardest for me to hit my calorie goals. I'm also bad about not eating during the first part of the day (unintentional IF? I often only have coffee until my late lunch after 1 or 2 PM). I think I probably need to make myself eat breakfast and/or mid-morning snacks if I have any hope of ending up with a surplus. Multiple smaller meals/snacks may be the best solution. Thanks for the hard numbers!