New to building

[JasmineB09]

Hello, I'm new to building. Do I eat a high calorie day the day before, during, or after mega lifting?

[Raedar]

What are your calories and macros like right now? And what do you mean by "mega lifting," precisely?

I don't think the days before and after lifting are as important in regards to nutrition as the 30-60 minutes before and after lifting . . . as I understand it, you need complex carbs before lifting (for energy, so you don't feel like ****ting out halfway through, lulz) and simple carbs immediately afterward to replenish your glycogen levels (keeps your muscles from going catabolic and saying "screw it" and deflating, as it were) as well as some protein to repair. If you're trying to put on muscle mass (which I presume you are, having just started), you need to make sure you're eating above maintenance for a while, with the focus on protein.

There are some extremely smart ladies that are very well-versed on the macros and calories for pre-, post-, and intra-workout. That's just my take. ^_^

[kimm4]

You daily calories all depends what your goals are. Give a little more info and we can def help.

[JasmineB09]

Well depending on how I measure my body fat, I have either 23% or 18%. I don't know which is more accurate, the accu-measure one click method or the Jackson/Pollock 4 point measurement. I want 14% body fat and whenever I take weight off below 125 or 120 pounds, everyone says I look anorexic. Right now my middle is large so I want to add some muscle to help that. I typically eat around 1200 - 1400 calories per day depending on how busy I am. 120 grams of protein minimum. On a cut day I eat 140 carbs. Regular day I eat 160-190 carbs. Around 30-40 grams of fat. I currently weigh 132 pounds.
Also by mega-lifting, I mean doing a lot of reps for my total body at a higher weight than I'm used to. Thanks for helping.

[ozigal]

Mistake # 1: not eating enough. Find your maintenance (plenty of calculators online). Use the Harris-Benedict formula. No wonder people comment that you look anorexic when you drop weight because there is no way you can put muscle on eating that amount. It is actually just barely enough to sustain your body were it doing absolutely nothing.

What are you referring to when you say "cut" day or "regular" day...? You're either bulking or cutting, not doing both (sure you can be calorie cycling, which I'm guessing is what you mean).

If you want accurate bf measurements you're better off going for body composition testing by a professional.

What is lots of reps and what exactly does your diet look like?

[\J/]

read the stickies. best place to start is there