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Alice's Log

AliceDark
AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
edited November 2024 in Social Groups
Hi everyone, I figured I would start a thread of my very own to try to keep me moving forward. I'd love to get some input on my progress so far -- I kind of feel like I'm gaining a little too quickly, but I'm not sure if that's accurate or not. Some background: I'd been eating at 1400-1500 for years and finally got tired of feeling like cr@p and not being able to lift like I used to anymore. Since about 2012 I'd been slowly and steadily decreasing my workouts because I kept getting hurt. I spent all of December slowly stepping up to 2000, all of January at 2000 (and kept fluctuating but not actually gaining), and then started really tracking at the beginning of February. Here's my progress so far:

Feb 2-8: 121 lbs (average 2050 cal)
Feb 9-15: 122.9 lbs
Feb 16-22: 123.1 lbs
Feb 23-Mar 1: 124 lbs (average 2150 cal)
Mar 2-8: 124.7 lbs.
Mar 9-15: 126.2 lbs
Mar 16-22: 126.2 lbs

I'm 5'4" and am doing a PHUL 4-day split program.

Replies

  • SilentDrapeRunners
    SilentDrapeRunners Posts: 199 Member
    Well I'm new to bulking, so I'm no expert by any means, but it looks like you're progressing well. Maybe gaining a little quickly, but maybe not since some of the gains could be due to water weight, etc. If you feel good at the calories/macros that you're at, and you're progressing in your workouts (progressing in reps or weight a little bit each week), I would say continue doing what you're doing. How long are you going to bulk for?
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    Originally, I was going to go to 130, but now I'm afraid that if I cut to 125-126 after that, I won't be happy with the gains I get to keep. (Hope that makes sense -- I'm just worried that it will feel like I'm right back where I started). I've made some size gains on my shoulders, biceps and quads, but nothing that's noticeable when I'm wearing clothes.

    I've been wondering if some of the gain in March is really water weight or just because of stress. My body does wonky things when I'm stressed or sleep-deprived. I'm a musician, and March-May is performance season for me. I'm doing a renaissance festival in Arizona right now, so I've been working my regular 40-hour week, driving from LA to Phoenix on Friday night, performing for two 8-hour days in the sun (they turn into 11-hour days with setup/teardown, since roadies aren't a thing in my world) and then driving back to LA Sunday night. I guess the only way to tell would be to wait until this show ends and I start the next one, which is local. My stress level should drop and I'll be getting more sleep.
  • SilentDrapeRunners
    SilentDrapeRunners Posts: 199 Member
    Makes sense- you have to make sure you've bulked enough, because otherwise it will just be an endless cycle of returning to where you've started. And you don't necessarily have to cut after you make it to 130 or higher- you can just maintain so that you're not losing your gains but also not gaining more as fat. That's what I'm trying to do at least- bulking/maintenance cycles. After getting a bunch of good advice on here, I probably won't cut at all this year.

    If you're making size/muscle gains but your clothes still fit, that's really good & ideal.

    Stress/sleep deprivation probably does play a big role too. For me, I know it definitely affects the quality of my workouts. It also affects my appetite, but now that I'm logging my foods consistently and making myself eat what I need to eat, that's not an issue.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    I averaged 126.3 pounds this week, so still technically up. I'm a little relieved, because I was expecting another insane jump and didn't want to see 128 yet! I'm hoping to bulk at least until the end of May -- originally, I was figuring the end of June, but I'm not sure now if it will take me that long to hit 130-132ish.

    I think I need to play around with my meal timing and eat more earlier in the day. I've been trying to work out on my lunch break, and I'm cr@pping out way too early, especially on upper days. I've been enjoying getting to have ice cream or cookies in the evening, but I think I'm going to have to pull calories from there and have bigger lunches or mid-morning snacks.
  • __freckles__
    __freckles__ Posts: 1,238 Member
    I averaged 126.3 pounds this week, so still technically up. I'm a little relieved, because I was expecting another insane jump and didn't want to see 128 yet! I'm hoping to bulk at least until the end of May -- originally, I was figuring the end of June, but I'm not sure now if it will take me that long to hit 130-132ish.

