25 Yr old Female from UK 133lbs looking to gain muscle.
shareebarnett2017
Posts: 32 Member
Hi All,
firstly, apologies if there is currently a similar thread going off...
I am 25yr old female, i currently weigh 133lbs, just to clarify i am happy with my weight, i am looking to gain muscle...
I have been lifting for about 2 years now and not really noticing any muscle definition or gains... i am finding it difficult to eat my calorie amount a day (as in not reaching the target amount).
feel free to send a friend request.
I am looking for kind advice please... no nastiness!
firstly, apologies if there is currently a similar thread going off...
I am 25yr old female, i currently weigh 133lbs, just to clarify i am happy with my weight, i am looking to gain muscle...
I have been lifting for about 2 years now and not really noticing any muscle definition or gains... i am finding it difficult to eat my calorie amount a day (as in not reaching the target amount).
feel free to send a friend request.
I am looking for kind advice please... no nastiness!
0
Replies
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Hi - I saw your other post & your You Tube video - that is a lot of back exercises & reps - the weight must be really light. I'm assuming you are doing one body part per day. I would suggest you do a full body program 3 X per week. a program that includes a push / pull / & lower body - exercises like squat, bench & overhead press, row. & deadlift. you want more weight & fewer sets. Look at Starting Strength, Grey Skull, or Strong Curves. Eastcoast Jim2
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shareebarnett2017 wrote: »Hi All,
firstly, apologies if there is currently a similar thread going off...
I am 25yr old female, i currently weigh 133lbs, just to clarify i am happy with my weight, i am looking to gain muscle...
I have been lifting for about 2 years now and not really noticing any muscle definition or gains... i am finding it difficult to eat my calorie amount a day (as in not reaching the target amount).
feel free to send a friend request.
I am looking for kind advice please... no nastiness!
If you aren't seeing any progress in terms of body definition and/or strength, you probably need to evaluate your lifting program and then your diet. What has you weight done over an extended period of time? How much protein? And what is your lifting program.0 -
Your diet will be the first thing you should work on since you are having trouble eating sufficient calories to gain muscle it seems. Second, your program needs to provide sufficient stimulation to induce growth in the muscles. Looking at your video you seem to be using too light of a weight to cause stimulation so I would look into a good novice program and start lifting heavier. Also, you do a lot of accessory lifts so a good novice program will have you doing more basic compound lifts such as bench, deadlifts, squats, and barbell rows. You do rows already but heavy rows will help stimulate growth.
To summarize, diet should be your first concern followed by a basic, novice routing with heavier lifting to stimulate growth.
3 -
Had a quick fast forward through your video and it struck me how light your weights are (meaning too light for you) and how many reps you are just pumping out. If your weights aren't challenging then you are almost doing "cardio with weights" and it's going to do more for your fitness rather than strength and muscle gain.
Although you can create overload with volume it's very inefficient and more than likely not appropriate for you.
Please post a summary of your weekly routine but my hunch is you really want to start again from scratch with a well designed routine aligned with your goals and lifting experience.
I doubt a body part split is right for you.
3 -
shareebarnett2017 wrote: »Hi All,
firstly, apologies if there is currently a similar thread going off...
I am 25yr old female, i currently weigh 133lbs, just to clarify i am happy with my weight, i am looking to gain muscle...
I have been lifting for about 2 years now and not really noticing any muscle definition or gains... i am finding it difficult to eat my calorie amount a day (as in not reaching the target amount).
feel free to send a friend request.
I am looking for kind advice please... no nastiness!
If you aren't seeing any progress in terms of body definition and/or strength, you probably need to evaluate your lifting program and then your diet. What has you weight done over an extended period of time? How much protein? And what is your lifting program.
to be quiet honest with you im seriously confused because on here (my fitness pal) i set all my goals to gain muscle and it had be eating like 1800 odd cals a day with a high carb intake (215g) and 144g of protien... i stuck at that for about 2-3 weeks and all i noticed was that my definition was just dissapearing before my eyes. im not one to stand on the scales and care what it says, i go on how i look, i take progress pics but i had gone from 9stone 5 to 9stone 7 in this time my stomach measurements were also bigger so now yesterday i changed my goals on myfitness pal to try and loose that weight and it says i need to eat 1200 cals and i know from previous experiences that i will loose drastic weight on 1200 cals and not gain muscle - ah im so confused! i know what i want but trying to get it is prooving difficult.0 -
you cant gain muscle without gaining fat - so it stands to reason that you were losing some definition.
if you dont want to gain fat, then you could look into recomp?
