Need help to start my FIRST bulking phase

[Rollus]

Need help to start my FIRST bulking phase

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Hi everybody,

First of all, excuse me if my english sucks, i need to work on it

I will give a little intro to myself since this is my first thread. Im 18, 5'7'', 122 pounds. 8 months ago i was overweight at 156 pounds and started to dieting and doing tons of cardio. In little less than 5 months i lost 34 pounds. I consider myself a mesomorph since I was overweight because of pure glutony and i lost all my weight quite easily. In the past few months I switched into my maintenance plan(which was designed by myself, just as my low calorie diet,) with some help of BMR calculators, Energy expenditure charts and taking into account the thermic effect of foods. I found out taking all these factors into consideration that i needed 2000 calories on days i do little physical activity(watching tv, walking around the house, etc..), I just started working out a few days ago and added 300 calories to my diet just to support these new activity and maintain my weight( i work out 1 hour a day and my calorie expenditure chart says i burn 300 cals/hour for medium weight training)

Ok, having introduced myself, i think i have said all i should for you experienced BBs to help me out. I want to gain lean muscle mass, with minimum fat gains.
Yes, this is why I am so confused. I just know how to lose weight and im so stupid i know nothing about gaining weight. Okay, i do know you need to have a calorie surplus, and is common sense that in order to turn those extra calories into muscle instead of fat i need to excercise my muscles.

But exactly how many extra calories should i eat in order to gain lean muscle and keep fat gain to a minimum?
Is there a rule of thumb for this?
Can you share with me your own experience if you too are a mesomorph, have anything in common with my body type, or have been through the same situation?
Do i need to consume this extra calories EVERY day or just on workout days?

I would really appreciate any replies, i already started weight training but havent introduced the calorie surplus to grow, and im anxious to do so. I worked out very hard to lose weight and i dont want to become fat again, so i wont take any step further until i know from people who have already gone through this how many extra calories over my daily energy output should i eat.

Thank you very much,
Rollus

[xxxl83]

Rollus,

At 18 you're too young. Focus on your training and diet along with plenty of rest. Get a few more years of training under your belt before you even consider AAS use.

Also at 122lbs you need to develop a strong base before you take the plunge.

xxxl83

[Rollus]

xxxl83,
Im planning to go all the way natural, i just entered anabolicreview.com because i see there are many experienced bbs here. The only supplement i use is my Met-RX shake, nothing else, no AAS. I was only asking for some advice on how much extra calories should i eat to gain lean muscle mass and very little fat, if you have any more tips for getting the best out of my workout, diet and rest, i would really appreciate it.

Thank you and anyone who helps,
Roland

[dalcowbag]

http://www.anabolicreview.com/diet.php

check this out bro

[Kim2884]

It's good that you're doing so much research before you change anything..you sound like a smart guy and i think you'll avoid a lot of the mistakes other people make by being so cautious. I think you're probably on target as far as calories go, but just make sure you're eating the best kinds of foods. Getting info from here is a good start. Try not to worry too much about gaining your weight back. It's not like you're going to wake up one morning fat. Pay attention to changes in how you look, and if you find that you're gaining fat and not muscle, just take a step back and re-evaluate what you're doing.

[xxxl83]

Rollus,

Glad to hear you're gonna stay natural. It's refreshing to see a teen do things the right way.

As for how many cals you need to increase LBM (lean body mass) that will depend on your metabolism. Everyone is different, your best bet is to monitor your diet and training and keep track of your progress (keep a diet and training journal) then experiment alittle and up the cal's slowly and watch how your body reacts to excess cals (fat or muscle).
That is the right way to do it and you will figure out sooner or later what the optimal caloric intake for you is.
However this does take time because as you change things you need to give it some time to see how things work out. It may take years to figure out what works best for you (comparing notes in your journal as you go will help).

Remember Rome was built in a day.

Good luck,

xxxl83

[Rollus]

Thank you all for your constructive advice(is it said like that? Need to work on my english),
Ok, another factor i just realized, once i start adding new muscle to my body, my RMR will go up, so i will have to add more calories as time goes by. Each pound of muscle i gain burns an extra calories a day just to maintain itself(ive done some research).
How much should i expect to gain in my first months taking into account this is the first time i train with weighs and that im going natural?

Thank u all in advance,

Rollus

[Rollus]

It think its absolutely true that i should test my reaction to certain ammounts of extra calories and see were they go. I will definetly do that, great advice.
I would like to know your estimate number of extra calories i should consume for my fisrt time, 100? 300? 500? 1000??????No idea

Thank u all in advance,

Rollus

[bigsd67]

Ok...as for caloric intake i know that you can do a search on it here at AR...just type in "Bulking Diets" or "Calories for Bulking" there's a formula that will give you a rough estimate...i just saw it the other day on here so you might just want to scroll down and check to see other guy's questions on bulking.

As for macro nutrient breakdown my advice is that you still want to control your insulin levels. therefore i would recommend only 3 main carb meals per day. The times when you need carbs the most, bulking or cuttin, is in the Morning, Post Lifting, and One hour after Post Lifting Shake. Obviously you want to take in more carbs at these three points than someone who is cutting and also you may consider a fourth carb meal before the gym to keep you energy levels high and your performance at its peak. For any meals before the gym with carbs you want to use Low GI sources like Oats or Boiled Yams...For Post lifting you want a shake with dextrose and then one hour later a lean protein with Rice, Potatoes, Yams, Brown Rice, Oats are ok..basically i mid to high GI complex carb. These two meals are the most important to feed your muscles after intense workouts....As for the amounts i dont want to steer you wrong...so i would say check out the sticky thread on top about gain lean muscle mass diets. it is pretty informative..also Swole Cat knows his $hit so try to read up on some of his advice on here...and finally keep coming on the board and talking to us, there are a lot of guys here with tremendous amounts of knowledge. good luck bro and welcome aboard.

