Food Surplus

allother94

So to bulk you need to increase your food intake. Is this increase above the extra calories you use lifting? For example, if I don’t exercise, I burn 2400 cals a day. If I do exercise, I burn 3000 cals per day. When bulking, do I increase my food from 2400 to 3000 or do I increase from 2400 to 3400 for 400 extra cals?

allother94

Similar question. What would happen if I eat to cover what I burn and lift weights (3000 in my example)? Would I still bulk up?

MikePTY

The 2400, is that your maintenance calories? If you want to "bulk", you should eat your maintenance calories, your exercise calories, plus a surplus calorie amount that corresponds to you desired weight gain. Probably 250-500 depending on your goal.

If you only eat your maintenance calories, you will likely "recomp", not bulk. That means that you will maintain about the same amount of weight and slowly gain muscle and lose fat. Some people prefer that approach if they are around their goal weight, however if you are looking to gain weight, you want to bulk, which means to eat at a surplus.

allother94

How much faster will I gain muscle mass if I bulk and cut vs. recomp? It’s so hard to lose weight that I hate to put it on.