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Glycogen/water weight or actual muscle loss/gain with weight fluctuations
I've noticed that when my weight fluctuates by only a few pounds (say 3 or 4), I will notice the difference in how shirts and pants fit. For example, if I increase carbs by 10-15% and increase my strength training volume by about 10%, I have noticed that my muscles feel firmer and my clothes fit tighter. Based on this, I…
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Calculating an ideal surplus for muscle gains
I came across this article with calculators for how much muscle can be gained on a bulk based on body size, body fat, and training experience. What do you all think? It seems to me that there was some solid basis for these calculations, although of course this assumes other factors like stress and sleep are in good shape.…
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Getting into a calorie surplus can be hard for some
I know a lot of people on here already know me, but I will give my stats anyway. I'm 20, just under 5'8" and hover around 120-123 pounds. Even though I've never gained any muscle before, here is a list of reasons why I'm choosing to bulk at a slower than optimal pace. 1. I feel like I hit the jackpot when it comes to my…
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Weight difference between machine and free weights
I use an Impex weight machine. I believe each of the plates that are on the system are 10 pounds each, although there is an additional plate (not sure how much weight) on top of the other ones. I'm wondering if there is any way to know what (if any) difference there is between doing some exercises (such as the bench press)…
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Earthing/Grounding
Earthing involves getting direct contact with the Earth's surface, such as walking barefoot outside. It supposedly works to improve health by neutralizing free radicals. While several sources note that the science behind this is sketchy, there are anecdotal accounts of people who have tried it and reported that it does…
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Special diet, detox, Nutrisystem, Weight Watchers, etc. Why?
I don't remember if this was really discussed before in this section. But one thing I've noticed with friends I know in real life and even some celebrities is the way in which a lot of people try to lose weight. Now I may be biased based on my observations, but it seems to me that a fairly large percentage of the…
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Serotonin and the gut/brain
I'm opening a discussion on tryptophan and serotonin and their production/impacts for the gut and brain. I've heard that while most serotonin is produced in the gut, it cannot cross the blood/brain barrier and so it does not impact serotonin in the brain. I've also heard the reverse, that reduced serotonin production in…
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Cups/grams/servings of vegetables
I know what constitutes a serving of vegetables varies depending on the source. A ½ cup of vegetables is often regarded as a serving, while 80-85g is also regarded as a serving. But I think that in some cases it gets tricky. For instance, some frozen vegetables will list 1 cup as a serving, but that 1 cup is also listed as…
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Maintenance calories and macro nutrient ratio
I want to discuss how much influence macro ratios have on how many calories one needs to maintain weight. It seems to me like there is some anecdotal evidence that some people following a LCHF diet (or at least one that has fat as the largest source of calories) do not need as many calories to maintain as compared to…
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Skeletal/Muscle changes in men during 20s
I've heard it said that men typically continue to fill out naturally from a skeletal and muscle perspective naturally during their 20s, long after the main body growth is done. I'd love to hear anecdotal accounts from others who are 30+ regarding this. As a caveat, I would imagine the changes would probably be easiest to…
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How much sleep do you need to feel fully rested at your current age?
I wanted to see if I could draw any kind of correlation between age and amount of sleep needed from those on here. Post the minimum number of hours of sleep you need to fully function and your current age. If your sleep needs have changed over the course of adulthood, feel free to note that as well. I'm 21 and am trying to…
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Discrepancies in calculating TDEE based on exercise level
It seems to me that there are different multipliers proposed for calculating TDEE from BMR X the activity level. Compare this and this. That's a difference of 1.2 vs 1.4 for a sedentary lifestyle, and there are differences for other activity levels. I have to wonder, which is generally more accurate? For me, I think that…
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Nutrition facts for banana
With regards to size, am I correct that the nutrition facts for a banana do account for the skin? In other words, a medium size banana is listed as 118g. That 118g includes the skin, right?
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Appetite and Cardio/Activity level
I'm curious, for those that have substantially increased activity level, did your appetite increase such that you could eat more food at meal times and throughout the day? Or was the amount of food that you could eat at one sitting still the same? I've often wondered how activity level plays a role in appetite. In other…
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Upper limit on protein intake for health - Does it exist?
