Can Women Get Bulky?

natika33

I thought this was an interesting article in and of itself, but what really attracted me to it were the pictures of the varied body types of Olympic female athletes. Not all, but a lot of these women have bulky thighs, or at least bulkier than many women want. Some of them probably weight-lifted to get there, but not all of them - it would depend on the nature of their sport.

Now, I realise that these women trained hard and long to get those physiques, but it certainly makes one wonder about all the claims that women can't bulk up. Personally, I think many women can bulk up (at least more than they'd like too) and don't even need to do heavy lifting to do it. Take a look at these pictures and see if you don't think otherwise.

http://www.stumptuous.com/why-dont-you-look-like-a-fitness-model

LorinaLynn

How many of us are training like an Olympic athlete?

Of course women *can* get large muscles, but it doesn't happen overnight, nor does it happen accidentally.

natika33

Of course it doesn't happen overnight, however there are many many people claiming on here that no matter how hard a woman trains she won't bulk up. I beg to differ, not only because of this article but because of personal experience.

If you look at all the pictures another trend emerges as well. Women training for the same sport often have a different look to them. Since their training would probably be very similar at the Olympic level, the unaccountable variation is genetics. There are also a lot of people on here claiming that "You are not different" when in fact, we are all different. Some women (and men of course) have a much easier time putting on muscle and bulking up than others. I think it is unwise to be insisting that something will definitely not happen when, in fact, there's a chance it could.

Merithyn

I bulk up very quickly and very easily. Right now, my calves are larger than my 18-year-old son's simply by walking 5-7 miles every day (with zero excess flesh, I should add). Just as in all things, it's a matter of body type. If I want to look lean, I have to be very careful with the type of exercise I do - no weight lifting at all - and even then, I'm bulkier than my counterparts.

As in all things, there is no "absolute" on what anyone can or cannot do. Every person is an individual, and with that comes individual results.

wellbert

Naturally? Bigger? Yeah. Look at some of the pictures of the girls at lift big eat big. They have seriously bulky legs. (So hot.)

HeidiMightyRawr

The main difference between athletes and women on here, is not just the amount of training, but also the amount of food. Athletes no doubt have to eat a lot of food/calories to fuel their bodies and give them enough energy to do what they do. Most women on here are on a deficit. It is near impossible (very hard) for anyone, especially women, to gain muscle while on a deficit.

If women trained like an athlete for a good number of years, and ate sufficient food while having some sort of resistance training then yes I'm sure some may get more bulky than they wish. However, how often will that happen? Most people here just want to lose fat, and look toned (a little definition) so they needn't worry about bulking up.

LindaCWy

You basically need to eat like 3-4x what people on MFP eat to get that way, and it mostly has to be chicken. I read that J Cutler orders pounds and pounds of chicken to last him each week. We're talking 4 oz chicken for breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, plus veggies, some carbs and protein drinks.

I think we are all safe

blonde71

I think if women get "bulky" it's because they are eating loads more than the average Jane and lifting heavy for a few hours daily.

I'm lifting pretty heavy (for me) and I've yet to "bulk" up. If anything I've filled out in places that needed to be filled out and slimmed the areas down that were problems. Maybe I'm different because I've always been not that strong or muscular so I was happy when I started to see my body change from weakling to fit.

Bentley2718

Women can get bulky, but most people are not going to train hard enough to do so. Moreover, if you are training for fitness or to obtain a given physique, rather than training to improve performance at a sport you are dedicated to, you can back off on what you are doing if you start to think you look "too bulky."

HeidiMightyRawr

Of course it doesn't happen overnight, however there are many many people claiming on here that no matter how hard a woman trains she won't bulk up.

It's less to do with training and more to do with eating tbh. Obviously you need to train hard, but a lot of people don't realise how much food plays a part in muscle building.
I've done a "bulk" before purposefully. Before that I had little muscle definition (only a bit in biceps/shoulders) although I lifted heavy for over a year. Now I put on muscle easily, I think, and yet I didn't actually start gaining any until I was eating to bulk up (3,000 calories a day +)

bathsheba_c

Okay, women can get bulky, whatever that means. But let's not also forget that Olympic athletes tend to excel not only due to their athleticism, but due to their body shape. So if an Olympic sport favors women with larger muscles, such as weighlifting and bodybuilding, you are going to see more pictures of women with larger muscles. At the same time, some sports favor women with petite frames, like gymnastics, or thin frames, like pole vaulters. Then, of course, Olympic athletes spend their lives in training, which only further pushes them towards whatever extreme is valuable in their individual sport.

