Gained weight, lost weight! - Whazzup???

[Danielv2000]

First off, great forum. Finally decided to post as the summer begins to wind down.

Last September 2008, i ordered SS from Amazon. Followed the program for several months to the letter. Ate like mad. Drank loads of milk (1/2 of which was chocolate milk!!!) Made great strides in all lifts.

Sept 2008 - 5'7, 132 lbs

February 2009, 5'7 165lbs

So far, looks good. For the summer, decided to trim the excess fat. Right now, I am at 140lbs (slightly leaner than at 132 which is good) but does that mean I gained too much fat??? This suggests that that I gained say, 8 pounds of muscle in 5 months. Am i doing something wrong?

I plan on starting again in a month or so. I want to make sure i get this right.

Please help!!!

[Mark Rippetoe]

I think you have lost sight of the more important reality here: you are 5' 7", and you only weigh 140. A healthy female at 5' 7" weighs 155.

[stronger]

I think you have lost sight of the more important reality here: you are 5' 7", and you only weigh 140. A healthy female at 5' 7" weighs 155.

This is interesting, and I think I agree. Unfortunately, I've seen few females who are "healthy" (i.e. not skinny fat, or just plain flab) at this weight.

What does a healthy 5'7 155 woman look like? Any examples?

[titan]

My old man is about the same height as you, and almost identical weight.... he used to train in his younger days but as he's aged he's given it away so is probably at a different level of fitness compared to you.

But he is as skinny as a fucking rake.... as Rip said, you need to forget about this "leaning" down bullshit, and focus on eating well and lifting heavy and the rest will take care of itself (weight gain/mass gain).

In answer to your question, yes you have done something wrong, you've concerned yourself with pathetic ideals of calvin klein models who pose on billboards and in womens magazines and got most of their advice from bb.com. Forget all that shit and concentrate on getting strong in the big 3 lifts, forget about "lean mass" for now, you need to focus on eating and getting stronger.

[Andy Baker (KSC)]

Not trying to beat my own drum but I am 5'4 and currently weigh a fairly lean220. I have been as heavy as 250 (too much fat at 250). I'm not sure why you would think you would need to try and lean out when you hit 165. Your weight has a long long way to go before you need to start worrying about "cutting".

[Mark Rippetoe]

This is interesting, and I think I agree. Unfortunately, I've seen few females who are "healthy" (i.e. not skinny fat, or just plain flab) at this weight.

What does a healthy 5'7 155 woman look like? Any examples?

I've 2 or 3 hanging around in here. You know, good-looking muscular women. Find your own pictures.

[Autopart111]

You think your fat at 165, I must be a real Fat *ss at 235/240. My 12 year old son is 5'8 and 165 and he isn't fat, I'm sure you have more muscle mass than him.

[Kate]

Sept 2008 - 5'7, 132 lbs
February 2009, 5'7 165lbs
....For the summer, decided to trim the excess fat. Right now, I am at 140lbs (slightly leaner than at 132 which is good) but does that mean I gained too much fat??? This suggests that I gained say, 8 pounds of muscle in 5 months....

It sounds like you're assuming that most of your weight gain was fat, rather than muscle. I'm wondering why you would assume that if you were lifting steadily throughout those 5 months.

If your weight gain freaked you out a bit -- and it kinda sorta sounds like mebbe it did -- then in your next round of weight training & eating, go slower. Gain weight more gradually, and give yourself time -- as much time as it takes -- to adapt to how you feel and what you see in the mirror.

If that slows down your lifting progress a tad, I think that's an acceptable trade-off for not setting yourself up for another cycle of drastic weight loss and strength loss. (Does you no good to get big and strong if you end up dropping it all again.)


~Kate

(Breaking protocol and jumping straight into posting, instead of going to the Introduction forum first, 'cause I'm just ornery that way.)

[Dennisi01]

It looks like Daniel has been afflicted with the Abercrombie virus, where the ideal man has the body of a chick without breasts. Man up and put some weight on, and stop worrying about what the chickenheads at the club are going to think if you can't fit into those skinny jeans that are unfortunately all the rage for young men these days. (I wish it were legal to hit any man wearing those jeans with a 2x4).

[Danielv2000]

I agree - 140lbs is not where I want to be. However, i was also not comfortable at 165lbs with somewhat of a belly hanging over!

My goal is to start again in a couple of weeks and see where that takes me in 5-6 months. I know i can gain a lot of weight in that time span, but if I also wanted to minimize fat gain, what's the missing link? I've read posts from guys here who claim they gained 30lbs-40lbs and their body fat would go from a mere 6% to 7%. That's insane. If I could 1/2 of that I would be thrilled.

Must be the diet! I was eating everything in site; loads of milk, hamburger helper, pasta, etc... I can gain weight - no problem. 3 years ago, I used to be a fat 180lbs guy before I even saw the inside of a gym. That's what happened sitting behind a desk for 10 years having 3 kids. I finally woke up and got rid of the fat. I know I can gain and I know how to lose. But i would like to keep the "good" (muscle) gains and minimize the "bad" (fat) - This is obviously everyone's goal.

Your continued guidance is appreciated!