What is mass gain?
In bodybuilding, mass gain is a period during which we increase the volume of the muscle, which is therefore characterized by weight gain. However, it is necessary to dissociate the gain of fat mass (body fat) and the gain of lean mass (muscles).
Many women turn to a low-calorie diet and cardio exercise for fear of gaining too much muscle mass if they lift weights while exercising.
However, gaining mass is the ideal solution to obtain a slim, toned body while having feminine shapes, and nowadays, more and more women are turning to gaining muscle mass with the aim of improving their physical appearance and health and trigger weight loss.
Women have a different hormonal system than men. The greater amount of androgens allows men to build more muscle mass and less body fat than women. Women also have smaller and fewer muscle fibers.
Women have more "growth hormone" than men, which is responsible for tissue buildup and compensates for low testosterone levels in women. This is why women tend to gain weight and fat more quickly.
What diet for women to gain mass?
Each person has a different caloric need, which is measured based on gender, weight and physical activity performed.
A diet suitable for gaining muscle mass in women must contain sufficient protein. Women who strength train should take 1.7 to 1.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight each day, divided over several meals (between 5 and 6 meals per day).
This protein must come from complete protein foods such as those of animal origin (meat, dairy products) and/or complete vegetarian sources such as pea or hemp. Only essential amino acids, found in abundance in complete proteins, stimulate muscle protein synthesis and stop breakdown.
For good mass gain, a woman must also consume 3 to 4g of carbohydrates per kg of body weight and consume 1g of lipids per kg of body weight. A meal suitable for mass gain is composed of 50% carbohydrates, 40% proteins and 10% lipids.
When eating a diet adapted to gain muscle mass for women, it is recommended to eat a caloric intake of 300 to 500 calories more than your body burns per day. For example, if you burn 2,500 calories per day, you should eat 2,800 to 3,000 calories per day. Be careful, consuming a calorie surplus will only lead to muscle mass gain if you train regularly and correctly. If so, you will store the extra energy as fat. We are then talking about gaining fat mass.
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During weight gain in women, many food supplements can help gain muscle and promote weight loss. For example, omega 3 food supplements, polyunsaturated fatty acids which improve insulin sensitivity and reduce the formation of new fats or even BCAA which increases insulin sensitivity, and which helps to take more mass without storing fat.
Which sport should you choose to gain weight?
To stimulate the growth of muscle fibers, it is necessary to train according to the principle of "muscle hypertrophy" and to make a program adapted to your needs. Indoor bodybuilding is the ideal sport to gain mass and help lose weight.
Lift heavy while gaining mass.
To stimulate muscle growth, a stimulus must be placed on the muscle. Women tend to stick to weights that they are comfortable lifting for three full sets. However, it takes a bigger stimulus to see real changes. You need to get out of your comfort zone and use your muscles more.
Your muscles must be tired from the exercises. You must perform your sets of exercises to muscular failure. That is, doing one set of an exercise until you can no longer do one more repetition correctly. Be sure to regularly increase your weights to stay within the range of a maximum of eight to twelve possible repetitions.
What training frequency should you choose when gaining weight?
To promote mass gain, you must work each muscle two to three times a week and take 48 hours between two sessions using the same muscles.
Not taking recovery time between each session will prevent your muscle from rebuilding and therefore growing.
On the other hand, taking too much recovery time between two sessions using the same muscle, your muscle will not be used enough and it will not be effective in developing it.
If you choose four workouts per week, you can do two upper body sessions and two lower body sessions for example. Your main muscle groups will be stimulated twice a week.
How many sets and repetitions during mass gain?
To gain mass, it is recommended to do three to four sets of eight to 12 repetitions per exercise. If you choose a heavier weight and do fewer repetitions (for example, 3 to 6), you are more likely to gain muscular strength, while lighter weights and higher repetitions result in a gain in muscular endurance .
Which exercises to choose when gaining weight?
Preferably choose “polyarticular” exercises, which aim to work an area of several muscles , such as squats, deadlifts, bench presses, pull-ups, etc. because they are the most functional and they use several muscles at the same time. These exercises are quite complex, if you are not sure how to do them, ask a trainer for advice.
Having a lower quantity of muscle fibers, women have on average less strength, particularly in the upper body. While women's lower bodies can generate 70 to 75 percent of the force of men's, their core and arms generate only 25 to 55 percent. So it's important that women's workouts are designed to strengthen the upper body.
In summary.
Gaining mass in women will not have the same results as in men due to the sex difference and in particular the greater production of testosterone in men. You therefore have little chance of gaining too much muscle mass. In order to gain muscle mass, it is important that the training program works in synergy with a good diet including optimal calorie and protein intake, to repair and build muscle proteins, resulting in muscle hypertrophy (muscle growth).
To start gaining weight, it is strongly recommended to seek advice from a health and sports professional.