Maybe I'm just not getting the obssession with not becoming "bulky" since I think muscles look nice on a woman.

Bentley2718

You basically need to eat like 3-4x what people on MFP eat to get that way, and it mostly has to be chicken. I read that J Cutler orders pounds and pounds of chicken to last him each week. We're talking 4 oz chicken for breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, plus veggies, some carbs and protein drinks.

I think we are all safe

You do not need to eat chicken to get bulky. There are professional athletes, including body builders who are vegans--eating dead birds is a personal preference, not a necessity.

Smuterella

I want to be bulky. Waaah!

LorinaLynn

Plus, we have to accept the body type that we have. People get a "goal body" in their head - which are often heavily photoshopped - and are disappointed if they don't match up.

I have a significant amount of muscle on my legs. It's also were my body likes to hold onto fat. If my goal was to have legs like a Victoria's Secrets model with a thigh gap, the only way to achieve that would be complete bed rest so my muscles atrophied. Not an option.

Personally, I'd rather my meaty legs (which, in my opinion, look pretty damn hot in a pair of high heels, despite being meaty) that are strong and muscular than non-bulky sticks.

Also, like others have said, Olympic athletes have bodies that are specific to their sport. Similarly, a Quarter Horse - which does sprints - is a stockier built horse than an Arabian, which do endurance running. Both are smaller than draft horses like Clydesdales.

Sarauk2sf

First of all - most of the ladies are not actually bulky. There are a few that would be considered 'bulky' however to get there they

- need to eat a *kitten* load of food
- need to train very very intensively
- have the proper genetics to do so


Highly unlikely many of us 'average janes' will ever have to worry about that.

ETA: if you notice what the more muscular women do - they definately lift heavy

natika33

I've gone through a lot of posts on here and although most people are here to lose weight and diet, there are plenty of people here for other reasons. There are also a lot of ex-athletes on here who've gotten soft and want to tone again or perhaps even become skinnier (less bulky) than they once were.

If you already had large muscles in the past (and many ex-athletes actually still have large muscles under the fat), you actually have a much easier time of putting muscle on again, yet over and over again people are cajoled to lift weights and nearly every time they or someone else expresses concern they are shot down.

I have doubt. I don't like absolutes or advice given out indiscriminately. There are exceptions to nearly every rule and there are plenty of past experts who've been proven wrong before. So, I am playing Devil's Advocate a bit here.

Abells

Did you read the full article on how these women get there?? They aren't just hitting the gym and lifting weights, there is waaaaay more to it as written.

Sarauk2sf

I've gone through a lot of posts on here and although most people are here to lose weight and diet, there are plenty of people here for other reasons. There are also a lot of ex-athletes on here who've gotten soft and want to tone again or perhaps even become skinnier (less bulky) than they once were.

If you already had large muscles in the past (and many ex-athletes actually still have large muscles under the fat), you actually have a much easier time of putting muscle on again, yet over and over again people are cajoled to lift weights and nearly every time they or someone else expresses concern they are shot down.

I have doubt. I don't like absolutes or advice given out indiscriminately. There are exceptions to nearly every rule and there are plenty of past experts who've been proven wrong before. So, I am playing Devil's Advocate a bit here.

You will also notice that the advice is given to people eating at a deficit - these women are not - so I am not sure what you are really trying to achieve here.

BerryH

Most women who believe they "bulk up" as soon as they look at a pink dumbbell in fact:
1. have muscles slightly swollen by fluid helping repair fibres and transport away waste products
2. may have built some new muscle before losing much body fat and are seeing fat over the muscles.

How do I know? I've been there. I thought I had "footballer calves" from running, but I could fit into knee boots after I lost body fat. I thought I had "butchers arms" from lifting weights but I got into the skimpiest shirts after I lost body fat.

And I'm an absolute light-weight compared to some of the amazing ladies here who through hard work, dedication and lifting heavy enough to make gym jocks wince have trimmed their body fat to athlete levels and have the teeny waists and slender legs of fitness models.

LorinaLynn

I looked at the photos again. The only three that jumped out at me as "I don't want to be that big" were the body builder (who was flexing and had very low body fat, so she probably looks a world different under normal circumstances), and the first weightlifter and the hammer throw who look bulky due to higher body fat plus a lot of muscle. Everyone else looks normal, healthy and beautiful. And it's not like I'm EVER going to be body building or lifting to Olympic standards.

