Lifters and gainers, your advice please.

Meg_78
Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
edited December 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
OK, 3-4 weeks in to this, and feeling very lost on what I should be doing.
my goals are
1.weight gain (currently 99,7 up from 97, first goal is 100lbs then maintain 2 weeks, then 102lbs, maintain and so on till 104lbs hopefully)
2.fitness (was a couch potato before, just a skinny fat one)
3. Muscle and strength (sick of being skinny and undefined and weak.)
4 Don't know what my fat% is, one site told me I was anorexic, but I know that's not true, I'm skinny, but there is some mummy tummy going on there.
Diary's are open

I do short bursts of strength and cardio - 25-35 min x2 a week (like a JM work out video) and 2x days strength and lifting.
I eat back all my exercise cals, and am currently set to gain 1/2lb a week, I was set at gain 1lb for the 2 weeks before)

So what would be your recommendations for me? When people talk about lifting heavy, i need a ball park to aim for. what sort of weekly program would you think would get me to my goals? Oh I'm doing this at home, I have a lot of free weights to choose from (and dumbbells, barbells) And my hubby's help with that too, I just don't know if I'm working hard enough, or if there are certain things I should be doing differently.

New rules for lifting for women has been ordered.

Thanks so much for the help.

Meg

Replies

  • chrishgt4
    chrishgt4 Posts: 1,222 Member
    NROLFW will definitely help - but to give a brief overview:

    Lifting heavy means a weight where you can do 6-10. I work it so that as soon as I can do 8, I up the weight so that I can only do 6.
    I do 3 sets and generally get through about 7 exercises in a 45 minutes session.
    I do 3 times a week - all my body each time. A lot of people though (in fact most people who do it seriously) focus on an area ie back/chest etc. When I did this I broke it down into push/pull/legs but to be honest with the schedule I have, I find it easier to do allover body each time, plus I believe there are benefits to this such as stimulating more growth.#

    If you're doing cardio on the same day, do it after weights.

    Cardio is great for working on your cardio fitness, but for changing your body composition it is all about weights.
  • kdiamond
    kdiamond Posts: 3,329 Member
    You'll do well with NROLFW.

    If you are aiming to gain, I would do ZERO cardio (you will get *some* with NROLFW anyhow) and eat over maintenance by 250 calories daily, to start.

    Do you know what your maintenance calories are? First place to start.
  • Meg_78
    Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
    Thanks very much the both of you.

    @ chris, yes this makes me think I can lift heavier, at least in some of my moves, and I was breaking it down to upper and lower workouts, so maybe better to do both on each day.

    @kdiamond thanks for the advice..I'm so torn with cardio what I'm doing is pretty low (burn about 200-250cals in the 25 min program) but if NROLFW has it too then I will cut out the other stuff. I do feel like I need some though, just for fitness sake, I have always been skinny, but far far from fit, the cardio helps with my endurance, and its a circuit type work out, with weights and strength too, nut just straight out cardio). Maintain at this weight is 1660, WAY TOO LOW for me! At the moment I am on just over 1900net to gain 1/2 a lb, it was about 250 more when I was gaining 1 lb a week. I think/hope once I'm past 100lbs my daily maintenance will change again...(I actually lost 3 lbs here in my firs week as I set my self to maintain, but am seemingly more active than what the sites settings allowed for, or my metabolism is just fast, either way I always have my self set to active or very active, regardless I wont go under 1900.
  • Meg_78
    Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
    Anyone else please?
  • ahamm002
    ahamm002 Posts: 1,690 Member
    There is no reason you have to cut out cardio, especially if you're only lifting twice weekly. Four days of exercise, split up into 2 days cardio and two days resistance training sounds like a well balanced exercise plan. And as others have mentioned, the NROLWM will answer quite a few of your questions.

