bicep bulk -what am i doing "wrong"?

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bluevwgurl
bluevwgurl Posts: 220 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I am a P90x'er. Day 39 here. And I dig the transformation so far. EXCEPT since starting phase 2, i am seeing alot more bulk in the bicep area. I am still using the same 10# weights i have been using all thru phase 1. (probably could move to 15#, but not looking to bulk up ....see topic heading)

I really like that my arms arent jiggly anymore. However, they are rounding out instead of slimming. I am doing the lean program, so i am doing 10-12 reps (depending on the move). Is 10# too heavy for lean? as stated before, i am fast outgrowing the 10# weight strength wise, but am hesitant to move heavier since i am doing lean.

Stinking P90X million different way pushups are the problem is my guess.

Anyway, if anyone has any tips or suggestions I am all ears. I like the thought of having muscle. I like the thought of being strong. I just dont want rounded out biceps. makes me feel hulkish. (that was completely a word from my 7 year old. i flashed him the "gun show" the other day and thats what i got....mom that was hulkish hhmmmm not exactly confidence building)

i had a girl at work say my "follow through with the moves must not be enough as i am building short muscles instead of long lean muscle". What??? anyone got insight into this???
i am confused.
Thanks in advance for any/all suggestions/comments. :-)

Replies

  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member
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    Have your arm circumferences gotten larger?

    It's probably not what you want to hear, but I really don't think that you can change the fundamental shape of your muscles. You can get stronger and leaner (losing body fat), but I don't think that you can make your actual biceps longer, regardless of what version of a specific program you do.

    You are likely losing body fat and seeing the shape of your biceps, not really creating rounded, bulky muscles. Except that when you do lift on a regular basis, your muscles will have a more taught, "pumped" feel and look, but I don't know that you can really change that fact.
  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
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    No suggestions really. Despite popular belief, girls can get big muscles. It's genetic I think. I build muscle very fast/easily for a girl, and tend to be very strong, and I am not the only one on here.

    The long lean muscle thing is rubbish. Muscles are the length they are, they are fixed at the ends.
  • Dmax12
    Dmax12 Posts: 36 Member
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    You might be an ectomorph body type, this means its harder for you to slim than to simply bulk. I would calculate your %BF and if its on the higher end you probably need to adjust your diet accrodingly. You might be defineing muscles which are under layers of fat and the result os a "rounded" look.
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
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    You can't make your biceps any other shape but round...what do you want them to look like?
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,707 Member
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    I am a P90x'er. Day 39 here. And I dig the transformation so far. EXCEPT since starting phase 2, i am seeing alot more bulk in the bicep area. I am still using the same 10# weights i have been using all thru phase 1. (probably could move to 15#, but not looking to bulk up ....see topic heading)

    I really like that my arms arent jiggly anymore. However, they are rounding out instead of slimming. I am doing the lean program, so i am doing 10-12 reps (depending on the move). Is 10# too heavy for lean? as stated before, i am fast outgrowing the 10# weight strength wise, but am hesitant to move heavier since i am doing lean.

    Stinking P90X million different way pushups are the problem is my guess.

    Anyway, if anyone has any tips or suggestions I am all ears. I like the thought of having muscle. I like the thought of being strong. I just dont want rounded out biceps. makes me feel hulkish. (that was completely a word from my 7 year old. i flashed him the "gun show" the other day and thats what i got....mom that was hulkish hhmmmm not exactly confidence building)

    i had a girl at work say my "follow through with the moves must not be enough as i am building short muscles instead of long lean muscle". What??? anyone got insight into this???
    i am confused.
    Thanks in advance for any/all suggestions/comments. :-)
    Your biceps shape is genetically predetermined. You CANNOT change it's length, nor can you make it "flatter". Bulk is fat and water, so if you're seeing a rounder bicep, that means that the fat around it is being reduced. If you lost the majority of your body fat and didn't work out, your bicep shape, muscle length and roundness would still be there. Difference is now it's much stronger. Embrace your physique.
  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member
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    You can't make your biceps any other shape but round...what do you want them to look like?

