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Originally Posted by maherali
Hi,
Can a beginner continue to gain strength workout after workout without the need to gain muscle (by eating maintenance calories)?
Maher
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Size gains are long-term adaptations, for the most part. A significant lag can happen between strength & size gains, especially in beginners. This is because of exponential gains happening in the neural department, compared to the mechanical and metabolic developments that eventually catch up and manifest themselves as either sarcoplasmic or myofibrillar hypertrophy or both (tried not to say that
). Regardless of beginners or advanced guys, size gains ALWAYS seem to lag behind strength gains, but as long as you maintain an upward trend in strength, the size will follow. Another possibility of the illusion of a lack of size gain is a simultaneous loss of fat and gain in muscle, which can neutralize net increases in limb & torso girth, as well as net increases in total bodyweight - at least initially. Just give it some time (a few weeks to a couple of months), then reassess. As long as your strength keeps going up, and you're not progressively piling on fat, then stick to it.