I have no clue how to bulk
MyiahRose
Posts: 183 Member
Ok so i do lift weights but i focus on running more. I want to start a bulk but i have no idea how.
Can i bulk and still run 30 plus miles a week or should i do a mini bulk and cut out running during that time? I am scared that i will only just gain fat and not muscle.
I went on scooby calculator and put in my stats as lightly active with 1-3 hours a week of light exercise and it says i need 2425 calories for a clean bulk. It also says that i can eat at maintenance to lose fat and gain muscle but i thought that wasn't possible?
Can i bulk and still run 30 plus miles a week or should i do a mini bulk and cut out running during that time? I am scared that i will only just gain fat and not muscle.
I went on scooby calculator and put in my stats as lightly active with 1-3 hours a week of light exercise and it says i need 2425 calories for a clean bulk. It also says that i can eat at maintenance to lose fat and gain muscle but i thought that wasn't possible?
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Replies
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it is possible at maintenance, it will just take longer as you will be gaining very slowly, this is known as a body recomp. you can still run, but you need to eat adequately to your activity levels0
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if you are running 30 plus miles a week, that's more than 1 to 3 hours of light activity0
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no so much running the one necessary to keep fat low so when you weigh lift you can do youir 40 minutes after training, i suggest after cause you need all the glycogen to push hard your muscles.0
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You can, you'll just need to eat a lot more than you would if you had scaled back or eliminated cardio.
Regardless of what the calculator says you'll need to find your TDEE and eat slightly above it. Couple that with a weight program that focuses on progressive overload.
You'll also want to make sure you have sufficient protein intake, and you are meeting minimal fats. Rest of remaining calories can be spread out how you want, but I'd suggested dumping them into carbs based upon your activities.0 -
Ok so i do lift weights but i focus on running more. I want to start a bulk but i have no idea how.
Can i bulk and still run 30 plus miles a week or should i do a mini bulk and cut out running during that time? I am scared that i will only just gain fat and not muscle.
I went on scooby calculator and put in my stats as lightly active with 1-3 hours a week of light exercise and it says i need 2425 calories for a clean bulk. It also says that i can eat at maintenance to lose fat and gain muscle but i thought that wasn't possible?
You can to a degree under certain circumstances, but it will not be nearly as appreciable as if you were in a surplus. It's not optimal.0 -
Running that much will directly impact the speed of your bulk. It made the difference between 10 pounds in a year and 10 pounds in 10 weeks for me. The problem is that at some point you are wasting time.0
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if you are running 30 plus miles a week, that's more than 1 to 3 hours of light activity
That was if i was to stop running. If i add in running im looking at almost 3,000 calories a day. The calculator says 2979 for a clean bulk at 5-7 hours of strenuous exercise a week. I run 3-4 times a week. If i were to eat t maintenance to try to gain muscle it would be 2729 with running.0 -
LolBroScience wrote: »You can, you'll just need to eat a lot more than you would if you had scaled back or eliminated cardio.
Regardless of what the calculator says you'll need to find your TDEE and eat slightly above it. Couple that with a weight program that focuses on progressive overload.
You'll also want to make sure you have sufficient protein intake, and you are meeting minimal fats. Rest of remaining calories can be spread out how you want, but I'd suggested dumping them into carbs based upon your activities.
Right now my macros are at 40% carbs 25% protein and 35% fats but i mostly eat up to 30% protein a day. So what should my macros be? As i mentioned in the reply above, if i keep running and try to bulk, im looking at close to 3,000 calories. I am scared to eat that much. I just dont want to get huge lol.
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Running that much will directly impact the speed of your bulk. It made the difference between 10 pounds in a year and 10 pounds in 10 weeks for me. The problem is that at some point you are wasting time.
Even if i were to eat alot more? Its already a slow process for a female lol
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Most people who do an effective bulk dial back the cardio (you can still do some) and hit the weight room much harder. The combination of your calorie surplus and really hitting the weight room is going to be the catalyst for putting on muscle.
