Gained Fat & Strength? Anyone else experience this?

tmoneyag99 · February 2019

So this morning is my first legit foray into the gym since I got pregnant with my son 5+ years ago. Mind you he is 4.5 and he is active. I'm always picking him up, wrestling with him and playing with him. Recently I tried to race him and pulled my calf muscle. That's when I said "Times up" on my laziness. I want to be able to run and play and jump right along with him until he doesn't want me to.

So I go into the gym today strictly to see where I'm at. I am absolutely obese and over fat I gained 70lbs in my pregnancy. But...Now, I'm stronger. Like a lot stronger than I was pre-pregnancy. MY MIND IS BLOWN. Like at least 25% stronger. The weights I was able to lift for certain lifts was absolute 25% heavier than before.

Naturally I want to preserve every bit of muscle I have earned since I had my son. But I was seriously expecting to be weaker, not stronger.

So I'm lifting weights right now with caloric deficits but Man I want to preserve that muscle. As a mother who may one day be tasked with saving my child, I never ever want to lose that strength.

estherdragonbat · February 2019

Here's the thing. When you gain fat, assuming that you aren't bedridden, you do need a certain amount of muscle to haul your excess "you" around. So you do build some muscle in those excess pounds. (I say this as someone who got up to Obesity Level III at my worst.)

And yes, preserving it is a very wise move. It's why you'll see all the advice on these forums about doing strength-training besides the cardio, even though it doesn't burn as many calories as cardio. Because if you don't use it, you will lose (some!) of it. As you shrink, you won't need the same amount of muscle just to get through your day, so working out is a great way to tell your body, "Hey, don't shed that stuff. I need it!"

I've seen a number of people post on here that they don't know of anyone who ever posted, "Man, I started strength training too soon; I should've waited." It's almost always the reverse. So congrats for cracking this early! In a deficit, don't count on increasing your muscle tissue, but you can definitely strengthen what you already have.

My anecdata: I started with 3-8lb dumbbells. I'm now up to 30s and getting ready to buy a pair of 35s. It's taken about 2 1/2 years, but I used to stagger under a 50lb bag of potatoes, so I'm pretty happy.

jemhh · February 2019

Yes, mass moves mass.

quiksylver296 · February 2019

There is a reason the strongest powerlifters look like this:

sijomial · February 2019

If you wore a 70lb weighted vest 24x7 day after day and stayed active I'm sure you would expect to get stronger.

Marvellous motivation to keep up with your son as he grows.

You could do the Milo of Croton thing with him......
I'm sure he wouldn't be at all embarrassed to be carried to school on your shoulders every day until he fully grown.

MostlyWater · February 2019

You can be fat and strong. If you want to lose weight, you have to eat less and move more.

Gained Fat & Strength? Anyone else experience this?

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