stop overdoing cardio and hit the damn weights!!!

I love the way some people say the best way to burn more calories is to add more muscle, by lifting weights. Then others say, women don't bulk -- that is, they really do not put on much muscle when they lift.

Gah! I find myself wondering about this, too. Say if a woman wasn't aware of the impact nutrition could have on her results, decides to exercise by lifting heavy weights but not drop the calories, indeed you only build muscle in a surplus. Couldn't she then get bigger, more shapely muscles, but with the fat over them just appear bulkier? With cardio only they probably just wouldn't by smaller but the look of the muscles would not really change. But when some women say this is their experience they're told to shut up and only the ones who got sexy from lifting can speak. Also when people point out women who've indeed got muscly and ripped from lifting, they're told to shut up and leave those women alone.

Bulky or not has nothing to do with why I don't lift 140lbs, just thought the information out there can tend to be a bit one sided, and perhaps we let it be since lifting is, after all pretty great for your health

Here's what you're confusing. If you're eating in a deficit and not lifting, you're losing LBM along with fat. If you're lifting and eating in a deficit you're maintaining as much LBM as you can. You're not gaining muscle, you're maintaining what you have. So yes, it is extremely difficult for a woman to gain muscle mass and/or get bulky, but by lifting you're maining that muscle mass you already have, rather than losing both fat AND muscle.

It's not necissarily that the best way to burn more calories is to add more mass (as stated, it's really....really hard for a female to put on mass due to testosterone levels), it's to maintain what you've got.

I think you've addressed a caloric deficit quite well, but what about a surplus? This is evidenced by people on here asking why they're exercising but either gaining weight or losing no weight. Also, the sub 150lb women who gain weight but get smaller would have to have built muscle, regardless of how hard it is, correct? So it makes me wonder if it's really impossible for a woman to feel "big" or "bulky" because although she may have exercising her diet is not entirely in check and the muscles have grown. Or even in other cases what if the muscle does grow or get some definition, but the fat decides not to come off that location at first? I just think there's a bit more to the, "you're stupid, women can't gain muscle" that I usually see in response to people who say weight lifting has made them look or feel bigger

Whey they are exercising and gaining weight can come from multiple sources. Water retention, incorrect caloric burn estimation/eating too much, possibly some noob gains

A professional body building female would struggle to put on much more than 2lbs of muscle in 4-6 weeks. Unless the 150 lb female is spending the same amount of time a said professional body building female is, the amount of muscle they're going to "pack" on that will actually affect the scale is going to take months, if not years to develop. The other factor against women "bulking" is it takes a fair amount of testosterone. It's hard enough for a male to put on substantial muscle mass with the testosterone levels we have. A woman has 1/10th - 1/16th the level of a male.

I have a feeling that you are more of a "I'm gonna believe what I want to believe" type and most of this (and other posts) will go out the window.

EDIT: From the threads I've seen/taken part in most individuals who come on here and state they started exercising and gaining weight are A) Usually in the first week or two and retaining water. Overestimating caloric burn and eating in a surplus.

Uhm....Zombie stories? Now how did those find their way here?

It would take close to a year for a woman to put on enough muscle to actually become bigger, without testosterone supplements. The women who come on here and claim that they put on tons of muscle just by looking at a barbell are generally dealing with a body dysmorphic issue in their head, not reality.

It would take close to a year for a woman to put on enough muscle to actually become bigger, without testosterone supplements. The women who come on here and claim that they put on tons of muscle just by looking at a barbell are generally dealing with a body dysmorphic issue in their head, not reality.

In other words, they just don't know what they're talking about. That's the attitude I'm referring to

It's not an attitude. It's honesty. A normal woman (not a professional athlete) will be lucky to put on about 5 pounds of muscle in a year. 5 pounds of muscle spread out over the human body will not be noticeable to the naked eye. That's also eating a perfect surplus and heavy progressive strength training with numbers and progression hitting perfectly. Most woman will manage far less than that. It's a mental game. Body fat reduces, exposing muscle, and they immediately think they've built large amounts of muscle and are becoming manly and huge, even though all measurements have decreased. It's unfortunate, but the majority of people on the planet have zero understanding of how thir bodies actually function and look.

It would take close to a year for a woman to put on enough muscle to actually become bigger, without testosterone supplements. The women who come on here and claim that they put on tons of muscle just by looking at a barbell are generally dealing with a body dysmorphic issue in their head, not reality.

In other words, they just don't know what they're talking about. That's the attitude I'm referring to

It's not an attitude. It's honesty. A normal woman (not a professional athlete) will be lucky to put on about 5 pounds of muscle in a year. 5 pounds of muscle spread out over the human body will not be noticeable to the naked eye. That's also eating a perfect surplus and heavy progressive strength training with numbers and progression hitting perfectly. Most woman will manage far less than that. It's a mental game. Body fat reduces, exposing muscle, and they immediately think they've built large amounts of muscle and are becoming manly and huge, even though all measurements have decreased. It's unfortunate, but the majority of people on the planet have zero understanding of how thir bodies actually function and look.

This. Times. One. Million.

It would take close to a year for a woman to put on enough muscle to actually become bigger, without testosterone supplements. The women who come on here and claim that they put on tons of muscle just by looking at a barbell are generally dealing with a body dysmorphic issue in their head, not reality.

In other words, they just don't know what they're talking about. That's the attitude I'm referring to

It's not an attitude. It's honesty. A normal woman (not a professional athlete) will be lucky to put on about 5 pounds of muscle in a year. 5 pounds of muscle spread out over the human body will not be noticeable to the naked eye. That's also eating a perfect surplus and heavy progressive strength training with numbers and progression hitting perfectly. Most woman will manage far less than that. It's a mental game. Body fat reduces, exposing muscle, and they immediately think they've built large amounts of muscle and are becoming manly and huge, even though all measurements have decreased. It's unfortunate, but the majority of people on the planet have zero understanding of how thir bodies actually function and look.