Question on muscle gain

aminzaki33
aminzaki33 Posts: 2 Member
edited November 22 in Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
Hi, everyone

I have a question regarding muscle growth. I've been doing strength training and high-intensity training for about 2 months. Think a typical crossfit workout. First 30 mins is some form of strength training (deadlift, squat, bench press). Last 15-20 mins are some form of high-intensity training. My weight has been fixed for about 4 weeks. I'm pretty sure I have not gained fat and have gained muscle. I have body measurements (chest, biceps, thigh, waist) but don't know how to translate that to a muscle gain estimate. Can anyone help?

A

Replies

  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
    No one can guess what you gained! If you're not focusing on hypertrophy and in a calorie surplus then it's unlikely you have gained any appreciable muscle. Also 2 months is not a long enough period of time to see big results.
  • aminzaki33
    aminzaki33 Posts: 2 Member
    I'm not asking for a guess. I want to know if I can calculate muscle gain from measurements. For example, if my chest has grown 4cm how much muscle weight would that coorelate to. I have measurements for chest, tight, bieps, waist .
  • Lean59man
    Lean59man Posts: 714 Member
    If you could accurately compare your bodyfat % to your bodyweight over time you would know how much lean body mass you have gained.

    If your bodyweight remained the same but your bodyfat % decreased you have gained muscle.

    This type of micro-management is kind of silly though. Better to base your satisfaction on strength gains and/or how you look although too much mirror staring is not good either.

    It's also better to think long term for your results.

    You are a success if you continue to eat well and train hard. Strength and health foremost.

  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
    aminzaki33 wrote: »
    I'm not asking for a guess. I want to know if I can calculate muscle gain from measurements. For example, if my chest has grown 4cm how much muscle weight would that coorelate to. I have measurements for chest, tight, bieps, waist .

    No
  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,997 Member
    aminzaki33 wrote: »
    I'm not asking for a guess. I want to know if I can calculate muscle gain from measurements. For example, if my chest has grown 4cm how much muscle weight would that coorelate to. I have measurements for chest, tight, bieps, waist .

    This cannot be done.

    Muscle is a part of your lean body mass (LBM). There are several methods available to measure LBM (as distinguished from body fat (BF) but there is no way to measure muscle growth as distinguished from other LBM without using specialized scientific equipment in a laboratory. So, the best you can do is measure LBM growth as a proxy for muscle growth.

    Increases or decreases in body measurements can be due to changes in BF, LBM or both. So, it would not be an accurate or reliable measure of muscle growth or loss.

  • Nussbary
    Nussbary Posts: 34 Member
    spend the $25 on a omron electric body fat measurement device. It is not a perfect measurement but will help. I had been getting frustrated after not loosing weight, and after several weeks measuring BF noticed that I was decreasing in a lot of fat, just not weight. Also, good to measure with a tape. Travel over to bodybuilding.com and read some articles on goal body measurements and how they should relate to each other. (for example, if your 5'10" your waist should be calculated measurement of your height) this is a fun way to set some goals and measure your progress.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,428 MFP Moderator
    sgt1372 wrote: »
    aminzaki33 wrote: »
    I'm not asking for a guess. I want to know if I can calculate muscle gain from measurements. For example, if my chest has grown 4cm how much muscle weight would that coorelate to. I have measurements for chest, tight, bieps, waist .

    This cannot be done.

    Muscle is a part of your lean body mass (LBM). There are several methods available to measure LBM (as distinguished from body fat (BF) but there is no way to measure muscle growth as distinguished from other LBM without using specialized scientific equipment in a laboratory. So, the best you can do is measure LBM growth as a proxy for muscle growth.

    Increases or decreases in body measurements can be due to changes in BF, LBM or both. So, it would not be an accurate or reliable measure of muscle growth or loss.

    To add, even if there would be a possibility of muscle gain, it would be miniscule. The amount of muscle a male can build in a surplus is only a few lbs over 2 months. Considering you are at maintenance, it would be even less.
  • AmyGerard12
    AmyGerard12 Posts: 7 Member
    Eat huge number of carbs - its a road to success
This discussion has been closed.

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