Looking bloated not muscular

gemmamummy

I've been weightlifting for two years but to be honest I didn't really have a good workout in place. 11 weeks ago I started doing a structured all over body programme 3 times a week and love it. The goal was to build muscle with minimal fat gain. I'll admit I have piddled around with my kcal intake a lot over this period (increasing cals to just over maintenance for a few days, then chickening out and going just under maintenance). Although recently i've committed to eating above maintenance.

11 weeks on I've seen a small increase in muscle on my arms (when I tense), but generally they just look blobbier. Also my face looks bloated. In the 11 weeks I've only gained a pound (which is probably due to messing around with kcal intake). My waist has stayed the same measurement.

I'm aware that muscle doesn't build overnight especially as I hadn't committed to staying above maintenance. But I just don't understand how my face and arms can look so bloated when my waist has stayed the same. Any ideas what's going on?

tziol

You need to make sure that you consume right proportions of fat, carbohydrates and especially proteins in order to build muscles. 60-70% in your goal is a diet. Also, when you want to build muscles you cannot be on calorie deficit. Everybody is different, so you need to find out yourself what way best works for you. Maybe you should change something in your diet etc....

KingRat79

so long as your calorie excess isn't to great, its nothing I would worry about. building muscle is a slow process, particularly if you are out of your initial gains period. my advice is take your time, have one goal at once that you focus on. don't chop and change - if your going to bulk do it over the long term.

kdiamond

Increasing your calories a few days isn't going to produce big results, however I have no problem with calorie cycling, eating more on the days you lift and less on days you rest. If you want true progress though a bulk would be the way to go. I spun my wheels for 3 years before I decided to commit to a bulk, and I made the best progress in only 4 short months. I plan on doing another long bulk after the summer.

watto1980

Just keep bulking and eventually the other areas will bloat and catch up with your arms and face.

But seriously bulking is hard, not just physically but mentally as well. My head seems to have ballooned while bulking and I often feel like a slob. I just focus on the strength gains and hold the knowledge that if it works for other people it will work for me too. So I know when I eventually cut I will reap the rewards of my physical and mental hardships

trojan_bb

Increasing your calories a few days isn't going to produce big results, however I have no problem with calorie cycling, eating more on the days you lift and less on days you rest. If you want true progress though a bulk would be the way to go. I spun my wheels for 3 years before I decided to commit to a bulk, and I made the best progress in only 4 short months. I plan on doing another long bulk after the summer.

yep.

If you are bulking for more than a few days and eating sodium and carbs, the bloat is pretty much inevitable. my face always bloats first, it subsides a little as I keep bulking, but will only go away after a maintenance day or two.

If you want a successful bulk, you have to overcome mental barriers. It sucks, but there isnt much you can do other than keep sodium low or carb cycle.

itsbasschick

when you put on muscle in your arm, and there's fat covering the muscle, your arms will be bigger and will not look cut and vascular - what you call bloat may just be fat covering the arm muscles.

charlieibeling

try cycling your carbs. Carbs store water which causes bloat. So if on you higher days you are eating say 250g, have a few days where you cut down to about 75 and maybe increase fats a bit. This should cause water weight to drop and let you know its the carbs. you should look drier and harder. This is also a technique i use on non training days to stay lean while bulking up

__freckles__

It sounds like water retention and that just happens to be where your body like to bloat. I just bulked for 15 weeks (gained 8 pounds) and felt bloated everywhere the whole time. The others are right - bulking is a mind *kitten*. If you're going to do it, you need to fully commit, otherwise you are just wasting your time. You should aim to gain a half a pound a week and just trust the process. I can say that after eating at maintenance for 1 week all my bloat was gone.