i gained weight from gaining muscles

Hello,

i'm encountering this issue here :sad: ..i weight 154lb and my ideal weight is 127lb (i'm a female 24 years old)..i've been eating healthy and watching my calorie intake by not consuming more than 1200 cal per day
i also been exercising daily for an hour ..after two weeks i've noticed my weight hasn't changed and i gained muscles in my arms, thighs and calfs ..i wanna tone up but i wanna lose weight first :(
should i diet first then tone it up? since exercising will only replace my fat with muscles..i would really appreciate ur advice :)

Thanks
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Replies

  • pmteet
    pmteet Posts: 69
    Weight is just a number. Your goal of being healthy is more important than and number on a scale. You are clearly getting fit if you are gaining muscle.

    Michelle
  • jennifershoo
    jennifershoo Posts: 3,198 Member
    You're only going to build muscles if you eat at a calorie surplus. If you eat at a deficit, you'll lose weight (mostly fat if you lift heavy). If you started your new program recently, then your weight gain is probably water retention. Keep at it and the weight will eventually come off (again, if you eat at a deficit). Search the forum to calculate your TDEE and what your calorie intake should be. It should be more than 1200 cals if you exercise that much. Or I hope you said 1200 cals + eating back your exercises calories.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    You did NOT gain muscle in 2 weeks while eating 1200 calories. This is impossible.

    You might be retaining fluid and/or glycogen in your muscles making them appear larger temporarily.
  • ThoseRabbits
    ThoseRabbits Posts: 65 Member
    You did NOT gain muscle in 2 weeks while eating 1200 calories. This is impossible.

    You might be retaining fluid and/or glycogen in your muscles making them appear larger temporarily.

    hater..
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
    You did NOT gain muscle in 2 weeks while eating 1200 calories. This is impossible.

    You might be retaining fluid and/or glycogen in your muscles making them appear larger temporarily.
    Beat me to it.

    I wish I could gain muscle as easily as a lot of young women on super low calorie diets think they can.
  • JulesAlloggio
    JulesAlloggio Posts: 480 Member
    by only eating 1200 calories and working out. You probably put your body into starvation mode and it caused you to gain fat.

    You need to UP your calories in order to gain muscle mass.

    Same thing happened to me a few years back. I was barely eating and I went from 120lbs to 146 pounds...

    sorry to hear about your situation.
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
    You did NOT gain muscle in 2 weeks while eating 1200 calories. This is impossible.

    You might be retaining fluid and/or glycogen in your muscles making them appear larger temporarily.
    Beat me to it.

    I wish I could gain muscle as easily as a lot of young women on super low calorie diets think they can.

    ^ This. I've worked very hard for every shred of muscle I've been able to gain, and I eat quite a bit to do it.
  • vtmoon
    vtmoon Posts: 3,436 Member
    by only eating 1200 calories and working out. You probably put your body into starvation mode and it caused you to gain fat.

    You need to UP your calories in order to gain muscle mass.

    Same thing happened to me a few years back. I was barely eating and I went from 120lbs to 146 pounds...

    sorry to hear about your situation.

    Broscience much?
  • jazzi88
    jazzi88 Posts: 8
    @pmteet
    Thank you Michelle for your kind words :)...you are right it's more important to be healthy (^_^)

    @jennifershoo thanks! i'll search it up

    @ BusyLady406 thank you for your response :)..i've uploaded a pic of how my leg looks like now as my profile pic..can it possibly be just retained fluid?
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  • katy_trail
    katy_trail Posts: 1,992 Member
    i thought this was going to be another inspirational thread with a sarcastic title.
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
    You did NOT gain muscle in 2 weeks while eating 1200 calories. This is impossible.

    You might be retaining fluid and/or glycogen in your muscles making them appear larger temporarily.
    Beat me to it.

    I wish I could gain muscle as easily as a lot of young women on super low calorie diets think they can.

    ^ This. I've worked very hard for every shred of muscle I've been able to gain, and I eat quite a bit to do it.

    All the 1200 calorie women seem to gain muscle really fast. All the guys eating at a surplus, in the 2600 to 3000 and above range, take 6 months to add a couple lbs of muscle. Lol.

    It's all the testosterone that gets in the way of muscle growth . . .

    If you want to do it right, don't be afraid to eat at calorie maintenance or even a surplus, while strength training, so you do add muscle. Then cut your calories to reduce the fat. It is an excellent way to get the e'hm "toned" look you want. On the other hand if you're really wanting to lose the weight now, then go for a modest calorie deficit and be patient.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,708 Member
    You did NOT gain muscle in 2 weeks while eating 1200 calories. This is impossible.

