Women lifting weights but not seeing the gains you expect? Scientists combined 59 studies to find out why. See what they found.

Lifting But Not Seeing Gains? This Might Be Why!

Nutrition| Women's Health| Strength Training

October 26, 2026•4 min read

You show up to the gym. You follow your program. You add weight when you can. And somehow, you flex and you don't see any changes after weeks... months... or... more?

If that sounds familiar, there may be a reason, and it’s one many women lifting weights overlook. Hi there, I’m Coach Kristin, a women’s strength and nutrition coach with a couple of powerlifting world records under my belt. Let’s walk through what the research says.

What the research found

Scientists recently combined the results of 59 studies on people who lifted weights while eating less than they burned. Every study lasted 3 weeks or more, and the people in them ranged widely in age, from their 30s to their beyond their 60s.

The pattern was clear. Lifters who ate too little gained less lean mass, which includes muscle, than lifters who ate enough. A gap of about 500 calories a day was enough to stop those gains.

Strength told a different story. It kept climbing in both groups. Researchers think early strength gains come largely from your nervous system learning the lift, which can happen even when muscle growth stalls. Most of the lifters in these studies were beginners, so experienced lifters may see different results.

What a 500 calorie gap looks like

That gap means eating about 500 fewer calories than you burn each day, roughly the size of a small meal. Most of us have no idea what we burn, and the researchers didn’t directly measure it either. They estimated the gap from changes in body fat. Treat 500 as a rough guide.

Women lifting weights but not seeing the gains you expect? — Calories matter!

Why your body does this

Your body runs on a calorie budget. When less energy (calories) comes in, it cuts back on the big projects first, and building muscle is one of the biggest. A small, controlled study of 30 active women saw this happen in just 10 days. The women who ate far too little built less new muscle than the women who ate enough.

Protein matters too

Eating enough also means getting enough protein. A large review of 49 studies found that muscle gains from protein leveled off around 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight per day, or about 0.7 grams per pound. But the range was wide, and the researchers said aiming closer to 2.2 grams per kilogram (about 1 gram of protein per pound of ideal bodyweight) may be wise if you want the most muscle gain. For a 150 pound woman, that’s roughly 110 to 150 grams a day.

Here’s the catch for midlife and beyond. The average age in these studies was 35, and only 13 of the 49 included people over 45. Older adults’ muscles respond less to protein, and the researchers think we likely need more protein as we get older, which makes eating enough matter even more as the years go by. Protein worked just as well for women as it did for men.

Women are often under eating — Calories are fuel! Don't be afraid of them!

Try this week

👉🏻 Eat protein at every meal (at least a palm sized amount)
👉🏻 Eat something before you lift (ideally carbs and protein)
👉🏻 Keep easy foods around (frozen veggies and canned beans count!)

If weight loss is part of your goals, the researchers suggest keeping the gap under 500 calories a day to protect your muscle. And if you have a health condition, talk with your doctor or a registered dietitian first.

Muscle is built from food. Eat up.

Do you want to lift weights but are intimidated by the free weight section? → Check out this blog post!

Sources

And if you would like guidance, accountability, and a clear plan, you can learn more about my coaching services here:

👉 https://krispfit.com/services

Whether you train in person or online, my goal is simple.

Help you build a strong body that supports the life you want to live for decades to come.

Because one thing I know for sure is this:

You will never regret being strong but they day might come when you wish you were.

📩 Reach out to me and let’s get you started on your strong girl journey. You can email me at [email protected] or hit me up on Instagram here.

Coach Kristin Petrony

Coach Kristin Petrony is a women's personal trainer in Nashville, TN and online. She believes in female empowerment through strength training and fueling women's bodies to do incredible things.

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