Bulking for old guys

jpaulie

agree with @3laine75 This is my first bulk and my only supps are BCAA at workout and a Casein Protein at night. My strength gains have been very good over the last 11 weeks, except for an injury along the way

Cortelli

DeguelloTex wrote: »

gia07 wrote: »

We too were concerned about the bulk and cutting. So we took a carefully laid plan over a year and did a crap load of research.

Us old people tend to not want to go too far off the ledge.. he started right out of the gate 300 surplus for 60 days. This was after a 30 pound weight loss.

Was this freaky yes and he he did gain weight/fat (he kept his fat cloths).. There is marked distinction between the two of you. The fat gain did not concern him at all. You are trying to actually adhere to muscle gains without trying to start a bulk with moderate calorie surplus.

I tracked his stats (I am an excel, and database *kitten*) and the data is not here on MFP... He refused to track his food (I did it off line).. That is where we differ, I am way too analytical for him sometimes... But it worked and he is all the more happy today..LOL

edited to add: start your "bulk" (or surplus) in fall/winter. Summer time is really hard to do this and you can cut again late winter into spring time...

I have spreadsheets for everything. I track calories in, steps, sleep, weight, estimated caloric burn, different meals, etc. and tie it all together to try to sort out my particular TDEE and how much of that TDEE is related to diet and how much to exercise. And then look at trends. Etc. I completely understand where you've coming from on that.

[. . . snip . . .]

That will be very helpful, and may allow you to do a slight surplus pretty effectively.

One real risk (and therefore one thing to watch out for) is having your supposed surplus "disappear." It is not uncommon for our bodies to unconsciously increase our average NEAT burns when presented with a smallish surplus -- i.e., tendency to move a touch more, fidget, etc. Combine that possibility with slightly higher burns as you actually do add a bit of mass, and with a smallish surplus, just be aware that you may find you've spent a month of so in a "surplus" when in fact you've essentially been recomping (which is fine - just be ready for it).

burning2much

Boy you guys are killing me. In would go crazy with all this advice. I know I need close to 3k calories to maintain my weight. I don't do carbs, starches and sugars. I gained 15ibs in 5 months of lean muscle. It was a *kitten*. However that being said if I miss a meal I lose wight and usually my muscle is first to go. So its, eat, eat, eat.
BTW I'm 50

jpaulie

that's some pretty serious gains, that's great. I'd be happy with 1/2 lb a week

Chieflrg

I'm nearing 46 fairly soon and when Im on a bulk I usually am around 400-450 cal surplus.

Personally I feel I add muscle just as easy as when I was twenty. I would have to assume that has something to do with my better understanding and knowledge of the "gain game". I really was limited when I was younger.