Need help with Lean Bulk Diet
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TilapiaForDays
Posts: 3 Member
So I've done a bulk before but it resulted in me losing a bit of my abs not much but I'd say I gained more muscle than fat. I don't want cut because Sparta so I wanna lean bulk but bulking diets require so much calories. I've made a plan where I eat eggs, oatmeal, turkey bacon, and a banana for breakfast then for lunch I switch between either chicken or turkey since I don't wanna get bored of turkey and fried rice or white rice everyday with that lunch.
For dinner I get either tilapia or salmon. Then for snacks I eat 100% whole wheat bread with peanut butter and milk. Then sometime during the day 2 poptarts. I will lift the same weights in this bulk the only thing I'll change is add cardio so I don't go up in fat is this a good plan?
For dinner I get either tilapia or salmon. Then for snacks I eat 100% whole wheat bread with peanut butter and milk. Then sometime during the day 2 poptarts. I will lift the same weights in this bulk the only thing I'll change is add cardio so I don't go up in fat is this a good plan?
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Replies
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It doesn't matter what you eat. Your surplus was too high. Either add in the cardio or eat less and maintain a smaller surplus2
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You're going to gain fat when you bulk no matter what you do. There's no way to gain 100% muscle and 0% fat during a bulk no matter how lean/"clean" you eat. If you add cardio to your routine you'll have to eat more calories to make up for the ones you burn doing cardio or else you won't be in a surplus - hence you won't be bulking.6
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The above is spot on. Some fat gain comes with a bulk - it's unavoidable.
Calculate how many cals you need and work out the break down of macros (pro, carb, fat) - experiment a little and see what suits.
Also, maybe invest in a whey to hit pro goals (you don't mention this in your opener).0 -
You're going to gain fat when you bulk no matter what you do. There's no way to gain 100% muscle and 0% fat during a bulk no matter how lean/"clean" you eat. If you add cardio to your routine you'll have to eat more calories to make up for the ones you burn doing cardio or else you won't be in a surplus - hence you won't be bulking.
cosign ..
bulking and fat gains come hand in hand. You can minimize your surplus to minizmize fat gains, but you will still gain fat. No way around that.0 -
So how much of a calorie surplus are we talking about? Can I just go over maintenance by 100 calories a day and gain muscle, or does it have to be more?0
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My advice is to use the bulking calculator from bodybuilding.com. Keep your carbs and protein high and your fat low. You will gain some fat but not as much as you would on a dirty bulk.0
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DatVatoLoco wrote: »My advice is to use the bulking calculator from bodybuilding.com. Keep your carbs and protein high and your fat low. You will gain some fat but not as much as you would on a dirty bulk.
There is no reason to keep fat low! In fact, it is crucial to have fats in your diet for hormone control. A minimum of 0.4g/lbs of LBM is recommended.1 -
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So how much of a calorie surplus are we talking about? Can I just go over maintenance by 100 calories a day and gain muscle, or does it have to be more?
You can, that is what I am doing right now. It can get frustrating because you will be so close to maintenance that there is a possibility of "spinning your wheels" however for me it is ideal because I am too lean to continue to recomp but I do not want to commit to a full on bulk.. so I am doing something in the middle where I am gaining, very slowly over the course of 6-7 months.2 -
So how much of a calorie surplus are we talking about? Can I just go over maintenance by 100 calories a day and gain muscle, or does it have to be more?
You can, that is what I am doing right now. It can get frustrating because you will be so close to maintenance that there is a possibility of "spinning your wheels" however for me it is ideal because I am too lean to continue to recomp but I do not want to commit to a full on bulk.. so I am doing something in the middle where I am gaining, very slowly over the course of 6-7 months.
That's ok, a slow bulk is better than fast fat! lol0 -
So how much of a calorie surplus are we talking about? Can I just go over maintenance by 100 calories a day and gain muscle, or does it have to be more?
