How to Bulk during Working Hours?

[William2018]

Currently starting a bulk, but I can't find the time to maintain a calorie surplus. Can anyone recommend what I could eat during working hours at the office? Need an additional 500+ cals. Thought about baking oatmeal cookies with almonds, granola, and peanut butter. Need something I can snack on during the day with only 30 minutes spare for lunch. Was thinking about waking an hour early to have an extra meal before breakfast. Often wonder how people manage a surplus with so little time to eat. Much appreciated.

[George2100]

Fill your pockets with trail mix

[AdamWW]

You don’t need to consume calories during any particular time... just get them in by the end of the day

[Nicksosure1]

If you need to add 500 calories but don’t want to make a whole extra meal, why not just add about 100-200 calories to each of your other meals? Depends on how many you usually eat.

Or you could just add 500 in snacks. There are so many snack options you could eat in less than 60 seconds. This shouldn’t really be much of a problem.

[William2018]

You don’t need to consume calories during any particular time... just get them in by the end of the day

Not easy as I've never been a big eater before. Used to get by with just 1,100 cals per day. (sedentary office job). When I started working out again in December I increased it to 1,800. Need it over 2,300 but have so little time available at home with other commitments outside work. Was thinking of cutting my working hours to part-time just to get home and prepare an additional meal.

[AdamWW]

Used to get by with just 1,100 cals per day. (sedentary office job).

No you didn't, or eventually you'd die.

Even if you were in a coma, you would need more than that. So... I dont buy it for a second.

[William2018]

Fill your pockets with trail mix

Good advice. Will buy the next time I'm out.

[William2018]

No you didn't, or eventually you'd die.

Even if you were in a coma, you would need more than that. So... I buy it for a second.

I must be dead then. On a typical day at work I would eat the following:


Weekdays

136c Weetabix
136c Weetabix
14c milk
60c fried egg
60c fried egg
59c banana
131c white rice
122c beans
153c chicken pieces
50c some almonds
60c brown bread
60c brown bread
80c grated cheese

Total calories 1,121


That was during my cut when I lost 45 pounds in weight. Nowadays I eat closer to 1,800 calories. The reason for this is because sitting at work and doing the same thing automatically, my mind easily slips into a semi-conscious state and my body goes into a kind of hibernation mode. Scared myself a few times as on several occasions I could not remember how to swallow my food or breath properly. It was like there was a delayed response from my brain to the organ it was controlling and when I used to stand up fast I would 'white out' and have to sit down again. All of these problems went away when I increased my cals to 1,800. Now that I am bulking and lifting weights again I need to increase it further to 2,300 (perhaps more) so that my body doesn't shutdown like it used to.

[AdamWW]

I must be dead then. On a typical day at work I would eat the following:


Weekdays

136c Weetabix
136c Weetabix
14c milk
60c fried egg
60c fried egg
131c white rice
122c beans
153c chicken pieces
50c some almonds
60c brown bread
60c brown bread
80c grated cheese
360c protein shakes 4 servings

Total calories 1,076


Nowadays I eat closer to 1,800 calories. The reason for this is because sitting at work and doing the same thing automatically, my mind easily slips into a semi-conscious state and my body goes into a kind of hibernation mode. Scared myself a few times as on several occasions I could not remember how to swallow my food or breath properly. It was like there was a delayed response from my brain to the organ it was controlling and when I used to stand up fast I would 'white out' and have to sit down again. All of these problems went away when I increased my cals to 1,800. Now that I am bulking and lifting weight again I need to increase it further to 2,300 (perhaps more) so that my body doesn't shutdown like it used to.

Well, sorry, but that's not possible unless you're like 4 feet tall.

1100 calories is going to be well below your BMR, which is the number of calories you'd burn if you did nothing but literally lay down in bed all day.

Assuming you move AT ALL, you need more than that.

So, again, sorry, but that's not true.

Tell me, what is your height and weight? Because unless, again, you're about 4 feet tall and weigh something like 90lb, that's just not possible.

[nemLifts]

I'd suggest getting a blender that can turn into a shaker. I can't post links yet [ <50 posts :'( ] so look up gnc on the go blender. You can blend up a shake in the morning and carry it around with you. Just put the lid on and voila

[William2018]

Well, sorry, but that's not possible unless you're like 4 feet tall.

1100 calories is going to be well below your BMR, which is the number of calories you'd burn if you did nothing but literally lay down in bed all day.

Assuming you move AT ALL, you need more than that.

So, again, sorry, but that's not true.

Tell me, what is your height and weight? Because unless, again, you're about 4 feet tall and weigh something like 90lb, that's just not possible.

Then the calorie counter I used must be wrong. I used this one: www.nutracheck.co.uk

I'm 5 foot 8. The cals I displayed were during my cut when I was obese and dropped from 220+ pounds down to 175.

[TolerantLactose]

If you were 220+lbs, then you are capable of bulking.