    You seem like you have it all planned out well. The main thing is to do the resistance training and eat enough calories to build muscle. Remember that it's impossible to exactly calculate how much you're really burning and eating (the numbers are estimates). So just see what works for you. So, some helpful things you can do to make sure you succeed:

    -Weigh yourself everyday (that way you can get a feel for how your water weight fluctuates with different foods, levels of hydration, and exercises). Keep track of the weight.
    -KEEP TRACK OF EXACTLY HOW MUCH YOU'RE LIFTING AND MAKE SURE YOU PROGRESS!! Don't lift the same 15 pound weight every session for 6 weeks.
    -Take before pictures, then compare them to yourself after you've gained some muscle and definition. It's very motivating!
    -Make sure to eat enough high quality protein (i.e., lean meat, dairy, eggs, or just whey protein supplements).
  • SirBen81
    SirBen81 Posts: 396 Member
    Kodos for being a female who wants to add muscle rather than just loose weight. They are rare in these parts.

    When choosing how much weight to lift start by picking how many reps and sets you plan on doing. 5x5 is a good start, that means 5 repetitions, 5 times in a row, with 60 second breaks in between sets. Many women find 12 reps x 3 sets to be good as well. Take your pick. The weight you choose should be enough so that doing more repetitions than you're supposed to results in failure, for example, if you doing 5 reps, then pick a weight heavy enough so that you cannot do 6.

    Eat a calorie surplus. 500 extra calories is a good start, and eat those extra calories before and after your workout.

    If you like doing cardio that's fine. Go ahead and keep on doing it, but it won't help you gain weight or muscle, and you'll have to eat more to maintain calorie surplus.

    If you want to gain muscle and lower body fat at the same time it is a little tricky, but possible on the right diet. I'd aim for a 40/40/20% ratio of prot/fat/carbs.

    These are all my opinion, and not based on any scientific study. They are based on what has worked very well for me in the past, and I've tried a lot of different stuff.
  • Nopedotjpeg
    Nopedotjpeg Posts: 1,805 Member
    Starting Strength seems to be especially geared towards those looking to gain weight and strength.

    I don't know exactly what your reaction to lactose is, but whole milk is something often recommended for gaining weight.
  • Meg_78
    Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
    Thanks for more info people, I really really appreciate it. My diary is half in Swedish, so It makes it a bit of an *kitten* for others to read, but I do eat quilt a lot of dairy, yoghurt, lots of milk (1,5% is our average Milk here) cheese. the lean proteins are pretty ok too I think (mostly chicken, some lean pork, a little red meat, some tuna) an egg a day, and I have a protein shake that I usually use on the days I work out (which I mix with milk so there are some days when I may easily drinking half a liter of milk, I looove the stuff!)
    I try not to go under my calorie goal more than 100 cals, and if I'm hungry, I do go over it a little. (I also have a super gainer for days when foods ended up a lot lower than I thought they would be and I have a lot of calories to fill in the evening, then I mix a bit of that to my protein shake for the extra calorie boost!)

    From what I'm hearing here I can push up the wights a bit I think, so will try that too, and keep up with the 1 or 2 sessions of 25-35 min cardio. I was only weight once a week right now (fingers crossed i have reached 100 tomorrow!!), but it might be worth it to take some more detailed body measurement too. oh and my usual week is:
    Mon rest,
    Tue Cardio
    Wed rest
    Thur Cardio
    Fri rest
    Sat and Sun, lifting (its when my hubby is available so he helps/guides me, which i need right now)

    Really grateful guys, It can be a bit daunting and hard to figure out exactly where to start!!
  • warmachinejt
    warmachinejt Posts: 2,162 Member
    Don't know why you're incorporating a lot of cardio in a bulking phase. It really won't help cut fat gain and help you gain muscle, it just isn't going to happen. The only reason you want to do cardio while gaining is to keep your cardiovascular system in great condition. Besides that only means you're going to have to eat even more on top of your gaining phase calories. You should also shoot for a minimum protein in grams as much as you weigh. So, your protein should not go lower than 100g to help with muscle building.
  • deannarey13
    deannarey13 Posts: 452
    Your protein intake seems low for someone who wants to increase muscle. I think that most of the advice that has been given has been good though!
  • 3laine75
    3laine75 Posts: 3,069 Member
    check out 'starting strength' and 'strong-lifts 5x5' - they are both basically the same routine (you will get inundated with e-mails from 5x5). I have NROLFW as well but am working on this first.

