Why is everyone scared to bulk??

[rhbrand]

Could be worse. One one fitness forum I'm a member of, the ladies are always talking about doing things like Tracy Anderson, and barre style workouts but their thighs are bulking up And how they only eat 1300 calories a day. Or if they start something like a Body Pump workout a couple times a week and how bulky and muscular they get almost overnight. WTF?

[DaniGrrl]

I was just told on another forum that I hope I know what I'm doing bulking because you don't need to eat extra calories to gain muscle, that you'll just gain fat with extra calories; you just need to lift to failure and not only do 5 reps because your program says so. HAHAHAHAHAH!!!! Yeah, because I just choose any old weight and stop at 5 reps because it says so. How about I choose a weight that I can only lift for 5 reps if the program says to do 5-8? There's a concept. Does she not think programs are written for a reason and are followed because they work? Because going in the gym and just doing any exercises with no point will get you results and loads of muscle just because you lifted to failure.

I should go post in the jimmies rustled thread, because my jimmies are super rustled!!!!!

[wakechica]

Could be worse. One one fitness forum I'm a member of, the ladies are always talking about doing things like Tracy Anderson, and barre style workouts but their thighs are bulking up And how they only eat 1300 calories a day. Or if they start something like a Body Pump workout a couple times a week and how bulky and muscular they get almost overnight. WTF?

Lolz if only they knew.....

[Ma110W]

Personally, I love bulking. I've spent the last almost three years bulking, and now I'm finally going for a cut. I wish other women would understand that it takes so much for us to build muscle. If you don't eat to grow you're just wasting time and energy. So just lift heavy and eat for as long as you can stand. Honestly, the only reason I'm cutting right now is because I want to see what I actually have under all of my fat. I know I want to be bigger, and I know that once I see where I am, I'm just going to start another forever long bulk. Personally, I'd rather get to the size I want to be and then fine tune things from there instead of bulking/cutting, bulking/cutting, repeat repeat repeat.

Even being fluffy, I look a hell of a lot better in my after photo. (I really need to do a more updated one since this one is already a year old.)

[rockangel]

I am not "afraid" to bulk. I simply know that losing fat after a bulk is going to be about 1,000 times more difficult than the bulk was. And that I will probably never really lose all the fat I gained in the bulk anyway.

My point is not really about "clean" bulk where you limit fat gains for a reason vs a "dirty" bulk where you dont care about the gains. I understand your wish and reasoning for the fat gains to not be excessive, but the point is that you are not afraid to go over maintenance for bulking, you are not saying you want to gain muscle but then crying over every ounce added on the scale, you are not posting endless threads about how you have been bulking for a few weeks, gained 4 pounds and need to cut. i could reference the type of threads that i am talking about, but im not trying to call people out or hurt their feelings. Im more trying to say that in order to change, we have to change ifykwim.

Personally, I love bulking. I've spent the last almost three years bulking, and now I'm finally going for a cut. I wish other women would understand that it takes so much for us to build muscle. If you don't eat to grow you're just wasting time and energy. So just lift heavy and eat for as long as you can stand. Honestly, the only reason I'm cutting right now is because I want to see what I actually have under all of my fat. I know I want to be bigger, and I know that once I see where I am, I'm just going to start another forever long bulk. Personally, I'd rather get to the size I want to be and then fine tune things from there instead of bulking/cutting, bulking/cutting, repeat repeat repeat.

Even being fluffy, I look a hell of a lot better in my after photo. (I really need to do a more updated one since this one is already a year old.)

I like your fluffy photo, i cant wait to see the definition in your arms really come out when you do cut. You are now my bulking motivation!! (except im fluffier, lol!!)

[Ma110W]

I like your fluffy photo, i cant wait to see the definition in your arms really come out when you do cut. You are now my bulking motivation!! (except im fluffier, lol!!)

Thank you! I'm quite a bit leaner than that already, and honestly, I'm super excited to see all of my definition everywhere. I'm most excited about my back and legs, but I would really love to be able to walk around with defined arms and shoulders.

[sy2502]

but the point is that you are not afraid to go over maintenance for bulking, you are not saying you want to gain muscle but then crying over every ounce added on the scale, you are not posting endless threads about how you have been bulking for a few weeks, gained 4 pounds and need to cut.

Ah lol no I don't do that

[HipAlbatross]

Thank you! I'm quite a bit leaner than that already, and honestly, I'm super excited to see all of my definition everywhere. I'm most excited about my back and legs, but I would really love to be able to walk around with defined arms and shoulders.