[William2018]

I'd suggest getting a blender that can turn into a shaker. I can't post links yet [ <50 posts :'( ] so look up gnc on the go blender. You can blend up a shake in the morning and carry it around with you. Just put the lid on and voila

Cheers. I was thinking of blending oatmeal with protein shake. Might experiment with a few ingredients in the kitchen.

[William2018]

If you were 220+lbs, then you are capable of bulking.

When I lost my old job I sank into a depression for a year and lived on high sugary snacks, potato chips, icecream, and entire blocks of cheese. Took about 9 months before I changed my diet and lifestyle. Usually takes one big scare to come to reality. For me it was my heart. Every time I leaned over to my left side I would get a stabbing pain in my heart and taste blood when I climbed the stairs or even attempted to run. Glad I'm not in that position again. I think this is why I am reluctant to return to a surplus again. I want to eat more, but once I start, I fear I might never stop and go too far with weight gain. e.g. For example today I neglected to eat breakfast and lunch. I just never got around to it, and kept putting it off. I really need to get a bleeper for my phone which tells me its time to stop what I'm doing and just eat.

[AdamWW]

When I lost my old job I sank into a depression for a year and lived on high sugary snacks, potato chips, icecream, and entire blocks of cheese. Took about 9 months before I changed my diet and lifestyle. Usually takes one big scare to come to reality. For me it was my heart. Every time I leaned over to my left side I would get a stabbing pain in my heart and taste blood when I climbed the stairs or even attempted to run. Glad I'm not in that position again. I think this is why I am reluctant to return to a surplus again. I want to eat more, but once I start, I fear I might never stop and go too far with weight gain. e.g. For example today I neglected to eat breakfast and lunch. I just never got around to it, and kept putting it off. I really need to get a bleeper for my phone which tells me its time to stop what I'm doing and just eat.

Better get over these fears or get some professional help because this is really poor relationship to have with food and your body.

Sounds like you've already been having issues with how your brain triggers hunger from how you restricted before.

[nemLifts]

When I lost my old job I sank into a depression for a year and lived on high sugary snacks, potato chips, icecream, and entire blocks of cheese. Took about 9 months before I changed my diet and lifestyle. Usually takes one big scare to come to reality. For me it was my heart. Every time I leaned over to my left side I would get a stabbing pain in my heart and taste blood when I climbed the stairs or even attempted to run. Glad I'm not in that position again. I think this is why I am reluctant to return to a surplus again. I want to eat more, but once I start, I fear I might never stop and go too far with weight gain. e.g. For example today I neglected to eat breakfast and lunch. I just never got around to it, and kept putting it off. I really need to get a bleeper for my phone which tells me its time to stop what I'm doing and just eat.

Tough to hear that. It's hard to fall out of work and coping mechanisms always express themselves in one way or another. Like Adam said though, it's important to get the fears managed so that you don't go back into old habits.

Having said that, it might be easier to mentally cope with slowly increasing your calorie intake (maybe 50-100 calories per week until you reach you goal surplus) instead of suddenly introducing 500 new calories of food everyday. This way you can see how you react over time.

[MrCarrot]

500 cals really isn't that much, just eat a handful of nuts before and after work (or during) or some peanut butter.

Years back a friend of mine who was bulking didn't get many breaks at work, so when he was on a break he'd go to the bathroom and do a sh*t whilst simultaneously eating his next meal.

[Nicksosure1]

When I lost my old job I sank into a depression for a year and lived on high sugary snacks, potato chips, icecream, and entire blocks of cheese. Took about 9 months before I changed my diet and lifestyle. Usually takes one big scare to come to reality. For me it was my heart. Every time I leaned over to my left side I would get a stabbing pain in my heart and taste blood when I climbed the stairs or even attempted to run. Glad I'm not in that position again. I think this is why I am reluctant to return to a surplus again. I want to eat more, but once I start, I fear I might never stop and go too far with weight gain. e.g. For example today I neglected to eat breakfast and lunch. I just never got around to it, and kept putting it off. I really need to get a bleeper for my phone which tells me its time to stop what I'm doing and just eat.

This is going to be hard to actually believe, I'm sure of this 100% because I was just like you, and probably A LOT worse. I want you to hear this and believe me.

I was 320lbs+ and lost an absurd amount of weight in 2.5 years but took it too far, reaching unhealthy BF% numbers and boy did I FEEL IT. This didn't even come close to stopping me from breaking my poor relationship with food. You know what actually finally did? Giving in and starting to eat a lot more food. Realizing for yourself that if you're putting in just a decent amount of work, it's really hard to put on a lot of fat in a short period of time, even if you've been previously obese. I was a slave to a mindset due to anxiety because of my past. Saying I will never be like that again, ever. Not thinking how long it took and how much I really ate EVERYDAY to get to that point. I repeat, the only thing that has helped me was eating a lot more and learning to be fine with it. My life is so so much better now.

I probably sound like a broken record to some people on here. But when I was in that bad of shape from a mindset standpoint, it really really helped me hearing stories from people like Adam, who was in a similar situation. I only hope what I say can have a similar impact.

