Afraid to bulk

thaevilgenius

So I'm 5'8 35M been cutting from 178lbs to 149lbs as of today..finally happy with my physique as I was strenght training during my whole cut. Now I want to put on some muscle but afraid to get fat fast. The thought of eating 2100calories is killing me as I have been cutting on 1500 as of late. I can track 1500calories but tracking and weighting 2100calories is hard anyway to get around this ?my tdee from cut is 1900, I plan to start maintaining for 2 weeks starting tomorrow (I expect water gain) then bulk 200-300 calories. Should I aim for more than 2lbs gain per month as a beginner?also I'm on greyskull LP with 3 workouts per week, should I change for the bulk?

sardelsa

1500 seems really low for your stats unless you were losing over 3lbs per week or something, or you weren't as accurate with your tracking. Either way 2100 is not a lot of calories and should not make you uncomfortable. I cut on that many, and I am a bit shorter and lighter than you, and female. Did you always have issues around eating in the past? If you decide to bulk you don't have to gain too fast, 2lbs per month and under is a good rate of gain which should keep fat gains at bay. However you will gain some fat. Being so afraid of fat gain will hold you back and you will be more likely to
hold back and spin your wheels.

This link might help.
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1069962/the-former-fat-boy-girl-syndrome/p1

Also if you are having that many hesitations stay at maintenance for a while and get used to your new calorie intake. You could look into recomp but it can be very slow. However it might be a good option in your case.

sardelsa

And this link can help you get the calories in.

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10326769/are-you-a-hard-gainer-please-read/p1

born_of_fire74

I choose to recomp for this reason. It is very slow but the weight I have gained since starting recomp has been offset by reduced measurements, looser/smaller clothes and better appearance in the mirror. Seeing/knowing that I am leaner than I was when I started recomp even though I am slightly heavier has made the weight gain fairly easy to deal with.

Eternally_Hers

If the thought of eating 2,100 calories makes you uncomfortable, you don't have to jump to it right away. Try increasing your calories by 100 or 200 weekly so it's not a big jump, keep track of your weight and you'll learn what works for your body in the process. Just take it at your own pace as you get more comfortable with what you're doing.

If you want to get used to bulking, you could bulk eating 200-300 extra calories a day for a month to gain muscle/the 2 pounds of fat and then cut for a week to lose the fat that you gained. You'll get more confident that the fat gain won't be permanent and you'll get the hang of how bodybuilding works.

sardelsa

Eternally_Hers wrote: »

If the thought of eating 2,100 calories makes you uncomfortable, you don't have to jump to it right away. Try increasing your calories by 100 or 200 weekly so it's not a big jump, keep track of your weight and you'll learn what works for your body in the process. Just take it at your own pace as you get more comfortable with what you're doing.

If you want to get used to bulking, you could bulk eating 200-300 extra calories a day for a month to gain muscle/the 2 pounds of fat and then cut for a week to lose the fat that you gained. You'll get more confident that the fat gain won't be permanent and you'll get the hang of how bodybuilding works.

While that sounds like it could work, in reality that is exactly how to spin your wheels when trying to gain muscle. Gaining weight can be tricky, especially in the beginning with water weight and it can be hard to tell what is water and extra food vs actual gain. Once that settles after a few weeks to a month, you can start to see the actual gain. Now if you go and cut during that time, you really are only cutting some water weight, then you are back where you started from. Not to mention your strength could suffer and mess things up. Then you do it all over again and have to start from gaining water. I mean, you might make some progress, but the thing with muscle building is it is slow and it takes months and months of consistent surplus. Once you get the ball rolling and gain momentum one of the worst things you can do is stop and go backwards. It's really an suboptimal way of doing things, IMO.

thaevilgenius

Yea I'm not planning to go mini bulk/cut cycles as that's getting you nowhere in at 12% BF so even if I gain 15lbs I should be at 15%BF which is not had problem is I put fat around the low abdomen and lower back. I was cutting at 1500 and losing 1.1lbs per week so I wasnt miscounting as that's exactly what a 500calories deficit should get you. Meaning my tdee is 2000 also keep in mind for every 5lbs loss theres like a 100cal off your tdee that's gone and when you get leaner your tdee should get higher. Anyway I'm not afraid and dont have a problem with eating food as I love food I'm more anxious about the tedious meal prepping for bulking on lean food as I could just gain weight from eating out sushi and burgers which I love

sardelsa

I understand but your maintenance does seem a bit low unless you are almost completely sedentary, according to a TDEE calculator. But I suppose if you have a desk job and don't do any cardio that could be the case.

Anyhow you can definitely bulk while eating what you want it doesn't have to be boring bland food. As long as you get adequate protein, fats, carbs, fibre and nutrition, you can really add whatever you please. Remember excess fat gain in a bulk will come from too high a surplus and poor training, not from eating sushi or burgers.

thaevilgenius

sardelsa wrote: »

I understand but your maintenance does seem a bit low unless you are almost completely sedentary, according to a TDEE calculator. But I suppose if you have a desk job and don't do any cardio that could be the case.

Anyhow you can definitely bulk while eating what you want it doesn't have to be boring bland food. As long as you get adequate protein, fats, carbs, fibre and nutrition, you can really add whatever you please. Remember excess fat gain in a bulk will come from too high a surplus and poor training, not from eating sushi or burgers.

Yep office does that to you, I strenght train but that doesnt burn many calories at most it would be 300 per 1hr workout

thaevilgenius

So as a beginner should I should for 1kg weight gain per month or 2?I know muscle growth rate for beginners is around 2kg/months or 1,5% of BW per month

shaf238

I'm in the same boat with similar stats. Yes I have filled out a little bit from my leanest but I still have ab/v-line definition and I'm on a surplus of 500 calories per day. Trust the process, it will work.

My plan is to bulk for a few more months, then cut for 6-8 weeks, and then back to bulking until I get to where I want.

sardelsa

thaevilgenius wrote: »

So as a beginner should I should for 1kg weight gain per month or 2?I know muscle growth rate for beginners is around 2kg/months or 1,5% of BW per month

In your case, you could definitely do 1kg per month. It will be slow and steady. You could go higher (being a male, beginner), but again, in your case, I would start with a smaller gain over a longer period of time. (For reference, as a female, beginner-intermediate lifter, I gain around 0.9-1kg per month).