First time BULKERS apply here ;)

[LHarwood]

Tbh people that chat that kinda chit make me lol more than bothet me. Ignore them...once you look lean and amazing they'll still look soft n flat

[shirun]

Yeah it happens a lot. People love to talk and they will always find something to call you out for. There's this quote I like: "To avoid criticism say nothing, do nothing, be nothing." Do what you want, do it for yourself, let them talk. If you're happy with yourself and your choices, their opinion is nothing.

[vspinkcouture]

Does anyone else have a problem with their sodium intake on a bulk? I had 2,653 today from raw spinach, eggs and eggwhites. Also i guess my two protein shakes had sodium in them. Is this bad? I average around 2,250-2500 daily but i do sweat at the gym 6 days a week for 1-1.5 hours and drink a gallon of water daily. I tried to balance it with NuSalt (potassium salt) a few weeks back and i'm not bloated from it. Any problem? Its all from mostly natural sources. thanks!

[moogs]

It has been a lot to learn, and I know I still have a long ways to go. Hopefully in a couple years I'll finally be right where I want to be! I'm very proud of the changes I've made in recent years, and I will keep moving forward. I've already learned how much better my body feels when I don't put so much junk in it. In fact, I now find myself craving things like a salmon garden salad way more often than I crave Oreos (my fav). I don't know yet if I'm ok with that!

Nutrition is a huge lesson all on it's own, but I'm also trying to learn how I can keep all the cardio I love (triathlons) in my life, while maintaining or building muscle at various points. I've cut way back due to my hip injury right now, and thoroughly enjoy what little bit I can still do. Everyone is always telling me I have to choose weight training or triathlon. I've never been able to see why I can't do both other than being exhausted and not having the energy for both workouts. But I really think those prior experiences were due to poor nutrition. I wasn't eating quality food, or probably nearly enough calories to support both activities. Seems like they should be able to coexist and I think the key is going to be dialing in my nutrition. But one thing at a time...I must stay focused on this bulk and not get too far ahead of myself!

I seem to have such ADD about this stuff. I chose to start bulking over a week ago and to dedicate 12 weeks to it. Today I was having thoughts that maybe I should have just adjusted and stuck with cutting a bit longer. I wanted to smack myself. Pick something and stick with it already!



Thank you so much for the advice!

I think you can do both (though I don't think you could get optimal results out of both at the same time...), but it will take a lot of careful planning around nutrition and recovery.

In my mind its a trade-off between working your tail off for reasonable results in both; or just picking one and getting GREAT results in the one area without complete exhaustion.

[tara19]

First time ever attempting to put on weight (ahem* muscle, if I'm lucky).
Starting tomorrow, I start my "bulk".
Trying not to freak about the scale going up.. Best tips?

[freebirdmac]

Does anyone else have a problem with their sodium intake on a bulk? I had 2,653 today from raw spinach, eggs and eggwhites. Also i guess my two protein shakes had sodium in them. Is this bad? I average around 2,250-2500 daily but i do sweat at the gym 6 days a week for 1-1.5 hours and drink a gallon of water daily. I tried to balance it with NuSalt (potassium salt) a few weeks back and i'm not bloated from it. Any problem? Its all from mostly natural sources. thanks!

Sodium that occurs naturally isn't the problem. Added salt is. Primarily from processed foods. That's what you want to cut out. Adding something like sea salt to your own food is fine as long as you're not nuts about it.

[MrsBru]

Epic Fail. So about 2 weeks ago I went from about 1,600 (yep, it was way too low for cutting and I felt like poo) cals to 2,200 (actually increased slowly and I'm still having trouble getting 2,200) and my body hasn't adjusted to consuming that much food yet). Anyway, I was flat on the scale last week, and DOWN a pound this morning! Maybe I should have stuck to cutting... I guess if I lose a few more pounds before the scale starts going back up again that wouldn't be so awful...I was really hoping to have gotten between 150 and 155 before I started bulking, but thanks to killing my metabolism I decided to start early. I've read that you should be as lean as possible before you start a bulk, which I am clearly not...I'd estimate I'm still around 24% body fat....maybe I should still try to lose a bit more if my body is now feeling better with the additional calories before I commit to a bulk? UGH!!! So frustrating when you're a noob like me at this and you make the wrong decisions starting out. Makes it that much harder to decide what to do when you finally make the right decisions and start seeing results! On the other hand, I guess I have learned a lot and that's a very good thing!!