    Good point. Round is pretty much the shape that biceps are. If you are seeing "long and lean" muscles from models, what you are actually probably seeing is skinny fat arms. Or simply the arms of women who have a different body shape and type than you do. I would embrace the guns! Strong and lean looks great, in my opinion!
  • LivLovLrn
    LivLovLrn Posts: 580 Member
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    I am definitely no expert but I always heard "low weights, more reps" for tone, heavier weight for bulk. 10# seems like a lot to me, but then I am just starting toning at 2#,
  • bluevwgurl
    bluevwgurl Posts: 220 Member
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    Have your arm circumferences gotten larger?

    i didnt actually measure them before starting but i can feel/see how my shirts fit differently. The arms of my tshirts dont have as much room as they did before. And i have a button down shirt that actually cuts into my arms now (feel like a sausage in it). my arms were chunky before, but my shirts feel like theres less room now than when they were "chunky".
  • Larius
    Larius Posts: 507 Member
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    I agree with the others that you are just uncovering muscle that was already there. It is sometimes said to men: if you want to look like you gained 20 lbs.of muscle, lose 10 lbs.of fat.
  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member
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    Have your arm circumferences gotten larger?

    i didnt actually measure them before starting but i can feel/see how my shirts fit differently. The arms of my tshirts dont have as much room as they did before. And i have a button down shirt that actually cuts into my arms now (feel like a sausage in it). my arms were chunky before, but my shirts feel like theres less room now than when they were "chunky".

    As you continue to lose body fat, the circumference will go down, I guarantee it. Take the measurements now and do them again every 10 lbs or so. I highly doubt you'll see much of anything besides a downward trend. And I would take the measurements under the same conditions each time -- don't take one first in the morning and another one following an intense arm workout and high carb meal or something.
  • bluevwgurl
    bluevwgurl Posts: 220 Member
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    Thanks for all the responses. i do appreciate them. :smile:
  • Delicate
    Delicate Posts: 625 Member
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    is it temperary bulk or is it permenant bulk?

    If you're doing it up to a few hours after exercise, it could just be lactic acid fattening them, or the water swelling them to repair them.

    Embrace the bicep, they are sexy in tops.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,707 Member
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    I am definitely no expert but I always heard "low weights, more reps" for tone, heavier weight for bulk. 10# seems like a lot to me, but then I am just starting toning at 2#,
    Myth. "Toning" is a slang terminology for having muscle that's conditioned with strength movements. The low weight and higher repetition build muscle endurance and not strength.
    To gain bulk you will have to add calories to your diet. It's almost impossible to add bulk or muscle on calorie deficit.
    It's good to know this so that much of what is passed on as myth, doesn't keep getting passed on.
  • SoCalSwimmerDude
    SoCalSwimmerDude Posts: 480 Member
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    Alot of people say "not true! not true!", but as the previous poster said, it is ALMOST impossible to build muscle mass on a calorie deficit... trust me... I've been trying. Most likely, your biceps are more pronounced now after losing some fat around them. After getting worked out, they may have lost a bit of flexibility as well so they may 'look' a bit more compact.

    That said, in the interest of trying to help... Many times when doing anything w/ weights in our hands, we'll rely to heavily on our arms to lift that weight even when an exercise is for a different body part. Like using biceps during Lat Pull Downs or using triceps during a Bench Press. I'm extremely guilty of this and you really have to focus on the body part you want to work, not just doing the movement.

    That probably doesn't help too much, but thats what I got!
  • glfprncs2
    glfprncs2 Posts: 625 Member
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    Please, please, please...don't be afraid of muscle!!

    I did 3 rounds of P90X...I found that each 90 days, I got stronger and stronger (and I was lifting in the 12 rep range as well, but lifting 15 pound dumbbells for a lot of the bicep work), and I found that with each round, I also got LEANER. It's going to take time.

    A LOT of women find that as they progress through P90X, they seem to think they're bulking up. In a lot of cases, you're building lean muscle mass, but it's still covered by body fat...thus the bulky feeling. IF you keep working hard and really eat cleanly, you'll more than likely find that your body fat percentage will drop eventually, leaving you strong, yet lean.

    I got my best results with regards to leaning out after finishing P90X and moving in to ChaLean Extreme. In that, you lift HEAVY, and in month #2 actually try to fail at 6-8 reps. I'd dropped considerable body fat with my rounds of P90X, but pushing myself to really lift heavier made me smaller in all areas (more lean muscle mass, less body fat underneath or on top of it).

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