Gaining muscle mass for dummies... (need it broken down a bit)


(Denise) #21

We have similar goals @Bellyman, but I don’t have any activities except a workout to a video, and then walking at a good pace. I’m 71 one so I’m pretty careful. I also started with the lowering my carbs, increasing meats, chic, fish, healthy fats, and I think I stayed just under 40 or 50 carbs in beginning. Now I am way low, for me at 20 g of carbs a day, around that anyway.

Sounds like you are doing just great, and I love my workouts at home way better than 3 years at the gym. I have your setup but only resistance bands right now, but planning to get a set of dumbells. I’ve gained more muscle than I did at the gym following a gal on you tube. There’s some great videos free, by guys, I’ll put one below. But what’s nice about these, for me anyway, is I don’t have to count just follow, keep up etc. And when it’s totally easy, I can move up to the next level. Just something to consider, maybe :slight_smile: Denise

PS plus they encourage me more with the timers in the videos, I workout much harder at home and I can choose from different lengths of videos:

man working out with dumbells

Woman working out with resistance bands


(Denise) #22

Thanks for the reminder about Chaffee @PaulL!! That is something I think I see on muscle builders is that accumulation of intramuscular fat/water retention I do not want. Makes total sense to leave the carb out and maybe slower but sure looks better :wink: :grinning::+1: imo anyway, Denise


(Brian) #23

I had kinda forgotten about this thread Denise. Life has a way of getting busy. Interesting revisiting, though, including the suggestions above.

Winter didn’t do nice things to me, muscle wise or weight wise, nothing dramatic, but noticeable to me, but spring has sprung and the farm work with it. Just in the past few weeks, I’ve noticed muscle tone improving, stamina improving, and the scale backing off just a bit. Life is good.


(Denise) #24

I’m sorry I didn’t realize it was an older thread Brian, glad things are going great for you!! Denise

PS I would love to live on a small farm, and be away from all the concrete, even in my small-town :wink:


#25

I’m glad this thread was resurrected. I need this kind of information to help reverse my osteoporosis. I really appreciate all the links you provided in your two replies. Thank you so much.


(Robin) #26

My osteoporosis disappeared. I’d forgotten I even had it, to be honest.
So many benefits that just gradually become the new norm.


(Denise) #27

Oh this is amazing!! How wonderful @robintemplin :heavy_heart_exclamation::heavy_heart_exclamation::heavy_heart_exclamation:

Can you share what your levels were? I’m looking so forward to see if I’ve improved in a year’s time, if not, I won’t give up, especially seeing yours and Mark’s results!!


(KM) #28

Amazing!!!

I’m sorry if this is being discussed everywhere, but what was it that you think caused this? Diet, exercise, supplements, collagen, medication? All of the above?


(Robin) #29

@Goldengirl52 @Just_Juju
Well, I need to apologize. I read osteoporosis but my brain heard arthritis. Sheesh.
I’ve never had osteoporosis! But my arthritis certainly went away.
So, never mind. And carry on.


(Denise) #30

no problem Robin, sounds like me, honestly :+1: Btw, I don’t have any pain, unless you call a few sore muscles from workouts on occasion. I mean, not since getting on Keto. All that good, anti-inflammatory food :wink:


(KM) #31

Well curing arthritis is pretty awesome too!


(B Creighton) #32

You do not need lots of equipment to gain muscle, but you do have to work muscles basically to the point of their failure. So your farm work is probably good aerobic exercise, but is not really working the muscles to the point of stimulating growth. I gained a few pounds of muscle(about 6) this winter using only two dumbells and a nautilus stand. On the Nautilus I do chinups, pullups, leg raises, dips(triceps and shoulders), and hanging rows. This year instead of using the arm rests to do leg raises, I switched to hanging leg raises and whoa! You can build your core with those. I also used a simple ab roller with a foam pad for my knees. The dumbells I used to do squats, arm curls and hammer curls. I also did diamond pushups. If you lower yourself to touch the floor/ground, these are challenging enough for me. I do have a bench press, but didn’t get it out to use it, so with that there are a few more exercises you can add.

I like to suppress my mTor with intermittent fasting the day of, and then work out in the evening. Immediately after or even during workout I make a protein smoothie. I typically use about 30 g of whey protein, and then some additional plant protein powder(I use Orgain with superfoods which gives me about 20 g of carbs). I spike the plant protein powder with a little BCAAs to make it more anabolic. It all goes in the blender with an avocado. I was using coconut milk as the base of my smoothie, but seemed to gain about 8 pounds of fat along with my 6 pounds of muscle, so switched to mostly almond milk(hemp would be preferable) or some kind of raw dairy, and then stopped gaining the fat.

I also drop 3-5 gr of creatine in the mix. The carbs do increase your insulin which pushes more creatine, protein and nutrients into the muscle cells including the new ones. All this also jumps mTor up. Together the high insulin and mTor are muscle growth promoting.

