Muscle building noob. Need advice

nickyfm

So over the past few years, I have lost/gained weight a bagillion times. Basically because I set myself at a ridiculously low deficit, do a **** tonne of cardio, lose the weight, but then end up piling it back on because I have seldom muscle mass, and get sick of being hungry all the time.

Basically now I have decided to up my calories (used to hover around 1250, now sitting at 1400-1500) and lift 3 times a week, instead of maybe once. I have tried to change my macros to 60P 30F 30C, and follow it for the most part (not today though. REALLY wanted some fruit after lifting today), but I am really unsure as to how to go about nutrition to maximise my muscle gains?

My current workout routine is:
Monday: Pole dancing
Tuesday: Back day/HIIT treadmill
Wednesday: Treadmill/Legs day
Thursday: Pole dancing
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Body pump (weights class)
Sunday: Cycle class

I am 5"5 and am about 117 pounds. My BF% is 21.5%, and I am aiming for 19%. I want to lose about 5 pounds still as well, so I suppose that would be the first priority.

Diary is open and feedback is welcome

PHLLLY

What I was taught in school and what has worked for me is eating enough to recover. The percentage of CHO/PRO/FAT changes depending on my activity level. For instance my HIIT days are separate from my lifting days to enable my food is properly restoring what I just burned and help replenish my glycogen stores. On lifting days I eat more protein and lower the carb intake. However, consuming excess of any macro will cause weight gain. Meal timing is crucial. The optimum time is 30 mins to 2 hours and no later for consuming an after workout snack. Something that will absorb quickly through the blood stream into the muscle and liver cells such as simple carbs and amino acids/whey protein. After a workout and the morning you wake up is when I usually recommend simple carbs since you've been fasting since your last meal overnight.

Is there a reason you only workout just your legs and back on separate days? Ppole dancing and body pump is like a full body workout right? So you're still leaving out your shoulders, chest and arms individually. Have you tried like a three day split. Working out chest/tris - back/bis - legs/shoulders? or chest/back - bi/tri - legs/shoulders?

Some workout programs suggest building muscle mass first and reducing the amount of cardio. The more muscle mass you have the more calories you will burn. Then incorporating more cardio when you can maintain your muscle but still lose fat.

Natashaa1991

stop dancing and start lifting! i have the most amazing book called the new rules of lifting for women.
if you inbox me your email i can send it to you.
it explains EVERYTHING you need to know

mfpseven

maybe add a little cardio to the days you lift, something like 30 mins of running or so to get your heart pumping, I noticed that I lose the most with cardio more often and supplemental toning, then drop it back down after the 5lbs are gone

Chadomaniac

keep protein 1gram per pound lean bodymass , with the rest of your calories split evenly between carbs and protein . simple
nd try do compound training (squats and deadlifts) increase ur lbm

jesz124

I think you've already had enough conflicting advice in this thread so I'm not actually going to tell you what to do (not my place to tell anyone anything anyway lol) Basically my aim is to lose BF and gain muscle. I aim for between 140-150 protein daily, around 50g fat, the carbs make up the rest. I train 3 days a week, compound lifts, always trying to lift heavier. HIIT after for 15 minutes. It's works for me. I'm 5ft 4, around 22 % BF. It's getting lower, but its a slow process that requires patience.

DawnEH612

Your protein seems high. The recommendation for lifting is roughly 1 gram of protein for every pound you weigh, more if your competition level body builder, which you clearly are not. Honestly, you are not lifting much at all to put on any muscle size to speak of. It is extremely hard to add muscle weight and the average person can gain about 2 pounds/month of PURE muscle with optimal nutrition, training and genetics. Most classes I have ever taken, that incorporate weights, the weight segment is so light id barely call it lifting and certainly i would never make any muscular gains from those classes. I didn't start adding real muscle until i hit the free weights, hard! I also bring a protein drink with me to the gym and drink it immediately after i lift. A good quality, easy to absorb form of protein (i.e. whey isolate) should be ingested within 30 minutes of lifting. A healthy balanced meal should be consumed within 2 hours.
A good split schedule is back/biceps (pulling motion muscles), chest/triceps/shoulders (pushing motion muscles) and legs. Cardio on off days. Other split options are back/chest, shoulders/legs and arms or a less common split chest/biceps, legs/abs, back/triceps/shoulders. I happen to like this later spilt as it effectively trains your some of your accessory muscles twice a week as your biceps get a worked when you do back and triceps when you do chest.
Never lift two of the same muscles back to back days.. They need atleast one day off between.. So DONT lift chest one day and the very next day lift triceps or chest, again. Do a opposition body part like biceps or back.
You could also do upper body lower body split.
Check out this link. http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/womens-strength-training-guide.htm
Good luck...

nickyfm

Thanks for the advice all!

Definitely will start joining my friends on their lift days, because they isolate muscle groups each day.

However I WON'T give up pole dancing. If you did it, you'd understand the addiction :flowerforyou: hahah

TavistockToad

your deficit is too great, if your main goal is fat loss.