You can, that is what I am doing right now. It can get frustrating because you will be so close to maintenance that there is a possibility of "spinning your wheels" however for me it is ideal because I am too lean to continue to recomp but I do not want to commit to a full on bulk.. so I am doing something in the middle where I am gaining, very slowly over the course of 6-7 months.
That's ok, a slow bulk is better than fast fat! lol
I've done both.. 2lbs per month and now trying for 1lb or so. You shouldn't gain fat too fast even if you are around 250-300cal surplus (so about 0.5lb per week gain) but there will typically be an initial jump in water/extra food which can play with your head at the beginning1 -
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I'm currently in an "off season" to gain muscle for a competition next year sometime. My new coach has taught me that "more is not necessarily better," which has been so helpful! In my past "bulk," I thought Oh if I eat more, I'll gain more muscle. SO NOT TRUE. You CAN gain muscle with minimal fat gain. If the scale is consistently going up (quickly), it is highly highly likely mostly fat. You should be eating above maintenance, of course, but finding the proper ratio of fat/protein/carbs is KEY, as is post-workout nutrition. Hope your bulk is going well!1
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I'm currently in an "off season" to gain muscle for a competition next year sometime. My new coach has taught me that "more is not necessarily better," which has been so helpful! In my past "bulk," I thought Oh if I eat more, I'll gain more muscle. SO NOT TRUE. You CAN gain muscle with minimal fat gain. If the scale is consistently going up (quickly), it is highly highly likely mostly fat. You should be eating above maintenance, of course, but finding the proper ratio of fat/protein/carbs is KEY, as is post-workout nutrition. Hope your bulk is going well!
What is the recommended proper ratio? I know to keep Protein at around 1 g per lb of body weight, I actually go over that.0 -
TilapiaForDays wrote: »So I've done a bulk before but it resulted in me losing a bit of my abs not much but I'd say I gained more muscle than fat. I don't want cut because Sparta so I wanna lean bulk but bulking diets require so much calories. I've made a plan where I eat eggs, oatmeal, turkey bacon, and a banana for breakfast then for lunch I switch between either chicken or turkey since I don't wanna get bored of turkey and fried rice or white rice everyday with that lunch.
For dinner I get either tilapia or salmon. Then for snacks I eat 100% whole wheat bread with peanut butter and milk. Then sometime during the day 2 poptarts. I will lift the same weights in this bulk the only thing I'll change is add cardio so I don't go up in fat is this a good plan?
Clean bulk is a widely discussed topic among those who want to partake in bodybuilding. What it really boils down to is the RATE in which you gain your weight. Everyone's metabolism is slightly different, plus there are many other factors such as current body fat%, height, age, gender, etc..these all play some role in how you gain weight when you eat in caloric surplus. It's mostly trial and error. You should monitor your weight and bf% every week. Couple that with how you feel and look. If you are gaining more than 1.5-2 lbs per week it might be too fast and if you gain weight quickly you risk gaining more FAT than MUSCLE. Remember Slow and Steady wins the race, so I'd say if you really want gains, to steadily bulk for about a year or more until you reach the overall mass you like and then cut down slowly for about 6 months to see what you got. Does this make sense? You can pretty much eat whatever you want, but I recommend trying to stay healthy. The type of carbs is really your biggest concern for bulking. Lots of people don't carefully look at what type of carbs they eat. There are slow digesting carbs and fast digesting carbs. If you eat too many fast digesting carbs your body will spike insulin up which will promote fat storage, we don't want that. So really the only times you should eat fast digesting carbs (sweet sugary stuff) is post work out. Other than that, you want to stick with whole grains with high fiber carbs. Don't worry about fat content just keep it reasonable you don't want to have heart attack at 40 years old. Eat steak, eat ground beef, eat bacon! Don't stick to just fish and chicken, it's not necessary, yes they are healthy meats and have less fat, but you can eat other meats too! I hope this makes sense for you. Also if you want it might not hurt to throw in cardio once or twice a week.0 -
TilapiaForDays wrote: »So I've done a bulk before but it resulted in me losing a bit of my abs not much but I'd say I gained more muscle than fat. I don't want cut because Sparta so I wanna lean bulk but bulking diets require so much calories. I've made a plan where I eat eggs, oatmeal, turkey bacon, and a banana for breakfast then for lunch I switch between either chicken or turkey since I don't wanna get bored of turkey and fried rice or white rice everyday with that lunch.
