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10 Pounds of Lean Mass in 7 Months (29 Weeks) Genetic Factors

When I started my health journey I had the following stats: Weight: 152 lb Body Fat percentage: 39.70%. Estimated from my height of 5'3.5", 37" waist, 40" naval measurement, using tape measure method 30 Weeks (Including Week 28 when I was sick and not working out the entire week) Weight: 140 lb Body Fat Percentage: 27.43%, Averaging caliper measurements from weeks 28 and 32  Over the 29 weeks I was working out, beginning with a combination of walking and weightlifting to presently weightlifting, a little cardio, and reducing calorie intake a tad, I gained about 10 pounds of lean mass.  That seems a little high for a 34 year old female. So I dug around in my 23andme raw data looking for clues as to why the lean mass gain was on the high side.  I was homozygous for the "power athlete" allele in the ACTN3 gene.  That means more fast twitch muscles, which are more apt to grow, relative to slow twitch muscles. In my quest to heal my postpartum depression and ins...

6 Month Progress - Gained About 13 Pounds of Lean Mass

I'm a week late with this progress report.  A lot has been accomplished since I began my fitness journey 6 months ago.  Weightlifting was particularly beneficial for my health.  I nearly corrected my 2.5 finger diastasis recti.  I now have a small area where it is 1 finger wide.  I may not have mentioned that I also had some pelvic floor issues, but that was largely corrected after weightlifting for at least 3 months.  I tried to solely diet after having my second child, but my blood sugar issues resisted it.  Weightlifting somehow helped me correct the hypoglycemia such that I can go longer stretches without getting shaky.  I do some walking on my property, but most of my time is devoted to weightlifting.  Assuming I did not lose any lean mass from the time I was married to having my second child, these are my stats: 2011 Marriage Year: 125 lb, 91.2 lb lean mass, 33.8 lb fat mass, 27% body fat 2016 Just Prior to 1st Pregnancy: 135 lb, 91.2 l...

Pre and Postpartum Fitness Observations

Pre Kid: All I had to do to lose 10 pounds was reduce my caloric intake a tad everyday and lose 0.5 lb per week. Typically weighed 135 lb and 28-30% body fat. Post First Kid: The pre-kid strategy along with breastfeeding was enough to enable me to lose 10-15 pounds in 9 months to get to 135 lb again.  Was probably 28-30% body fat.  Post Second Kid: Different story.  My body rebelled when I tried to reduce my caloric intake even slightly due to hypoglycemia.  Maybe postpartum depression through off my hormones.  Breastfeeding did not seem to assist with weight loss.  Postpartum weight loss stalled at 152 lbs.  About 40% body fat.   What I did to get to 142 lbs and get from 40% to 28% body fat. I began by walking 2-4 times per week at the end of June along with 2 times per week weightlifting.  Now 2 times per week cardio, once per week Jiu Jitsu classes, and 5 times per week weight lifting.  I increased my protein intake and tried red...

Another Look at Genetics

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Genetics is an interesting subject.  Apparently crucial when it comes to building muscle.  Some people are "hard gainers" and others build muscle like gangbusters.  I attempted to check more genes in my 23andme raw genetic data to find the following: MSTN (myostatin, regulates muscle growth): important gene, but 23andme did not test me.   ACTN3 : (rs1815739) I was tested to have the CC allele, which is over represented in power athletes.   AGT: ( rs669 ) Tested to be GG which is associated with power sports performance, but also hypertension. IL6: ( rs1800795 ) Tested to be CG (found in a mix of athletes), not sure of relevance. NOS3: (rs2070744) Tested to be CT.  TT allele significantly higher in power athletes ( paper ). AMPD1: (rs17602729) Tested to be GG (normal activity).  People deficient can benefit from d-ribose .  I'll keep that in mind since I know someone with the "deficient" allele. rs7832552 TT associated with greater lean mass, but...

Strength Progress

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Last night, I was able to see if I am making progress strength-wise at the Jiu Jitsu gym.   Dumbbell Curl: 30 lbs (both arms) Dumbbell Deadlift: 70 lb (140 lb total) Dumbbell Row: 50 lb (both arms) Dumbbell Shoulder Press: 30 lb (60 lb total at the same time)  Hammer Curl: 25 lb (at least) forgot to check 30 lb    I also can do the following: Bench Press: 75 lb (checked last week) Squat: 70 lb (3 sets of 10, unsure about 1 rep max) Pushups: 22 in a row   Helping my husband with outside work, I needed to pull a chicken coop up hills, move a bunch of gravel, raise the coop roof over my head to fill up the feed bucket, and the list goes on. It looks like I'm stronger than a lot of women who have been lifting for two years (from strengthlevel.com ):     Raising 60 lb over my head is not too shabby: There is a lot of carrying stuff and kids going on at my house, 25 lb not too bad: I currently don't have the equipment to do bench pressing at home, but here i...

Progress Analysis Charts

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Having been an engineer, I like charts.  So I decided to chart my progress.  Using data collected using the Body Fat Calculator ( here ), I created charts of my lean mass gains, body fat percentage, and fat mass over the 17 weeks of training.  The training over that time varied:   June 29: began body weight training 2x per week for legs with 10lb dumbbells for arms, walking 2-3 miles 3x per week. July: Sometime in July I decided to "bulk" (caloric surplus) By August 8: I was using 20 lb dumbbells for arms and doing some leg exercises with 10 or 20 lb dumbbells.  Reduced my walking to 1.5 miles 2x per week and increased weight lifting to 4x per week. August 11:  Earliest time I remember taking protein powder. August 21: Began "cut" (slight caloric deficit) October 12-26: Was sick from reaction to allergy medicine and had to reduce weight lifting to 2x per week and no walking or martial arts due to gout flaring. October 26:  Still increasing weight on so...

Fat Free Mass Index

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I heard of the BMI, Body Mass Index, but have not come across FFMI, or Fat Free Mass Index, before going on my present fitness journey.  Using my measurements from the beginning of my journey versus now my FFMI was and is as follows:   June 29, 2020: 16.44 (BMI: 26.9 " overweight ") Oct 5, 2020: 17.79 (BMI: 25.5 "overweight")   FFMI accounts for height, weight, and body fat percentage whereas BMI only accounts for height and weight.    In June my body fat was estimated to be 38.95% using the two calculators ( here and here ).  My lean mass was about 93 lb.  In October 30.25% body fat and 100.4 lb of lean mass.  Using the 30.25% body fat percentage and plugging it into the Fat Free Mass Index Calculator yields the 17.79 FFMI.  The following chart shows how I should stack up:   Initially, I was in the category of "fat woman".  No surprise there. It looks like I'm still on the line for being a "fat lady", but if I were to gain more lea...