Bulking progress should i change anything?

i have been trying to bulk up for a while now with little progress until i upped my calories to 3500 last month. below is my weight i recorded over the month. do i need to change anything?
1/14 166
1/27 168.5
1/30 168
1/31 168
2/3 169
2/6 168
2/10 170
2/12 168
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Replies

  • richardgavel
    richardgavel Posts: 1,001 Member
    You say little progress, but what kind of progress have you made in terms of weight/reps?
  • jdscrubs32
    jdscrubs32 Posts: 514 Member
    I'm open to correction here but you might need to up the calories again by 250 as you seem to have stalled. Give it another week and if you are still recording 168, increase.

    Have you a goal weight in mind? How long have you been bulking for? Do you know what your body fat was before and what it is now?
  • 99JT
    99JT Posts: 59 Member
    jdscrubs32 wrote: »
    I'm open to correction here but you might need to up the calories again by 250 as you seem to have stalled. Give it another week and if you are still recording 168, increase.

    Have you a goal weight in mind? How long have you been bulking for? Do you know what your body fat was before and what it is now?

    im not sure for a goal weight when i first started working out a little over a year ago i was 150@6' and my goal was 175 but now im thinking more. im guessing my BF is ~15%. here are some pics the first is when i started and the other is from december.
    qxpr2apmdbgi.jpg
    0zx646mt9qdg.jpg
  • Gallowmere1984
    Gallowmere1984 Posts: 6,626 Member
    edited February 2017
    How long have you actually been strength training, and at what frequency/program?
  • JB035
    JB035 Posts: 336 Member
    Looks like progress!! You are more muscular, for sure!
    I'd agree looks like a stall to me as well. A few pounds up and down is most likely water weight.

    If it's not already I'd say Bench, Deadlift, Back Squat, Front Squat, Cleans (full and power), Press and Push Press should be a heavy staple in your routine.

    Your body type looks like mine. Eat, eat, eat!!! Don't worry about the little bit of fat you will get, once you get your cals back down your body type will take care of the fat with minimal cardio.

    Good luck!
  • jdscrubs32
    jdscrubs32 Posts: 514 Member
    99JT wrote: »
    jdscrubs32 wrote: »
    I'm open to correction here but you might need to up the calories again by 250 as you seem to have stalled. Give it another week and if you are still recording 168, increase.

    Have you a goal weight in mind? How long have you been bulking for? Do you know what your body fat was before and what it is now?

    im not sure for a goal weight when i first started working out a little over a year ago i was 150@6' and my goal was 175 but now im thinking more. im guessing my BF is ~15%. here are some pics the first is when i started and the other is from december.
    qxpr2apmdbgi.jpg
    0zx646mt9qdg.jpg

    As @JB035 said, you have made progress. Well done so far. However seems like you have definitely stalled. So up the calories by another 250, give it a month, if the weight has gone up, carry on, if not, increase again.

    I'll second the question that @Gallowmere1984 asked - how long have you been lifting? Are you on a structured program?
  • 99JT
    99JT Posts: 59 Member
    I have been lifting for roughy 1.5 years at first i had no idea what i was doing and just used machines, then moved to free weights. i never tracked calories but was gaining weight. then i stalled so i started teacking cals roughly a year ago but did not keep track of my weight until last month when i realized that it had been 9 months and i only gained 6lbs. i am currently on a 4 day split legs,chest/sholders, back, arms.
  • JB035
    JB035 Posts: 336 Member
    Also any working sets should be in the 6-8 rep range... HEAVY! It's not a working set until you're in the 75% of your 1RM (one rep max).

    An initial surge in weight gain is the newbie easy weight gain, from here on out you will have to work for it more strategically.

    What's your rep ranges once you get to your working sets and your load %?
  • 99JT
    99JT Posts: 59 Member
    JB035 wrote: »
    Also any working sets should be in the 6-8 rep range... HEAVY! It's not a working set until you're in the 75% of your 1RM (one rep max).

    An initial surge in weight gain is the newbie easy weight gain, from here on out you will have to work for it more strategically.

    What's your rep ranges once you get to your working sets and your load %?