Make sure you post a picture when you are done your cut! I'd like to see the results

[Katie4004]

Because there are so many things that you can mess up and then you end up gaining fat without the muscle. I am pretty sure this is happening to me right now I don't even know what I am doing wrong.

[rockangel]

Because there are so many things that you can mess up and then you end up gaining fat without the muscle. I am pretty sure this is happening to me right now I don't even know what I am doing wrong.

And what do you think can "mess up"? And that is definitely not what is happening to you at this point, You are one of the ones i am talking about in this thread, You need to go back, look at your program and calories and go from there. Your 3 pound gain is nothing to be concerned about.

[Ma110W]

Because there are so many things that you can mess up and then you end up gaining fat without the muscle. I am pretty sure this is happening to me right now I don't even know what I am doing wrong.

If you truly lift heavy while eating in a surplus, you'll gain muscle. You can't mess it up unless your half assing your workouts.

[mellie369]

I have no problem with bulking. But my stomach has a problem with dirty bulking, lol. I love junky food (former fatty here) but I feel soooo much better when I eat clean - less headaches, less bloating, less PMS, less menstrual cramps.... it's incredible. But I bulk, but with clean foods. If you can dirty bulk, great for you! Go for it girl! :P

[Ma110W]

Make sure you post a picture when you are done your cut! I'd like to see the results

Oh, definitely.

[rockangel]

I have no problem with bulking. But my stomach has a problem with dirty bulking, lol. I love junky food (former fatty here) but I feel soooo much better when I eat clean - less headaches, less bloating, less PMS, less menstrual cramps.... it's incredible. But I bulk, but with clean foods. If you can dirty bulk, great for you! Go for it girl! :P

Again, its not about clean vs dirty bulks. The amount of fat gains is personal as is food choices. There are good reasons to clean bulk and good reasons to dirty bulk.

My point is more that women are scared to see themselves change after claiming thats what they want to see. You dont bulk and then cry after 2 weeks cause you gained a few pounds. Look at all the posts and you will see what i mean.

you have to get over mainernance for a bulk, and it does come with some fat gains (how munch depends on the person) but it definitely changes a body. The issue i have is if someone says they want to change their physique, then they take steps to change it, why are they so scared when they see it change??? You dont change by staying the same, and you cant rush the results.

From your pics, i take it your not afraid of change.

[mellie369]

Again, its not about clean vs dirty bulks. The amount of fat gains is personal as is food choices. There are good reasons to clean bulk and good reasons to dirty bulk.

My point is more that women are scared to see themselves change after claiming thats what they want to see. You dont bulk and then cry after 2 weeks cause you gained a few pounds. Look at all the posts and you will see what i mean.

you have to get over mainernance for a bulk, and it does come with some fat gains (how munch depends on the person) but it definitely changes a body. The issue i have is if someone says they want to change their physique, then they take steps to change it, why are they so scared when they see it change??? You dont change by staying the same, and you cant rush the results.

From your pics, i take it your not afraid of change.

Lol, true. I guess I don't read those types of posts, lol, or if I do, they don't leave that much of an impression on me :P

[Romina81]

Hmmm I think people are just going to learn with experience (trial an error) ..doesn't matter how many threads are made to tell them this or that

When I first bulked I was also scared about my three pound gain lol

Two yrs later i could care less about the scale and am the happiest ive ever been (physique and strength)

Experience will change newbies mindset not someone telling them this or that.

[BalhamBeast]

Must admit the first time I looked in the bulking thread I laughed because there were so many women getting anxious over their "bulk" when, in fact, their bulked look is leaner than my lean look. (Endo/pear shaped genes suck).

Just coming off a bulk myself. I ate Christmas pudding, mince pies, chocolate, the works. Enjoyed every bit of it. Now I'm starting my cut (and if I get as lean as Stephanie is in her bulked picture, I'll be really happy. Heh).

[chrisateen]

I just want to say that it is not easy for most of us to bulk especially for people like me who are doing it for the first time even though in order to get the desired physique we need to do a few bulk/cut cycles. Also I know that they first time bulkers forum is bombaded with women who get scared about gaining weight but its not completely there fault. We live in a society in which the skinner the better and for us women who lift and bulk people think its unnatural and disgusting for a woman to have muscles and that a woman should be 'soft looking'.