It is difficult to do an effective bulk with that much running because it becomes increasingly difficult to consistently maintain the requisite energy surplus...and consistency is going to be key. You also need to consider wear and tear on your body and recovery...
I would also ask what kind of programming you intend to do...you need to go into this with a strategy and a solid program that you are committed to or you're going to be seriously wasting your time.
If you do it right, very little of your weight gain from your bulk will be from fat...most of it will be muscle...but again, your programming is going to play a huge roll here. If you do it wrong, you will put on more fat. Inevitably you put on fat anyway which is why people bulk and then cut...but it can be minimized.
Eating at maintenance and hitting a solid program with good protein intake will result in positive body composition changes...it is a very slow process though.0 -
Macros should be approximately 1g of protein per pound of bodyweight, at least 20% of total calories should be fats, and fill the rest in with Carbohydrates. Total calories should be maintenance (TDEE) plus at least 10%. 3000 calories is probably about right for you.0
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You are right. You will gain if you eat that much. Probably, the right way for me to have to put it is bang for your buck. Where your buck is time and wear and tear to your body. It's cheaper to focus on one goal rather than two.
If your goal is to gain five pounds of muscle, put a timeframe on it as well. If you are not in a rush, you can try it while still running. If you want to change it up later, do so. Have fun with it.0 -
LolBroScience wrote: »You can, you'll just need to eat a lot more than you would if you had scaled back or eliminated cardio.
Regardless of what the calculator says you'll need to find your TDEE and eat slightly above it. Couple that with a weight program that focuses on progressive overload.
You'll also want to make sure you have sufficient protein intake, and you are meeting minimal fats. Rest of remaining calories can be spread out how you want, but I'd suggested dumping them into carbs based upon your activities.
Right now my macros are at 40% carbs 25% protein and 35% fats but i mostly eat up to 30% protein a day. So what should my macros be? As i mentioned in the reply above, if i keep running and try to bulk, im looking at close to 3,000 calories. I am scared to eat that much. I just dont want to get huge lol.
not macros.
calories.
You need to eat more calories.
You won't get huge- eating 3K means you'll gain- but you won't be getting fat over night.
Ultimately bulking is an effort in confidence- so you have to commit to doing the thing. And trust the process.
3K isn't that much honestly.
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LolBroScience wrote: »You can, you'll just need to eat a lot more than you would if you had scaled back or eliminated cardio.
Regardless of what the calculator says you'll need to find your TDEE and eat slightly above it. Couple that with a weight program that focuses on progressive overload.
You'll also want to make sure you have sufficient protein intake, and you are meeting minimal fats. Rest of remaining calories can be spread out how you want, but I'd suggested dumping them into carbs based upon your activities.
Right now my macros are at 40% carbs 25% protein and 35% fats but i mostly eat up to 30% protein a day. So what should my macros be? As i mentioned in the reply above, if i keep running and try to bulk, im looking at close to 3,000 calories. I am scared to eat that much. I just dont want to get huge lol.
You won't. See the above answers regarding the calories and Macro breakdowns from Jo & Don0 -
Sounds like you are using the running as a buffer to mitigate fat gain during your bulk rather than you having specific goals in this regard (please correct me if I am wrong.)
If that is the case I would find a reasonable starting point for your calories without including the running, find a decent weights programme and commit to it. You can add in some running later if you like as an insurance policy against your diet getting sloppy depending on how you are going.
If you want to do both then you will have to accept that your results will get diluted in both areas for the simple reason that you are going to tap into your recovery ability early on and as you probably know recovery periods are where your body actually makes adaptations.0 -
I do body recomp..but I do under calories the whole week and then a refeed on saturdays. Allows me to still gain strength and muscle while wittling away at my fat
...This is just what works for me. Yes it DOES take MUCH longer this way than bulking and cutting, but I'm not okay with putting on fat for muscle. I already have a good amount of muscle so I'm not worried about losing it. 0 -
Macros should be approximately 1g of protein per pound of bodyweight, at least 20% of total calories should be fats, and fill the rest in with Carbohydrates. Total calories should be maintenance (TDEE) plus at least 10%. 3000 calories is probably about right for you.
