Macros for a bulk - please help!

monsterbeck40

lso how clean is your bulk what foods are you consuming? You cannot out train a bad diet

incorrect.

in a bulk- getting protein and carbs is great- but you have to ultimately get the calories up to "surplus" stage- you can have a 'clean' diet all day long- but if you aren't getting your surplus- it's a waste.

Macro's are a good guide- and that's it- getting your surplus is significantly more important than hitting a macro spot on for bulking.

Cutting (at least for me- and several other people I know) requires more diligent care for hitting macros in a way that allow you to function and be satisfied- I prefer low carb when cutting- I can eat significantly more and I have no trouble just saying no to bread- other people survive just fine with a moderate macro split while cutting. Totally personal choice.

But there is no such thing is out training a bad diet when bulking- I ate cookies and ice cream all the way through my lifts and put on a solid inch.

I totally agree with you on this however he said he was trying to keep it lean as well so he is trying to do a clean bulk from what it sounds like, thats why i asked if his diet was clean. Just straight bulking consists of eat and eat and then when your full eat some more. Sorry to not put that into my post.

LolBroScience

A clean bulk refers to a smaller caloric surplus, not the types of foods one consumes...

iPlatano

Increase calories by 250 until you see yourself gaining 0.5 pounds every week.

iPlatano

Your calorie intake looks pretty good. Try taking in about 2g of protein per lean muscle mass. Also how clean is your bulk what foods are you consuming? You cannot out train a bad diet. And I'm sure you already know this but just to remind you, the only way to gain strength and mass is to lift heavy. However, squats are the main driving force behind growth. Your lower half of your body accounts for the majority of your muscle mass so when you do leg day/squat day it activates more muscle fibers than all of your other upper body lifts combine. The more muscle fiber you use the more testosterone your body produces,which in turn promotes muscle growth. Now with that being said you can't get under the squat bar or under the leg press and lift 225 for 3000 reps, that puts your body into conditioning mode. We are looking for your body to say holy **** we have to build more muscle to keep up with the amount of weight we are lifting. So what you should do is 3 - 4 sets at a range from 1-8 reps keeping the weight as heavy as you can go and still achieve your reps. Now for your cardio. There is no reason what so ever if you are trying to gain strength and put on size to go and RUN or JOG 3 miles ( not saying that you do). What you should do is set your tredmil at an 8 incline and 3.5mph pace. This will keep your heart rate around 130-150. We want to try and keep it between those numbers to where you are just burning fat. Once your bodies heart rate gets too high you go into conditioning/survival mode, yes you will burn calories but it will also tell your body to burn off muscle because its trying to survive and muscle consumes more energy than fat. So try to work out like this for 4 weeks and then we will switch it up. Again this is my recommendation so you choose what you want to do just thought i would give you my take on it.

2g of protein per lean mass? Thats not necessary at all. In fact, its going to make him gain weight even slower since protein boost metabolism. He should keep everything the same expect carbs. Dont forget to do some HIT cardio for 10 mins three times a week. Stop doing the SLOW boring *kitten* cardio. #BroSienceBullShiit!

NRBreit

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1254171-slow-bulk-or-cut-15-16-bf-need-advice

here's the link I posted the other day to see where I'm at.

IMO, you can easily bulk from where you're at now. But if you want to feel 'good' over the summer, maybe try a recomp or run a slight deficit until late August.

JoRocka

A clean bulk refers to a smaller caloric surplus, not the types of foods one consumes...

this.

OP- making a mistake is hard to do- this is a time consuming process- not an over night one- it's not set in stone- and you adjust as you need to- what makes it difficult is the long process of over eating.

It's easily adaptable.

jason_adams

I agree, JoRocka. We all know that in order to get our bodies to change, we need to force them to adapt. To do that we need to alter what we eat and how we train. To do that you need to try new things! Don't think about it as making a mistake - the only mistake you can make is not to alter anything! When you make changes, you need to track your results, some changes you make will result in outcomes you like, some won't and the degree of effect will also vary.