Eat more and see it yourself, you just have to trust yourself and everyday gets better and better mentally. Please trust me lol

[AdamWW]

This is going to be hard to actually believe, I'm sure of this 100% because I was just like you, and probably A LOT worse. I want you to hear this and believe me.

I was 320lbs+ and lost an absurd amount of weight in 2.5 years but took it too far, reaching unhealthy BF% numbers and boy did I FEEL IT. This didn't even come close to stopping me from breaking my poor relationship with food. You know what actually finally did? Giving in and starting to eat a lot more food. Realizing for yourself that if you're putting in just a decent amount of work, it's really hard to put on a lot of fat in a short period of time, even if you've been previously obese. I was a slave to a mindset due to anxiety because of my past. Saying I will never be like that again, ever. Not thinking how long it took and how much I really ate EVERYDAY to get to that point. I repeat, the only thing that has helped me was eating a lot more and learning to be fine with it. My life is so so much better now.

I probably sound like a broken record to some people on here. But when I was in that bad of shape from a mindset standpoint, it really really helped me hearing stories from people like Adam, who was in a similar situation. I only hope what I say can have a similar impact.

Eat more and see it yourself, you just have to trust yourself and everyday gets better and better mentally. Please trust me lol

Agreed on all points.

I'll just add, you probably don't realize just how bad you feel right now because you've become used to it, OP.

When I was still under-eating, over-exercising to compensate for calories, etc, I honestly didn't realize how sick I was getting... it became so normal to feel cold, tired, sad, fatigued, with no libido, no drive to lift...

Once I started properly eating... everything changed. I realized how much I suffered for so long, spinning my wheels, etc, but I had to go through the process of actually fueling myself to realize it because I was just so accustomed to the baseline I was experiencing.

I look back now and am just happy I didn't die or something... because I was honestly just not living.

Even though I've increased my daily calories by somewhere around 1000 on average (Just based on my experienced ballparking estimates) without changing activity, I'm staying lean while gaining tons of strength and all of my health markers have improved dramatically...

It's pretty crazy how much you can adjust to when you eat enough to actually train intensely.

I used to fizzle out in 30min and just hate the idea of staying in the gym... now, even after an hour+, I have plenty of energy left in the tank, and usually I only stop when I realize I'm doing 'junk' volume.

[William2018]

Thank you all for the good advice. I will learn to eat much more and maintain a consistent steady bulk. Only set back is finding the time to shop for food. Was thinking of buying a month's supply of food in bulk at wholesale prices.

This is going to be hard to actually believe, I'm sure of this 100% because I was just like you, and probably A LOT worse. I want you to hear this and believe me.

I was 320lbs+ and lost an absurd amount of weight in 2.5 years but took it too far, reaching unhealthy BF% numbers and boy did I FEEL IT. This didn't even come close to stopping me from breaking my poor relationship with food. You know what actually finally did? Giving in and starting to eat a lot more food. Realizing for yourself that if you're putting in just a decent amount of work, it's really hard to put on a lot of fat in a short period of time, even if you've been previously obese. I was a slave to a mindset due to anxiety because of my past. Saying I will never be like that again, ever. Not thinking how long it took and how much I really ate EVERYDAY to get to that point. I repeat, the only thing that has helped me was eating a lot more and learning to be fine with it. My life is so so much better now.

I probably sound like a broken record to some people on here. But when I was in that bad of shape from a mindset standpoint, it really really helped me hearing stories from people like Adam, who was in a similar situation. I only hope what I say can have a similar impact.

Eat more and see it yourself, you just have to trust yourself and everyday gets better and better mentally. Please trust me lol

Cheers. Sound advice. Since I lost weight I have had several colds and infections that took much longer to combat, and poor sleeping habits with only 4-5 hours sleep sometimes. I just took for granted that I was getting on (now 35) and my body was going through some kind of change. I will follow your advice and eat more. My workouts probably burn off far more calories than I realize. When the weather is good I jog / run in the countryside for about 6 miles twice per week - running up many steep hills. This cuts down even more calories. I used to jog during my obese stage, but I got so used to it and learned to love it that I found it hard to stop. Old habits die hard and all that. Will condition myself to eat more and limit my cardio.

[Nicksosure1]

Thank you all for the good advice. I will learn to eat much more and maintain a consistent steady bulk. Only set back is finding the time to shop for food. Was thinking of buying a month's supply of food in bulk at wholesale prices.




Cheers. Sound advice. Since I lost weight I have had several colds and infections that took much longer to combat, and poor sleeping habits with only 4-5 hours sleep sometimes. I just took for granted that I was getting on (now 35) and my body was going through some kind of change. I will follow your advice and eat more. My workouts probably burn off far more calories than I realize. When the weather is good I jog / run in the countryside for about 6 miles twice per week - running up many steep hills. This cuts down even more calories. I used to jog during my obese stage, but I got so used to it and learned to love it that I found it hard to stop. Old habits die hard and all that. Will condition myself to eat more and limit my cardio.

Great idea my man. Hope everything goes well for ya!