Myth: women can't bulk up

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Replies

  • 7opoundsin16weeks
    7opoundsin16weeks Posts: 211 Member
    I really have no idea what you are talking about. Are you for it, or against it?

    I am FOR weight lifting for women, but I am against the belief that there;s not way in hell women can look manly
  • Yanicka1
    Yanicka1 Posts: 4,564 Member
    And you believe she is a lifetime natural? Why?

    This^^^^ unless she is genetically gifted, have a testosterone imbalance ( like I do) ....she is on something. This is what a natural bodybuilder look like

    8605468115_89f6bfc434_m.jpg
    image by yanicka.hachez, on Flickr
  • Hezzietiger1
    Hezzietiger1 Posts: 1,256 Member
    If your goal is to look like a man.. u could maybe possibly get there, if u have high levels of testosterone, can lift a whole lot of weight and focus all your training to get there. But for the most part, lifting will just tone u up, build strength, burn fat and help u look healthier.. which is hot.
  • AllonsYtotheTardis
    AllonsYtotheTardis Posts: 16,947 Member
    First and Foremost....if a woman wants to look like that, that is her prerogative and trust me, no one is going to start lifting and accidentally get bulky without realizing it. They WANT to look like that and good for them.

    Alot of women I know, once you start lifting and growing, you want more. and more.

    I did mention that I understand this doesn't just suddenly happen, but it CAN happen and people should stop lying to women

    No one has been lying about it. They have been saying "women don't suddenly get bulky by accident". You are implying that they do.
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,219 Member
    Guys. You don't get the point here. What I am saying is that you can bulk up if you work hard enough. Say if you gain 20 lbs you would look toned, but if you gain 70 you would look manly. you dont get to 70 unless u pass through 20. that's what im saying.

    Good luck gaining those first 20 pounds of lean mass. You act like it's just going to happen, but you have to actually work at it. A woman would be lucky as hell to gain 10 pounds of lean mass in a year with specialized diet and training.

    ...like............ a HUGE calorie surplus

    HUGE

    the people here saying women wont bulk up are speaking to the women who are for the most part in a calorie DEFICIT and will NOT bulk up.

    science and stuff

    Took her 8 years to be able to bench 405. http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/criticalbench18.htm
  • 7opoundsin16weeks
    7opoundsin16weeks Posts: 211 Member
    First and Foremost....if a woman wants to look like that, that is her prerogative and trust me, no one is going to start lifting and accidentally get bulky without realizing it. They WANT to look like that and good for them.

    Alot of women I know, once you start lifting and growing, you want more. and more.

    I did mention that I understand this doesn't just suddenly happen, but it CAN happen and people should stop lying to women


    If you read carefully, this is not what i am implying
    No one has been lying about it. They have been saying "women don't suddenly get bulky by accident". You are implying that they do.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    I HIGHLY doubt she's natural.

    If or not a woman can "bulk up" depends on your definition of bulking. No, women can't look like Becca naturally. But yes, a woman can gain muscle mass, a decent amount if they want.

    But it's really really hard. I ate 3000 calories a day, worked out 4-5 days a week using a specific hypertrophy program. I did this for 4 months. I *might* have gained 4lbs of muscle and that was taking advantage of "newbie" gains.

    Eventually all natural lifters will reach their genetic potential, a point where it's very hard to add any strength or muscle. Women reach this much quicker than men do.
  • jk262
    jk262 Posts: 1,597 Member
    If you lift heavy weight low rep, you will gain mass.

    IF you're in a calorie surplus and work really damn hard on it for a very long time and happen to be genetically predisposed to it.

    Becca Swanson is 5'10 and 240 pounds and touted as the world's strongest woman. It's her goal to be that way.

    Avoiding lifting because you fear you'll look like her is like being afraid to read a book or you'll turn into Stephen Hawking.

    :laugh:
  • Zilla100
    Zilla100 Posts: 139 Member
    Jillian Michaels has pointed this out, that some women can bulk up easily, and she is one of them, so she does not lift heavy weights and she has to watch what she does and how she eats so she does not bulk up.
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  • CaffeinatedConfectionist
    CaffeinatedConfectionist Posts: 1,046 Member
    Avoiding lifting because you fear you'll look like her is like being afraid to read a book or you'll turn into Stephen Hawking.

    :love: QFT...and general awesomeness
  • MelsAuntie
    MelsAuntie Posts: 2,833 Member
    Well that's good to know. I do lift ( 5 and 8 lb. dumbbells) and I do NOT want to get visibly muscular. I have gained 1" around my biceps and that's plenty right there, thanks.
  • firstsip
    firstsip Posts: 8,399 Member
    Guys. You don't get the point here. What I am saying is that you can bulk up if you work hard enough. Say if you gain 20 lbs you would look toned, but if you gain 70 you would look manly. you dont get to 70 unless u pass through 20. that's what im saying.