[freebirdmac]

Epic Fail. So about 2 weeks ago I went from about 1,600 (yep, it was way too low for cutting and I felt like poo) cals to 2,200 (actually increased slowly and I'm still having trouble getting 2,200) and my body hasn't adjusted to consuming that much food yet). Anyway, I was flat on the scale last week, and DOWN a pound this morning! Maybe I should have stuck to cutting... I guess if I lose a few more pounds before the scale starts going back up again that wouldn't be so awful...I was really hoping to have gotten between 150 and 155 before I started bulking, but thanks to killing my metabolism I decided to start early. I've read that you should be as lean as possible before you start a bulk, which I am clearly not...I'd estimate I'm still around 24% body fat....maybe I should still try to lose a bit more if my body is now feeling better with the additional calories before I commit to a bulk? UGH!!! So frustrating when you're a noob like me at this and you make the wrong decisions starting out. Makes it that much harder to decide what to do when you finally make the right decisions and start seeing results! On the other hand, I guess I have learned a lot and that's a very good thing!!

I'd stay the course. Get your metabolism humming normally first. If nothing else you can do some recompositioning, losing fat while gaining muscle. It's not as efficient, but, you do need your metabolism to be fully functional.

Being lean before bulking is for psychological reasons only. It has no impact on muscle gains or fat losses.

[Hannah82]

Epic Fail. So about 2 weeks ago I went from about 1,600 (yep, it was way too low for cutting and I felt like poo) cals to 2,200 (actually increased slowly and I'm still having trouble getting 2,200) and my body hasn't adjusted to consuming that much food yet). Anyway, I was flat on the scale last week, and DOWN a pound this morning! Maybe I should have stuck to cutting... I guess if I lose a few more pounds before the scale starts going back up again that wouldn't be so awful...I was really hoping to have gotten between 150 and 155 before I started bulking, but thanks to killing my metabolism I decided to start early. I've read that you should be as lean as possible before you start a bulk, which I am clearly not...I'd estimate I'm still around 24% body fat....maybe I should still try to lose a bit more if my body is now feeling better with the additional calories before I commit to a bulk? UGH!!! So frustrating when you're a noob like me at this and you make the wrong decisions starting out. Makes it that much harder to decide what to do when you finally make the right decisions and start seeing results! On the other hand, I guess I have learned a lot and that's a very good thing!!

I lost weight too averaging 2500 cals. First week tracking and bulking.

[srsbrahlet]

Bulking is my goal for 2013 and will start today... Wish me luck

[kyraschmidt]

i seriously love this thread! It is so great to hear what everyone is doing and makes me feel so much better about my bulk! I am underweight and am trying to bulk from 115 up to 125lbs! But I have to ask, do any of you ladies have cheats on your bulk? I know this topic is debated a lot and I just cannot decide whether or not I should! But congrats and good luck to you all! I have been having a hard time coping with the scale increase but being able to read this thread helps me so much.

[LHarwood]

i seriously love this thread! It is so great to hear what everyone is doing and makes me feel so much better about my bulk! I am underweight and am trying to bulk from 115 up to 125lbs! But I have to ask, do any of you ladies have cheats on your bulk? I know this topic is debated a lot and I just cannot decide whether or not I should! But congrats and good luck to you all! I have been having a hard time coping with the scale increase but being able to read this thread helps me so much.

Eat whatever you want just get plenty veggies, wholegrains etc in ya too. Iifym an all . I eat peanut butter every day. I will admit I tend to eat more processed stuff on a weekend but thats mainly cus I dont pre-prepare meals on a weekend.

Once you accept the weight gain you'll deal with it much easier. I freaked out a few times...then I looked at my strength increases and it made me happier. Im actually dreading a cut Tbh :/

Basically eat and enjoy.

[tara19]

First day complete. I am so full.
Not going to lie, I could get used to this!

[freebirdmac]

i seriously love this thread! It is so great to hear what everyone is doing and makes me feel so much better about my bulk! I am underweight and am trying to bulk from 115 up to 125lbs! But I have to ask, do any of you ladies have cheats on your bulk? I know this topic is debated a lot and I just cannot decide whether or not I should! But congrats and good luck to you all! I have been having a hard time coping with the scale increase but being able to read this thread helps me so much.

Cheats? You mean going over your target surplus calories or eating "bad" foods?

[schnauzers]

Eat whatever you want just get plenty veggies, wholegrains etc in ya too. Iifym an all . I eat peanut butter every day. I will admit I tend to eat more processed stuff on a weekend but thats mainly cus I dont pre-prepare meals on a weekend.

Once you accept the weight gain you'll deal with it much easier. I freaked out a few times...then I looked at my strength increases and it made me happier. Im actually dreading a cut Tbh :/

Basically eat and enjoy.

