I know it takes women a LONG time to build muscle, so I'm wondering what this is. For about a month I've been doing lots of boxing on the Wii. Before, when I bend my arm in the "show my muscle stance," my biceps were soft and mushy, no hint of a muscle lol. Now, I can barely bend my arm to do the "stance" and you can clearly see and feel a pretty good lump of something. Is that muscle? My friend says it's not likely muscle because women don't build muscle that fast. I thought it was swollen parts due to boxing or something but it's been there for a while now and it's there even when I stop boxing for a few days. Could it be true? Is that lump muscle?

Is it possible that it's muscle you've always had, but you've toned the area and lost some fat, so now it looks pronounced?

Sure is muscle! We all have some but, too often, it's covered in fat.

Is it only on one arm or both? If it's both, then it's probably muscle.

Women do have muscles, and when they are used they become better defined. A month is plenty of time.

What do you mean by you can barely bend your arm, though?

Well, good luck!

Jay

It's on both arms. JayEll, I didn't mean I can barely bend my arm (sorry about the horrible wording). I meant I don't even have to bend my arm all the way into the "muscle man" move for you to see the lumps. You can see them if I barely curl my arms. And I'm quite sure that did not clear up what I was saying lol.

I can't imagine anything else that it could be other than muscle! When you flex (do the muscle man pose with your hand in a fist and make your arm rigid), is the lump pretty solid and hard? I love that feeling.

While women generally aren't going to get nearly as bulky or maybe even tone as quickly as most guys, some women do develop muscle faster. I personally can strength train for a week after months of not and have fairly toned solid arms. I've been strength training consistantly for the last month and a half, and my whole upper back, shoulder, and arm region is so toned that I have defined solid feeling muscles even when I'm relaxed. I'm not bulky, but there's muscle definition. If only my abs and glutes and lower back could tone as quickly! Haha.

I'd say it is. There's a difference between building muscle (increasing the amount of muscle you have) which is difficult and takes a very long time, versus strengthening the muscle you already have, which is not so difficult, particularly if you start from a "flabby" beginning and lose fat to expose said muscle at the same time.

I'd say, without having seen it, that you've lost body fat to make your muscle more apparent, as well as strengthening the muscle you've always hade, making it feel harder and look more obvious.

Well done!

I was reading a very interesting piece about abdominals. In the article, someone asked how to get those six pack muscles. The expert's reply was to "lose weight." It seems that everyone has them, even without much exercising. Whether they are seen or not is due to less fat obstructing your view.

Is it Arnold Schwarzenegger who said "abs are made in the kitchen"?

I don't know about Arnold, but that's what my trainer says!

Even though I've still got plenty of fat to cover my muscles up, when I am doing strength-training regularly, my musculature is quite evident in my arms, shoulders, and legs, both visually and by touch. While women in general can't build muscle as quickly or easily as men can, that does not mean that all women are doomed to never having obvious muscles--nor does it mean that it can't happen quickly, for some women.

In fact, one of my main motivations for doing strength training is the fact that I can make my triceps muscle "pop" by flexing. I simply love that muscle, and it's much easier to make it pop when I'm working out regularly!

It's a very good thing that I don't at all aspire to the waifish body style/look, because there is no way I'd ever be able to achieve it. I'm just not built like that.