Can walking build muscle weight?

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Jennaberry
Jennaberry Posts: 3
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello, I am still pretty new MFP but I love having control over tracking my eating and exercise. I have a question concerning a 2 pound weight gain. I have been using my treadmill daily but decided to add walking outside now. I have been walking outside three nights in a row and noticed I gained two pounds. Nothing else has changed except the walking. I am wondering if its possible to gain muscle weight from walking? It was disappointing to see the scale this morning and it would make me feel a lot better knowing its could be that I am building muscle... any thoughts?

Thanks,

Jenna~

Replies

  • tstevens20
    tstevens20 Posts: 10 Member
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    i dont know the answer to this but when I first added walking to my other exercise I noticed that I gained two pounds the first week after walking for 30 mins 3 times a week. The next week I lost the 2 pounds and the week after I lost another 2.5. Don't give up and give it another couple weeks!
  • efry200894
    efry200894 Posts: 6
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    Not an expert - but I'd say so ... having added some additional walking to my regime (on top of the normal dog walks) ... I can definitely say my legs are looking more toned ... haven't experienced a huge fluctuation in weight loss around it - but then I have started from a position of having a lot of excess weight to burn off ... I think I've been lucky that it's been a pretty standard 2lb a week (apart from when I have mis-behaved!!)
  • AllyS7
    AllyS7 Posts: 480 Member
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    Have your legs been sore? I do know when your muscles are repairing themselves they do hold on to water. I did also notice you went over on sodium yesterday, which also could make your body retain water.
  • Mayor_West
    Mayor_West Posts: 246 Member
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    Highly, highly doubtful. If people could gain 2 pounds of sheer muscle mass simply by walking, you'd see a lot more bodybuilders on treadmills and away from the free weights.
  • momma_roo
    momma_roo Posts: 146 Member
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    Make sure to weigh yourself at the same time every day. Weight can fluctuate 2 lbs through out the day. I try not to weigh myself every day because of the minor fluctuations. I do think it is possible to gain muscle by walking, but probably not 2 lbs worth
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
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    except in absolute extreme cases (I.E. atrophied muscles from an injury or some other extended bed confinement or something), it's pretty much impossible to really gain significant muscle from any aerobic workout. In other words, at the point where you are building muscle, the work is no longer aerobic.

    Muscles can become more efficient at oxygen supply during aerobic work (or because of it) and the cardiovascular system can become more efficient, but have you ever seen a distance runner or swimmer who looks really jacked? I don't mean super lean, but jacked, like big legs. I never have, for good reason, aerobic work is not anabolic in nature. I.E. it doesn't stimulate the pituitary gland to produce Somatotropin (Human Growth Hormone or HGH) which is the main requirement, along with testosterone, for muscle repair and growth. FYI, this is also why women generally don't become super muscular. While HGH stimulates muscle repair, testosterone is chiefly responsible for muscle mass growth, and women don't have testicles, and testicles are where most of the testosterone is produced. Some is produced in the adrenal gland and women produce some in their ovaries, but not nearly as much.

    More likely what happened is that your electrolyte balance shifted slightly and causes a higher than normal retention of water today. this can happen for various reasons, and it a major reason why weight varies throughout the day by up to 10 lbs depending on the overall body size, although most people only fluctuate 2 to 4 lbs.
  • 12by311
    12by311 Posts: 1,716 Member
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    Hello, I am still pretty new MFP but I love having control over tracking my eating and exercise. I have a question concerning a 2 pound weight gain. I have been using my treadmill daily but decided to add walking outside now. I have been walking outside three nights in a row and noticed I gained two pounds. Nothing else has changed except the walking. I am wondering if its possible to gain muscle weight from walking? It was disappointing to see the scale this morning and it would make me feel a lot better knowing its could be that I am building muscle... any thoughts?

    Thanks,

    Jenna~

    Not muscle gain. However, keep walking. Drink lots of water. It will pay off!
  • Jennaberry
    Jennaberry Posts: 3
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    Thank you for all the great opinions and advice.. much appreicated. I feel silly now because after this post I went to take my blood pressure meds and discovered I forgot it yesteday and the water pill that goes with it.. not so smart on my part, I rarely forget to take them but I feel confident that with the higher sodium intake yesterday and no water pill it must be water gain.

    Thanks again for being so helpful!! :)

    Jenna~

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