    You might be retaining fluid and/or glycogen in your muscles making them appear larger temporarily.

    hater..

    No she is not a hater. As a former serious weight lifter I can attest to the fact that it took me 8 month of daily lifting and eating the appropriate diet to gain 3.5 kilos ( 7.5 pounds of muscle ).
    There are many factors at play from diet to hormones that actually make it v.e.r.y hard for women to gain muscle.
    So, please stop shouting " hater " . I would very respectfully think that you don't know what you are talking about......:o).
  • flitabout
    flitabout Posts: 200 Member
    who care what you weigh if it's all muscle then you will look great and be in good health!
  • jazzi88
    jazzi88 Posts: 8
    i really needed an advice from u guys since u have knowledge about these sort of things..i appreciate the ones who tried to help..really i find ur comments useful as it will help me in understanding what's going on
    i didn't think 1200 calories per day will put my body into starvation mode..perhaps i should increase my calorie intake and do cardio
  • ThoseRabbits
    ThoseRabbits Posts: 65 Member
    You did NOT gain muscle in 2 weeks while eating 1200 calories. This is impossible.

    You might be retaining fluid and/or glycogen in your muscles making them appear larger temporarily.

    hater..

    No she is not a hater. As a former serious weight lifter I can attest to the fact that it took me 8 month of daily lifting and eating the appropriate diet to gain 3.5 kilos ( 7.5 pounds of muscle ).
    There are many factors at play from diet to hormones that actually make it v.e.r.y hard for women to gain muscle.
    So, please stop shouting " hater " . I would very respectfully think that you don't know what you are talking about......:o).


    u are clearly WAY older then the op, so maybe she can gain muscle faster then u? everyones body iz different. u have no clue what youre talking about =)
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
    You did NOT gain muscle in 2 weeks while eating 1200 calories. This is impossible.

    You might be retaining fluid and/or glycogen in your muscles making them appear larger temporarily.

    hater..

    No she is not a hater. As a former serious weight lifter I can attest to the fact that it took me 8 month of daily lifting and eating the appropriate diet to gain 3.5 kilos ( 7.5 pounds of muscle ).
    There are many factors at play from diet to hormones that actually make it v.e.r.y hard for women to gain muscle.
    So, please stop shouting " hater " . I would very respectfully think that you don't know what you are talking about......:o).


    u are clearly WAY older then the op, so maybe she can gain muscle faster then u? everyones body iz different. u have no clue what youre talking about =)
    Dude, she is still a young woman (i.e. low testosterone) eating at a deficit.
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
    i really needed an advice from u guys since u have knowledge about these sort of things..i appreciate the ones who tried to help..really i find ur comments useful as it will help me in understanding what's going on
    i didn't think 1200 calories per day will put my body into starvation mode..perhaps i should increase my calorie intake and do cardio

    You're not in starvation mode but you may be eating too little to get the results you want. Starvation mode is thrown around on these forums way too much.
  • riccoismydog
    riccoismydog Posts: 319 Member
    by only eating 1200 calories and working out. You probably put your body into starvation mode and it caused you to gain fat.

    You need to UP your calories in order to gain muscle mass.

    Same thing happened to me a few years back. I was barely eating and I went from 120lbs to 146 pounds...

    sorry to hear about your situation.

    Broscience much?



    Utter broscience. I lose weight all the time on 1200 calories a day while exercising strenuously three days or more a week. I don't eat back my exercise calories unless I'm really hungry. I have never stalled doing it this way. So I call bull. Perhaps if I had as much muscle as the lady who posted the bro science I would need more calories, perhaps if I wasn't a midget I would.

    Scientifically speaking, it takes a lot of starving yourself to put you into starvation mode. Not just a 700 calorie a day total deficit. Which is the deficit I run by doing what I do.

    According to the math, my six foot husband who eats 2000 calories a day, and works out is in a much bigger deficit.

    People who can't operate a calculator shouldn't spout science they read on the internet, unless they can analyze it and think for themselves.

    Everyone is different.