    I'm on these boards quite often. Whenever this issue comes up, nearly every reputable answer says, "It's incredibly difficult for a woman to bulk." Not that they can't. And often, there's follow-up information of testosterone levels, steroids, and a huge surplus of calories/years and years of training to get to that point.

    Your whole OP is a straw-man; you are attacking a statement that isn't said that way.
  • Iron_Feline
    Iron_Feline Posts: 10,750 Member
    Jillian Michaels has pointed this out, that some women can bulk up easily, and she is one of them, so she does not lift heavy weights and she has to watch what she does and how she eats so she does not bulk up.

    Well if Jillian says it............
  • Cait_Sidhe
    Cait_Sidhe Posts: 3,150 Member
    If you lift heavy weight low rep, you will gain mass.

    Avoiding lifting because you fear you'll look like her is like being afraid to read a book or you'll turn into Stephen Hawking.
    This needs repeating.
  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
    I did mention that I understand this doesn't just suddenly happen, but it CAN happen and people should stop lying to women

    Yes it CAN happen if you WANT it to and do the WORK necessary. Nobody is going to lift 10 lbs and wake up one day looking like that. It takes dedication and a lot of hard work.

    Dedication, hard work, genes and steroids, in this case.

    And she still looks like a large framed, very fit woman.
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  • Contrarian
    Contrarian Posts: 8,138 Member
    Guys. You don't get the point here. What I am saying is that you can bulk up if you work hard enough.

    Well, yeah. If you train hard enough, you can also run a marathon. That doesn't mean that doing C25K for a week is going to make you suddenly be able to, though.

    I'm surprised that you think this is a revelation.
  • PaleoChocolateBear
    PaleoChocolateBear Posts: 2,844 Member
    So I'll use one very extreme case to prove my point, this kind of logic will work
  • MaraDiaz
    MaraDiaz Posts: 4,604 Member

    Avoiding lifting because you fear you'll look like her is like being afraid to read a book or you'll turn into Stephen Hawking.

    :laugh: :drinker:
  • devil_in_a_blue_dress
    devil_in_a_blue_dress Posts: 5,214 Member
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  • redheaddee
    redheaddee Posts: 2,005 Member
    Yes, but can guarantee you she didn't bulk up like that lifting 20-30 pounds three times a week.

    Therefore, your post is just adding to the hysteria of OH NOEZ MY HANDWEIGHTS ARE GONNA MAKE ME HUUUUUGE.

    This, lmao
  • Mrs_Bones
    Mrs_Bones Posts: 195 Member
    She seems pretty happy with how she looks, which is all that really matters. The amount of time, dedication, and planning that would go into making your body look that way is unfathomable. Also, that's not the norm. There's a saying that goes, "If you want to look like the top 5% of the population, you have to work harder than the other 95%"... That's her. You shape your body how you want to be shaped. If you started "bulking up" more than you wanted for YOUR body, you just just adjust your regime...

    Bottom line: Her body. Not your body.
  • glovepuppet
    glovepuppet Posts: 1,710 Member
    hmm... tedious, vacuous judgements on what 'feminine' should look like...

    how terribly original!
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    Guys. You don't get the point here. What I am saying is that you can bulk up if you work hard enough. Say if you gain 20 lbs you would look toned, but if you gain 70 you would look manly. you dont get to 70 unless u pass through 20. that's what im saying.

    The only point I saw was equating muscles with men. If you think having large muscles makes you manly, then you need a course in biology.
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    Rebecca Swanson is the strongest woman in the world! (as far as I know) How can you honestly compare someone who's trained so hard and for so long as to achieve that status, with the average female who wants to lift heavy, get stronger and build some muscle?!?!

    I'd also like to add that I highly highly doubt that she is natural! I'm not going to say anything bad about a person that chooses to use steroids, that's a choice they made and they still have to work damn hard - but you can't deny that she's most probably had some "help" in that department.
  • Hezzietiger1
    Hezzietiger1 Posts: 1,256 Member
    Jillian Michaels has pointed this out, that some women can bulk up easily, and she is one of them, so she does not lift heavy weights and she has to watch what she does and how she eats so she does not bulk up.

    I always thought she was a man.
  • Zilla100
    Zilla100 Posts: 139 Member
    Jillian Michaels has pointed this out, that some women can bulk up easily, and she is one of them, so she does not lift heavy weights and she has to watch what she does and how she eats so she does not bulk up.

    Well if Jillian says it............

    *shrug* Some women likely are more predisposed to gain muscle more quickly and some likely are more predisposed to gain more of it. Just like any other difference in bodies. Nothing wrong with what she said, it isn't like she spoke for ALL women.
  • PaleoChocolateBear
    PaleoChocolateBear Posts: 2,844 Member
    Jillian Michaels has pointed this out, that some women can bulk up easily, and she is one of them, so she does not lift heavy weights and she has to watch what she does and how she eats so she does not bulk up.

    I always thought she was a man.

    After what she did me I'm convinced she's a man