I didn't intend this question as a criticism. I'm legitimately having trouble wrapping my head around the concept of bulking...
I was a personal trainer many moons ago, but all of my clients simply wanted to get a little bigger and stay lean (or get leaner). I encouraged them to workout hard and eat healthy.
I've always had good definition, and my size is decent. I recently decided to get serious about my diet, and I'm trying to put on more muscle. In a sense, I suppose you could say this is the first time I've actually started to consider "bodybuilding" to be my goal.
So here are my questions:
1. When bulking properly, is it assumed that both fat and muscle mass are being added?
2. If I simply get heavier, I'm not necessarily going to be able to move more weight, right?
3. Do you workout harder when you're bulking or does the routine essentially stay the same?
4. Most important of all: Is it not possible to just keep adding muscle mass, while staying lean?
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Thread: What good does bulking do?
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09-23-2013, 02:45 PM #1
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What good does bulking do?
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09-23-2013, 02:58 PM #2
And you say you're a personal trainer? What the he77 are the requirements to become a personal trainer if you don't know the answer to these simple questions?!! Do you just put the money up and they give you a PT card? Yes, I'm being a d*ck, this is exactly what's wrong with PT's and why they are always bashed on.
Lift light until you can lift right
BW 220: S:650 B:435 D:615 IG: tourostrengthtraining
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09-23-2013, 03:05 PM #3
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Not bashing OP here but from what I've seen a pt needs to be able to "sell" what the club is offering. They don't require any real knowledges except the ambiguous terms you hear tossed around like "eat healthy" ect.
Not saying all pts are that way. I have certainly met some knowledgable ones, but they are like unicorns and double rainbows.Last edited by Jtbny; 09-23-2013 at 08:26 PM.
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/ \ Don't care what you do crew.
Former natty ☠ 101- lift heavy things consistently over time as often as you can recover from.
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09-23-2013, 03:08 PM #4
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Ha ha! I knew I would catch hell for that one as soon as I wrote it I was a "personal trainer" at a gay gym over a decade ago. I was NASM and ACE certified, and I had some basic health science courses in college. In truth, all of my clients just wanted to workout (or be seen working out) with someone who had a decent body and could fetch weights. Most of my clients were already in decent shape and weren't interested in putting on size. I often felt like a glorified golf caddy and therapist... That being said, I did get pretty decent results. I just never had a lot of experience with nutrition- beyond the basic stuff. With all the education I had, though, the concept of bulking never came up...
Last edited by Flipperman2a2w; 09-23-2013 at 04:38 PM.
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09-23-2013, 03:09 PM #5
Get-n-fit's reply was my first thought. But OP did say it was long ago that he was a PT, so maybe he forgot some stuff.
I probably shouldn't reply because I don't know if my a answers are really right, so I'll just base it on my personal limited experience in adding some weight (not a whole lot), muscle, and moving more weight this year.
1. I understand that yes, it is assumed both fat and muscle mass are being added, and that has been the case with me.
2. If you work hard at making progress, yes, getting heavier does make it possible to move more weight, at least for me it does. Part of this is that the the surplus diet with proper macros that you would presumably be eating will help provide more energy and strength to move more weight.
3. Don't have the experience to answer this, but I think changing or keeping your current routine is entirely up to you and depends on what your current routine is. For me, I added compound lifts to my routine for the first time.
4. The conventional wisdom here on bb.come is that it's not possible or likely for most of us to add mass while staying lean without "supplementation" (don't ban me bro). But everyone is different. I do have a friend who is always extremely lean and ripped and adds muscle while staying lean. But in his case I'm talking about going from maybe 160 to 175 lb. I don't know if he could get any bigger than that while staying so lean.
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09-23-2013, 03:11 PM #6
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09-23-2013, 03:11 PM #7
Look at me, I'm a slightly chubby lawn dart, so take this for what it's worth to you-
1. A little bit of both, bot should be more muscle than fat.
2. Correct. Just getting fatter doesn't make you stronger by itself. Eat at a small surplus (300-500) calories.
3. You should always be pushing yourself on a progressive program.
4. It is possible, but it takes a lot longer to add mass that way. It might be quicker to add bulk with a little fat and then cut afterwards.
I'm not a personal trainer though. I just read on the internet and try to sort the BS from the good stuff. Sometimes it's tough to do.Just show up. Move some iron. Put in the time. Eat enough food.
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09-23-2013, 03:15 PM #8
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09-23-2013, 03:21 PM #9
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Thanks so much for the insight! I think my diet is really what has been holding me back. I honestly know a fair amount about lifting, but nutrition has never been my specialty. I recently heard the philosophy that bodies are made in the kitchen and sculpted in the gym. For the past 20 years, I have been incredibly dedicated. I recently decided that I wanted to push this hobby/lifestyle a little further, so I think it's time to get serious about what I'm putting in my body. I definitely want to get stronger and put on some more size, but I keep going back and forth about dirty and lean bulking. Psychologically, I don't know how I would handle adding fat mass and losing some definition, but it sounds like that may be the way to go. And winter is coming
Last edited by Flipperman2a2w; 09-24-2013 at 07:21 AM.
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09-23-2013, 03:26 PM #10
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09-23-2013, 03:27 PM #11
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Thanks so much, brother- all good advice.
I'm spreading out my calories between 5-6 smaller meals per day now, and I'm trying to get about 1.5 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight. As far as fat and carbs, I'm trying to keep them at a reasonable level, but I also think I'm trying to determine what that level is.
Aside from an extra protein shake or two, I have always eaten the same amount of calories as my wife. She's about 110, and isn't nearly as much of a gym rat as I am. So, I have to believe that I've just never really eaten enough with the amount of physical activity that I've been doing.
It sounds like it's tricky finding that sweet spot, but I already feel better with the small changes that I've made over the past couple of months.
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09-23-2013, 03:33 PM #12
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It was a David Barton gym in Chelsea, NYC- a notoriously gay gym. We had transgender DJs spinning techno on Fridays after work... I'm not bashing it, though! Heck, the gym's slogan is "Look Better Naked!" It doesn't get much more fun than that
It was the BEST gym to be at for a young gym rat trying to make some money. I had a great client base, and they all wanted to workout 3-5 days per week.
That being said, a lot of my clients were content just talking about their problems and flirting. Most of them weren't interested in bulking or anything like that. They just wanted to be in decent shape and were willing to pay for the time, so what the heck Between the certification programs and my experience in the gym, I felt qualified to give my clients safe, decent workouts. I just wish I'd had more training in dietary needs.
Definitely not bashing here- gay guys probably have some of the most incredible physiques I have ever seen. For that matter, I actually think I have more gay friends than straight
I'm sincerely just trying to weigh my options on the whole bulking concept. I've been reading about it on this forum for the past couple of days, and these were the questions that I kept arriving at.Last edited by Flipperman2a2w; 09-23-2013 at 04:31 PM.
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