At the moment, there's an ongoing thread in the nutrition section ( http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10336658/too-much-protein-dangerous/p1) regarding an excessively high protein intake (2.5g per lb of bodyweight). I decided to create this thread where we can concentrate on debating extremely high protein…
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Fitbit calorie estimation
I have the Fitbit One, and while I do like it, one thing I am concerned about is whether it could be significantly over-estimating how many calories I'm burning. My suspicion is mostly centered on intentional exercise, although I'm also questioning whether it may be over-estimating normal daily activity. For instance, I…
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Moderate carb ~ 2500 calorie diet
I've seen it recommended on here for macros to calculate protein and fat minimums from a gram perspective, then fill in the rest with carbs. However, I need to keep a cap on my carb intake for medical reasons, and that advice would lead to too many carbs for me. I think 250-260g of carbs is about the maximum number I…
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Strength gains from lifting (bodyweight vs traditional weights) and muscle gain potential
I know that a lot of people are at a high enough body fat to do a recomposition with lifting weights to gain some muscle and lose some fat. To my knowledge, this works with both actual weights and bodyweight exercises. I also know with traditional weight lifting, most people will rapidly gain strength initially. But…
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Assessing true level of strength
This isn't really a question, but rather I wanted to open a discussion on assessing one's actual level of strength, or I should say strength that can be applied to every day activities. I know that some people can be very strong with exercises like bench press, squat, and deadlift, but not necessarily strong when it comes…
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Deep sleep, stress, and melatonin in cherries
I wasn't sure what section to put this thread, but hopefully this is not in a bad spot. I don't know how common this is, but I seem to struggle with getting into a deep sleep. I do think I usually sleep long enough; according to my Fitbit I get about 7.0-7.5 hours a night and my efficiency is generally around 88-96%. I…
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Strength Standards for the general population
I think every strength standard chart I've seen is relative to the population that lifts weights or at least does some training on the exercises. While I am no expert on this subject, I decided to create a percentile chart to approximate how much weight the general population under age 40 can bench press. I took into…
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Very brisk walk on treadmill and stiffness near ankles
I've noticed this issue for a while, maybe as far back as a couple years, but never really paid much attention to it since I don't normally do much walking on a treadmill. When I walk at a fairly brisk pace, I notice that on the front side of both my legs near my ankles, I'll notice a lot of stiffness that's almost painful…
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Running - Sore muscles - Muscle repair?
I did a little bit of jogging yesterday, which is not something I have done in a long time. My hips are sore from that, so I was wondering does that mean there was actually some muscle damage (and hence repairs now) similar to weight training?
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Arm involvement in pressing lifts and lifting in real life
I'm curious as to why the upper body presses like bench and overhead work the triceps much more than the biceps, but yet in real life when I lift a heavy object, it's my biceps that do a lot more work. Any reason why there is a disconnect?
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Online Body fat calculators vs reality
For those that have gotten actual accurate testings for body fat, do you know of any online calculators that are very close? I did see this calculator claims to be very close to a water displacement test. I played around with some of the measurements, and it seems like it primarily takes into account height and waist size…
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Serving size of frozen foods
Take for example a frozen food like spinach, broccoli, etc. that has a serving size of 25 grams (no specification of cooked or frozen). For foods like these that lose water when cooked, would the serving size be for its frozen measurement?
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Dumbbell to Barbell Bench and Overhead Standing Press weight differences
I was wondering for those that have done both exercises with both weights, how much more can you do with a barbell? I don't have access to a barbell, but I do have a pair of dumbbells. If I had access to a barbell, I’m curious as to how much weight I should be able to lift. I know all of this would still be an…
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Hamstring Vs Quad strength
I'm just curious if anyone else has dealt with notable strength imbalances between the two. I read that the hamstrings should at the minimum be 60% of the quad strength. For at least one rep, I can lift at least 2.5 times as much weight on the leg extension versus a standing hamstring curl. If this is an accurate way to…
