Muscle/Fat Gain Ratio

[CozmikRaze]

Hi,

I have been researching different muscle building strategies and there seems to be a general consensus that it is very difficult and unlikely to gain significant amounts of muscle without gaining a certain level of fat alongside it. What I would like to know is whether or not this varies depending on the amount of muscle you are aiming to gain. For example, supposing my goal is to only add around 10 or 15 pounds of muscle and I consumed all my extra calories from clean sources, should I still expect to gain some fat?

[Slow-N-Steady]

It varies based on your metabolism and the size of the caloric surplus you have.

[AbAbber2k]

Hi,

I have been researching different muscle building strategies and there seems to be a general consensus that it is very difficult and unlikely to gain significant amounts of muscle without gaining a certain level of fat alongside it. What I would like to know is whether or not this varies depending on the amount of muscle you are aiming to gain. For example, supposing my goal is to only add around 10 or 15 pounds of muscle and I consumed all my extra calories from clean sources, should I still expect to gain some fat?

Any time you increase your caloric intake above maintenance you will store *some* fat. That said, if you give yourself a long enough time line to complete your goal, it's possible any fat you do put on would be negligible. So the question is... are you wanting to put on 10lbs of muscle in 6 months or 12? One is quick and dirty, the other takes longer but will undoubtedly leave you leaner on the tail end.

Clean, as you said, really has nothing to do with it. Micros, protein, calories in/out... that's what's important. If you overeat on chicken and oats, you will put on more fat than if you ate at maintenance at In N Out every day (and hit your protein requirements).

If you're trying to stay as lean as possible, I would recommend starting with very small increases in your calorie intake. Like 100-200 additional calories per day. Make sure you're eating around 1g of protein per pound of your goal weight.

[CozmikRaze]

Any time you increase your caloric intake above maintenance you will store *some* fat. That said, if you give yourself a long enough time line to complete your goal, it's possible any fat you do put on would be negligible. So the question is... are you wanting to put on 10lbs of muscle in 6 months or 12? One is quick and dirty, the other takes longer but will undoubtedly leave you leaner on the tail end.

Clean, as you said, really has nothing to do with it. Micros, protein, calories in/out... that's what's important. If you overeat on chicken and oats, you will put on more fat than if you ate at maintenance at In N Out every day (and hit your protein requirements).

If you're trying to stay as lean as possible, I would recommend starting with very small increases in your calorie intake. Like 100-200 additional calories per day. Make sure you're eating around 1g of protein per pound of your goal weight.

Thanks for your advice.