    i do 3 days weights and as little cardio as possible (and i am trying to lose). i am so jealous you're trying to gain - wish it was me - just get plenty of fats and proteins in.
  • Meg_78
    Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
    I guess the reason I'm doing cardio is cause I'm not fit at all, (I was a smoker for too many years) and I have not a lot of endurance so the cardio is for fitness reasons, which is why I try to keep it at a lower burn (usually 200 cals or less) so I'm not having to eat back massive amounts of cals. I thought my protein was ok, I'm usually 80-100 each day, I'm less than 100lbs, so I guess I need to keep it at 100.

    Do you think a 3 day lifting 1 day cardio would be better?

    Meg
  • SirBen81
    SirBen81 Posts: 396 Member
    Do you think a 3 day lifting 1 day cardio would be better?

    Yes.
  • Nopedotjpeg
    Nopedotjpeg Posts: 1,805 Member
    http://startingstrength.com/
  • Meg_78
    Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
    Thanks all!
  • Nopedotjpeg
    Nopedotjpeg Posts: 1,805 Member
    A good way to increase conditioning is doing some kind of short bursts of high-intensity training. Hill Sprints or Running up stairs is something I've seen recommended a lot for conditioning over on EliteFTS.
  • poncho33
    poncho33 Posts: 1,511
    Anyone else please?

    I'd cut the cardio and stick with the strength training till you gain...
  • jeardawg
    jeardawg Posts: 110 Member
    It is a very old program. I have never ever had as much success on any other program as I have on it. But google ten sets of ten. It will tell you everything you need to know about what to lift when, then you will need to make sure your nutrition is up to the task of repairing the damage you inevitably do. (the program is also known as German Volumizing Training, or GVT)
  • Meg_78
    Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
    LOL these wights levels on theses sites are scaring me guys! I can't start off that high! Still way too pissy and weak here!!! But thanks for the links, there's lots of good info there, and we all have to start somewhere!!

    As for the cardio, I'm going to keep it at least once a week, it may seem counter productive, but I'm not looking to be a total body builder, I just want more strength and actual muscle, and I have managed to gain 3lbs in 3 weeks with what I'm doing (and it hasn't all landed on my belly so that's got to be good!), I'm sure it will still be ok if I drop it down to once a week. the thing is, I actually enjoy the challenge of it, and its not pure cardio anyway (like a treadmill or elliptical) its maybe less than 10min of actual cardio (skipping, jumping jacks etc) in several minute bursts, the rest is strength and abs, so lunges, squats, arm curls, push ups, crunches etc. most with weights. That type of thing, I just call it my cardio.

    DON'T KILL ME NOW! And don't think I don't appreciate ALL the advice you have given me, and the time spent bothering to even write a response, there are clear changes I can see I need to make, but there are also some thins I'd personally like to keep.
    Meg
  • Nopedotjpeg
    Nopedotjpeg Posts: 1,805 Member
    LOL these wights levels on theses sites are scaring me guys! I can't start off that high! Still way too pissy and weak here!!! But thanks for the links, there's lots of good info there, and we all have to start somewhere!!

    As for the cardio, I'm going to keep it at least once a week, it may seem counter productive, but I'm not looking to be a total body builder, I just want more strength and actual muscle, and I have managed to gain 3lbs in 3 weeks with what I'm doing (and it hasn't all landed on my belly so that's got to be good!), I'm sure it will still be ok if I drop it down to once a week. the thing is, I actually enjoy the challenge of it, and its not pure cardio anyway (like a treadmill or elliptical) its maybe less than 10min of actual cardio (skipping, jumping jacks etc) in several minute bursts, the rest is strength and abs, so lunges, squats, arm curls, push ups, crunches etc. most with weights. That type of thing, I just call it my cardio.