1 -
Wheelhouse15 wrote: »Your diet will be the first thing you should work on since you are having trouble eating sufficient calories to gain muscle it seems. Second, your program needs to provide sufficient stimulation to induce growth in the muscles. Looking at your video you seem to be using too light of a weight to cause stimulation so I would look into a good novice program and start lifting heavier. Also, you do a lot of accessory lifts so a good novice program will have you doing more basic compound lifts such as bench, deadlifts, squats, and barbell rows. You do rows already but heavy rows will help stimulate growth.
To summarize, diet should be your first concern followed by a basic, novice routing with heavier lifting to stimulate growth.
Thank you for this! Come monday i have decided to just start completely fresh. heavier weights, less reps... one thing that confuses me though is protien intake... my reccomended intake to build muscle is 144g however health magazines say your body cant handle more than around 50g a day and the extra a will be turned into fat. I wish there were simple answers2 -
TavistockToad wrote: »you cant gain muscle without gaining fat - so it stands to reason that you were losing some definition.
if you dont want to gain fat, then you could look into recomp?
i think because im over thinking it all im confusing myself more and more! what i will do is go back to the recommended intake given by MFP and just list heavier and less reps.0 -
shareebarnett2017 wrote: »TavistockToad wrote: »you cant gain muscle without gaining fat - so it stands to reason that you were losing some definition.
if you dont want to gain fat, then you could look into recomp?
i think because im over thinking it all im confusing myself more and more! what i will do is go back to the recommended intake given by MFP and just list heavier and less reps.
is that intake to gain 0.5lb per week?
0.8g of protein per lb of body weight is adequate for your needs. 144g seems high for you?0 -
shareebarnett2017 wrote: »shareebarnett2017 wrote: »Hi All,
firstly, apologies if there is currently a similar thread going off...
I am 25yr old female, i currently weigh 133lbs, just to clarify i am happy with my weight, i am looking to gain muscle...
I have been lifting for about 2 years now and not really noticing any muscle definition or gains... i am finding it difficult to eat my calorie amount a day (as in not reaching the target amount).
feel free to send a friend request.
I am looking for kind advice please... no nastiness!
If you aren't seeing any progress in terms of body definition and/or strength, you probably need to evaluate your lifting program and then your diet. What has you weight done over an extended period of time? How much protein? And what is your lifting program.
to be quiet honest with you im seriously confused because on here (my fitness pal) i set all my goals to gain muscle and it had be eating like 1800 odd cals a day with a high carb intake (215g) and 144g of protien... i stuck at that for about 2-3 weeks and all i noticed was that my definition was just dissapearing before my eyes. im not one to stand on the scales and care what it says, i go on how i look, i take progress pics but i had gone from 9stone 5 to 9stone 7 in this time my stomach measurements were also bigger so now yesterday i changed my goals on myfitness pal to try and loose that weight and it says i need to eat 1200 cals and i know from previous experiences that i will loose drastic weight on 1200 cals and not gain muscle - ah im so confused! i know what i want but trying to get it is prooving difficult.
You are in charge of this tool but you need to learn how to use it better to drive it.
Macros can be changed to your personal preferences rather than take the defaults. Macros also are a guideline not a straight-jacket. That protein is a bit higher than needed but not really excessive, what's wrong with higher carbs? They are a great training fuel.
2lbs in three weeks is a tiny change and well within bounds of normal fluctuations - for a woman I wouldn't recommend making goal changes in such a short timescale, one month minimum to let changes settle out and allow for normal weight fluctuations to be apparent.
The rate of loss you select has a drastic effect on your calorie goal, if you pick 2lbs a week that's a massive 1000 calories a day it will subtract until it hits the minimum of 1200/day.
Would recommend making manual goal changes instead as a finer means of adjustment.
What did you make of the feedback on your routine? (A summary from you would help enormously!)
Remember your training is where muscle change all starts, diet supports your training and recovery.
