Bulking and gaining muscle...do you need to do it?
Replies
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Don't take this the wrong way, but you want all the benefits of gaining muscle without any of the side affects? im sorry this is not going to happen. To gain any serious amount of muscle you need to be a calorie surplus thus its going to increase your weight, Best way to gain muscle is to go on a bulk and cut cycle, eat at a surplus for X months while lifting, then eat at a deficit for x months to lose some of the weight you put on but still lifting to keep hold of LBM.
I have a friend who is the same height as me, a few months ago he hit is goal weight after nearly 1 1/2 of dieting, all he did was cardio and diet, he's ended up at a point where he look like a addict because he didnt train to keep his lbm. If he was just to put on half to three quaters of a stone of muscle he will look alot bettter.
Given the choice would you prefer to weigh less look ok or weigh alittle more and look amazing?0 -
If you want to gain muscle you HAVE to gain scale weight. Muscle has mass, so can't gain it and not see a scale increase. How much do you have to go to your goal weight? What's your body fat? Get a good, heavy lifting program.if you still have fat to lose, eat just barely under maintenance. If you're happy with your weight and bf, but just want more size, eat over your maintenance.
I have 9 lbs left to go, however I am at 23% bodyfat. I am currently lifting on a musclepharm 16 week program. I don't get how eating just under maintenance will help me lose bodyfat. I thought you had to be at a larger deficit
From your numbers I would suggest that you do need to bulk, but not yet. Get to below 15%bf then eat at a surplus, Lift as heavy as you can, gain weight, until your bf is back up to no more than 20% then go back to what you were doing before to lose weight.
I've done similar and I'm on the way back down again, got my last 10 pounds now, but I'll be 14lb of Muscle heavier.
Right now I'm at the more jiggly than when I hit my goal the first time but my body is better in some ways, shoulders back arms even legs just more athletic looking.
why would I want to lose body fat then gain it again and then lose it again? i'm sorry if I sound like a ****, but it makes absolutely no sense
Several have already answered your question, you seem to be ignoring the info they have provided because its not the answer you want. If you want to gain pure muscle mass, the easiest way to do it is through a bulk. If you cut your bodyfat first, then when you eat at a surplus while resistance training you will gain muscle tissue with some fat. So what you are gaining in pounds is only part fat, the other part muscle. Then you go back to a deficit, what you are left with when you return to that same body fat percentage is more muscle. So you will likely weigh more than before at the same body fat %, but the additional muscle mass will improve the appearance of your body. The scale weight is less important than the body fat %. My wife learned this. After having our daughter, she lost the weight returning to the same scale weight as before she got pregnant, but her body did not have the same tight appearance as before. She has since been weight training at a very small surplus, and while the scale weight has gone up, her image has improved. Myself, I am currently in a bulk mode, and while yes I have added some fat with the muscle, I can see additional muscular definition in my arms, chest, back and legs. Sure, my belly is bigger, but I know and trust that when I go back to cutting, I will look better than I did before. It is a slow progression, but you need to trust and believe what others are telling you in relation to your answer, even if it isnt the answer you are looking for.0 -
I'm not trying to be an *kitten* but you are not going to listen to anybody on here that has good suggestions for you anyway. You're simply not ready for this yet. There is plenty of information out there on this subject and if you think the process is simply losing body fat then gaining fat back again then losing it again than it shows you've spent maybe 5 minutes reading the cliff notes on some cosmo magazine and haven't spend anytime researching the concepts.
Besides, if you are going to be a puss about - or + 15 pounds when you are at 23+% body fat as a guy than I'm not sure what any of us can tell you man. I guess your best bet at this point is to just cut down to below 15% and come back in a year and talk to us about how you don't understand that you can see your abs but you still have moobs.0 -
I'm not trying to be an *kitten* but you are not going to listen to anybody on here that has good suggestions for you anyway. You're simply not ready for this yet. There is plenty of information out there on this subject and if you think the process is simply losing body fat then gaining fat back again then losing it again than it shows you've spent maybe 5 minutes reading the cliff notes on some cosmo magazine and haven't spend anytime researching the concepts.
Besides, if you are going to be a puss about - or + 15 pounds when you are at 23+% body fat as a guy than I'm not sure what any of us can tell you man. I guess your best bet at this point is to just cut down to below 15% and come back in a year and talk to us about how you don't understand that you can see your abs but you still have moobs.
