Muscle Gain

exercise is for health. Trying to be as low a weight as you can be and giving up exercise to achieve that isn't healthy at all. What do you want? A low number on the scale + increased risk of osteoporosis..... or to be healthy?

it's probably mostly water weight gains, because your muscles will be storing more glycogen as a result of exercising, and glycogen is stored along with water. This means your scale weight will go up. the muscles may look a little bit bigger because of this (which is a one time increase in muscular size, so they won't carry on getting bigger even if you do loads more exercise)- if you were eating at a surplus it's possible you gained some actual muscle tissue as well, although you said you were eating the same as before, so this is unlikely. It's also possible that your bone density has increased, which again will make you heavier on the scale, but this also decreases your risk of osteoporosis.

If you fit into the same size clothes then what you gained isn't any significant amount of fat. If you were really eating at a surplus you may have gained a little fat along with the muscle.... but I highly doubt you were eating at a surplus based on what you said, therefore the gains are water/glycogen weight and bone density, both of which are very healthy and you didn't gain any fat or any new muscle tissue.

Healthy bones and muscles are heavier than weak, wasted ones. And unless you have a really tiny frame, then the underweight category of BMI isn't healthy. Even if you do have a small frame, then being 10lb heavier because you started working out is a healthier weight for you than when you were sedentary. If you stop exercising yes you will lose the weight again, but you need to ask yourself what's more important to you, health or a number on a scale. It's well known that athletic people are heavier than they look, i.e. they fit into small sized clothes yet the number on the scale is higher than people expect. And they're all round healthier than sedentary people.

Picture 10lbs of chicken breast. Now slap those chicken breasts over your body. If you don't think you have gained 10lbs of chicken breasta then you haven't gained 10lbs of muscles.

I have stayed relatively same BF% for the past 5 years. Gained about 12kg of muscle in that time. Adequate protein intake 99% of the time, lifting consistently 3-5x a week for all that time.

The imagery here sort of makes me NOT want to gain muscle :laugh:

If you are lifting heavy enough, it's part muscle and part fat and part glycogen.

If you aren't, then it is less muscle and more fat and more glycogen.

You are either eating at a surplus or you retain water like a beast.

Picture 10lbs of chicken breast. Now slap those chicken breasts over your body. If you don't think you have gained 10lbs of chicken breasta then you haven't gained 10lbs of muscles.

I have stayed relatively same BF% for the past 5 years. Gained about 12kg of muscle in that time. Adequate protein intake 99% of the time, lifting consistently 3-5x a week for all that time.

The imagery here sort of makes me NOT want to gain muscle :laugh:

You don't think chicken breasts are attractive?