    And, yes...I have increased strength while lifting heavy and eating a deficit. I don't think I grew any muscles but I sure as hell got stronger which is totally possible. A lot of people think being able to lift more and longer is growing muscles. I cannot say I argue with them.
  • jazzi88
    jazzi88 Posts: 8
    i really needed an advice from u guys since u have knowledge about these sort of things..i appreciate the ones who tried to help..really i find ur comments useful as it will help me in understanding what's going on
    i didn't think 1200 calories per day will put my body into starvation mode..perhaps i should increase my calorie intake and do cardio

    You're not in starvation mode but you may be eating too little to get the results you want. Starvation mode is thrown around on these forums way too much.

    i see, thanks for your clarification!
  • This was one of the hardest things for me to overcome! My scale wasn't budging, and I desperately wanted to see the scale go down. I was eating 1200 calories a day and working out an hour a day. It didn't start going down till I ADDED calories. If you are working out, your body needs the calories, if you don't feed your body, it will store the calories as fat! Keep working out, eat the right amount of calories, EAT CLEAN, and it will start to come off. And if you aren't getting enough water, your body will store the water, stopping the scale from moving. Look online for pictures comparing 1 pound of muscle vs 1 pound of fat. muscle is beautiful. Its much more compact and will give you the tight toned body you want. Healthy, strong is much more beautiful than Skinny.
  • Alta2000
    Alta2000 Posts: 655 Member

    @jennifershoo thanks! i'll search it up {/quote]

    Try this http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    Your calf is beautiful. But that muscle is not new. You've had it for a while. It might be a little swollen or you might have lost some weight making it appear more defined.
  • meeper123
    meeper123 Posts: 3,347 Member
    Its just water don't sweet it. It will drop off eventually Ignore the scale for now and get a tape measure :D
  • sexymuffintop
    sexymuffintop Posts: 636
    I see my mistake. I need to start eating 1200 a day and doing cardio and drop the weights, then I'm gonna pack on the muscle. God, I'm soooo silly.
  • riccoismydog
    riccoismydog Posts: 319 Member
    I love it when people who are already at the end of the journey give advice to people to eat more to lose more. Math is math folks. If eating more gives you the energy to work out more than eat more. If you want to eat more for other reasons, your going to have a very bad time.
  • JulesAlloggio
    JulesAlloggio Posts: 480 Member
    by only eating 1200 calories and working out. You probably put your body into starvation mode and it caused you to gain fat.

    You need to UP your calories in order to gain muscle mass.

    Same thing happened to me a few years back. I was barely eating and I went from 120lbs to 146 pounds...

    sorry to hear about your situation.

    Broscience much?


    Broscience no, Metabolic Damage yes...

    And what are your certifications?
  • JulesAlloggio
    JulesAlloggio Posts: 480 Member
    I love it when people who are already at the end of the journey give advice to people to eat more to lose more. Math is math folks. If eating more gives you the energy to work out more than eat more. If you want to eat more for other reasons, your going to have a very bad time.


    Its funny that you say this but unless you have actually done the "science" part of nutrition, go ahead and eat your measly 1200 calories and continuously work out like a cardio bunny. Go right ahead and look up VLCD because that's exactly what you're doing. You're eating 1200 calories and not eating back your exercise.

    so unless you've been there... don't be a know-it-all.

    Thanks.
  • I eat around 1200 calories a day and try to make it count by eating lots of good stuff. Most days I think I meet or even go over my protein requirements. This thing will tell me I am eating too few cals if I am below 1200 when I submit of journal at the end of the day. If you're not hungry and you've been eating like normal and around 1200 and fairly inactive all day I don't see how you would be in starvation mode, unless you're the type of person who is used to eating 2500 or more calories a day. Everyone's body is different, remember? Not everyone processes food in the same way, rate, etc. I do believe a person can wake muscles they have and start to see definition redevelop after a couple weeks.
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
    Hello,

    i'm encountering this issue here :sad: ..i weight 154lb and my ideal weight is 127lb (i'm a female 24 years old)..i've been eating healthy and watching my calorie intake by not consuming more than 1200 cal per day
    i also been exercising daily for an hour ..after two weeks i've noticed my weight hasn't changed and i gained muscles in my arms, thighs and calfs ..i wanna tone up but i wanna lose weight first :(
    should i diet first then tone it up? since exercising will only replace my fat with muscles..i would really appreciate ur advice :)

    Thanks

    Okay, rather than this thread turning into some meaningless fight, may I ask why you think you have gained muscle where you have? Have you measured the areas and seen a measured increase, have you calculated your body composition, or do you just think that you look bulky in those areas? Have you calculated your BMR and total daily calorie expenditure? What kind of exercise are you doing? If you're serious, then there is quite a bit of help available on here from individuals and groups.

    Edit: Also, how long have you been at 1200 calories a day? Two weeks? What and how much were you eating before that?