Skinny girl needs muscle

[skinnychik]

Hi everyone,

I have been reading through the posts and have found some great advice. I have been working out sporadically for the past 5 years. I would really like to put on some muscle because I have never been able to. I am very confused as to how much I should be eating, how much cardio etc. I lose weight very quickly and easily without dieting. I know many people think that's a +, but it's very frustrating to me. Here are my stats 5.7, 114lbs, 19% bodyfat w/ calipers, 29 yrs, 2 kids. I'd love to hear some advise from this knowledgable (sp?) group. Thanks.

[Andrea]

What kind of work-out are you doing? What kind of cardio and what kinds of foods do you eat?

[laura817]

skinnychik -- Your diet plays a significant role in either gaining muscle mass or losing body fat. As Andrea pointed out, what is your typical diet and workout like?

Are you making any progression on weight training either in terms of the amount of weight you lift, or the number of repetitions you perform? A small improvement such as changing the exercise routinely or add a new exercise can sometimes trigger new growth.

[skinnychik]

Right now I am in the gym about 3x's a week. I alternate my upper and lower body with 30 min cardio. I'm doing a beginners running program, so I am keeping my cardio pretty low. I've been told that I should keep my cardio low if I want to gain muscle.

I try to eat 5 small meals a day that include lean protein, good carbs and fat. For example, I had a protein shake this a.m., banana (after the gym) salad w/ tuna/mayo for lunch, cottage cheese w/ tomato for snack and I don't know about dinner yet. I mainly started eating this way to maintain my energy levels.

It seems no matter what I do or eat, my body pretty much stays the same.

[laura817]

My first advice is to eliminate or minimize your cardio session and just concentrate on lifting weights. What kind of workout do you normally do on upper body and lower body days and how many reps are you doing? Are you lifting to failure?

Also, do you know roughly how many calories you are eating?

[Andrea]

I agree with Laura on this one. Definitely eliminate or minimize the cardio session. Do you ever drink protein shakes? Do you lift weights at the gym, work-out using the machines or both?

[skinnychik]

I have just started back on a weights routine. For upper I do Chest, Back, Shoulders, Bi's & Tri's. For lower body I do leg press, extensions, hamstring curls, calf raises and occasionally lunges with 10 lb dumbells. One exercise per part, 2 sets, not to failure.

I am in limbo right now because I'm not sure which path I am supposed to be taking. I had a heavier routine a few years back but it just wore me into the ground. Looking back, I was probably not eating enough protein or drinking enough water.

I love protein shakes and have them often and no I have no idea how many calories I take in.

[laura817]

skinnychik – If you don’t already, keep a detail log of all your food intake for 3-4 days. I know it can be quite tedious, but you will be surprise at how much you are consuming.

As far as workout, I would drop the cardio and do a 3-day split.

DAY 1
Chest & Shoulders
Bench Press
Dumbbell Press
Military Press
Rear Laterals

DAY 2 REST

DAY 3
Back & Triceps
Barbell Row/Cable Row
HyperExtension
Triceps Extension
Dips

Day 4
REST

DAY 5
Legs & Biceps
Squats
Stiff Leg Deadlift
Calf Raises
Hammer Curls
Concentration Curls

DAY 6 and 7
REST

:: I would also stay in the 6-8 reps range while concentrating on proper form. If you can you do more than 8 reps than increase the weight by increments of 2.5 or 5 lbs.

[Lady C]

Laura has given you a great plan. It is almost exactly what do. I have in there a couple of cardio days because my goal it to reduce bodyfat more. I would leave those out for awhile because you want to gain mass.

Make sure your diet is good - it is about 90% of this. The food logging is the best eye-opening experience you will do.

[skinnychik]

Thank you so much for your help in answering my questions. Am I on the right track for what I should be eating? Can you guys give me any basic guidelines for how much I should be eating? My husband tells me not to worry about my diet, but obviously I've never gotten anywhere with that advice.

[Andrea]

You should really keep track of your calories. You should worry about your diet. What kinds of foods are you eating everyday? I eat 3 meals a day with snacks in between. Your at a good weight for having 2 kids. How much are you wanting to weigh?

[skinnychik]

Andrea - I am eating about 5 meals a day that include protein. After looking at advice from others, I think I need to reduce my fat intake. I've never worried about because of my low weight, I was more concerned with getting enough protein. However, I still have bellyfat and it's the 1st place I gain weight. Honestly, I don't care what I weigh as long as gain muscle and reduce a little bit of fat. I think that last trainer I talked to wanted me to lose 5 lbs of fat and gain 10 lbs of muscle. I really wanted to do it but the price was just too much at the time for this SAHM.

[Lady C]

Don't track weight, it is NOT a good tool. Track measurements or bodyfat!

Tell us in detail what you have been eating and we will help you modify it.

[laura817]

At 5’7” and 114-lbs with some bellyfat, you probably are eating a lot less than you might guess. I was in the same situation awhile ago. I started dieting a year ago when I noticed some excessive fat in me. At that point, I was at 116-lbs and without any knowledge on nutrition I started to eat 700-800 calories a day with exercise thinking the solution is by losing some unwanted weight. I quickly slimmed down to my lowest weight at 104-lbs, but I still noticed excessive fat. All the weight I had lost was 95% muscle mass. It was only then did I realize that I had to concentrate on losing body fat rather than scale weight. I tracked everything I ate, learned as much as I could with the help of Cursor and the members at DF and increased my calorie intake to 1400. I have a noticed an incredible difference.

[skinnychik]

I finally got Fitday to work for me (it kept freezing). Here is a sample of my diet

2 egg white
1 yolk
1 piece wheat bread

1 spirutein shake
w/ 1.5 C milk
1 scoop soy protein

green salad with grilled chik breast

1 apple w/ natural PB

2 pieces pizza

cal 1525
59fat/129carb/123protein

*I normally have a serv of veggies at dinner and some lean protein

Please give me your thoughts on whether or not I'm on the right track.