0 -
health magazines say your body cant handle more than around 50g a day and the extra a will be turned into fat
They should first outline, physiologically, how protein can be turned into fat. I'm listening. It's ridiculous. Study. Learn physiology. The resources are out there but you won't find them in girly magazines, right?
Trash that stuff and find scientific stuff to read instead, the one that mentions exactly the studies they rely on for what they are saying.
The effort you should be doing is not all lifting, get your head in there too.
2 -
Had a quick fast forward through your video and it struck me how light your weights are (meaning too light for you) and how many reps you are just pumping out. If your weights aren't challenging then you are almost doing "cardio with weights" and it's going to do more for your fitness rather than strength and muscle gain.
Although you can create overload with volume it's very inefficient and more than likely not appropriate for you.
Please post a summary of your weekly routine but my hunch is you really want to start again from scratch with a well designed routine aligned with your goals and lifting experience.
I doubt a body part split is right for you.
my actual routine is as follows;
Monday - Chest & Tris
Tuesday - back and bis
Wednesday is usually a rest day
Thursday - shoulders and abs
Friday - Legs
Saturday rest day
Sunday - full body & cardio.
everything i usually do is 3 sets then 8, 10 , 12 reps and increasing the weight each time.
however my routine gets messed up due to the amount of members at my gym it is always packed (like sardines actually) so say i go to train legs on a friday but you cant get on anything except a treadmill and the stairmaster i end up doing cardio and aim to switch legs for sunday then my routine gets abit messy.0 -
shareebarnett2017 wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »Your diet will be the first thing you should work on since you are having trouble eating sufficient calories to gain muscle it seems. Second, your program needs to provide sufficient stimulation to induce growth in the muscles. Looking at your video you seem to be using too light of a weight to cause stimulation so I would look into a good novice program and start lifting heavier. Also, you do a lot of accessory lifts so a good novice program will have you doing more basic compound lifts such as bench, deadlifts, squats, and barbell rows. You do rows already but heavy rows will help stimulate growth.
To summarize, diet should be your first concern followed by a basic, novice routing with heavier lifting to stimulate growth.
Thank you for this! Come monday i have decided to just start completely fresh. heavier weights, less reps... one thing that confuses me though is protien intake... my reccomended intake to build muscle is 144g however health magazines say your body cant handle more than around 50g a day and the extra a will be turned into fat. I wish there were simple answers
That sounds like a great idea. Not sure where the 144g of protein comes from, that sounds a bit too high for what you need, but 50g isn't going to help for building muscle, that's an RDA amount for health, but not optimal for those who are working out to gain muscle. The most you will likely need is .6-.7g of protein per pound of bodyweight. Many recommend going to 1g/lb just because it's more than enough and easy to figure out. So set your protein goal based on your bodyweight.
It's incorrect to say that the extra gets turned to fat. Protein rarely goes to fat, it tends to be converted to glucose, but if it increases body fat depends on if you are in a surplus or deficit. You need to be in a small surplus to gain muscle, and you will also gain some fat, but if you keep your surplus modest you won't gain to much fat and you can cut it later.1 -
shareebarnett2017 wrote: »Had a quick fast forward through your video and it struck me how light your weights are (meaning too light for you) and how many reps you are just pumping out. If your weights aren't challenging then you are almost doing "cardio with weights" and it's going to do more for your fitness rather than strength and muscle gain.
Although you can create overload with volume it's very inefficient and more than likely not appropriate for you.
Please post a summary of your weekly routine but my hunch is you really want to start again from scratch with a well designed routine aligned with your goals and lifting experience.
I doubt a body part split is right for you.
my actual routine is as follows;
Monday - Chest & Tris
Tuesday - back and bis
Wednesday is usually a rest day
Thursday - shoulders and abs
Friday - Legs
Saturday rest day
Sunday - full body & cardio.
everything i usually do is 3 sets then 8, 10 , 12 reps and increasing the weight each time.
however my routine gets messed up due to the amount of members at my gym it is always packed (like sardines actually) so say i go to train legs on a friday but you cant get on anything except a treadmill and the stairmaster i end up doing cardio and aim to switch legs for sunday then my routine gets abit messy.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p11 -
shareebarnett2017 wrote: »shareebarnett2017 wrote: »Hi All,
firstly, apologies if there is currently a similar thread going off...
