Can Weight Training Make You Gain Weight?
When losing weight is your goal, a balanced regimen of cardiovascular exercise and weight training can help you reach that goal. But instead of worrying about what the scale tells you, focus more on your size. Lifting weights helps create more muscle, which can tip the scales up while helping slim you down.
How Building Muscle Helps You
Lifting weights as part of your exercise routine helps you create an internal fat-burning machine. Muscles help burn fat, so the more muscle weight you have, the more efficiently your body can process calories. When you increase your muscle mass, the muscles continue to burn calories after your workout, according to the Shape website -- something fat can't do. Replacing fat with muscle makes you look more defined and toned, usually decreasing your body size.
Why You Might Weigh More
You might have heard that muscle weighs more than fat, which is a bit of a misnomer. A pound of muscle weighs the same as a pound of fat; the difference is how much space they take up. Muscle is denser than fat, so it takes less space to make up a pound of muscle than it does a pound of fat. This is why you should toss out the scale when you add weight lifting to your workout, instead focusing on how you look and the size you want to be. You could be losing pant sizes without losing weight, or even while gaining weight, but the focus should be on your health and size goals, not on your actual weight.
Cardio vs. Weights
You must burn 3,500 more calories than you take in to lose 1 pound, according to MayoClinic.com. Although there's a cardio component to lifting weights, it won't replace cardiovascular exercise such as running, biking and aerobics. MayoClinic.com recommends 30 minutes of cardio activity per day, along with weight training at least two times per week. Building more muscles means you burn calories more efficiently, sometimes continuing the calorie burn for up to 24 hours after your workout.
When You Want to Bulk Up
When gaining weight and bulking up is your goal rather than losing weight, weight training is key. Men tend to build more muscle mass than women due to higher testosterone levels, which means they gain muscle weight faster. Using heavier weights with lower repetitions can help you increase your muscle weight, according to the American Council on Exercise.
- MayoClinic.com: Strength Training -- Get Stronger, Leaner, Healthier
- American Council on Exercise: When Strength Training, is It Better to Do More Reps With Lighter Weights or Fewer Reps With Heavier Weights?
- Runners Connect: Why You Might Not Lose Weight While Running
- Shape: 8 Reasons Why You Should Lift Heavier Weights
- MayoClinic.com: Exercise for Weight Loss -- Calories Burned in 1 Hour
- My Food Diary: Why Weight Lifting Helps You Lose Weight
- American Council on Exercise: How Women Build Muscle