On the other hand, I don't think I've ever seen a woman on here who says, "I'm too bulky... I put on muscle too easily" who actually showed a photo of what that meant to her. Which makes me wonder what they consider bulky... is it not measuring up to a doctored photo in a magazine? Being bigger than Jennifer Aniston?

natika33

Did you read the full article on how these women get there?? They aren't just hitting the gym and lifting weights, there is waaaaay more to it as written.

The article wasn't exactly about those women in the pictures, but yes, I am aware they were working out a LOT harder than the average woman (and some of them were attempting to bulk up specifically, though I'm not sure the gymnasts or the swimmers were attempting to bulk up per say).

The point is not that someone will lift up a weight and suddenly put on 10lbs of pure muscle. The only point I was trying to make was that women CAN bulk up and shouldn't be told indiscriminately that they can't. If they are ex-athletes or just prone to putting on muscle, that chance is even greater.

Everyone has made a very good point about food being important too and that is true. However, when you say "we are eating in a deficit", you are not accounting for improper or mistaken logging where a woman might think she is eating in a deficit but is actually above.

I continue to have doubt.

ZoeLifts

I looked at the photos again. The only three that jumped out at me as "I don't want to be that big" were the body builder (who was flexing and had very low body fat, so she probably looks a world different under normal circumstances), and the first weightlifter and the hammer throw who look bulky due to higher body fat plus a lot of muscle. Everyone else looks normal, healthy and beautiful.

On the other hand, I don't think I've ever seen a woman on here who says, "I'm too bulky... I put on muscle too easily" who actually showed a photo of what that meant to her. Which makes me wonder what they consider bulky... is it not measuring up to a doctored photo in a magazine? Being bigger than Jennifer Aniston?

I'm with you, but perhaps my definition of "bulky" is very different than others. I didn't think the woman that was a bodybuilder was bulky, just that she had low body fat and great definition and I was jealous, while the other two were more of what I consider when I hear the term bulky, if I really wanted to use that term. Each and every woman looked beautiful and was beautifully crafted for their special gifts as athletes. Am I out of line for looking at them that way? The gymnasts were slim and lithe, yet obviously very strong looking, just as the pole vaulters and the ones that need more power in the legs to excel had more obvious muscle in their thighs. Is that what other women mean by being bulky?

There is a huge difference between someone training for specialized use of their muscles, as these women are, or as professional body builders, and those of us that are trying to shear off that layer of fat to expose defined muscle underneath. Lifting a weight here and there is not going to make one look like an extreme athlete like each of these ladies represent.

Here are my goals for lifting heavy weights: build strength, expose the muscle underneath the fat to have definition and shape, up my metabolism so I don't have to starve myself to keep fat off, lose body fat so clothes look great on my body, be healthy.

natika33

I think if women get "bulky" it's because they are eating loads more than the average Jane and lifting heavy for a few hours daily.

I'm lifting pretty heavy (for me) and I've yet to "bulk" up. If anything I've filled out in places that needed to be filled out and slimmed the areas down that were problems. Maybe I'm different because I've always been not that strong or muscular so I was happy when I started to see my body change from weakling to fit.

Actually, you mentioned in another thread that your thighs were getting bigger than was to your liking so you were scaling back....

Sarauk2sf

Did you read the full article on how these women get there?? They aren't just hitting the gym and lifting weights, there is waaaaay more to it as written.

The article wasn't exactly about those women in the pictures, but yes, I am aware they were working out a LOT harder than the average woman (and some of them were attempting to bulk up specifically, though I'm not sure the gymnasts or the swimmers were attempting to bulk up per say).

The point is not that someone will lift up a weight and suddenly put on 10lbs of pure muscle. The only point I was trying to make was that women CAN bulk up and shouldn't be told indiscriminately that they can't. If they are ex-athletes or just prone to putting on muscle, that chance is even greater.

Everyone has made a very good point about food being important too and that is true. However, when you say "we are eating in a deficit", you are not accounting for improper or mistaken logging where a woman might think she is eating in a deficit but is actually above.

I continue to have doubt.

A couple of hundred calories extra each day will NOT get to what the few women in the pictures who may be considered 'bulky' get to - they eat a boat load more than that. Most of the women in the are not that muscular at all and you can bet most of them lift heavy weights. If these highly trained athletes do not bulk up, why would be expect the mass population of women to?

And you will obviously continue to have doubt.

blonde71

I think if women get "bulky" it's because they are eating loads more than the average Jane and lifting heavy for a few hours daily.