    I think I need to play around with my meal timing and eat more earlier in the day. I've been trying to work out on my lunch break, and I'm cr@pping out way too early, especially on upper days. I've been enjoying getting to have ice cream or cookies in the evening, but I think I'm going to have to pull calories from there and have bigger lunches or mid-morning snacks.

    Sounds like a plan if you don't have enough energy for your workouts. I'm in a similar boat for the fact that I *should* eat more during the daytime. Sometimes I get left with 600-700 calories to makeup after dinner/workout. I'm always afraid if I eat too much during the day that I won't have enough room for ice cream. So I always prelog my ice cream and try to work around it! Then again, we are bulking, so how could we possibly eat too much? :wink:
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    After some weird TOM fluctuations, I weighed in today at 127, which is exactly where I was on 4/15. I'm thinking about adding another 100 calories daily and seeing how I react over the next couple of weeks. I think the stress and lack of sleep are kicking my *kitten* right now, but the show I'm doing right now has another 3 weeks before it closes and then I'll have a day off! (I haven't had a day off since January). I'm super burnt out at the moment, but I'm just hoping that I can get through the next 3 weeks without losing any more. My measurements are all up and I've definitely seen a change since I started, but I feel like I've been spinning my wheels this month.
  • SilentDrapeRunners
    SilentDrapeRunners Posts: 199 Member
    Stress and lack of sleep really affect me too and especially affect my strength (I guess since naturally I'm a weakling?). I just can't power through stress/lack of sleep without injuring myself. Last month was a little rough, so I'm hoping to regroup this month. I'm sure you'll see more gains once you get some days off and some more sleep.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    Okay, I can't take it anymore! I've been trying to gain since January, and I think six months is about all I can handle. Today I weighed in at 129.6, and I'm happy with that. I'd like to cut a pound, maybe two at the most, but I'm afraid of losing muscle so I'm going to go down to 2100 calories for awhile and just try to stabilize there. My plan is to try to maintain until November and then bulk again next winter. i'm not a huge fan of cardio, but I may throw in some just so I can keep eating more. The danger for me is that I'll chip away at my calories until I'm right back at 1400, and I don't want to do that ever again!
  • __freckles__
    __freckles__ Posts: 1,238 Member
    Okay, I can't take it anymore! I've been trying to gain since January, and I think six months is about all I can handle. Today I weighed in at 129.6, and I'm happy with that. I'd like to cut a pound, maybe two at the most, but I'm afraid of losing muscle so I'm going to go down to 2100 calories for awhile and just try to stabilize there. My plan is to try to maintain until November and then bulk again next winter. i'm not a huge fan of cardio, but I may throw in some just so I can keep eating more. The danger for me is that I'll chip away at my calories until I'm right back at 1400, and I don't want to do that ever again!

    So how much did you gain over the 6 months?
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    I didn't have a good, stable starting number, but I went from about 121 to 129.6 pounds today. I'm just at the point when my pants are starting to feel tight, so I'm calling it a good stopping place :smile:
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    I finally went through and input my measurements into MFP (I had been jotting them down on random post-its around the house), and I'm thrilled with the results! Since January...

    +9 pounds
    Left quad: +1.25"
    Left biceps: +1.5"
    Chest: +1.5"
    Waist: +0.5"
    Butt: +1.5"
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    I've been going back and forth about what I want to do next (bulk or recomp), but I've decided to try to ramp back up and do a second bulk this winter. I held onto +4 pounds from my last bulk, and changed my measurements a bit (all changes from my very first set of measurements in January 2014):

    Left quad: Back to where I started :(
    Left biceps: +1"
    Chest: +1.25" (this has to be back muscles)
    Waist: -0.5"
    Butt: +0.5" (sad day! although the shape has improved, I didn't hold onto the size I wanted)

    Last time, I got a little (a lot) obsessive over the scale, and I think I really need to find better ways to gauge progress. Anyone have any ideas? Maybe weigh in once a week (or once a month), or give myself measurement goals instead of scale goals? Clothing size limit? I just don't want to keep getting so hung up on the scale number.
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,795 Member
    Yay for bulking soon! :D

    I have no advice on gauging progress other than weight and measurements, I'd love to hear some others input on that as well.
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