High five on the strength increases!!! Since I've been consistently eating more I've been PRing almost every week. Little by little mind you but still PRs all around.

[LHarwood]

High five on the strength increases!!! Since I've been consistently eating more I've been PRing almost every week. Little by little mind you but still PRs all around.

High five back at ya with your strength increases. I was gonna have this week off training and counting cals but I decided ill go for next week instead as I have a few things planned which may involve in a little over indulging with food and drinks

[carolinagrace]

I figured as much. I just had my first experience of a skirt not fitting. It was super tight before and I've always had no butt and squats/dead lifts have started building one. Not sure how I will deal with out growing clothes and whether or not to buy new ones.

Ahh this has started happening to me, too! I find it really frustrating, because I don't have a ton of money to spend on new clothes, and I work in a professional office environment. I think I'll end up living in looser-fitting dresses and skirts this summer; pants are pretty much out of the question at this point due to fit issues.

Also, I'm new around here and new to this thread! I've been doing (what I hope is) a slow bulk since January, and am loving the newbie strength gains! I've hypertrophied a little bit, but I think a good bit of the 5 lbs I've put on might be fat :/

[freebirdmac]

Ahh this has started happening to me, too! I find it really frustrating, because I don't have a ton of money to spend on new clothes, and I work in a professional office environment. I think I'll end up living in looser-fitting dresses and skirts this summer; pants are pretty much out of the question at this point due to fit issues.

Also, I'm new around here and new to this thread! I've been doing (what I hope is) a slow bulk since January, and am loving the newbie strength gains! I've hypertrophied a little bit, but I think a good bit of the 5 lbs I've put on might be fat :/

Well maybe some lower income could use your nice clothes

Hypertrophy requires a different rep range than strength. Your results aesthetically will depend on your routine.

[schnauzers]

So I've been eating at 3000+ daily for several weeks now (maybe 2 months ish, I'd have to check back on my other posts). I have put on 4 lbs since the end of January but I haven't put on any weight recently. I've read that weight gain is not linear but have I stalled already? I'm tracking everything the same way and consistently. My strength has gone up consistently over the past three months but my weight gain stopped after I hit the 4 lb gain (130-134). So now what? I'm already eating way above what the calculators tell me. Going up to 3000 cals daily on a consistent basis helped to put on those 4 lbs but now nothing So am I supposed to increase the cals again?

[freebirdmac]

So I've been eating at 3000+ daily for several weeks now (maybe 2 months ish, I'd have to check back on my other posts). I have put on 4 lbs since the end of January but I haven't put on any weight recently. I've read that weight gain is not linear but have I stalled already? I'm tracking everything the same way and consistently. My strength has gone up consistently over the past three months but my weight gain stopped after I hit the 4 lb gain (130-134). So now what? I'm already eating way above what the calculators tell me. Going up to 3000 cals daily on a consistent basis helped to put on those 4 lbs but now nothing So am I supposed to increase the cals again?

Yes.

[schnauzers]

Yes.

Thanks. Well the upside is that I get to eat more. Down side is that this is getting ridiculous eating so much lol.

[LHarwood]

Thanks. Well the upside is that I get to eat more. Down side is that this is getting ridiculous eating so much lol.

Im so jelly of you lol. I want to eat 3000cals. Im at 2200 cus when I started I followed the sticky which came out and 1800 for maintaining (although I do PHAT 5x a week-I have a desk job) added 10% plus a little more to get it to 2000 but dropped 10lb..then I went to 2200 and the scale jumped up 7lb now its staying tound there give or take a pound but my bf% has definitely gone up as im not looking as lean but it'll be worth it in the end.

However now the weather is slightly better over here ill be walking on an evening.

[schnauzers]

Im so jelly of you lol. I want to eat 3000cals. Im at 2200 cus when I started I followed the sticky which came out and 1800 for maintaining (although I do PHAT 5x a week-I have a desk job) added 10% plus a little more to get it to 2000 but dropped 10lb..then I went to 2200 and the scale jumped up 7lb now its staying tound there give or take a pound but my bf% has definitely gone up as im not looking as lean but it'll be worth it in the end.

However now the weather is slightly better over here ill be walking on an evening.

Yeah but look at it this way...I'm frustrated because I'm not gaining weight quick enough. Also, personally speaking, no matter how much I eat, I always wish I could eat more. So they guys that can eat 4000+/day make *me* jelly lol.

[LHarwood]

Yeah but look at it this way...I'm frustrated because I'm not gaining weight quick enough. Also, personally speaking, no matter how much I eat, I always wish I could eat more. So they guys that can eat 4000+/day make *me* jelly lol.