For dinner I get either tilapia or salmon. Then for snacks I eat 100% whole wheat bread with peanut butter and milk. Then sometime during the day 2 poptarts. I will lift the same weights in this bulk the only thing I'll change is add cardio so I don't go up in fat is this a good plan?
Clean bulk is a widely discussed topic among those who want to partake in bodybuilding. What it really boils down to is the RATE in which you gain your weight. Everyone's metabolism is slightly different, plus there are many other factors such as current body fat%, height, age, gender, etc..these all play some role in how you gain weight when you eat in caloric surplus. It's mostly trial and error. You should monitor your weight and bf% every week. Couple that with how you feel and look. If you are gaining more than 1.5-2 lbs per week it might be too fast and if you gain weight quickly you risk gaining more FAT than MUSCLE. Remember Slow and Steady wins the race, so I'd say if you really want gains, to steadily bulk for about a year or more until you reach the overall mass you like and then cut down slowly for about 6 months to see what you got. Does this make sense? You can pretty much eat whatever you want, but I recommend trying to stay healthy. The type of carbs is really your biggest concern for bulking. Lots of people don't carefully look at what type of carbs they eat. There are slow digesting carbs and fast digesting carbs. If you eat too many fast digesting carbs your body will spike insulin up which will promote fat storage, we don't want that. So really the only times you should eat fast digesting carbs (sweet sugary stuff) is post work out. Other than that, you want to stick with whole grains with high fiber carbs. Don't worry about fat content just keep it reasonable you don't want to have heart attack at 40 years old. Eat steak, eat ground beef, eat bacon! Don't stick to just fish and chicken, it's not necessary, yes they are healthy meats and have less fat, but you can eat other meats too! I hope this makes sense for you. Also if you want it might not hurt to throw in cardio once or twice a week.
I had the understanding that insulin plays a significant role in muscle gain as well. While fibre is important, it comes a point where there can be too much. For me, high fibre = super filling = I am not going to be eating as much as I should be and hitting my goals... this is no bueno for surplus. I eat fast digesting carbs all the time when I am bulking, usually not post-workout either. I haven't had any issues with excess fat storage *shrug*0 -
TilapiaForDays wrote: »So I've done a bulk before but it resulted in me losing a bit of my abs not much but I'd say I gained more muscle than fat. I don't want cut because Sparta so I wanna lean bulk but bulking diets require so much calories. I've made a plan where I eat eggs, oatmeal, turkey bacon, and a banana for breakfast then for lunch I switch between either chicken or turkey since I don't wanna get bored of turkey and fried rice or white rice everyday with that lunch.
For dinner I get either tilapia or salmon. Then for snacks I eat 100% whole wheat bread with peanut butter and milk. Then sometime during the day 2 poptarts. I will lift the same weights in this bulk the only thing I'll change is add cardio so I don't go up in fat is this a good plan?