Thanks for the Broscience, i'm going to just stick to running and hopefully all this muscle will disappear0 -
reading this REALLY makes me consider bulking, Im 5'7" 140 lbs and still flabby, I eat 1600-2000 a day (depending if I worked out or not that day) this girl is 3 inches shorter than me and the same weight in her "after". I do lift heavy, but also do cardio, hmm, might have to rethink some thingsSo your goal is to look better--that's not incompatible with bulking.
Have you met Staci?
This is more info about what lifting at heavier weights did for Staci and caused her to have the body on the right at 11 pounds more than her body on the left. Even if you don't want that much definition, or to bulk as much as she did, you can always stop before you get there, and you can see in the article that it's a lot of work to get that, and doesn't happen by accident.
http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/0 -
I no longer care about this topic, post trolls or hate...do whatever0
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I no longer care about this topic, post trolls or hate...do whatever
You heard him, everyone. Let's stop feeding the troll, he's not gonna listen to us and just trying to get our jimmies rustled anyway.0 -
I think the people who don't go up in weight are basically bulking and cutting nearly simultaneously (in small increments) and usually have a lot of fat to burn (that's where the caloric excess comes from in their case). That sounds energy-intensive, but I guess it might work for some people.
If you don't want to gain weight, and are currently eating at maintenance (inicluding eating burned calories every day), you could try eat at a 50-calorie surplus every other day and lift hard on those days. A 50-calorie surplus is nothing, and ordinarily won't really cause weight gain since the body can probably adjust to it by generating more heat. But it might be your best bet in this case to gain muscle without increasing weight. No guarantee...it's just an idea I thought of that might do what you want...or not.0 -
So u care more about a number on a scale than how you look. Got it.
yes, that's it...is it vain? nope
Wanting to look better is vain. Is that bad? No. Caring more about the scale # isn't vain, but it is counterproductive to your goal to look better. I understand. I have fears about "gaining" too. I worry that I'll just gain fat and never lose it, even though I know that's just a mental block0 -
Gaining muscle means gaining mass. It's unlikely that if you want to gain muscle that you'd exchange fat loss pounds for muscle pounds.I've been trying to put on more muscle, but people say I should bulk. Others says I don't have to. not looking to gain weight, I lost a lot already why would I want to gain it back. any advise would be appreciated (bring on the trolls as well)
Bulking is the easier way to put on muscle compared to say a slow body recomp.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
A-HA! Everytime I get close to reaching my GW of 240#, I shoot up by 5-7# within 1-2 days! :noway: But I'm not failing, I'm doing a high-frequency bulk/cut! SCHWEET! :laugh:I think the people who don't go up in weight are basically bulking and cutting nearly simultaneously (in small increments) and usually have a lot of fat to burn (that's where the caloric excess comes from in their case). That sounds energy-intensive, but I guess it might work for some people.
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Gaining muscle means gaining mass. It's unlikely that if you want to gain muscle that you'd exchange fat loss pounds for muscle pounds.I've been trying to put on more muscle, but people say I should bulk. Others says I don't have to. not looking to gain weight, I lost a lot already why would I want to gain it back. any advise would be appreciated (bring on the trolls as well)
Bulking is the easier way to put on muscle compared to say a slow body recomp.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
For a recomp, assuming sufficient protein and someone is eating right at maintenance and has fat to burn, how many pounds of fat would it take to provide enough energy to build a single pound of muscle?0 -
How do you expect to gain muscle mass and not gain weight? Muscle has weight.0
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Gaining muscle means gaining mass. It's unlikely that if you want to gain muscle that you'd exchange fat loss pounds for muscle pounds.I've been trying to put on more muscle, but people say I should bulk. Others says I don't have to. not looking to gain weight, I lost a lot already why would I want to gain it back. any advise would be appreciated (bring on the trolls as well)
Bulking is the easier way to put on muscle compared to say a slow body recomp.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Assuming sufficient protein and someone is eating right at maintenance and has fat to burn, how many pounds of fat would it take to provide enough energy to build a single pound of muscle?0 -
I'm not trying to be an *kitten* but you are not going to listen to anybody on here that has good suggestions for you anyway. You're simply not ready for this yet. There is plenty of information out there on this subject and if you think the process is simply losing body fat then gaining fat back again then losing it again than it shows you've spent maybe 5 minutes reading the cliff notes on some cosmo magazine and haven't spend anytime researching the concepts.
Besides, if you are going to be a puss about - or + 15 pounds when you are at 23+% body fat as a guy than I'm not sure what any of us can tell you man. I guess your best bet at this point is to just cut down to below 15% and come back in a year and talk to us about how you don't understand that you can see your abs but you still have moobs.
Thanks for the Broscience, i'm going to just stick to running and hopefully all this muscle will disappear
His post contained 0% broscience.
At this point you're just being intentionally obtuse and clearly don't care to even try to understand what people are saying.0 -
are you trying to gain muscle or to get stronger? there's a difference between the two.
i'm trying to gain muscle, I don't really care about lifting heavier weights
Based on your pictures, I think you can gain muscle without putting on weight. You'll need to redistribute some of your pounds.
BUT... You Have To Lift Heavier Weights than you are currently using, or lift the same weights with much less time between sets. You HAVE TO SHOCK YOUR MUSCLES TO MAKE THEM GROW. Also, I would make sure you're eating at least 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight.0 -
are you trying to gain muscle or to get stronger? there's a difference between the two.
i'm trying to gain muscle, I don't really care about lifting heavier weights
Based on your pictures, I think you can gain muscle without putting on weight. You'll need to redistribute some of your pounds.
BUT... You Have To Lift Heavier Weights than you are currently using, or lift the same weights with much less time between sets. You HAVE TO SHOCK YOUR MUSCLES TO MAKE THEM GROW. Also, I would make sure you're eating at least 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight.
I've tried lifting heavier, i can't do it. i'm not strong enough, **** it0 -
You want to gain muscle, but not gain weight. You do realize how that makes no sense, right? Do you think muscle magically becomes weightless?0
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are you trying to gain muscle or to get stronger? there's a difference between the two.
i'm trying to gain muscle, I don't really care about lifting heavier weights
Based on your pictures, I think you can gain muscle without putting on weight. You'll need to redistribute some of your pounds.
BUT... You Have To Lift Heavier Weights than you are currently using, or lift the same weights with much less time between sets. You HAVE TO SHOCK YOUR MUSCLES TO MAKE THEM GROW. Also, I would make sure you're eating at least 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight.
I've tried lifting heavier, i can't do it. i'm not strong enough, **** it
I think you might want to pull some beginners weight lifting routines off the net. If you can't lift heavier you need to maybe run less (idk how much you run...), or maybe eat a better diet with more protein.
Other than that, you may have some Mental Roadblocks in the gym. This sounds weird but you might be scared of the weight you're lifting. A few years ago, I thought I couldn't lift more weight than I could at that time, but I took some time and really researched my diet, gym routine, etc. & in subsequent years blew way ahead of where I was at that time.
Sometimes, you just have to accept that you don't know how to do something / or what you think you know may possibly be crap, and re start at square one with an open mind.
The info is out there. I'd recommend you spend a few days reading as much as you can on bodybuilding.com (best net site for lifting & doesn't seem to contain near as much bs as most fitness websites) & then experiment with some new routines.0 -
I've tried lifting heavier, i can't do it. i'm not strong enough, **** it
^^^^^ This. EXACTLY THIS. I told you that you weren't ready. 1 forum thread and you have already given up on your goal bc of strangers you never actually met. Now go pick yourself off the floor, dry the damn tears, and recommit after you've done some soul searching and some M-Fin research man. Try actually understanding what people are telling you instead of just glancing over it.
Seriously, I would love nothing more for you to pop up a year from now looking awesome and telling me to F-off but you got to put your learning cap and big boy pants on first to make the next steps.0 -
I went from 140 w/30%BF to 127 w/17%BF (which is GAIN of apx 8# in lean body mass) while eating at a deficit, carb cycling, and lifting heavy with small bouts of HIIT cardio. You CAN gain muscle without eating heavy calorie counts; of course your gains may not be as much as it would if you were eating more. I progressed from a 1100/1300/1500 calorie cycle to a 1500/1700/1900 cycle over the course of a couple months and that was the result. A lot of it about figuring ot how your body reacts to different fitness and eating plans and adjusting until you get the results you are looking for. There's no reason to gain 10# of fat just to try to put on muscle - that means that your calorie intake is too high.0
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are you trying to gain muscle or to get stronger? there's a difference between the two.
i'm trying to gain muscle, I don't really care about lifting heavier weights
Based on your pictures, I think you can gain muscle without putting on weight. You'll need to redistribute some of your pounds.
BUT... You Have To Lift Heavier Weights than you are currently using, or lift the same weights with much less time between sets. You HAVE TO SHOCK YOUR MUSCLES TO MAKE THEM GROW. Also, I would make sure you're eating at least 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight.
I've tried lifting heavier, i can't do it. i'm not strong enough, **** it
jesus... turn in your man card bro.
Thanks bro... Maybe I will0 -
I've tried lifting heavier, i can't do it. i'm not strong enough, **** it
^^^^^ This. EXACTLY THIS. I told you that you weren't ready. 1 forum thread and you have already given up on your goal bc of strangers you never actually met. Now go pick yourself off the floor, dry the damn tears, and recommit after you've done some soul searching and some M-Fin research man. Try actually understanding what people are telling you instead of just glancing over it.
Seriously, I would love nothing more for you to pop up a year from now looking awesome and telling me to F-off but you got to put your learning cap and big boy pants on first to make the next steps.
I've researching bulking and all this other stuff. But you have to understand my mental road block of not wanting to gain weight when I've worked so hard to lose it0 -
are you trying to gain muscle or to get stronger? there's a difference between the two.
i'm trying to gain muscle, I don't really care about lifting heavier weights
Based on your pictures, I think you can gain muscle without putting on weight. You'll need to redistribute some of your pounds.
BUT... You Have To Lift Heavier Weights than you are currently using, or lift the same weights with much less time between sets. You HAVE TO SHOCK YOUR MUSCLES TO MAKE THEM GROW. Also, I would make sure you're eating at least 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight.
I've tried lifting heavier, i can't do it. i'm not strong enough, **** it
I think you might want to pull some beginners weight lifting routines off the net. If you can't lift heavier you need to maybe run less (idk how much you run...), or maybe eat a better diet with more protein.
Other than that, you may have some Mental Roadblocks in the gym. This sounds weird but you might be scared of the weight you're lifting. A few years ago, I thought I couldn't lift more weight than I could at that time, but I took some time and really researched my diet, gym routine, etc. & in subsequent years blew way ahead of where I was at that time.
Sometimes, you just have to accept that you don't know how to do something / or what you think you know may possibly be crap, and re start at square one with an open mind.
The info is out there. I'd recommend you spend a few days reading as much as you can on bodybuilding.com (best net site for lifting & doesn't seem to contain near as much bs as most fitness websites) & then experiment with some new routines.
Yea.. I'm done lifting. I'm sticking to running.0 -
you can do anything you put your mind to. i did 300 push ups and 300 situps in 1 hour i have never been able to do that before just continue to push yourself a little more. and just give it your all i have gained 5 pounds of muscle and lost ten pounds of fat. Dont wory you will get there0
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You don't have to live the bodybuilding lifestyle, but look at the information out there. Read more find what works for you and just don't take every bro's word as the GAWWWWD given truth.0
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The advice doesn't matter, the problem is fear.0
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Yea.. I'm done lifting. I'm sticking to running.
But I thought you lost a bunch of weight running and were unhappy with the results? So you're going to keep going and be happier?
Get yourself on a non-retarded beginners routine. Heavy is a bollocks term. Just means heavy for you. Doesn't mean busting a nut and putting up a PR everytime you enter a gym or going to failure time and again.
Go over to bodybuilding.com and check out all pro's routine. test your 10RMs for all the lifts and spend 6 months running the routine as written. Then come back and tell me you're unhappy with how you look.0 -
^^^^ Ditto to all of the above....Yea.. I'm done lifting. I'm sticking to running.
But I thought you lost a bunch of weight running and were unhappy with the results? So you're going to keep going and be happier?
Get yourself on a non-retarded beginners routine. Heavy is a bollocks term. Just means heavy for you. Doesn't mean busting a nut and putting up a PR everytime you enter a gym or going to failure time and again.
Go over to bodybuilding.com and check out all pro's routine. test your 10RMs for all the lifts and spend 6 months running the routine as written. Then come back and tell me you're unhappy with how you look.0 -
Yea.. I'm done lifting. I'm sticking to running.
But I thought you lost a bunch of weight running and were unhappy with the results? So you're going to keep going and be happier?
Get yourself on a non-retarded beginners routine. Heavy is a bollocks term. Just means heavy for you. Doesn't mean busting a nut and putting up a PR everytime you enter a gym or going to failure time and again.
Go over to bodybuilding.com and check out all pro's routine. test your 10RMs for all the lifts and spend 6 months running the routine as written. Then come back and tell me you're unhappy with how you look.
yup, ill just keep going. I didnt say i was going to be happier, but weightlifting is a waste of time for me at this point0
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