Gaining Muscle and Calories

Zichu

Hey, I started strength training last week and I am slowly seeing noticeable results. I can see more definition than I could before I was doing any training at all. I changed my calorie intake last week to maintenance, but I keep hearing you need to eat more than a maintenance intake to build muscle. I don't want to get massive or anything lol.

My weight as of Saturday is 122.4lb. I put on a lb since the week before that, which is just before I started training. My calorie intake was 1600 or so, I changed it so now it's about 1800 calories.

Do you think I should increase my calorie goal to about 2000 calories a day? I probably don't workout as much as a lot of the people on here and because I have just started, I guess I should gradually increase my calorie goal to help me build the muscle. Also, if I do increase my calorie intake, the extra calories wouldn't just start storing as fat would it? I don't really know how to explain this, but would my increase in muscle mass require more food for it to stay there meaning the food isn't being stored as fat.

Cheers

kdiamond

What is your height and age?

I did a recomp on maintenance calories (1850), and gained some good muscle, but more like lean muscle. I actually decreased a couple inches on my hips and thighs and increased my biceps and shoulders. I followed the New Rules of Lifting book and did 3 full body workouts a week (as prescribed by the book) and 1 other plyometrics kind of workout with a little HIIT cardio thrown in there. I did no other cardio. I think that was important!

Zichu

I'm 5'5" and 19, almost 20. I'm male by just to add lol.

To be accurate my calorie goal is 1870 which is at maintenance, so no gain and no loss.

wellbert

Add calories when you stall.

you should be increasing the weight every time you train since you are a beginner,

if you quickly stop gaining strength, add the calories in.

kdiamond

You're a male, 122 pounds, and technically probably still growing.

EAT! OMG definitely get up to at least 2000 calories...lots of protein. And lift heavy!

Zichu

Ha I will increase it to 2000 calories then >.<