I take myself for example. Since I hit puberty my weight started to become a problem and I ended up being 18st 8lbs. I spent over a year working hard to lose the weight and got down to around 150lbs (see my profile for my before, after photo and bulking photos). To go from that to start bulking again is a very scary thought simply because of the fear of me going back to the way I was before and its scary doing completely opposite to what I have been doing for over a year which is to lose weight. To make things worse since September I have gained about 18lbs so far which is tons more than what I anticipated (got pics in my profile) and I still have a few moths to go and already I am thinking of cutting a month early. I know that I have made strength gains but the old fat me always comes back to haunt me and makes the bulk difficult however I know that bulks will become easier to handle after I have seen the results of my first few bulks. (Although the good thing about this bulk is that I now know I can handle a bit more fat gains and Iif I can minimise weight gain to 2lbs a month I could easily bulk for 7 - 8 months next time around)

All I am trying to say is be patient with people like me as its not easy for us. I know sometimes we might panic about gaining a few pounds but I'm sure after our first bulk we would me much more confident and get to the stage where some of you guys on here are now and do it without worrying about the scales

[catskills]

I would love to bulk, but I don't have control over my diet yet. In my case it isn't really a fear of getting fat, I've been fat. Several times in my life in fact. Where the fear takes over is not being confident that I can take it off once I put it on. Losing fat, is the hardest thing I have ever done. I hate yoyo dieting, over exercising and overeating. I also hate cutting. Once I have these things under control, then I will go on a bulk. I don't know if there are other people out there that are feeling this same way, but that is where I am at. I don't feel I am ready to try bulking yet.

[dyuv001]

A friend of mine once told me that she wanted to bulk up at the gym (she was fit, as in could run rings around me but wanted to get bigger). She asked what she should do. Lift heavy, eat lots was the answer. I don't understand why so many women don't want to lift heavy or eat lots, as a guy, it makes no sense to me. She said wouldn't eat more that 1500 calories a day! I lol'd, I just ate 1500 calories in one meal.

She said it was nothing new, a lot of her friends are afraid to eat, I used to train with a girl who wouldn't eat breakfast but still wanted to get massive. Too confusing.

They must be drumming some awful **** into girls brains from a young age. I used to work at a day care/holiday programme. There was this 13 year old girl who was worried about her weight. Made me sad.

[wakechica]

I just want to say that it is not easy for most of us to bulk especially for people like me who are doing it for the first time even though in order to get the desired physique we need to do a few bulk/cut cycles. Also I know that they first time bulkers forum is bombaded with women who get scared about gaining weight but its not completely there fault. We live in a society in which the skinner the better and for us women who lift and bulk people think its unnatural and disgusting for a woman to have muscles and that a woman should be 'soft looking'.

I take myself for example. Since I hit puberty my weight started to become a problem and I ended up being 18st 8lbs. I spent over a year working hard to lose the weight and got down to around 150lbs (see my profile for my before, after photo and bulking photos). To go from that to start bulking again is a very scary thought simply because of the fear of me going back to the way I was before and its scary doing completely opposite to what I have been doing for over a year which is to lose weight. To make things worse since September I have gained about 18lbs so far which is tons more than what I anticipated (got pics in my profile) and I still have a few moths to go and already I am thinking of cutting a month early. I know that I have made strength gains but the old fat me always comes back to haunt me and makes the bulk difficult however I know that bulks will become easier to handle after I have seen the results of my first few bulks. (Although the good thing about this bulk is that I now know I can handle a bit more fat gains and Iif I can minimise weight gain to 2lbs a month I could easily bulk for 7 - 8 months next time around)

All I am trying to say is be patient with people like me as its not easy for us. I know sometimes we might panic about gaining a few pounds but I'm sure after our first bulk we would me much more confident and get to the stage where some of you guys on here are now and do it without worrying about the scales

Your upper body looks great even on a bulk, question though - do you do legs?

[firely]

I have started eating at maintenance in preparation to bulk. But yeah, I'm scared.

To be honest, most of my weight loss has been unintentional. I lost a stone purely through stress, no appetite, etc, over the course of 6 months in 2010. I've never actually attempted to shift that kind of weight through diet/exercise alone. I've lost about 6lbs since joining the gym but that felt easy since I was already confident and motivated about my body. And my appetite has definitely returned.

We are meant to put on 1-2lbs a month during a bulk, right? So, a 4-6 month bulk could involve putting on a whole stone and being back at the weight which made me highly insecure about my body. I could just see it all come crashing down at that point.

