How to gain muscle

yogamom16

I really want to gain some muscle. I do lots of cardio but not much else. I started at 165lbs and I am now 131lbs 5ft 2in. I still look fat. Everything is all loose and I have no muscle definition at all.

I do NOT have time to meet with a trainer and spend hours at a gym. I am a busy mom of 3 and there are not enough hours in the day as it is.

Can someone tell me what I can do at home to gain some muscle? I am not looking to be like the women in one of those muscle magazines, I just want to be able to walk without everything jiggling. KWIM?

I do have some Jillian Michales DVDs. Are those enough? Are there any better programs? All information is greatly appreciated!!

Acg67

I really want to gain some muscle. I do lots of cardio but not much else. I started at 165lbs and I am now 131lbs 5ft 2in. I still look fat. Everything is all loose and I have no muscle definition at all.

I do NOT have time to meet with a trainer and spend hours at a gym. I am a busy mom of 3 and there are not enough hours in the day as it is.

Can someone tell me what I can do at home to gain some muscle? I am not looking to be like the women in one of those muscle magazines, I just want to be able to walk without everything jiggling. KWIM?

I do have some Jillian Michales DVDs. Are those enough? Are there any better programs? All information is greatly appreciated!!

Limit cardio

Eat in a surplus

Get a weight set and lift heavy. Starting strength, strong lifts 5x5 or new rules of lifting for women would be a good starting program

wellbert

Good news. A program like Starting Strength or Stronglifts takes almost no time at all in the gym.

Spanaval

The answer is to lift, and lift heavy. I think that Stronglifts 5x5 is time efficient as well. If you don't want to go that far, Jillian is as good a place to start as any. Personally, I like Bob Harper much better, and his Pure Burn Super Strength is an excellent if long strength training workout.

docktorfokse

Instead of doing Jillian Michaels, I really think that time would be better spent lifting. Also, lifting heavy weights does not a bodybuilder make as long as you don't plan on injecting male hormones.

engineman312

have you heard of staci?? she's awesome

http://nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

on the left she is 131 lbs, on the right she is 142 lbs.



if you want something to do at home, start here: http://nerdfitness.com/blog/2009/12/09/beginner-body-weight-workout-burn-fat-build-muscle/

but saying that you don't have time to meet with a trainer or spend hours at a gym is just wrong. we are all given the same, finite amount of time. we make the most of it where we can.

remember this:



couldn't fine one that said 'working out' or 'exercising,' but you get the idea.

Testosterone

i really like that motivational poster.

Testosterone

the other thing is, my wife is a busy mom too, she still manages to go to the gym, lift weights, and do cardio. dont use your kids as an excuse. use them as a motivation for why you want to be healthier. the example you set is the example they will follow.

jetscreaminagain

Unless you have a squat rack at home or are willing to go to a gym with day care, New Rules of Lifting for Women (which I and several other MFP women do) and Strong lifts (pretty sure) are not for you.

However, it is an old, a bit outdated book, but good all the same: Body for Life. It will give you a work out for your upper body on one day, lower body another day and intervals for twenty minutes on the non-lifting days. six days a week. The longest workout is 46 minutes. By comparison, today's New Rules workout took me an hour and a half with all the rest periods between sets.

Whatever you do, do lift some heavy things and put them down. Congrats on doing such a GREAT job losing weight.

yogamom16

Thank you for all the advice I really do appreciate it.

For the few that have said that I do have time to go to the gym and get a trainer, I promise you I cant. I cannot bring my 1 year old to a gym. Actually I really cant bring her anywhere due to her health problems. She cannot go to a daycare or basically ANYWHERE where she can come in contact with other sick kids until after she has her open heart surgery. My husband works out of town for half of every month and my closest family members live over 1000 miles away. So basically I have no support, no babysitter, no help at all.

These are not excuses this is my life. And I DO want to get healthier. I have lost 34lbs over the past year all on my own with no gym or trainer and the only time I have to workout is when my baby is taking a nap. I may not be physically strong YET but I am mentally strong and I think I set a damn good example for my kids.

yogamom16

Unless you have a squat rack at home or are willing to go to a gym with day care, New Rules of Lifting for Women (which I and several other MFP women do) and Strong lifts (pretty sure) are not for you.