New muscle growth comes from satellite cells, which are a type of stem cells. These need nutrients to grow. Unlike gaining fat, building muscle is a slow process, and I believe comes from mostly stimulating those satellite cells to multiply and then grow. If these satellite cells don’t multiply, you won’t grow any new muscle… Muscle cells don’t divide. It’s kind of a constant process of stimulating more satellite cells to divide than present muscle cells dying off.

Anyway, I have always been a skinny guy, and this routine is the best I have found to add any muscle. This year I did add quite a bit of fat, but I already had those fat cells laying there from a few years back, just waiting to be filled. I think the insulin was pushing the fat from the coconut milk there. I have already lost about 4 pounds of that fat, but probably a pound or two of the muscle as well. So Chaffee may be right, but I am just happy to gain the muscle almost however I can.


(Denise) #33

well I’m glad to see this thread as I’m definitely in the “dummie” catagory. I’ve lost down to 107 lbs and skinny as a rail, yuck! Loose skin, and started walking uphill a lot lately which is helping, but I’m eating too little, today I’m just going to be at 999 calories. Yes my macros are right, but I’m under on all of them, not hitting my goals. My gym is closed for upgrades/reboot, whatever, but I can get back in on the 2nd.

I’ve got to eat more, when and lift heavier, they say, to build muscle/bulk whatever. So I’ll be kickin around here trying to figure what else I can eat. I’ve got 5 large chicken thighs, skin and all in the oven now, I can add another egg, maybe 2, and guessing I need more meat than just 2 ounces of sausage as my first meal. Who’d of thought I’d be trying to eat more, but I think I’ve lost some muscle whether it’s just age, or not enough weight-training, guess I’ll be finding out :wink:


(Alec) #34

Denise
That’s a good problem to have, but a problem nonetheless… you do need to make sure you are eating well! Given your weight, I would be going for lots of fatty meat, and do you like butter? That’s a great way to get some more calories in pretty easily, add a large portion of butter to each meal. I personally would be avoiding any fibre… non-nutritious, fills you up with no nutrition benefit.

And when you get to the gym, go mad, go heavy! Do some basic weights per the advice above, but it needs to be heavy (for you). That means heavy enough that you can just about do 6-8 reps, but that’s it. If you are done at 8 reps, and can’t do another one, that’s perfect! As soon as you can do more than 8 reps, up the weight!

Take care, good luck. And well done for the great weight (fat) loss, now for the weight (muscle) gain!
Cheers
Alec


Never been serious about body-building, til now ;)
(Denise) #35

Yes, I love butter :wink: but will add some in. You made it easy for me to understand, I appreciate that a lot. I can definitely make a plan with just dumbells to start. Even in the a.m.'s at my gym, it’s hard to get to the free-weights. There’s cable-type weights and machines galore. I get one, free day with a trainer, and they can help me put together something of a plan, but I’ll stick to what you said. I’ve heard it before, but just didn’t put it into action.

I mainly did 12 reps, and didn’t push myself near enough. I think macros are a bit hard for me to “reach” and I didn’t worry much about calories along the 3-4 years on keto. I want to see the scale go up now, with hopefully muscle gain. If I gain fat, I won’t be happy with that, so I’m just trying to use common sense, and eat according to keep off stored fat, which I still have that visceral plus the stuff that shows around my waist. The sagging skin might go too I hope, but with my age I’m not sure it can.

Thanks again and I’ll keep you posted. Probably make my own thread on my progress :wink: The best I have until the 2nd is uphill/hiking I can do when it’s cool enough, and we are getting sort of “perfect” weather right now thank goodness :wink: denise


(Denise) #36

Just found this @Alecmcq, I haven’t read it all, but it starts out which I think aligns with what your input is:

4 simple rules for building muscle


(Edith) #37

To add to what @Alecmcq said. Make sure you are eating about 1g of protein per pound of body weight. Maybe even a little more since you want to add muscle and put on some weight. Also, when increasing your weights, do it slowly. Sometimes the muscles are ready for more weight, but the tendons and ligaments are not.

I’m going to contradict Alec here a bit, but you don’t need to go to failure. If you stop a rep or two from failure you will still get strength gains, especially if you are consistent, but it will be safer not to go to failure.


(Denise) #38

Hi Edie, I don’t know if strength and building muscle are the same type of lifting, but I think I need to do it to failure, or fatigue. I’ve done it the other way with not an inch added. I always appreciate yours, or anyone input, but I think I’ll try the way Alec suggests, at least to see how I do :wink:

Also, the eating thing I’ll be reaching for that goal of 1g protein per body weight, and have to keep enough fat coming in to supply my energy since I’m so low-carb now :wink:

Thanks much, Denise


(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #39

Just remember, Bikman says the key to building muscle is not the weight per se, but rather repeating the lifting till failure, whatever the weight. Of course, it’s easier to reach failure sooner with more weight . . .

(With apologies to Mark Twain, exercise fascinates me; I could sit and watch it for hours!)


(Denise) #40

Yes, I will keep that front and center in my mind. I need to try this, and I expect I’ll probably feel the need for more food too, more appetite :wink: Too bad we can’t get the exercise through osmosis, :wink: :joy: