Am I on the right track?

LolBroScience

Listen, I understand feeling the need to "treat" yourself to junk food (though your mouth and brain are the only ones getting the "treat"), and that is perfectly fine. But you can't deny so stubbornly that putting good, nutritious food into your body will improve anything in the long run. I am a vegetarian, and I live a pretty active lifestyle, so it's important that I consume enough calories, protein, and healthy fats. This is completely feasible with my diet, which excludes all meat and is low in other animal products, is very low in sugar and processed foods, and consists of mostly: vegetables, fruits, grains, legumes, nuts, and healthy fats. I'm telling you, I've been a vegetarian my whole life and have recently been eating even cleaner than I was in the past. And I feel so much better! Even for a guy, trying to bulk up, it is possible. You don't have to go vegetarian or anything, but stop eating so much junk food! Treat yourself in other ways. I mean really: pizza, kid's cereal, bacon, AND a cookie all in the same day??

You're bulking up to look better, no? Well you will look (and feel) better if you eat healthy. No if's, and's, or but's. You can not dispute that logic any further.

I'm not saying your goal isn't attainable with your diet, but the results will be better if you greatly reduce the amount of bad food going into your body and feed it fuel it can utilize. You need nutrients and vitamins, and (honestly?) how much of that is there in pizza, kid's cereal, bacon, and a cookie? Just think about it. I'm done.

BRB, taking bulking advice from an 18 year old vegetarian female..

Your body cannot tell the difference between the "clean" and "processed" foods.. it only identifies the macros and how they impact the body. That being said, I agree nutritionally dense should comprise the majority of one's intake to reach micro goals. However, you're looking at things through a very small scope...

Good luck hitting 3,000+ cals eating chicken and broccoli. Throwing in a mix of nurtitionally dense and more calorically dense foods makes it much more attainable.

__freckles__

I don't completely deprive myself; I treat myself to junk food (not necessarily fast food) a couple times a week. How long should a bulk phase last for? I assume it's for however long it takes to get you the physique you want. I was planning to keep this up until about early May, and then hopefully start the cutting phase (for the summer!), and hope that I'm able to cut the fat.

I had a question regarding fat. How many grams should I be having a day? I usually have around 130g, which I hope isn't too much. I have an avacado a day for the ridiculous amount of calories from it, but it also has a lot of fat, which I'm worried about. Should I find an alternative to it, or just keep with what I've been doing so far?

Thanks again!

You got it: the length of a bulk is usually determined by looks, weight, and body fat%. Basically, you bulk until it's "too high". This number will depend on the person's comfort level and where they started out. Usually, the recommendation for guys who are super-concerned about physique/appearance is to start bulking when they're below 10% bf and then bulk up until they're around 15%. BUT. You're a young guy, you've got piles of testosterone, you're still growing - you're really at your prime in terms of ability to put muscle on right now. If it was me, I wouldn't worry about starting bulking at a bit higher bf%. I'd be eating like a beast and hitting the weights hard and enjoying the gains. Just watch your waistline; if your pants don't fit anymore, then it might be time to cut Going until May sounds like a good plan - you should see pretty good results by then. You can always go longer than that if everything's going well.

As for dietary fat, a typical recommendation is at least 0.35g/lb body mass, so for you that's about 51g. This is a MINIMUM, just at the 125g of protein would be a MINIMUM. Personally, I find that value low. I generally take in about 80-90g/day and I'm 140 lbs. Dietary fat wont turn into body fat (unless, like anything else, you overeat) - it's just another calorie source and in fact it's super-important for hormone regulation. In my opinion, your 100g/day is fine. Sometimes people who eat really high fat end up sacrificing a lot of carbs, which can affect performance in the gym (they're an important energy source). But, if you're feeling good, performing well in the gym, and getting your protein in while eating 100g a day, then it's all good.

Here's an article you might find useful, a good overview about bulk/cut cycles: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/muscle-gain/general-philosophies-of-muscle-mass-gain.html

Tagging because awesome.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

Listen, I understand feeling the need to "treat" yourself to junk food (though your mouth and brain are the only ones getting the "treat"), and that is perfectly fine. But you can't deny so stubbornly that putting good, nutritious food into your body will improve anything in the long run. I am a vegetarian, and I live a pretty active lifestyle, so it's important that I consume enough calories, protein, and healthy fats. This is completely feasible with my diet, which excludes all meat and is low in other animal products, is very low in sugar and processed foods, and consists of mostly: vegetables, fruits, grains, legumes, nuts, and healthy fats. I'm telling you, I've been a vegetarian my whole life and have recently been eating even cleaner than I was in the past. And I feel so much better! Even for a guy, trying to bulk up, it is possible. You don't have to go vegetarian or anything, but stop eating so much junk food! Treat yourself in other ways. I mean really: pizza, kid's cereal, bacon, AND a cookie all in the same day??

You're bulking up to look better, no? Well you will look (and feel) better if you eat healthy. No if's, and's, or but's. You can not dispute that logic any further.

I'm not saying your goal isn't attainable with your diet, but the results will be better if you greatly reduce the amount of bad food going into your body and feed it fuel it can utilize. You need nutrients and vitamins, and (honestly?) how much of that is there in pizza, kid's cereal, bacon, and a cookie? Just think about it. I'm done.

Ok, I thought about it. Here are my thoughts:

a) I'm not a guy. I'm a woman. Who is bulking.

b) I'm glad you found a way of eating that works well for you and makes you happy and makes you feel good. That is important.

c) Many people find that type of diet to be unsustainable in the long run; people who promote restrictive diets as the ONLY way to reach one's goals often outshout everybody else, leading inexperienced people to assume that it is in fact the ONLY way to reach one's goals, when it is, in fact, not.

d) The way that I am eating works well for me and makes me happy and makes me feel good. It's also permitted me to get in the best shape of my entire life: I have never been so lean, had so much muscle, or been so strong.

e) So yes, I do dispute your assertion (not "logic" - there is nothing logical about your assertion and there are many counterexamples to your one example)

f) Tell me one thing that's wrong with pizza (bread, tomato sauce, cheese), cereal (grains, milk, sugar), bacon (delicious) or a cookie (flour, milk, sugar, butter, chocolate). Or what's wrong with eating them all in the same day? I reached my protein, fat and carb goals, as well as my micronutrient requirements (you'll note I also consumed a lot of veggies, fruits and grain products in addition to other meat and eggs). Even if there was something wrong with it (and there's not), it was one day. Big woop.

g) "There are truly VERY few foods that are actively bad for you. Most of the foods that we identify as “bad”, are simply low or devoid of micro-nutrients, minerals, fiber and other things like phytochemicals and protein that can be beneficial for you. These foods only become a problem when they occur frequently and with enough magnitude (frequency and magnitude!) to replace a significant enough portion of your diet that you become deficient in beneficial nutrients.

Once our nutrient needs are met, we don’t get extra credit for eating more nutritious food! It’s not as though we have a health food critic living in our esophagus that has a control box that he switches from “get leaner and healthier” to “get fatter and unhealthier” every time he spots “good” or “bad” food.

Thus, a healthy diet should be inclusionary vs. exclusionary; focused around including healthy foods, not excluding “unhealthy” foods. Meet your nutrient needs, and feel free to eat things that you may have traditionally seen as “bad” in moderation; so that you are still meeting your allotted caloric intake for your weight loss goals. Don’t make the mistake of looking at foods as “good” or “bad!” Good diets can include “bad” foods and bad diets can include “good” foods. Don’t get too caught up with what you have for lunch, because it is not a singular choice that will determine the success of your health and fitness goals, it is the balanced lifestyle you commit to long term!" - Eric Helms

Ok, now I'm done too.

This.