Bulk Weight

[W8TS4ME]

Just had a question about bulking.

What or how do you know what weight you should bulk up to??? Let me ask another way: What is the basic train of thought for bulking and what is used to determine what weight should one be before cutting??


I have read many threads stating bulk to this weight and bulk to this weight.

Can one bulk to much and not get any results because of getting too "fat"?? Do bulks consist of a clean diet or can it be a "dirty" bulk (if this makes sense).

feedback is appreciated.

 

[NFLforNBA]

umm i read about how 12 percennt body fat is when your growth hormone levels are at prime and when you get over or way over you will not store it because of insulin resistance and youll gain more fat. so i think that you should bulk to 12-15 percent body fat and then cut back toabout 10. im no expert but these are my thoughts

 

[W8TS4ME]

umm i read about how 12 percennt body fat is when your growth hormone levels are at prime and when you get over or way over you will not store it because of insulin resistance and youll gain more fat. so i think that you should bulk to 12-15 percent body fat and then cut back toabout 10. im no expert but these are my thoughts

So if one is over this BF then one should not bulk???? or the bigger you get in bulking the begger one will be when cutting???

Can anyone answer this??

 

[illgixxer]

I think a lot of people just go off of how they feel. For example, if you feel kind of skinny, and wouldn't mind putting on a little more fat in trade for more muscle, then you bulk. If you are already a little over weight, I think most would agree it would not be a good choice to "bulk" because it will just be that much harder to cut the fat later.

 

[ccapone1153]

id say start bulkin around 10% let it get up to 15% then cut back to 7 or 8 % and start all over again.


your body doesnt like to change from gainin weight to losing weight (or visa versa) very quickly so when you pick one goal (bulking or cutting) plan to stick with it for some period of time. i generally like at least six months of bulking followed by the same of cutting. like if u try to bulk for a month then cut for a month i dont think that is the most efficient way to do it.

 

[EasyEJL]

So if one is over this BF then one should not bulk???? or the bigger you get in bulking the begger one will be when cutting???

Can anyone answer this??

if you are much over that bf wise, then you gain more bf vs muscle. As an example only if you are 200lbs at 20% bf, and bulked to 220 lets say you get 8lbs muscle 12lbs fat, but at 12% or lower you would be more like gaining 12-14lbs muscle, 6-8 fat. The leaner you start (down to 7 or so) the less fat you gain as you bulk so long as you eat right. slowly increase calories, increase them week to week as you gain, etc

 

[ccapone1153]

The leaner you start (down to 7 or so) the less fat you gain as you bulk so long as you eat right. slowly increase calories, increase them week to week as you gain, etc

what happens if ur leaner than 7?

 

[EasyEJL]

you'll gain some more fat at first, but then its the same. The body doesn't like to stay that low and sees it as unnatural, so a bit more storage will hit fat till you are in that 7-9 range and then you can keep a nice lean bulk.

 

[NFLforNBA]

you'll gain some more fat at first, but then its the same. The body doesn't like to stay that low and sees it as unnatural, so a bit more storage will hit fat till you are in that 7-9 range and then you can keep a nice lean bulk.

when bodybuilders cut to around 4 percent for a competition it is much harder for them to gain the mass back. 12 percent body fat is when your testosterone levels are high which testosterone signals growth hormone to be made by the pituitary gland in your brain. For some reason when you are at 12 percent body fat your t level is high because i think its synthesized by cholesterol. Those are my thoughts.

 

[ccapone1153]

when bodybuilders cut to around 4 percent for a competition it is much harder for them to gain the mass back. 12

Thats not true. I have had great success gaining mass during the "rebound period"

I agree with everythign else u said though

 

[pinchharmonic]

a stronger muscle is bigger. if you keep bulking and bodyweight continues to go up, but your strength as measured by sets/reps is not improving, maybe you're hitting a plateau where the excess calories are going to bodyfat only.

either start cutting then or bust that plateau somehow

 

[EasyEJL]

a stronger muscle is bigger.

please explain to me the 114lb girl who squats 400lbs. Bigger and stronger don't necessarily have a 1:1 matchup. training for strength is different than training for size.

 

[russy_russ]

when bodybuilders cut to around 4 percent for a competition it is much harder for them to gain the mass back. 12 percent body fat is when your testosterone levels are high which testosterone signals growth hormone to be made by the pituitary gland in your brain. For some reason when you are at 12 percent body fat your t level is high because i think its synthesized by cholesterol. Those are my thoughts.

Do you have documented case studies on '12% body fat being optimal for total testosterone'? Testosterone is derived from cholesterol as needed when levels decline. Extrinsic factors can influence (exercise-specific types, nutrition, etc.) the homeostatic range by increasing the total testosterone closer to its ceiling. However, I have never read any material which relates body fat to total testosterone levels. Testosterone is manufactured by a completely different mechanism (gonadotropins-FSH and LH are stimulated by GnRH) and a typical diet is high enough in lipids to supply the molecules needed for testosterone formation. FSH stimulates spermatogenesis and LH stimulates Leydig cells to produce testosterone. Also, testosterone DOES NOT signal growth hormone release. Growth hormone is an amino-based hormone (unlike testosterone-lipid based) which is controlled by the hypothalamus by release of GHRH (growth hormone releasing hormone) through the anterior pituitary to release the somatotropin (growth hormone).

You claim to have a graduate level education. I'm going to assume you are lying or it is not in exercise physiology.

 

[W8TS4ME]

K Cool guys....so let me see if I got this understood.

bulk up to a max of 15% BF then cut down to 7-10 BF then bulk back up again?? I am understanding that even as you bulk and gain weight (fat) that under that fat also is muscle as well??

So if I would do a 6 month bulk and lets say that I am at 12% body fat I would have to measure or keep track of BF monthly or weekly. Say at 3 months I reach the 15% BF then I would not continue with the rest of the 3 month bulk to equal the months of what was planned at first for 6 months???


Would cutting also cause some muscle loss as well???

 

[ccapone1153]

bulk up to a max of 15% BF then cut down to 7-10 BF then bulk back up again??

yup

I am understanding that even as you bulk and gain weight (fat) that under that fat also is muscle as well??

yup.. but its more like u gain muscle and gain a lil fat in the process not like u gain fat and gain a lil muscle

So if I would do a 6 month bulk and lets say that I am at 12% body fat I would have to measure or keep track of BF monthly or weekly. Say at 3 months I reach the 15% BF then I would not continue with the rest of the 3 month bulk to equal the months of what was planned at first for 6 months???

right. but if ur already at 12% id prob cut down to 7ish% so that way u can spend longer bulking.

Would cutting also cause some muscle loss as well???

it could if ur not careful. u will probably lose a little but it should be minimal.



answers in bold.

 

[W8TS4ME]

it could if ur not careful. u will probably lose a little but it should be minimal.



answers in bold.

ccapone thanks for your feedback. I need to get this bulking in order so I can do this right dont want to lose the hard work in the gym for not doing things right.

 

[ccapone1153]

i hear you dude... lemme no if u have any questions along the way

 

[russy_russ]

a stronger muscle is bigger. if you keep bulking and bodyweight continues to go up, but your strength as measured by sets/reps is not improving, maybe you're hitting a plateau where the excess calories are going to bodyfat only.

either start cutting then or bust that plateau somehow

Strength training typically greater than 80% 1RM will increase muscular strength without much myohypertrophy. This occurs by motor learning (neural control, reqruitment of more type 2 motor units) and biochemical changes within the muscle fiber itself.