When I bulked from your size, I was trying to hit 5,000 calories a day. I rarely made it... I usually topped out between 4,500 and 4,800. And I would put on size quickly! BUT I would also only do that for 2 weeks at time. Then I'd strip the fat for 2 weeks and drop most of the weight I put on - I would net a 1 to 2 pound increase for the month.

It seems to me that you CAN achieve your ultimate goal by doing what you're doing - it's just going to take a lot of time, and you'll not necessarily see the progress unless you take before / after photo's on a regular basis. Our eyes adjust to how we look in the mirror very quickly.

If you're looking to SEE results quickly, you're going to have to shake things up more. Bulk it up, or burn it off. Go whole-hog in one direction or the other and within a month you should results. Then you can figure out what you want to do from there. Go further in the same direction, or change it up! This is the fun stuff!!!

felonebeats

Lift hard,eat lots,get sleep-repeat

shields1847

I'm on a similar diet for 3,500 calories lean bulk. I do 300 g protein, 400g carbs, the rest fat. if you don't gain then add 200 calories and try that for a week.
I ended a diet a few months ago at 1700 calories a day, 11% bfat. I'm up now 15 lbs now and strength keeps climbing

you don't need 300g of protein. 0.87/lb at most.

va_01

Anyone have other opinions on what i should do based on where I'm at in this link?:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1254171-slow-bulk-or-cut-15-16-bf-need-advice


Again, my lifts are still a bit weak. But I have begun doing DLs and Squats, focusing on bigger compound lifts and progressing so far.

My current intake at 3700 cal i believe is causing me to gain a little too quickly (roughly went up from 186 - 188.4 in about 12 days), so I'm not sure if that is water weight/etc so I'm going to keep at it for a another week MAX to see if it doesn't slow down, then adjust.

But I need more opinion on where I'm at to see if bulking is something I should even consider doing right now.

TiberiusClaudis

However, squats are the main driving force behind growth. Your lower half of your body accounts for the majority of your muscle mass so when you do leg day/squat day it activates more muscle fibers than all of your other upper body lifts combine.

Totally agree. Squats, Deadlift and Benchpress...the BIG 3. But Squats is King. If you aren't doing these 3, then incorporate them for strenght. Military press and chin ups/pulls ups are also major contributors to building core strength.

chrisdavey

I'm all for the big 3 but they definitely aren't "required" for building mass. Your leg muscles don't know if you are squatting with weight on your back or pushing a plate on a leg press. More skill in compound lifts though.

I personally think you should keep cutting for a bit. I don't think being above 15% BF is going to have a very favourable partitioning ration of muscle/fat gain.

Also, re progress. Take pics and measurements every 2 weeks and I personally like to weigh in daily and take a 7 day rolling average.

va_01

I'm all for the big 3 but they definitely aren't "required" for building mass. Your leg muscles don't know if you are squatting with weight on your back or pushing a plate on a leg press. More skill in compound lifts though.

I personally think you should keep cutting for a bit. I don't think being above 15% BF is going to have a very favourable partitioning ration of muscle/fat gain.

Also, re progress. Take pics and measurements every 2 weeks and I personally like to weigh in daily and take a 7 day rolling average.

You think cutting at this point is a good idea, even if my lifts are pretty weak? Would you say from the photos I couldn't fill out more without adding much fat, and look a little better than I do now, or if I cut down to not much muscle?

jcranston13

Most often, people that are lean look bigger than those who are the same weight but holding more BF%. You need to pick a direction and go that way, I personally don't like to bulk above 15% BF. For most people, being lean for summer is seen as better than bulking through unless they are on a long-term bulk.

NerdySamoan

Theres a predisposition to how big a person can get so dont be discouraged that you dont look like Ronnie Coleman,
But to maximise your potential, alot of it has to do with the times your fueling your body for repair, growth and rest.

