Calorie and macro goals for building muscle and leaning out?

[magnusnr]

@catqueen Your lean muscle mass is easily calculated. There are calculators that will even do it for you.

As a person with a BS biology degree and works in the medical field, I think I understand a thing or two about proper sourcing and funding. I found his stuff to be low bullshit and pretty straight forward. Yes, he also makes money by selling a book on fitness, and has been growing his business substantially since coming out with the books. I also love that he tells me lift heavy and not lift 8# dumbbells like female fitness gurus on Instagram, and I am in the best shape of my life following his program.

After all, we are all on a fitness forum trying to get advice from people that have likely no education at all in regard to exercise science or nutrition, and are going by what has worked for them personally. Nutritional science is extremely varied and many different opinions exists.

 

[catqueen]

@magnusnr Glad you’re finding it helpful, lift heavy is a common recommendation in the sub and works best for folks trying to gain muscle mass. I didn’t mean to offend you and question your education, I just think that number is thrown around and is based off research funded by industries with priorities. Many opinion exist, indeed.

Lean body mass is estimated many places online, but even the with the best body scans, it’s still an estimate.

 

[magnusnr]

@catqueen No worries. Weightlifting is great for weight loss, too! Yes LBM isn’t perfect either because water takes up so much, and unless you’re being dissected post death and your parts being weighed, there isn’t a solid way to estimate either body fat or lean body mass.

But they are all just numbers. And if you track them the same way every time, it’s okay. I think of it all like the bathroom scale. Weigh yourself on 5 different kinds and they all come out different.

 

[isabee0920]

@flamingoandsparrow You look amazing!!! Excellent progress!! I can’t offer any advice that hasn’t already been said here, but keep it up! You’re crushing it

 

[dawn16]

@flamingoandsparrow I’d say definitely do your research and play around with the macros that work best for you. Im not certified but I do agree with other comments about eating slightly over maintenance calories. To gain muscle.
I like to eat .8 - 1g of protein per lb of body weight, .25 - .4g of fat per lb of body weight and just fill the rest of calories with carbs. Generally does well for my body when I’m trying to “lean bulk” or a recomp.
Gauge Girl Fitness has a lot of in depth videos on macro calculations.
Good luck with your journey! You look amazing!

 

[dawn16]

@flamingoandsparrow To start putting on muscle mass, you should eat at a slight caloric surplus. Start with a goal of 100 calories a day, take note of your progress/measurements/weight for a week or two, and adjust up or down as needed.

I spent YEARS trying to eat 1200 calories/day to hit my "goal weight", and switching to a healthier amount while I lift weights 5x/week was a real mind trip. Same with my wife. As women we're bombarded with the idea that we need to eat less and it can be pretty tough to get past it. BUT now that we both eat more, we're more satisfied throughout the day, our lifts go up regularly, and we're showing off the muscles we've worked so hard to build. It's awesome!

30/30/40 is a pretty good split, just keep listening to your body. Everyone reacts differently to different things. I've found different carbs will do different things, so I eat 45% carbs but primarily fruits/veggies/steel cut oats (and some donuts, I'm only human).

You've made some amazing changes in the past year, and you look great! Good luck with the lifting, it's my favourite activity in the world!

 

[noscentia]

@dawn16 This. I've also spend years eating 1200kcals and got nowhere except being frustrated that I wasn't seeing any changes and I was always starving. I'm now at 2375kcals 50/30/20 split working out 5-6x/wk. I feel full and satisfied throughout the day, and I'm no longer starving! My workouts are also exceptionally better and so is my mood lol

 

[catqueen]

@dawn16 You’re saying because you lift you can eat more than 1200, right? I don’t lift, and I try to stick to that despite daily exercise

 

[dawn16]

@catqueen I think it entirely depends upon the individual and their routines. BUT for me (5’3”, 140lbs) I found 1200 totally unsustainable. I’d stick with it for a few days, but after that I’d completely overeat because I felt so restricted. Now I eat 1600 and I’m full and satisfied and feel great about my fitness.

I also think it’s worth noting I hit my current weight after I quit drinking and upped my food intake. I’m quite muscular and have decent definition, and think my weight is realistic, although I know a lot of women my height have a much lower goal. I pay attention to my weight, but am a firm believer of the concept that it’s just a number and one factor of measurement. My clothes fit way better than they used to and I’m a size 6 for the first time in my entire life.

 

[catqueen]

@dawn16 That is amazing! I struggle to gain muscle, but anything over a 20 BMI and I have a double chin. Cursed

 

[jackyforst]

@dawn16 Thank you for this. Wife is on the deficit train right now lifting regularly and is like where are my gains

 

[flamingoandsparrow]

@dawn16 Thank you so much this was incredibly helpful!!

 

[jaydon111]

@flamingoandsparrow You may be able to get more information and a free plan outline from the if it fits your macros website. You put in your weight, age, fitness levels and goals (bulk, cut, maintain) and it give you info.

 

[tinyarch]

@flamingoandsparrow I’m not knowledgeable enough to give advice re: your specific questions, but just wanted to say fantastic job!

 

[dawn16]

@tinyarch Ditto, girl you look great! I’m a couple inches taller but your transformation is my goals.

 

[flamingoandsparrow]

@tinyarch Thank you so much!

 

[chaorabite]

@flamingoandsparrow My understanding is if you just want to build muscle it’s ok to eat at a surplus, but if you are trying to build muscle AND lose weight/fat, you need to restrict calories. Hitting protein macros will be important, and of course lifting weights. I don’t know how much you’re trying to lose, your goal is kind of vague, but cardio could potentially help you lose faster as well.

 

[flamingoandsparrow]

@chaorabite Hi! I should make it clear that I am no longer trying to lose weight and gain muscle, I am now focusing on gaining muscle, which is why I’m asking about eating at maintenance or surplus.

 

[chaorabite]

@flamingoandsparrow Then eat at a surplus https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/the-womans-no-bs-guide-to-muscle-building.html

 

[flamingoandsparrow]

@chaorabite Great read thanks! The article recommends upping your caloric intake to a surplus of 500 calories - for a person of my height having and having a naturally lower BMR, is 500 too high?