Ok thanks! is 2 weeks long enough to see if this is working or not? How long should i bulk for?
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You are right. You will gain if you eat that much. Probably, the right way for me to have to put it is bang for your buck. Where your buck is time and wear and tear to your body. It's cheaper to focus on one goal rather than two.
If your goal is to gain five pounds of muscle, put a timeframe on it as well. If you are not in a rush, you can try it while still running. If you want to change it up later, do so. Have fun with it.
Im not in a rush, i just wanted to know if it was possible to do so while being fairly active. I will try it out for a few weeks to see how things are going and then i will determine if i should cut back on running. Thanks!
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A min/max is a good time frame.
Mostly because it gives you a good goal to shoot for and if you panic- you can force yourself to reach that one AT LEAST.
I shoot for 6 months- but I give myself 4-6- and then I find myself happily in the 5 month window with about 10-15 pounds of weight I've put on.
Worked for me.
You're looking at months- not weeks- anything that happens in weeks- isn't worth while to give you good data.0 -
LolBroScience wrote: »You can, you'll just need to eat a lot more than you would if you had scaled back or eliminated cardio.
Regardless of what the calculator says you'll need to find your TDEE and eat slightly above it. Couple that with a weight program that focuses on progressive overload.
You'll also want to make sure you have sufficient protein intake, and you are meeting minimal fats. Rest of remaining calories can be spread out how you want, but I'd suggested dumping them into carbs based upon your activities.
Right now my macros are at 40% carbs 25% protein and 35% fats but i mostly eat up to 30% protein a day. So what should my macros be? As i mentioned in the reply above, if i keep running and try to bulk, im looking at close to 3,000 calories. I am scared to eat that much. I just dont want to get huge lol.
not macros.
calories.
You need to eat more calories.
You won't get huge- eating 3K means you'll gain- but you won't be getting fat over night.
Ultimately bulking is an effort in confidence- so you have to commit to doing the thing. And trust the process.
3K isn't that much honestly.
3k for a female kind of is lol. I just thought you had to up for carbs and protein and keep fats low? I just want to do this the right way. Although i will be gaining some fat, will it be noticeable?
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Sounds like you are using the running as a buffer to mitigate fat gain during your bulk rather than you having specific goals in this regard (please correct me if I am wrong.)
If that is the case I would find a reasonable starting point for your calories without including the running, find a decent weights programme and commit to it. You can add in some running later if you like as an insurance policy against your diet getting sloppy depending on how you are going.
If you want to do both then you will have to accept that your results will get diluted in both areas for the simple reason that you are going to tap into your recovery ability early on and as you probably know recovery periods are where your body actually makes adaptations.
I love running, not using it as a buffer at all. I have a program already that im doing now but i have others that i plan on doing as well.
I have a rest day on sunday and a lightly active rest day on Saturday, that is not enough?
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A min/max is a good time frame.
Mostly because it gives you a good goal to shoot for and if you panic- you can force yourself to reach that one AT LEAST.
I shoot for 6 months- but I give myself 4-6- and then I find myself happily in the 5 month window with about 10-15 pounds of weight I've put on.
Worked for me.
You're looking at months- not weeks- anything that happens in weeks- isn't worth while to give you good data.
Ah ok..so i will aim for about 5 months then
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Also can someone please explain this refeed thing? Do i need to do this?0
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Not really- my bulking numbers were over 3K by the time I was done.
Stop fussing over the macros. You can hit perfect macros every day for 6 months- but if you don't have a surplus- you won't gain.
You don't want to keep ANYTHING low on a bulking- the objective is to put yourself into a surplus- calories are king.
Um... it's not going to be the same as someone who just got fat.
you'll get bigger kind of all over- people store fat in different places- but it's not at all like someone who just ate to much and their stomach is now fat.
