What's a good bodyfat range to start building muscle?

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youngestadult
youngestadult Posts: 15
in Fitness and Exercise
Hello, I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask, but I hope so.

How lean should you be before eating in a way that makes you gain muscle mass? Is it just a question of personal comfort/preference or is there an ideal range?

I'm curious because since September, I've dieted down from pretty much obesity to what I guesstimate is the mid-to-high 20s in bf% (I can provide pictures if needed) and have trouble figuring out when exactly to reconsider my diet.

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  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
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    There is no set time, but it is easier to maintain existing muscle rather than losing and having to regain muscle. Eating alone won't make this happen, weight training is essential, if you don't do this already i'd start ASAP.
    If you actually want to gain muscle you will need to eat above maintenance cals and do heavy weights. It's very hard for a female to gain muscle, maybe a few pounds a year.
    If you want to just maintain / strengthen the muscle you have, heavy weights again. With a slight deficit from maintenance this should reduce body fat % so you will look more defined without actually gaining more muscle
    Your diary looks good, especially the protein so id not change anything apart from calorie level depending on what you want to achieve :-)
  • youngestadult
    youngestadult Posts: 15
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    There is no set time, but it is easier to maintain existing muscle rather than losing and having to regain muscle. Eating alone won't make this happen, weight training is essential, if you don't do this already i'd start ASAP.
    If you actually want to gain muscle you will need to eat above maintenance cals and do heavy weights. It's very hard for a female to gain muscle, maybe a few pounds a year.
    If you want to just maintain / strengthen the muscle you have, heavy weights again. With a slight deficit from maintenance this should reduce body fat % so you will look more defined without actually gaining more muscle
    Your diary looks good, especially the protein so id not change anything apart from calorie level depending on what you want to achieve :-)

    The rebuilding muscle after losing it part is very true, which is why I was concerned about losing another significant amount of weight.

    Oh I should've mentioned that I've been weightlifting since October last year while taking in enough protein so I'd maintain whatever muscle mass I had at that point. It's worked fine, I've been able to maintain my lifts for the most part. I've just been wondering if there's a particularly good point as to when to stop cutting.
  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
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    I'd say it's just down to preference. Some people prefer to do say 2 months bulk, 2 months cut. Others do summer / winter.
    I've just been losing slowly at a moderate calorie deficit. I've now got to the point where I am pretty happy with the size I am, but want to reduce body fat %, so I'm having the same sort of thing at the min, do I keep doing what I'm doing, or increase cals and go the proper bulk / cut route?! I've gained about 7 pounds after my holiday so am doing a bit of an experiment, going to keep cals a bit higher for a while and have added creatine to my diet see if that helps with my strength and recovery, do a mini 'bulk' for now!
  • youngestadult
    youngestadult Posts: 15
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    Good luck to you!

    Those shorter bulk/cut cycles sound pretty good, though - I might look into that. I think I'll get rid of another 5 pounds or so and then try a small surplus that's just enough for muscle gains. Thanks for your perspective on things.
  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
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    Bodybuilding.com website has a good section for women, has a lot of info on proper bulk / cut cycles.
    This has females who have actually done long and short bulking periods, well worth a read!
    http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=158082973
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    I would start lifting and eat at maintance-and just go for it- if you feel like you are getting to lean eat more. Or you feel like you have no muscle really to speak of- eat at a small surplus and lift the hell out of the gym so you can take advantage of newb gains.

    It's hard to build muscle as it is- might as well make the most of the first 6 months... but there is no set "good time to build" you should always be considering building/not losing muscle mass.

    not having muscle mass is bad. LOL

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