    I usually start out at 12-15 for the first set and end at 6-8 for my 4th set. First set is a little lite but after that it's up to roughly 75-80℅ 1RM.
  • JB035
    JB035 Posts: 336 Member
    What I'm suggesting is that sets - 2,3,4,5 all be in the 75%-80%, 4 working sets total for each big compound lift. Set 1 will be a warm up set, but you should already be overall warmed up before you start anyways, this is just a specific warm up to this movement.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
    Definite progress, so congrats.

    I would shoot for at least a couple of lbs per month gain and I would consider getting on a different program. Something like Lyle McDonald's GBR routine might be a solid choice.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,373 MFP Moderator
    SideSteel wrote: »
    Definite progress, so congrats.

    I would shoot for at least a couple of lbs per month gain and I would consider getting on a different program. Something like Lyle McDonald's GBR routine might be a solid choice.

    I would agree with this. Especially taking into consideration the OP has only been lifting for 1.5 years and a portion of that was with machines. Getting on a program that hits the primary muscles at least 2x a week will be more ideal.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1

    ps - I would also recommend finishing that bathroom. :p
  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
    psuLemon wrote: »
    ps - I would also recommend finishing that bathroom. :p

    Seconded. Nothing ruins aesthetics like an unpainted wall.
  • 99JT wrote: »
    i have been trying to bulk up for a while now with little progress until i upped my calories to 3500 last month. below is my weight i recorded over the month. do i need to change anything?
    1/14 166
    1/27 168.5
    1/30 168
    1/31 168
    2/3 169
    2/6 168
    2/10 170
    2/12 168

    3500 calories is far too many. You only need 3000 max. And don't expect fast progress either way.
    Eating 3500 calories means you are in a huge Caloric surplus unnecessarily. If you desperately want to gain weight try sleeping more and doing less exercise. Working out for mass even burns fat. Oh, and do starved cardio. Burns some of the fat off. You don't want to end up too fat.

    If you need to count calories try MyFitnessPal it's great.
  • Gallowmere1984
    Gallowmere1984 Posts: 6,626 Member
    99JT wrote: »
    i have been trying to bulk up for a while now with little progress until i upped my calories to 3500 last month. below is my weight i recorded over the month. do i need to change anything?
    1/14 166
    1/27 168.5
    1/30 168
    1/31 168
    2/3 169
    2/6 168
    2/10 170
    2/12 168

    3500 calories is far too many. You only need 3000 max. And don't expect fast progress either way.
    Eating 3500 calories means you are in a huge Caloric surplus unnecessarily. If you desperately want to gain weight try sleeping more and doing less exercise. Working out for mass even burns fat. Oh, and do starved cardio. Burns some of the fat off. You don't want to end up too fat.

    If you need to count calories try MyFitnessPal it's great.

    Did you even read what was written?
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
    99JT wrote: »
    i have been trying to bulk up for a while now with little progress until i upped my calories to 3500 last month. below is my weight i recorded over the month. do i need to change anything?
    1/14 166
    1/27 168.5
    1/30 168
    1/31 168
    2/3 169
    2/6 168
    2/10 170
    2/12 168

    3500 calories is far too many. You only need 3000 max. And don't expect fast progress either way.
    Eating 3500 calories means you are in a huge Caloric surplus unnecessarily. If you desperately want to gain weight try sleeping more and doing less exercise. Working out for mass even burns fat. Oh, and do starved cardio. Burns some of the fat off. You don't want to end up too fat.

    If you need to count calories try MyFitnessPal it's great.

    Fasted cardio does not burn any significant amount of additional bodyfat, it only increases acute fat oxidation during the training bout. Fat oxidation during training is not the same thing as body fat loss over time:
    https://jissn.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12970-014-0054-7

    3500 calories could be fine for him and the data so far don't seem to indicate that 3500 is too many.
  • Bradywho1
    Bradywho1 Posts: 22 Member
    You gained two pounds.. up the calories!
  • 99JT
    99JT Posts: 59 Member
    I upped my calories to 4000 a little over a week ago now and am still stuck at 170. How am i not gaining weight?
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
    99JT wrote: »
    I upped my calories to 4000 a little over a week ago now and am still stuck at 170. How am i not gaining weight?

    Your energy output exceeds your energy intake.