I guess it's also because I don't really have any support in this. Would be nice to do these cycles while in a stable relationship. Because being single and feeling ugly aren't two nice things to go hand-in-hand. Right now I am single but feeling awesome. I could just see a wave depression develop which would make a cutting cycle very hard.

My plan is to keep up with maintenance calories, slowly increase them, while reading lots about bulking, educating myself about the process as much as possible so I don't have to question every diet decision I make, looking at progress pics, and just trying to push forward with my goals.

Also, I don't know if it's wise to bulk at 20% bf. Plus, my bf% readings are terribly inaccurate and I have no idea where I really am.

[Miranda]

Also, I don't know if it's wise to bulk at 20% bf. Plus, my bf% readings are terribly inaccurate and I have no idea where I really am.

20% is a fine place to start. partitioning tends to go south the fatter you get, so you can bulk until you're 27-28% or so.

[lilramm]

Some awesome bulk pics in this thread!!!

I think the real reason women are scared to bulk is because it goes against everything we hear (magazines, media, etc..) Women are supposed to starve and do cardio. God forbid we eat in excess and lift heavy!!!

I am currently bulking and have put on 15 lbs. I plan on gaining another five to ten before I start to cut for my next show

[chrisateen]

Your upper body looks great even on a bulk, question though - do you do legs?

I just realised I didn't include much leg photos so I added 2 leg photos in my progress pics hence why it looks like I don't do any leg work lol. I make sure I train every single part of my body. I also naturally carry weight from my waist to my thighs and I store barley any fat from my waist upwards hence why I look bigger on top as I have no fat in those areas (In fact I am 3 sizes bigger on bottom than I am on top). My thighs can look great some days or when I flex and other days it looks fat

[eglionz]

I understand being afraid to gain weight, even though for me it's much harder to gain than it is to lose. Today I'm barely at 1800 cals consumed and I feel ridiculously full but I know I need to get another 300-400 in me before I go to bed. I haven't done a proper bulk since I started lifting, and I'm determined to bulk until May this time.

But I really love breaking my PRs week after week, and I'm looking forward to seeing some nice booty progress when May rolls around and I can start peeling off any fat I've gained.

I trend toward a "cleaner" bulk, personally... but I'll have the appetizers/desserts that I would usually skip when I go out at least.

[megdaig]

I understand being afraid to gain weight, even though for me it's much harder to gain than it is to lose. Today I'm barely at 1800 cals consumed and I feel ridiculously full but I know I need to get another 300-400 in me before I go to bed. I haven't done a proper bulk since I started lifting, and I'm determined to bulk until May this time.

But I really love breaking my PRs week after week, and I'm looking forward to seeing some nice booty progress when May rolls around and I can start peeling off any fat I've gained.

I trend toward a "cleaner" bulk, personally... but I'll have the appetizers/desserts that I would usually skip when I go out at least.

That is the true joy of bulking

[Katie4004]

If you truly lift heavy while eating in a surplus, you'll gain muscle. You can't mess it up unless your half assing your workouts.

I am definitely not half assing my workouts. I don't think I am gaining muscle because I am not getting any stronger. How long does it take before you are supposed to see improvements in strength?

[rockangel]

I am definitely not half assing my workouts. I don't think I am gaining muscle because I am not getting any stronger. How long does it take before you are supposed to see improvements in strength?

when you get on a good program, one that is made for your goals and has a proven track record of getting results, and you run it for 6 - 12 weeks, then you will start seeing gains. In 2 weeks you havent added any mass, so of course you havent added strength. It takes a lot of time for your body not only to buld muscle, but to strengthen the ligaments and tendons that support and connect those muscle. You are not looking at a few weeks here, you are at a low body weight with little mass, you are looking at months.
You are not working out correctly for your goals and you havent allowed enought time to be working on your goal to say that you are not building.

[yummycow]

Huh. I've never even thought about bulking because I have so much weight to lose and because I'm still experiencing noob gains. So I usually ignore bulking threads. Thus far I've seen some strength gains even with low calories that is when I'm not hurt too much to lift.

It does seem weird that someone would say they wanted to gain some weight and then freak out when they gained some weight. That is what a bulk is isn't it? Trying to gain weight, preferably muscle, and giving yourself the proper nutrition to accomplish this or did I get that wrong?

I never really thought about it much but now that you mention it, it does seem odd that there isn't a bulking section on a Body Building forum. Isn't building muscle what this place is all about?