I'm lifting pretty heavy (for me) and I've yet to "bulk" up. If anything I've filled out in places that needed to be filled out and slimmed the areas down that were problems. Maybe I'm different because I've always been not that strong or muscular so I was happy when I started to see my body change from weakling to fit.

Actually, you mentioned in another thread that your thighs were getting bigger than was to your liking so you were scaling back....

I said a little bigger not bulky like a She-hulk, lol. I don't think I look "bulky" or big in my avatar. Just sayin'.

FWIW, I'm also scaling back because my older son was diagnosed with special needs one month ago but that's nothing I'm going to discuss here.

ZoeLifts

BTW, when I google the word bulky, this is what I get:

bulk·y/ˈbəlkē/
Adjective:
Taking up much space, typically inconveniently; large and unwieldy.
(of a person) Heavily built.

This, to me, is a very different definition from what people throw around to describe women who have muscular frames. I just want to clarify where I am coming from when I see that term.

ZoeLifts

I think if women get "bulky" it's because they are eating loads more than the average Jane and lifting heavy for a few hours daily.

I'm lifting pretty heavy (for me) and I've yet to "bulk" up. If anything I've filled out in places that needed to be filled out and slimmed the areas down that were problems. Maybe I'm different because I've always been not that strong or muscular so I was happy when I started to see my body change from weakling to fit.

Actually, you mentioned in another thread that your thighs were getting bigger than was to your liking so you were scaling back....

I said bigger not bulky like a She-hulk, lol. I don't think I look "bulky" or big in my avatar. Just sayin'.

I think you look awesome!!

blonde71

I think if women get "bulky" it's because they are eating loads more than the average Jane and lifting heavy for a few hours daily.

I'm lifting pretty heavy (for me) and I've yet to "bulk" up. If anything I've filled out in places that needed to be filled out and slimmed the areas down that were problems. Maybe I'm different because I've always been not that strong or muscular so I was happy when I started to see my body change from weakling to fit.

Actually, you mentioned in another thread that your thighs were getting bigger than was to your liking so you were scaling back....

I said bigger not bulky like a She-hulk, lol. I don't think I look "bulky" or big in my avatar. Just sayin'.

I think you look awesome!!

If you knew what was going on in my RL, you'd know that what you just wrote, totally made my day, week and year. Thanks!!

ZoeLifts

I think if women get "bulky" it's because they are eating loads more than the average Jane and lifting heavy for a few hours daily.

I'm lifting pretty heavy (for me) and I've yet to "bulk" up. If anything I've filled out in places that needed to be filled out and slimmed the areas down that were problems. Maybe I'm different because I've always been not that strong or muscular so I was happy when I started to see my body change from weakling to fit.

Actually, you mentioned in another thread that your thighs were getting bigger than was to your liking so you were scaling back....

I said bigger not bulky like a She-hulk, lol. I don't think I look "bulky" or big in my avatar. Just sayin'.

I think you look awesome!!

If you knew what was going on in my RL, you'd know that what you just wrote, totally made my day, week and year. Thanks!!

I'm glad I could help make things brighter for you! It is only the truth! :flowerforyou:

tcm118

I think the article is fantastic. I don't personally know what to think about "bulking up." I haven't ever had low enough body fat to be concerned about too much muscle. We shall see when I get there. Truthfully, I doubt I'll ever get slim thighs. However, it would be great for my thighs and butt to be big because of muscle. I will accept it!

natika33

I get that many women want definition or want to bulk up. I'm not trying to discourage anyone from those goals. However, I see lots of women that really don't want to bulk up (even a little), or those (like me) who want to slim down muscles they already have. There doesn't seem to be a lot of good advice for how to go about that and all over the place there are people saying "Woman can't bulk up." In some places, it even looks like they haven't read the original post and have just said that indiscriminately.

My purpose was merely to state my doubt. I assumed (correctly) that I would get plenty of counter-arguments. I would be happy to be proven wrong, just as I would also be happy if someone had interesting advice.

Also, yes, I agree with BerryH that some women believe they will "bulk up" as soon as they look at a pink dumbbell. You are quite correct (in my opinion) that water retention and swelling in the beginning can be mistaken and during that time it is important to encourage such women to continue.

However, I take major issues with saying "most" or "all" (I'm not saying you think that, but I'm going by the amount of posts where "women can't bulk up" was given as the only response to any kind of doubt). There are plenty of people here who understand the difference between water retention and real muscle gain. Some people are actually quite in touch with their bodies despite having gone soft. As someone who knows she builds muscle easily and quickly, it is extremely disheartening to hear over and over again that this can't happen or if it does there is no way to prevent it so give up and accept it.