Clean bulk is a widely discussed topic among those who want to partake in bodybuilding. What it really boils down to is the RATE in which you gain your weight. Everyone's metabolism is slightly different, plus there are many other factors such as current body fat%, height, age, gender, etc..these all play some role in how you gain weight when you eat in caloric surplus. It's mostly trial and error. You should monitor your weight and bf% every week. Couple that with how you feel and look. If you are gaining more than 1.5-2 lbs per week it might be too fast and if you gain weight quickly you risk gaining more FAT than MUSCLE. Remember Slow and Steady wins the race, so I'd say if you really want gains, to steadily bulk for about a year or more until you reach the overall mass you like and then cut down slowly for about 6 months to see what you got. Does this make sense? You can pretty much eat whatever you want, but I recommend trying to stay healthy. The type of carbs is really your biggest concern for bulking. Lots of people don't carefully look at what type of carbs they eat. There are slow digesting carbs and fast digesting carbs. If you eat too many fast digesting carbs your body will spike insulin up which will promote fat storage, we don't want that. So really the only times you should eat fast digesting carbs (sweet sugary stuff) is post work out. Other than that, you want to stick with whole grains with high fiber carbs. Don't worry about fat content just keep it reasonable you don't want to have heart attack at 40 years old. Eat steak, eat ground beef, eat bacon! Don't stick to just fish and chicken, it's not necessary, yes they are healthy meats and have less fat, but you can eat other meats too! I hope this makes sense for you. Also if you want it might not hurt to throw in cardio once or twice a week.
I had the understanding that insulin plays a significant role in muscle gain as well. While fibre is important, it comes a point where there can be too much. For me, high fibre = super filling = I am not going to be eating as much as I should be and hitting my goals... this is no bueno for surplus. I eat fast digesting carbs all the time when I am bulking, usually not post-workout either. I haven't had any issues with excess fat storage *shrug*
Insulin promotes protein synthesis which is needed to build muscle. But the type of carb can have an impact on satiety but not fat storage. The size of a surplus effects that. Other major drivers for protein synthesis is luecine and mechanical stress (lifting).1 -
TilapiaForDays wrote: »So I've done a bulk before but it resulted in me losing a bit of my abs not much but I'd say I gained more muscle than fat. I don't want cut because Sparta so I wanna lean bulk but bulking diets require so much calories. I've made a plan where I eat eggs, oatmeal, turkey bacon, and a banana for breakfast then for lunch I switch between either chicken or turkey since I don't wanna get bored of turkey and fried rice or white rice everyday with that lunch.
For dinner I get either tilapia or salmon. Then for snacks I eat 100% whole wheat bread with peanut butter and milk. Then sometime during the day 2 poptarts. I will lift the same weights in this bulk the only thing I'll change is add cardio so I don't go up in fat is this a good plan?
Clean bulk is a widely discussed topic among those who want to partake in bodybuilding. What it really boils down to is the RATE in which you gain your weight. Everyone's metabolism is slightly different, plus there are many other factors such as current body fat%, height, age, gender, etc..these all play some role in how you gain weight when you eat in caloric surplus. It's mostly trial and error. You should monitor your weight and bf% every week. Couple that with how you feel and look. If you are gaining more than 1.5-2 lbs per week it might be too fast and if you gain weight quickly you risk gaining more FAT than MUSCLE. Remember Slow and Steady wins the race, so I'd say if you really want gains, to steadily bulk for about a year or more until you reach the overall mass you like and then cut down slowly for about 6 months to see what you got. Does this make sense? You can pretty much eat whatever you want, but I recommend trying to stay healthy. The type of carbs is really your biggest concern for bulking. Lots of people don't carefully look at what type of carbs they eat. There are slow digesting carbs and fast digesting carbs. If you eat too many fast digesting carbs your body will spike insulin up which will promote fat storage, we don't want that. So really the only times you should eat fast digesting carbs (sweet sugary stuff) is post work out. Other than that, you want to stick with whole grains with high fiber carbs. Don't worry about fat content just keep it reasonable you don't want to have heart attack at 40 years old. Eat steak, eat ground beef, eat bacon! Don't stick to just fish and chicken, it's not necessary, yes they are healthy meats and have less fat, but you can eat other meats too! I hope this makes sense for you. Also if you want it might not hurt to throw in cardio once or twice a week.
I had the understanding that insulin plays a significant role in muscle gain as well. While fibre is important, it comes a point where there can be too much. For me, high fibre = super filling = I am not going to be eating as much as I should be and hitting my goals... this is no bueno for surplus. I eat fast digesting carbs all the time when I am bulking, usually not post-workout either. I haven't had any issues with excess fat storage *shrug*
Well hey whatever works for you right?0
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