[bigsd67]

http://anabolicreview.com/vbulletin/...ad.php?t=84220

here are some formulas for calculating BMR which can help you add a decent surplus without over doing it...im trying to find that link on bulker calorie calcs.

EDIT: I Found it
This link is a formula for estimating calories in a bulking diet.
http://anabolicreview.com/vbulletin/...ad.php?t=81651
Now figure it out for you and lift ur d@mn a$$ off!!

[Rollus]

Thank you very much man,

Its incredible how ppl like you are willing to help so much. This is a great site and it has many cool ppl with lots of knowledge to share. I really appreciate ur help.

Thankls to you and any1 who can share some of his knowledge,

Rollus

[Rollus]

Ok guys heres my typical diet on days i work out. Please note that i dont want to go too strict and deprive myself from my favorite foos i.e golden grahams and other cold cereals. i only use 1/2 serving of my MRP cuz im on a budget and i have realized that for a 122 pounder 20 grams of pro post workout is n uf. I was reading some articles by mr berardi and he says we dont need so much prot in post workout shake. We need to focus on high GI carbs for greater insulin response. Thats why i eat sweet tarts (mainly dextrose and maltodextrin, whose GI are EXTREME) VERY RIPE bananas, and use water instead of milk, because milk will lower the Shakes GI since milk has a low GI.
I love milk and know its very good. I will have it for bedtime snack since its got slow absorbing cassein so i can go through my 8 hours+ of starvation.
I also heard it has BCAA so i drink eat as a preworkout snack.
Please give me some constructive critiques(is it said like that? remember, ive got bad english)
and tell me what u think i should change. Since this is my workout day I will keep my CHO high, and i couldnt find any other way to add a CHO free meal in the day other than the midmorning snack. Total calories for this day were 2600, pro 171, CHO 341 and fat 39. Please go on and see the meal plan instead of just the Totals. Im creating a caloric surplus of 300 calories in order to gain mass. Please examine my meal plan meticulosely(?) and give me some advice for modifications. I will post my non workout days meal plan soon.


Meal plan for workout days
Cal Pro CHO fat

7:30 A.M.
3 cups Golden Grahams
480 6 100 6
2 cups skim milk 160 16 23 1

10:00 A.M.
2 large hard boile eggs
140 14 0 10

12:30 P.M
half cup white rice 100 2 21 1
1 cup beans
200 14 35 1
4 oz sirloin steak 200 30 0 9
Green salad with vi negar 100 6 15 1

Preworkout snack:
3:00 P.M.
1 banana
100 1 22 1
1 cup skim mil
80 8 11 0

WORKOUT

6:00 P.M
half serving met-rx choc-pb MRP
130 20 10 1
8 oz Water
I very ripe banana 100 1 22 1
½ pckt sweetarts 80 0 20 0

7:00 P.M
1 1/2 cups cooked pasta
300 11 35 1
Grilled chicken breast strips
150 30 0 3
¾ cup prego tomato sauce 150 4 26 3

10:00 P.M
1 cup skim mil
80 8 11 0

Total
2600 171 341 39

Thank you all in advance,
Rollus

[Rollus]

Come on ppl please share your suggestions!

[daman1]

Responding in CAPS. Bottom line is, if you want to succeed you can't keep eating "what you want," you've got to eat what's right. This was only a quick cirtique, others can add as they choose.

Meal plan for workout days
Cal Pro CHO fat

7:30 A.M.

SCRAP WHOLE MEAL HERE. EAT SOME FAST ABSORBING PROTEIN SUCH AS EGG WHIES AND SOMETHING LIKE A 1/2-1 CUP OATMEAL.

3 cups Golden Grahams
480 6 100 6
2 cups skim milk 160 16 23 1

10:00 A.M.
2 large hard boile eggs
140 14 0 10

SCRAP WHOLE EGGS. YOU WANT A GOOD PROTEIN/FAT MEAL HERE

12:30 P.M
half cup white rice 100 2 21 1

SCRAP THESE CARBS.

1 cup beans
200 14 35 1

SCRAP BEANS HERE.

4 oz sirloin steak 200 30 0 9
Green salad with vi negar 100 6 15 1

Preworkout snack:
3:00 P.M.

USE SOME KIND OF QUICK ABSORBING CARB AND PROTEIN HERE.

1 banana

USE ONLY P.W.

100 1 22 1
1 cup skim mil

SCRAP MILK

80 8 11 0

WORKOUT

WHERES YOUR P.W. NUTRITION??? YOU NEED A QUICK ABSORBING PROTEIN/CARB HERE FOR P.W.

6:00 P.M
half serving met-rx choc-pb MRP
130 20 10 1

SCRAP MRP AND USE A GOOD SLOW DIGESTING PROTEIN/FAT MEAL, SUCH AS WHEY AND FLAX OIL.

8 oz Water
I very ripe banana 100 1 22 1
½ pckt sweetarts 80 0 20 0

7:00 P.M

SCRAP MEAL HERE ALTOGETHER.

1 1/2 cups cooked pasta
300 11 35 1
Grilled chicken breast strips
150 30 0 3
¾ cup prego tomato sauce 150 4 26 3
SCRAP PREGO SAUCE

10:00 P.M
1 cup skim mil
80 8 11 0


SCRAP SKIM MILK AND USE A SLOW DIGESTING PROTEIN TO TAKE BEFORE BEDTIME.
Total
2600 171 341 39

Thank you all in advance,
Rollus