    DON'T KILL ME NOW! And don't think I don't appreciate ALL the advice you have given me, and the time spent bothering to even write a response, there are clear changes I can see I need to make, but there are also some thins I'd personally like to keep.
    Meg

    You want to do something that doesn't feel too easy, but you can actually complete with good form. The numbers don't mean anything. What matters is it's high enough to stress your muscles to grow.
  • Meg_78
    Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
    You want to do something that doesn't feel too easy, but you can actually complete with good form. The numbers don't mean anything. What matters is it's high enough to stress your muscles to grow.

    Thank you! and as long as I keep increasing it should be alright right??, even if I'm starting at little girl levels! (my dumbbells are about 8,8lbs (4kg) now and my barbel is about 20 and 30 (10kg and 15kg) depending on the move.
    So you can all have a giggle at my expense, I totally would!, you boys can probably easily lift me!

    Meg
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    It doesn't matter what weights you start on (we all start somewhere!) as long as they are challenging for you and over time you progress and increase the weights :smile:

    As others have said, less cardio, more lifting, at least until you gain. There's nothing wrong with cardio for general fitness, but overload on it can have negative effects on your gains. The New Rules of Lifting should sort you out with that though.
  • Nopedotjpeg
    Nopedotjpeg Posts: 1,805 Member
    You want to do something that doesn't feel too easy, but you can actually complete with good form. The numbers don't mean anything. What matters is it's high enough to stress your muscles to grow.

    Thank you! and as long as I keep increasing it should be alright right??, even if I'm starting at little girl levels! (my dumbbells are about 8,8lbs (4kg) now and my barbel is about 20 and 30 (10kg and 15kg) depending on the move.
    So you can all have a giggle at my expense, I totally would!, you boys can probably easily lift me!

    Meg

    Exactly. You need to progressively increase the weight over time. There's a great metaphor in the Starting Strength book about this.
    It is May 15, and you decide this year you are going to get a suntan - a glorious, beautiful, tropical suntan. So you decide to go out in the back yard (to spare the neighbors and innocent passerby) to lay out at lunchtime and catch a ray or two. You lie on your back for 15 minutes and flip over to lie on your belly for 15 minutes. Then you get up, come in and eat lunch and go back to work. That night, your skin is a little pink, so the next day you just eat your lunch, but the following day you're back outside for your 15-minutes-per-side sunbath. You are faithful to your schedule, spending 30 minutes outside every day that week, because that's the kind of disciplined determined person you are. At the end of the week, you have turned a more pleasant shade of brown and, heartened by your results, resolve to maintain your schedule for the rest of the month. So here is the critical question: what color is your skin at the end of the month?

    If you ask a hundred people this question, ninety-five will tell you that it will be really, really dark. But in fact it will be exactly the same color as it was at the end of the first week. Why would it be any darker? Your skin adapts to the stress of the sun exposure by becoming dark enough to prevent itself from burning again. That's the ONLY reason it gets dark, and it adapts exactly and specifically to the stress that burned it. Your skin does not "know" that you want to get darker; it only "knows" what the sun tells it, and the sun only talked to it for 15 minutes. It can't get any darker than the 15 minutes makes it get, because 15 minutes is what it is adapting to.

    Rippetoe goes onto explain that exercise follows the same principle. A stress is imposed on the body and the body adapts to the stress. It needs to continue to be stressed with more weight in order to adapt.
  • mustgetmuscles1
    mustgetmuscles1 Posts: 3,346 Member
    How much you are lifting is not the important thing that will come with time. Just pick enough weight to challenge your current strength somewhere around 10 reps. If you can lift 8lbs 20 times that is too light. If you can only lifts it 5 then it is to heavy. Try to find the weight that gives you that window of 8-12 reps.

    Using cardio to keep your heart and lungs conditioned is fine but you can do that with one or two sessions a week . Also lifting will do a good job all by itself.
  • Nopedotjpeg
    Nopedotjpeg Posts: 1,805 Member
    How much you are lifting is not the important thing that will come with time. Just pick enough weight to challenge your current strength somewhere around 10 reps. If you can lift 8lbs 20 times that is too light. If you can only lifts it 5 then it is to heavy. Try to find the weight that gives you that window of 8-12 reps.