Can we swap metabolisms and stats lol. How long are you bulking for? Your cutting cals will be my bulking cals *sigh*. Hopefully once I get more LBM ill need more food-silver linings.

This time next year im hoping to look half decent at least.

[happyplace]

Yeah but look at it this way...I'm frustrated because I'm not gaining weight quick enough. Also, personally speaking, no matter how much I eat, I always wish I could eat more. So they guys that can eat 4000+/day make *me* jelly lol.

Yeah, fact is that those of us with high calorie requirements don't feel hunger any differetly to anyone else, so it's not like cutting is any easier...the only difference is that our grocery bills are higher! I guess it makes eating out a little easier.

Schnauzers, how come your requirements are so high? I also was bulking on 3000+ for a while...hell I am meant to be trying a slight cut right now but still over 2500 every day...

[MrsBru]

I'd stay the course. Get your metabolism humming normally first. If nothing else you can do some recompositioning, losing fat while gaining muscle. It's not as efficient, but, you do need your metabolism to be fully functional.

Being lean before bulking is for psychological reasons only. It has no impact on muscle gains or fat losses.

Thanks! I'll keep at it and see how my weigh-in next Sat goes. Will be trying to get more cals in this week too. I have been feeling so much better on the additional calories, and have made significant gains on all of my major lifts over the past 3 weeks, so it makes sense to let my metabolism get to a healthy state before trying to cut again. My lifts have increased 5-10 pounds each week for the past 3 weeks! I wasn't going to try to go up on squats this weekend, but my husband was home and able to spot me, and egged me on, so I gave 50lbs a try...I know...a pittance compared some of the iron you all are pressing....but a huge milestone for me (also considering the impending hip surgery...)! And I'm 5 pounds short of where my my max bench was 3 years ago (75lbs currently). That one really made me smile...surprised I'm still that strong with the sporadic lifting I've done during that time!!

So for the psyche I guess all you need is to see those lifting gains and it makes the sting of the scale going up a little easier to deal with!

[MrsBru]

I lost weight too averaging 2500 cals. First week tracking and bulking.

If I'm down again this week, I think this is going to be the case for me too...not all bad....I could totally cut on 2k-2.5k and it wouldn't hurt my feelings. Scares me a bit for what that means for bulking....afraid I'm going to have to get to 3k+ to bulk...my stomach hurts just thinking of trying to eat that much.

High five on the strength increases!!! Since I've been consistently eating more I've been PRing almost every week. Little by little mind you but still PRs all around.

Me too!! I do have to swallow my pride and admit my husband was right. He told me time and again that I was too low on my cals during my last cut and that's why I wasn't seeing results. Add the cals back in and I just crank out the workouts these days! Did shoulders/calves yesterday, didn't go up on weights but supersetted a bunch of stuff trying to fit the workout into my lunch break. Never got tired once, just kept hammering exercise after exercise!! It was crazy and it felt amazing!! Also, I have to think that because of the added cals and nutrients, I'm not nearly as sore after my workouts. I seem to be recovering a lot faster. I feel great!!!

Thanks. Well the upside is that I get to eat more. Down side is that this is getting ridiculous eating so much lol.

I'm going to have to find more calorie dense healthy food I think. My appetite is not growing even with the lifting gains and increased energy levels. At times the thought of eating more makes me a bit nauseous, I just don't want to put any more food in my mouth. It also always feels like I have this huge ball of undigested food in my stomach. I'm eating 5 meals a day. Adding more protein shakes in this week, 1 more a day at 160 cals each, that should get me up around 2,400 daily for the week. Honestly can't stomach any more solid food, so I guess I'll drink the cals...though that gets expensive too.

[LHarwood]

Right
..im deffo jelly now. Your all bulking on like 3k cals...id be like a big ball of fat rolling instead of walking of I did that. Ughh lol

[mavd]

Hello all (wohoo first post). I started my first ever bulk 6 weeks ago. I am currently bulking at 2650, I've gone from 129ish to 134ish in that time (although I'm pretty sure a lot of that is water from increasing the calories). This bulk cycle is going to be cut short because I'm traveling abroad and don't want to be a tubby American tourist! I plan on ending the bulk after a total of 10 weeks, doing a week of reset, and then starting a nice slow cut for the summer. I think I am going to plan for a real, 3-6 month bulk starting in the October time frame.

[tara19]

Right
..im deffo jelly now. Your all bulking on like 3k cals...id be like a big ball of fat rolling instead of walking of I did that. Ughh lol

Sitting at 2200 I wish 3000