Maximum Muscular Body Weight

[Scott 2]

A number of guys on this board are younger and into lifting weights. I see various references to what can be expected. This calculator was a good (drug free) reality check for me:

http://www.weightrainer.net/bodypred.html

Inputs are height, ankle and wrist measures. Output is a maximum body weight at a given body fat percentage, along with projected body measurements at a low body fat percentage (10%). That's really lean, beyond what most will attain. It's easy to find rough pictures online:

https://www.builtlean.com/2012/09/24/bo ... men-women/

In my early 20's, I was in disbelief at the low numbers.I thought if I just worked hard I'd bulk up like Arnold, and those numbers weren't even close to my potential! I also had no grasp of what real body fat percentages looked like. 15 years of casual lifting later, I never got anywhere near the projected maximum numbers. My discipline wasn't even close to strong enough.

Over time, I learned the guys that do are working really really hard, both in the gym and out. They live to train. There are some genetic freaks who find it easier, but if that was you, you'd already know. And of course, drug use is common among the visual outliers we see in media, dramatically skewing people's perspectives.

Anyway, it's good to have realistic expectations and invest your energy accordingly.

[Stahlmann]

http://nattyornot.com/how-big-can-you-g ... -steroids/
http://nattyornot.com/real-life-stories ... -steroids/

[prognastat]

It is saying my max at 10% would be about 210 Lbs. That seems like a lot. This is max though an is with bodybuilders in mind and though I'd like to get to 10% body-fat and put on some muscle I don't quite want to be full on body builder muscular.

[7Wannabe5]

It is saying that I could weigh between 234 and 244 at 20% body fat!!?? Highly doubtful.

Anyways, I learned a new term that I like "muscle belly." Maybe I will mosey over to the Powerhouse Gym and make an attempt to casually drop it into conversation.

[Scott 2]

It's not for girls I don't know that I've seen one for women.

This is a maximum - ie your life revolves around getting as muscular as possible for 10+ years. Certainly not an ideal physique or for optimal health.

[Scott 2]

Found a guy who made a table for women and talks about the one for men, in the original post:

https://bodyrecomposition.com/womens-ph ... tial.html/
https://bodyrecomposition.com/muscle-ga ... tial.html/

[Scott 2]

The other way I like to think about this is with strength standards.

https://exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/ ... hStandards

It's not a strictly equivalent comparison, since someone who specializes will excel at that thing. But taking someone like prognastat, if he were to get up to that muscular 210lbs, one would arguably consider him an advanced or elite lifter. So we might expect him to be able to press 200lbs+ overhead:

https://exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/ ... hStandards

If there's a big disconnect between weight and the strength standards, someone can adjust expectations accordingly.

[7Wannabe5]

Okay, 22% body fat at 163 lbs seems a lot more realistic as upper limit

[C40]

Entered my measurements to test, and I'd say the results seem reasonable. With my skinny bones, it gave me a max of about 195lbs at 10% bodyfat. I would be really jacked at those numbers, and that is about what I would've guessed as a natural limit for me.

[prognastat]

Personally hoping to eventually get to somewhere around 170-180 Lbs at 10% body-fat, but that's a long term goal. So nowhere near my supposed potential. Currently 193 Lbs at (visually estimated) 20-25% body-fat though so probably at least another 1-2 years away before I have any chance of getting to that point, but sooner would always be welcome. Since I started a year ago at 230 Lbs and 30-35% body-fat hopefully I can manage that.

[2Birds1Stone]

It's claiming the maximum is 190 @ 10%

I've been 176 @ 4-5%.....so it's possible.

[Kriegsspiel]

We're in agreement! The muscularity calculator seems legit.

[iopsi]

The other way I like to think about this is with strength standards.

https://exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/ ... hStandards

There is also https://symmetricstrength.com which includes more lifts and more "levels".

[Scott 2]

The symmetry aspect of that calculator is new to me. It correctly identifies my early Pavel induced fixation on the overhead press and deadlift.

Power to the people comrade.

[Lemur]

You also may not want to max out? It's going to be interesting to see how the guys who went nuts with it age. A big part of Valter Longo's book is dedicated to not having too much protein, because it causes lots of age related decline. The idea I took away from it is the more growth you have going on, the more strain on your body to maintain it all. Smaller people seem to live a long time without as many health problems on average.

Not disagreeing with you just going to elaborate on the "went nuts" point in regards to Valter's research...

Protein is recommended for those who are older to help prevent muscle astrophy and other age-related declines (plenty of papers on NIH)...Again emphasizing a good compromise would be to not go crazy with the protein intake (0.8 grams per kilogram is recommended and reasonable; 1.0 grams per kilogram if you're older). Higher protein intakes in general help regulate the body's lipostatic system, increase feelings of fullness in diet, increast vitality in both man/woman. I'm all for protein clearly so I wouldn't necessarily decrease protein intake to lower levels in an attempt to prolong life......quality > quantity afterall.