I found I just got rounded- all over- and no more skinny jeans.
There is no right way- add 250 calories to maintenance- you're weight will jump the first week or two- dramatically. Then if you don't continue to gain after 2-3 weeks- you need to add another 150 or so calories to that. Wait another week or two... if you're gaining- you're good- if you're not gaining- add more calories.0 -
You need to measure progress. It will take a little time for things to settle into 'normal'. That means you may see a large increase in weight in like a week or two but don't worry, it is largely water weight.
If you are relatively new to lifting, a decent goal is to gain about a pound a week if you have a good weight lifting program. You should have a goal in mind and use the frame work of 1lb/week to set your goal.
Most people have a partitioning effect (conversion) of about 1:1 fat to muscle. What this means is that you will gain .5 lbs muscle every week and .5 lbs. of fat. Cutting fat is relatively easy but gaining muscle is harder. Little or no muscle can be gained without some fat gain so prepare for it. The end result is more than worth the work.
Lastly, as has been stated, it really is best if you stick to just one goal at a time (running or lifting/bulking). It is just very difficult to manage both at the same time and everything will be a compromise (and remember that gaining muscle is hard as it is).
There are several people on this forum who are very knowledgeable. Learn who these people are and stick to the solid and proven advice. Please ask (as you have) when you have questions. Most are friendly and a great source of information.0 -
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Macros should be approximately 1g of protein per pound of bodyweight, at least 20% of total calories should be fats, and fill the rest in with Carbohydrates. Total calories should be maintenance (TDEE) plus at least 10%. 3000 calories is probably about right for you.
Ok thanks! is 2 weeks long enough to see if this is working or not? How long should i bulk for?
All you're going to see in 2 weeks is a bump in glycogen and fluids...
An effective bulk takes place over months, not weeks...much like losing weight. You aren't really going to be able to see what's going on after a mere two weeks.
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Sounds like you are using the running as a buffer to mitigate fat gain during your bulk rather than you having specific goals in this regard (please correct me if I am wrong.)
If that is the case I would find a reasonable starting point for your calories without including the running, find a decent weights programme and commit to it. You can add in some running later if you like as an insurance policy against your diet getting sloppy depending on how you are going.
If you want to do both then you will have to accept that your results will get diluted in both areas for the simple reason that you are going to tap into your recovery ability early on and as you probably know recovery periods are where your body actually makes adaptations.
I love running, not using it as a buffer at all. I have a program already that im doing now but i have others that i plan on doing as well.
I have a rest day on sunday and a lightly active rest day on Saturday, that is not enough?
Thanks for the clarification.
It's not optimal but I understand the love of running. How far you get will depend on a number of factors (how quickly you as an individual can recover, the relative intensity of your running and how your programme is structured for example.)
You can't really know how it will play out until you give it a punt. Keep your expectations in check and be patient and you could do well.
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LolBroScience wrote: »You can, you'll just need to eat a lot more than you would if you had scaled back or eliminated cardio.
Regardless of what the calculator says you'll need to find your TDEE and eat slightly above it. Couple that with a weight program that focuses on progressive overload.
You'll also want to make sure you have sufficient protein intake, and you are meeting minimal fats. Rest of remaining calories can be spread out how you want, but I'd suggested dumping them into carbs based upon your activities.
you really think she can run 30 miles a week and bulk?? Just curios..
ETA - I just saw your second comment, which answered my question ..LOL0 -
OP - do you lift heavy right now or just run..? If you do not have a set lifting program, I would suggest that you find a program. If you are a beginner then something like strong lifts or 5x5 might be a good place to start.
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Once you have a program picked out you will want to eat at about 250 calories over maintenance, which will equal .5 pound per week gain. I would also suggest taking measurements before you start and then re-take them say every four weeks or so.
You will probably have to play around with the calorie intake at first to get it right...
I would also back the cardio down to say one hour a week at the most....0
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