I am 25yr old female, i currently weigh 133lbs, just to clarify i am happy with my weight, i am looking to gain muscle...
I have been lifting for about 2 years now and not really noticing any muscle definition or gains... i am finding it difficult to eat my calorie amount a day (as in not reaching the target amount).
feel free to send a friend request.
I am looking for kind advice please... no nastiness!
If you aren't seeing any progress in terms of body definition and/or strength, you probably need to evaluate your lifting program and then your diet. What has you weight done over an extended period of time? How much protein? And what is your lifting program.
to be quiet honest with you im seriously confused because on here (my fitness pal) i set all my goals to gain muscle and it had be eating like 1800 odd cals a day with a high carb intake (215g) and 144g of protien... i stuck at that for about 2-3 weeks and all i noticed was that my definition was just dissapearing before my eyes. im not one to stand on the scales and care what it says, i go on how i look, i take progress pics but i had gone from 9stone 5 to 9stone 7 in this time my stomach measurements were also bigger so now yesterday i changed my goals on myfitness pal to try and loose that weight and it says i need to eat 1200 cals and i know from previous experiences that i will loose drastic weight on 1200 cals and not gain muscle - ah im so confused! i know what i want but trying to get it is prooving difficult.
You are in charge of this tool but you need to learn how to use it better to drive it.
Macros can be changed to your personal preferences rather than take the defaults. Macros also are a guideline not a straight-jacket. That protein is a bit higher than needed but not really excessive, what's wrong with higher carbs? They are a great training fuel.
2lbs in three weeks is a tiny change and well within bounds of normal fluctuations - for a woman I wouldn't recommend making goal changes in such a short timescale, one month minimum to let changes settle out and allow for normal weight fluctuations to be apparent.
The rate of loss you select has a drastic effect on your calorie goal, if you pick 2lbs a week that's a massive 1000 calories a day it will subtract until it hits the minimum of 1200/day.
Would recommend making manual goal changes instead as a finer means of adjustment.
What did you make of the feedback on your routine? (A summary from you would help enormously!)
Remember your training is where muscle change all starts, diet supports your training and recovery.
i appreciate the feedback, i now KNOW i need to lift heavier and do less reps, in the back of my mind i was always telling myself that, i dont know why i didnt just do it, i think maybe i was just trying to work my way up...
im really thankful for your advise/ opinions i feel alot more motivated now, i started to get a little 'deflated' but my heads back in it now!!
Remember your training is where muscle change all starts, diet supports your training and recovery. Thats good advise too!!0 -
Check that link for a program that includes compound lifts (squats, bench, deaslifts, ohp).
I'm 5'3, 37, currently 138lbs. I started at 127lbs. I lifted heavy and maintained for a long time. When I started to get serious about adding mass, I started bulking by 50-100 calories daily each week. It took me about a year and a half to add 10lbs.
At this point, I maintain around 2200 calories. I generally get 150 grams of protein a day.
ETA: add me if you want to look at my food diary.1 -
do you guys mind if i send you friend requests? i think youve all been really helpful!1
-
shareebarnett2017 wrote: »do you guys mind if i send you friend requests? i think youve all been really helpful!
Not a problem - I like people with ambition and drive.0 -
I just watched your youtube video. I am new to lifting too, so can just speak from my recent experience. I was doing sort of the same as it appears you are doing now, until recently. I've been working with a trainer for the last 6 weeks or so, and have already noticed changes.
I am still working within the same rep range (8-12), just using bigger loads. There was nothing wrong with the rep range I was using before, but it was pointless because the weights I was using weren't providing enough resistance. There wasn't the necessary stimulus for my body to adapt to. This was mostly down to a lack of confidence. At some points in your video you look like you could bash out 2 or 3 x the number of reps you're actually doing (hard to tell from behind), because the weight is low.0 -
shareebarnett2017 wrote: »do you guys mind if i send you friend requests? i think youve all been really helpful!
Sure.0 -
shareebarnett2017 wrote: »shareebarnett2017 wrote: »shareebarnett2017 wrote: »Hi All,
firstly, apologies if there is currently a similar thread going off...
I am 25yr old female, i currently weigh 133lbs, just to clarify i am happy with my weight, i am looking to gain muscle...