    That really depends on what program you're doing. Between 5-8 reps can give a combination of hyportrophy as well as strength and power.
  • JNick77
    JNick77 Posts: 3,783 Member
    How much you are lifting is not the important thing that will come with time. Just pick enough weight to challenge your current strength somewhere around 10 reps. If you can lift 8lbs 20 times that is too light. If you can only lifts it 5 then it is to heavy. Try to find the weight that gives you that window of 8-12 reps.

    That really depends on what program you're doing. Between 5-8 reps can give a combination of hyportrophy as well as strength and power.

    Yup. The word "strength" is a very loose term and there's definitely different variations of it if you just checkout the force curve or some call the strength curve. 85%+ of your 1RM is actually maximal strength range which is typically 3-5 reps. As you lighten the load and increase volume past that you change the strength and hypertrophy benefit.
  • mustgetmuscles1
    mustgetmuscles1 Posts: 3,346 Member
    How much you are lifting is not the important thing that will come with time. Just pick enough weight to challenge your current strength somewhere around 10 reps. If you can lift 8lbs 20 times that is too light. If you can only lifts it 5 then it is to heavy. Try to find the weight that gives you that window of 8-12 reps.

    That really depends on what program you're doing. Between 5-8 reps can give a combination of hyportrophy as well as strength and power.

    Yup. The word "strength" is a very loose term and there's definitely different variations of it if you just checkout the force curve or some call the strength curve. 85%+ of your 1RM is actually maximal strength range which is typically 3-5 reps. As you lighten the load and increase volume past that you change the strength and hypertrophy benefit.

    Correct but she wants to put on weight. This is only a generalization but: Strength gains are made with a slightly lower range (which will also gain mass) but muscle gains are to higher rep ranges (around 10 ish which will also gain strength). Both would work but one will be better towards her goal of putting on weight. IMO
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    It doesn't matter what weights you start on (we all start somewhere!) as long as they are challenging for you and over time you progress and increase the weights :smile:

    As others have said, less cardio, more lifting, at least until you gain. There's nothing wrong with cardio for general fitness, but overload on it can have negative effects on your gains. The New Rules of Lifting should sort you out with that though.

    ^^this

    And do not feel bad about not lifting too much at first - everyone is different and everyone has to start off somewhere. You will see your strength increase very rapidly at first and then the 'curve' slows down as you get towards your maximum potential (for want of a better word). I restarted back weigh training about 2 months ago after a long long break - and am now lifting more than double what I started with - just make sure you challenge yourself each time, but remember not to sacrifice good form to lift heavier. (And its not only the guys that could lift you!!:tongue: )
  • Meg_78
    Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
    It doesn't matter what weights you start on (we all start somewhere!) as long as they are challenging for you and over time you progress and increase the weights :smile:

    As others have said, less cardio, more lifting, at least until you gain. There's nothing wrong with cardio for general fitness, but overload on it can have negative effects on your gains. The New Rules of Lifting should sort you out with that though.

    ^^this

    And do not feel bad about not lifting too much at first - everyone is different and everyone has to start off somewhere. You will see your strength increase very rapidly at first and then the 'curve' slows down as you get towards your maximum potential (for want of a better word). I restarted back weigh training about 2 months ago after a long long break - and am now lifting more than double what I started with - just make sure you challenge yourself each time, but remember not to sacrifice good form to lift heavier. (And its not only the guys that could lift you!!:tongue: )

    Thanks people. And you are so right, there are some kick *kitten* ladies on here!!!
  • Gonzaln2
    Gonzaln2 Posts: 13 Member
    In the past month I've gained 7lbs of lean muscle by eating a 1:1 ratio of protein and lean body mass (LBM). I also eat lots of healthy fats with low amount carbs. I lift heavy 3 days out of the week, like olympic lifting. I've recently dropped the ratio to .7g:1lb LBM to help lose the fat after the gain.
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