Muscle weight info please!

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AprilHead
AprilHead Posts: 36 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi, I started a new job that makes me commute about an hour a day total on my bike. Before this I hadn't ridden a bike since I was twelve. Haha!

So here's the issue - I've gained weight so I stopped myfitnesspal for a few days. However, I'm pretty sure it's muscle weight since my waist measurement has actually gone down a half an inch.

A few questions: Should I change my activity level from lightly active to something a little higher? My job is a desk one but I do ride my bike for about an hour a day (over some hills too).

Also, just so I know whether or not I'm deluding myself, how much is reasonable weigh gain for muscle? I swear my butt is bigger and I've gained like 3-4 lbs in two weeks If I'm gaining muscle and losing fat, then maybe I should raise my goal weight from 120 to something a little higher than that. 1'm 5'4, and about 125 lbs.

Any advice would be appreciated. I heart you, fitness pals! Also, feel free to friend me if you want.
-April

Replies

  • Arizona_JR
    Arizona_JR Posts: 275
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    1 pound of muscle can take months to develop (especially if you are a low-cal eater). It is much easier to gain several pounds in water weight if you don't drink enough, and eat too much sodium.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,239 Member
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    It is unlikely it is muscle, although I guess it is possible. Here is probably what happened to you http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/200544-why-do-you-sometimes-gain-weight-when-starting-a-new-exercis

    It is for reasons like that that the scale is really not a good gauge of progress, especially by itself.
  • WifeMomDVM
    WifeMomDVM Posts: 1,025 Member
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    FYI - it takes 2800 calories to build one pound of muscle so to gain to 3-4 lbs of muscle you would have to eat ALOT of calories.

    As others mentioned - likely water retention. But - over time, with proper diet and healthy eating, you can lose fat and build lean muscle. Good luck!
  • AprilHead
    AprilHead Posts: 36 Member
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    Oh man, after reading that stuff it probably IS water retention! If it doesn't come off in about a week though, I guess blaming it on muscle weight is out of the question. Hahaha! Thanks guys, you helped a lot. :)
  • piccolarj
    piccolarj Posts: 488 Member
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    I am a cyclist and if you are using MFP to calculate your calories burn and eating back those calories you are probably eating too much back. So maybe try cutting what MFP say in half. I use a HRM on my bike and MFP is usually way more than what it says. Hope that helps!!
  • Luthorcrow
    Luthorcrow Posts: 193
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    As as been stated above gaining muscle requires eating more than your daily BMR. It is actually hard to gain muscles and even beginners during the explosion phase are lucky to put a 1lb in a week.

    If you really want to know you could get a digital scale that does body fat percentages. You just need to make sure to use it the same time of day that way you will get consistent results. I use my when I first wake after I have gone to the bathroom. I am using the EatSmart Precision GetFit Digital Body Fat Scale. It gives you percentages for body fat, muscle, water and bone mass.

    http://www.eatsmartproducts.com/products - mine is the one on the bottom of the page.
  • Swimgoddess
    Swimgoddess Posts: 711 Member
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    I lost 11lbs of fat and gained 5lbs of muscle per the calipers (yes, same trainer measured both times and he knows his sh!+) in 6 weeks mainly through circuit weight training 40-75min 2-4x/week.

    So glad I had that info, otherwise I would've thrown in the towel a long time ago as the Tanita scale read only a 6lb loss and 2% body fat from a whoppingly inaccurate 36% to 34%.

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