Ask The Experts

Category: Weight Management
Subject:	weight gain and BULK
Question:	I have worked out for years (mostly weight training, running and yoga), but not until this past spring when I trained for a 10k and now for a triathlon did I start to notice extreme gains in my thighs and gluts! I have gained 7 pounds, my quads stick out in front, hams stick out in back, and my legs and booty hardly fit in my pants! What the heck? I eat well---I eat ZERO dairy (completely intolerant to it), lots of fish, chicken, whole grains only, no processed foods, eat Cliff Bars when riding hard and before swimming...sip on Gatorade. I do always feel hungry, but stay away from sweets...I drink at least 1.5 - 2 liters of water a day. (I'm female, if that makes a difference.) Any ideas? Lauraine

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Lauraine, Let me first say that your description of your quads, hamstrings, and "booty" filling out sounds very sexy to me and 98% of the rest of the male population. Just incase you and any other ladies who may read this might be wondering if men really want that heroine/anorexic look that litters the pages of Marie Clair, Vogue, and the ilk – most of us don’t. We like some shape, bring on those curves!! But, what we want is clearly not the issue here, what is the issue is what you want to look like, and I have some answers to your query. Eating well vs. eating light: I think you diet sounds great. You’ve identified that stuff that doesn’t work for you, you avoid it, and you make great choices. When we boil down to the issue of loosing weight the truth is a math equation: if you consume more calories than you burn then - you’ll gain weight AND if you burn more calories than you consume - you’ll loose weight. It’s that simple. It wouldn’t matter if you ate the very best in whole grains, leafy green vegetables, etc – if you ate a ton of them you’d gain. BUT, I don’t think that’s what’s happening here. It doesn’t sound like you are talking about increased body fat, or that all areas are filling out. It sounds like muscle development to me. So, I would next propose genetics. Some folks can increase muscle size easily and some cannot. The biking and running may be building your legs more than you had expected or hoped. If this genetic theory of mine is correct then I’d imagine that you’ve seen changes in your shoulders as well – from the swimming. If this is the case then I’d ask you to look at your technique. You should try and drive the bike using a “spin” – that being a high cadence whereby those pedals are floating around at about 90-95 rpm, rather than “mashing” a big gear. The “high cadence” technique will make the bike go just as fast but will not place the demands on your leg muscles that the “low/big gear” technique will. The end result is three fold: you’ll have less mass building in your lower-body, you’ll be able to ride fresher longer, and you’ll run better off the bike. As for the run, run on flat terrain most often and only a bit in the hills. You are probably plenty strong so running with short strides, and trying for a light, tall felling will help you to develop longer, leaner muscles. Last theory – if you are still going to the gym and lifting then back off only the exercise that work your quads, hamstrings, and glutes. It’s possible that a combination of the bike/run activity along with the lifting has caused the hypertrophy (that’s educated trainer speak for increased muscle size). Stay with the yoga as it’s good for this subject and many, many others. All the best, Ian Ian Murray ACMEcoaching.com
Ian Murray
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