I have been lifting for about 2 years now and not really noticing any muscle definition or gains... i am finding it difficult to eat my calorie amount a day (as in not reaching the target amount).
feel free to send a friend request.
I am looking for kind advice please... no nastiness!
If you aren't seeing any progress in terms of body definition and/or strength, you probably need to evaluate your lifting program and then your diet. What has you weight done over an extended period of time? How much protein? And what is your lifting program.
to be quiet honest with you im seriously confused because on here (my fitness pal) i set all my goals to gain muscle and it had be eating like 1800 odd cals a day with a high carb intake (215g) and 144g of protien... i stuck at that for about 2-3 weeks and all i noticed was that my definition was just dissapearing before my eyes. im not one to stand on the scales and care what it says, i go on how i look, i take progress pics but i had gone from 9stone 5 to 9stone 7 in this time my stomach measurements were also bigger so now yesterday i changed my goals on myfitness pal to try and loose that weight and it says i need to eat 1200 cals and i know from previous experiences that i will loose drastic weight on 1200 cals and not gain muscle - ah im so confused! i know what i want but trying to get it is prooving difficult.
You are in charge of this tool but you need to learn how to use it better to drive it.
Macros can be changed to your personal preferences rather than take the defaults. Macros also are a guideline not a straight-jacket. That protein is a bit higher than needed but not really excessive, what's wrong with higher carbs? They are a great training fuel.
2lbs in three weeks is a tiny change and well within bounds of normal fluctuations - for a woman I wouldn't recommend making goal changes in such a short timescale, one month minimum to let changes settle out and allow for normal weight fluctuations to be apparent.
The rate of loss you select has a drastic effect on your calorie goal, if you pick 2lbs a week that's a massive 1000 calories a day it will subtract until it hits the minimum of 1200/day.
Would recommend making manual goal changes instead as a finer means of adjustment.
What did you make of the feedback on your routine? (A summary from you would help enormously!)
Remember your training is where muscle change all starts, diet supports your training and recovery.
i appreciate the feedback, i now KNOW i need to lift heavier and do less reps, in the back of my mind i was always telling myself that, i dont know why i didnt just do it, i think maybe i was just trying to work my way up...
im really thankful for your advise/ opinions i feel alot more motivated now, i started to get a little 'deflated' but my heads back in it now!!
Remember your training is where muscle change all starts, diet supports your training and recovery. Thats good advise too!!
The biggest key is getting on a structured program, like the ones found in the link posted above. Generally a 3 day full body routine is best to begin with. This is driven by the fact that you will respond best to the increase in frequency as a newbie to lifting and protein synthesis occurs over a 36-48 hour period. After 3-12 months, and more specifically when you start to plateau in strength gains, you can then look at intermediate programs that incorporate more volume and more isolation moves; these are generally 4-5 day splits. Essentially, a 3 day full body will help build a foundation of strength, and then moving to an intermediate program for refinement and working the smaller muscles to support further strength gains.
Also, conceptually, there is no reason to one be in one specific rep range. Ideally, after you exhaust your newbie gains, you work do low rep high weight and low weight higher rep. I, personally, work in everything from 3-5 to 15-20 because each muscle group has a slightly different make up of type I and type II muscle fibers.1 -
speedingticket wrote: »I just watched your youtube video. I am new to lifting too, so can just speak from my recent experience. I was doing sort of the same as it appears you are doing now, until recently. I've been working with a trainer for the last 6 weeks or so, and have already noticed changes.
I am still working within the same rep range (8-12), just using bigger loads. There was nothing wrong with the rep range I was using before, but it was pointless because the weights I was using weren't providing enough resistance. There wasn't the necessary stimulus for my body to adapt to. This was mostly down to a lack of confidence. At some points in your video you look like you could bash out 2 or 3 x the number of reps you're actually doing (hard to tell from behind), because the weight is low.
I only got footage of my first set which is always my lightest weight so your right i could have done at least 2x what i was doing, i think i was afraid to start heavier because i wanted to make sure i got my three sets and all reps in but starting monday im gonna start on the weight which i usually do my 3rd set on (weight depends on what it is im doing) and really push myself. I iknow i can do it because i started deadlifts on just the bar which was 20kg and added weight and now i find myself just using a 10kg bar... maybe its because im scared of DOMS...0
This discussion has been closed.
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