First time bulk

You're at a modest to small surplus....my guess is your body is holding on to water and filling your glycogen stores to capacity. Keep on, keepin' on!

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Ignore the scale. Work on strength.

Think of it like this...

Your body gets more efficient at lifting X weight. It adapts.

It adapts by improving motor neuron control to fire a greater proportion of your muscle fibres.

But eventually... That motor adaptation has to stop - and the only way strength keeps going up is if NEW muscle fibres are made, along with new motor neurons.

Then the cycle continues. More adaptation, more growth.

Bottom line is if your strength is going up... More often than not your lean mass will be going up alongside it.

OP, we are roughly about the same weight/age. (I'm a few years older though.) I did a six month bulk over the winter and ate about 4,000+ calories a day. I started at a modest 250, then increased 500 above maintenance (which was 2800-2900 at the time) and I wasn't getting the results I wanted so I ate more all the way up to 4000 to 4500. Took some doing, but all said and done, I added about 10 lbs, roughly half LBM to BF. Somehow still managed to lean bulk and retained some abs.

While bulking, I weighed and measured myself around every six weeks and really concentrated on my training and my eating because I was looking at bulking with a long view approach. I found that I reliably added about a 1.5 to 2 lbs every two weeks. Performing metrics less removed a lot of noise, that is, useless daily/weekly fluctuations and gave me better -- and more reliable data points -- in which to determine my results.

Anyway -- if you want -- you can read about my results here. My gains were modest, even small by some standards (0.125" in some places) but I did gain.

Happy eating and good luck!

jimmmer wrote: »

nakedraygun wrote: »

OP, we are roughly about the same weight/age. (I'm a few years older though.) I did a six month bulk over the winter and ate about 4,000+ calories a day. I started at a modest 250, then increased 500 above maintenance (which was 2800-2900 at the time) and I wasn't getting the results I wanted so I ate more all the way up to 4000 to 4500. Took some doing, but all said and done, I added about 10 lbs, roughly half LBM to BF. Somehow still managed to lean bulk and retained some abs.

While bulking, I weighed and measured myself around every six weeks and really concentrated on my training and my eating because I was looking at bulking with a long view approach. I found that I reliably added about a 1.5 to 2 lbs every two weeks. Performing metrics less removed a lot of noise, that is, useless daily/weekly fluctuations and gave me better -- and more reliable data points -- in which to determine my results.

Anyway -- if you want -- you can read about my results here. My gains were modest, even small by some standards (0.125" in some places) but I did gain.

Happy eating and good luck!

I second this.

He was consistent with his eating. Trained really, really hard. And stayed the course.

Great inspiration (I actually jumped ship off my cut after watching his progress/eating)!

Thanks @jimmer for the +1. I gotta say since adding in the DeFranco mobility drills (which I learned from your training) I've really reduced my recovery turn-around time while I am cutting/recomping.

nakedraygun wrote: »

jimmmer wrote: »

nakedraygun wrote: »

OP, we are roughly about the same weight/age. (I'm a few years older though.) I did a six month bulk over the winter and ate about 4,000+ calories a day. I started at a modest 250, then increased 500 above maintenance (which was 2800-2900 at the time) and I wasn't getting the results I wanted so I ate more all the way up to 4000 to 4500. Took some doing, but all said and done, I added about 10 lbs, roughly half LBM to BF. Somehow still managed to lean bulk and retained some abs.

While bulking, I weighed and measured myself around every six weeks and really concentrated on my training and my eating because I was looking at bulking with a long view approach. I found that I reliably added about a 1.5 to 2 lbs every two weeks. Performing metrics less removed a lot of noise, that is, useless daily/weekly fluctuations and gave me better -- and more reliable data points -- in which to determine my results.

Anyway -- if you want -- you can read about my results here. My gains were modest, even small by some standards (0.125" in some places) but I did gain.

Happy eating and good luck!

I second this.

He was consistent with his eating. Trained really, really hard. And stayed the course.

Great inspiration (I actually jumped ship off my cut after watching his progress/eating)!

Thanks @jimmer for the +1. I gotta say since adding in the DeFranco mobility drills (which I learned from your training) I've really reduced my recovery turn-around time while I am cutting/recomping.

Us 40+ guys gotta find a way to keep moving smoothly ☺

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Muscle is heavier than fat so that's where it's gone. Do be discouraged by your efforts. All will come good and be seen. Measures are good starting point and are good. Re measure in say 6 weeks and let us know how you are doing

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Brolympus wrote: »

asflatasapancake wrote: »

So there was a suggestion in the recomposition thread that if someone sees their veins, they felt they were getting successful results. I'm almost through my 6th week of bulking. Although my weight has been where it should be(a little under 1 pound per week gain), my lifts have increased, and I've gained a little size in my legs, my physique seems to be visually leaner with more veins. Perhaps I'm doing too much cardio? IDK. I don't mind more definition, don't get me wrong. Just wondering if I'm really doing a recomp or a slow, clean bulk.

Are you a new lifter? You might still be in the golden newbie zone and dropping some bodyfat while also picking up some muscle? Typically in a bulk, the longer you are in it, the less you look like you workout Vascularity is the first thing to go usually.

Unfortunately my gut agrees with you!

Not looking forward to cutting though...

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Nice update! I was toying between Madcow 5x5 or a LP Hypertrophy program while bulking. It just came down to wanting to add as much muscle as possible this go around with a bulk and then focus on strength later on when my muscle gains diminish.
I'll be curious to hear your personal review of Madcow later on.

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