Chadomaniac

and i wont give up my addiction to pole dancers!

chrisdavey

Squat 3 x 10
Bench press 3 x 8
Bent row 3 x 8
Military press 3 x 8
Stiff leg deadlift 3 x 8
BB curl 3 x 8 (except I do pullups cause I like em)
info here http://ausbb.com/strength-training-power-lifting/9460-beginners-program.html

Both programs focus on big compound exercises which are the best bang for your buck. It will be easy at first (good because you should get lots of practice on form) but in a few weeks gets very tough.

And you can do some core stuff at the end if you want but all of those lifts utilise the core already anyway.

I'd do something like the following:
Monday: Pole dancing
Tuesday: full body compound lifts
Wednesday: rest/mobility/light cardio
Thursday: Pole dancing
Friday: full body compound lifts
Saturday: rest/mobility/light cardio
Sunday: Cycle class

Aim for 1g/lb of bw protein. 100g should be fine
fat around .3g/lb so 40g
Total cals around 1500-1700 IMO and the rest from carbs.

IMO I think you probably don't have a lot of fat to lose at all but after a bit of body recomp so the deficit doesn't need to be very large at all.

Hope that helps

xiamjackie

How do you have your macros set to 60 30 30? That doesn't equal 100.

xiamjackie

stop dancing and start lifting! i have the most amazing book called the new rules of lifting for women.
if you inbox me your email i can send it to you.
it explains EVERYTHING you need to know

LOVE THIS BOOK

ironanimal

First of all, I would say drop the Body Pump class (guessing that uses small weights in an aerobic fashion) and replace it with a decent chest/arm workout.

Also, I'd say take another rest day Sundays. Surely you won't miss stationary biking, and your body will have more time to repair the muscles you've worked during the week.

Finally; if you're doing your weight session properly on Wednesday, running is the last thing you're going to want to do.

With that out of the way, your macros are golden at 40:30:30. Your calorie intake is still on the low side for someone so young, doing so much exercise so if you find you're not progressing you might have to raise that number a little.

chrisdavey

oh and pole dancing is definitely a type of resistance training as well. I've had a go I think you will find a very small amount of big buff gym guys that can bust out human flags

nickyfm

How do you have your macros set to 60 30 30? That doesn't equal 100.

Bahaha math fail. I haven't done math in many, many years. My bad!!!
I meant 40:30:30. Oops

_stephanie0

So over the past few years, I have lost/gained weight a bagillion times. Basically because I set myself at a ridiculously low deficit, do a **** tonne of cardio, lose the weight, but then end up piling it back on because I have seldom muscle mass, and get sick of being hungry all the time.

Basically now I have decided to up my calories (used to hover around 1250, now sitting at 1400-1500) and lift 3 times a week, instead of maybe once. I have tried to change my macros to 60P 30F 30C, and follow it for the most part (not today though. REALLY wanted some fruit after lifting today), but I am really unsure as to how to go about nutrition to maximise my muscle gains?

My current workout routine is:
Monday: Pole dancing
Tuesday: Back day/HIIT treadmill
Wednesday: Treadmill/Legs day
Thursday: Pole dancing
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Body pump (weights class)
Sunday: Cycle class

I am 5"5 and am about 117 pounds. My BF% is 21.5%, and I am aiming for 19%. I want to lose about 5 pounds still as well, so I suppose that would be the first priority.

Diary is open and feedback is welcome

first, i am just like you. except i have been lifting for 2 years. HEAVY. i have put on minimal muscle (i SHOULD be a she-hulk right now)...because i havent been eating enough. to build muscle, you need a surplus of calories. you gain weight because you eat A LOT and a lot of the WRONG foods...your body needs a lot of quality foods. especially to build.

also, you are at a low weight. cut the cardio. seriously. keep the pole dancing if you want but cut the cardio completely. in one hour you can burn 500 cals lifting. you dont NEED cardio when trying to gain muscle... or maybe keep one day of HIIT.

also, i would suggest NO cardio on leg day or the day after leg day. i have been told this by many people.

calories is my most important piece of advice though. 1500 is too low. you wont build much muscle. http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/ use that to find the correct amount. aim for a 10% deficit of your TDEE. i actually reccommend EATING your TDEE...and rest at least twice a week! muscles need time to grow.

i am eating 2000-2500 cals a day right now in hopes of building muscle.


good luck!!

kels67camaro

I have lost/gained over and over again. In my opinion i still have alot of weight to lose, but since i have been lifiting i have noticed more changes in my body than i ever did with just losing weight. I am trying to get over the whole weigh in and see what the scale says.... At this point i am just trying to be healthy and lessen my BF %. My routine is

Mondays arms/shoulder/abs
Tuesday cardio
Wednesday legs/back
Thursday cardio
Friday arms/abs
Sat cardio
Sun OFF i do nothing!

kels67camaro

I have lost/gained over and over again. In my opinion i still have alot of weight to lose, but since i have been lifiting i have noticed more changes in my body than i ever did with just losing weight. I am trying to get over the whole weigh in and see what the scale says.... At this point i am just trying to be healthy and lessen my BF %. My routine is

Mondays arms/shoulder/abs
Tuesday cardio
Wednesday legs/back
Thursday cardio
Friday arms/abs
Sat cardio
Sun OFF i do nothing!


Oh and every exercise is 3x 12