However, it is an old, a bit outdated book, but good all the same: Body for Life. It will give you a work out for your upper body on one day, lower body another day and intervals for twenty minutes on the non-lifting days. six days a week. The longest workout is 46 minutes. By comparison, today's New Rules workout took me an hour and a half with all the rest periods between sets.

Whatever you do, do lift some heavy things and put them down. Congrats on doing such a GREAT job losing weight.

Thank you! I do not have a squat rack. And actually I dont even know what that is! lol I will look into the book that you mentioned. I just need to learn the basics and I will be able to figure out a routine for myself.

engineman312

hey, i'm sorry to hear about your child and their condition. i hope everything works out.

Spanaval

Thank you for all the advice I really do appreciate it.

For the few that have said that I do have time to go to the gym and get a trainer, I promise you I cant. I cannot bring my 1 year old to a gym. Actually I really cant bring her anywhere due to her health problems. She cannot go to a daycare or basically ANYWHERE where she can come in contact with other sick kids until after she has her open heart surgery. My husband works out of town for half of every month and my closest family members live over 1000 miles away. So basically I have no support, no babysitter, no help at all.

These are not excuses this is my life. And I DO want to get healthier. I have lost 34lbs over the past year all on my own with no gym or trainer and the only time I have to workout is when my baby is taking a nap. I may not be physically strong YET but I am mentally strong and I think I set a damn good example for my kids.

Hugs. That has to be really tough. You sound very dedicated to your fitness goals, and I'm sure you'll get there. I have a 2 year old, and workout after she is down for the night. My longest workout is 67 minutes long (on Mondays), and I usually finish after 11:00 PM. Not the most convenient thing, but that's what works.

You can absolutely start with Jillian Michael's workout videos. I find her annoying, so I only do her stuff once a week. Focus on strength training. If you have Netflix, there is a Crunch fitness strength video on there (short, maybe 40 minutes?) that's decent. There are lots of Pilates and Yoga videos there that are excellent for increasing flexibility, balance and core strength.

LilRedRooster

As a stay at home mom myself, going to school in my "spare" time, I can't get to the gym often for weights, myself. I think the "New Rules of Weight Lifting" and lifting heavy are great, and I love lifting heavier when I do get the chance. Realistically, though, I can't always do it as a mom, so I have a few things I do.

I use resistance bands at home, which you can buy in places like Wal-Mart, or offline. There are many exercises you can YouTube using those, and they're great for lower body and upper body work.

Also, things like using your own bodyweight with lunges, squats, wall squats, pushups, chair dips, etc., are great if you're stuck at home. They won't give you the same muscles as you would get if you had access to weights, but it will definitely help to balance the cardio you do.

Also, do you do high intensity cardio? Like when I go running, I'll have days where I work on sprints, or hills. It's a great way to get higher intensity and hit different muscles.

Good luck! It's hard to make time for yourself, especially with huge obstacles, but you can do it.

dyannajoy

Thank you for all the advice I really do appreciate it.

For the few that have said that I do have time to go to the gym and get a trainer, I promise you I cant. I cannot bring my 1 year old to a gym. Actually I really cant bring her anywhere due to her health problems. She cannot go to a daycare or basically ANYWHERE where she can come in contact with other sick kids until after she has her open heart surgery. My husband works out of town for half of every month and my closest family members live over 1000 miles away. So basically I have no support, no babysitter, no help at all.

These are not excuses this is my life. And I DO want to get healthier. I have lost 34lbs over the past year all on my own with no gym or trainer and the only time I have to workout is when my baby is taking a nap. I may not be physically strong YET but I am mentally strong and I think I set a damn good example for my kids.

I think you are AMAZING!! My heart goes out to you.........there is nothing more painful emotionally than having an ill child. Take GENTLE care of YOU today and I will pray that you feel surrounded by LOVE and ALL your angels! HUGS, Dyanna

kdiamond

Good for you for really wanting to get in shape! I had 2 little kids and I was stuck at home with them too, I didn't go to a gym at all the first few years, but was able to get in pretty good shape with 2 dumbbell bars (the ones you can add weights to), a barbell, and a medicine ball. Lunges, deadlifts, squats...all good for building muscle. As long as you eat slightly above maintenance you will start gaining muscle. It takes a while though! I'd start with the book New Rules of Lifting for Women, and if you can get some of the basic equipment I mentioned, you can do everything in that book. It is a great place to start.

Testosterone

hey, i'm sorry to hear about your child and their condition. i hope everything works out.