Make sure you get your protein straight after your lifting sessions and eat some good carbs afterwards as well to regulate glycogen levels.

Lift heavy!
5 X 5 reps at 80%-90% of 1RM
Triple Drop Sets are another way to build up mass and strength.
With cardio, just keep keep it brief and intense...

ryanwood935

You think cutting at this point is a good idea, even if my lifts are pretty weak? Would you say from the photos I couldn't fill out more without adding much fat, and look a little better than I do now, or if I cut down to not much muscle?

Based on my experience and what you have written, I would recommend you cut. If you are wanting to look better, you will see pleasing results quicker cutting rather than bulking. Even if you bulk, you will have to cut your BF eventually to get where you want. If you can cut 10 pounds of fat, you'll feel better seeing definition.

In the meantime, spend all your free time reading every damn thing you can about how to eat proper, how to lift correctly, and figure out what you are doing wrong that you aren't seeing gains. By the time you are done cutting, you should have much of the knowledge you need to have a very successful bulk with strong gains.

va_01

You think cutting at this point is a good idea, even if my lifts are pretty weak? Would you say from the photos I couldn't fill out more without adding much fat, and look a little better than I do now, or if I cut down to not much muscle?

Based on my experience and what you have written, I would recommend you cut. If you are wanting to look better, you will see pleasing results quicker cutting rather than bulking. Even if you bulk, you will have to cut your BF eventually to get where you want. If you can cut 10 pounds of fat, you'll feel better seeing definition.

In the meantime, spend all your free time reading every damn thing you can about how to eat proper, how to lift correctly, and figure out what you are doing wrong that you aren't seeing gains. By the time you are done cutting, you should have much of the knowledge you need to have a very successful bulk with strong gains.

I think my problem is that I have done so much research already, that I am spinnign around in circles. I feel like guys who go into the gym without ANY idea what they should be doing have better results than me.

I wasn't progressing before, but I am beginnng to now. I am still stalled on a few of my lifts, though. I dont want to get any fatter. My main concern are my arms being too small, as I feel like they are already tiny ,and I worry about them getting smaller on a cut. I am worried that my cut will go horribly wrong and I will go back to the way I started.

musclebuilder

186 lbs, 6'2, 15% bf

Currently taking in 3,500 calories / day on a slow bulk, but I am not seeing enough strength gain or any weight gain. Thinking next week or the week after (depending if I still see no results) to bump up my caloric intake to 3,700. How does this look for my macros?

3,700 calories
190g P
123g F
463g C


How would you alter this? Or does this look decent?

Don't over think it. If you are not gaining size then up your calories. It doesn't need to be large increases, can be as small as 20 calories a week. When you diet and you plateau you only need to make small adjustments to get things moving again. It is the same with bulking. Just make small weekly increases and you will continue to gain. And diet is only part of the equation. pick a good training program that fits your goals of size and strength. If your training program sucks then you can spend endless amounts of time spinning your wheels. Don't over think macros either. Just hit your daily calorie totals.

va_01

Hey guys -

So I have been on this plan for almost 2.5 weeks. I have gained weight, but I am worried I am gaining too quickly. On my 3,500 calories, I wasn't really gaining any weight (that I saw). But now that I am weighing myself first thing in the AM, (sometimes) after the bathroom, etc, I am seeing these increases. Could this just be water weight/etc? Or should I lower my calories? Is it too soon to tell?

4/20 : 186.5
4/22: 186.9
4/24: 187.6
4/26: 187.8
4/29: 188.1
5/01: 188.4
5/05: 188.5
5/06: 190.4

What gives with these measurements? I am seeing an increase, and I know some of it could have to do with my scale / bathroom usage / previous day etc. How do I measure if this is all gaining on too quickly? Or because I'm starting to UP my calories again by 200, is fast weight gain in the beginning normal?

Thanks!