need help on bulking!

[bbeals00]

Hi guys, need a little advice, I am currently 5'9 and weigh about 210lbs, I have been working out off and on since highschool. I have put on a few pounds in the wrong areas (by no means a fatty, but not where I want to be). I am currently looking to bulk up, but have to be cautious to the fact that I am in the military and can't really gain much on my waist in order to be within physical standards. I am considering a Clean bulk, very little processed foods, basically gonna live off of Ground turkey, tuna( in water), chicken, lots of beans, whole grain pastas and breads, sweet potatoes, Tons of eggs, cottage cheese, milk just to name a few. I am really looking to put on tons of muscle mass, while losing the fat that I currently have attained. I have read all over how it is impossible to gain noticeable bulk while burning fat. Was wondering if anyone has any advice for me. Do not want to get out of standards for the military since I have a family to support, but tired of not getting any big gains when it comes to muscle mass. Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks

 

[SizeUp]

What's your job in the military? Will you be able to eat food meals whenever you want? My girl's in airforce but with her job she can normally get a meal when needed...
If you haven't been eating clean at all up until this point i think you will drop some bodyfat level as you start putting higher quality foods in...
Clean bulk is ALWAYS the way to go i feel like **** calories equal **** muscle
I would stick to oats, rice (white or brown), sweet potatos for carbs. breads and pasta's aren't great even when whole wheat in my experiance
For protien the sources you listed are good, you should be able to throw in some lean beef a couple times a week
I'm not a huge fan of dairy.. but... that's prob cause i hate it lol.. if you post ur schedule i'd be happy to make more suggestions.
Hope this helps bro

 

[bbeals00]

@ Size up. I appreciate your fast response. I have a wierd schedule, it changes weekly on which days I work, but I pretty much work 2 days on 2 days off, from noon to 12 am. My job does give me a 2 hour lunch in the middle of day in order to get my workout in though. And I do make it to the gym on my off days, typically been going mon-fri. We have three Fridges in my office so bringing tons of food would not be a problem. I currently get up around 7am and run in the morning. I do eat somewhat healthy, since I am going to school for nursing and nutrition, my eyes have been opened about crappy foods (processed and such). As of now I basically eat whole grain everything if I can help it. I eat ground turkey due to the fact my wife has problems with beef due to her gallbladder being removed. We eat lots of fish and chicken as well. Basically it would not be hard to adapt a clean bulk diet (except for the price and prep time as well as getting used eating when I am not hungry). The main issue with my fat gain was drinking beer, I have already said goodbye to it though (except for the occasional drink maybe once a week). Also I will be using my off time to pre cook my meals and store in my extra fridge in the garage. I have a deep freezer full of frozen veggies (staying away from canned due to sodium). I guess my problem is getting the right split of calories (I am trying for 4000) protein, fats and carbs. I feel like I am on the right track with my planning but want to make sure. Also I plan to take a daily multi vitamin and some creatine, debating on the protein supplements since I plan on having enough in my meals . I am currently trying to slim up to get my bodyfat lower prior to starting my bulking diet, that way any fat I may gain will not make a huge difference. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for you taking the time to help.

 

[SizeUp]

Cool, it seems like military specializes in wierd schedules lol. But i'm glad you'll be able to eat when you need to one of the biggest things is going to be consistency of calorie intake. You want them to be the same everyday when bulking, unless of course you are increasing them
4000 cals may be to much to start off with... but id have to see your conditioning. Can you post pics?
You def want to take a multi.. i've been using animal pak over the years consistently, i like this, but any quaility mulit/mineral would suffice. I would get yourself a quality whey protein or blended one, this will make it easier to get protein in if you are in a jam.
I would say start around 3000 cals... mind you i'm going kinda blind here w/out know what you look like. I mean if your shredded u may need to start higher.. 4000 is moderate intake for me...but everyone is soo different.

That said here's my suggestion
protein-270-315g a day 1080-1260 cals
carbs-300g a day 1200cals
fat- 65g a day 585cals
Total Cals- 2865-3045

Split that up evenly into six meals you're looking at approx 48g protein, 50g carbs, 11g fat per meal. You don't have to make it that exact but should give you a idea how that will break down.
I'll keep checking in, keep me posted

 

[bbeals00]

It won't let me post a link or pic since there is not 50 posts or more, but you can find it under bodyspace (bodybuilding.com website) , my user name is newme123. I created the account over a year ago and never kept up with it. I am a little bigger in the chest arms and shoulders, but my stomach and waist are just about the same. also I saw one of your threads on the supplement Cabergolean. How is your progress on that?

 

[bbeals00]

I looked into your recommedation on the diet. Been crunching numbers and finding it hard to stay within the ratio. My numbers end up high in some areas and lower in the others, and the total for the day will be pretty far off.

 

[SizeUp]

I looked into your recommedation on the diet. Been crunching numbers and finding it hard to stay within the ratio. My numbers end up high in some areas and lower in the others, and the total for the day will be pretty far of]f.

What do you mean?

 

[SizeUp]

The numbers i gave you should have been right... i wouldn't try to get every meal exactly how i broke it down that was just a real basic guideline. I have some meals that are 20 g fat others that have 6 and my carbs very as well i have a lot before training some during and a lot after then the rest of the day is a little more cut back.. the idea was just to give the basic structure...def let me know what wasn't making since. I'll check out the bodyspace.

And yea i've been taking the Cabergolean for 2 weeks and i really like it. It's one of the few products i have taken that i feel. The pumps are ridiculous and i think it helps w/ keeping bf levels in check as well. It does help boosts gh and test, might fit well into your program man. Check it out.

 

[bbeals00]

i was talking about making all my meals add up to the correct numbers on fat, carbs, and proteins. I will just have to revamp my planning though and find things that work. I know it won't be exact. but every meal I tried planning was about 50 off in carbs , which over six meals adds up pretty quick, I am going to look into that supplement as well

 

[SizeUp]

1 cup or rice is 50 carbs 1 cup of oats is 54 carbs...those should be pretty easy to stick to man...
I would do 7oz meat (chicken or fish) 1 cup rice for during the day meals...add olive oil (1TBSP) to every other meal to get fats up a little bit.. for 1 meal probably do 2tbsp natty peanut butter or an oz of almonds.... the fats shouldn't be HUGE concern just focus on the protein and the carbs and you should be fine...If you're not used to eating multiple times a day start meal 1 w/ a full cup of oats but then do 1/2 cup rice with the others .. once you're adjusted bump it up...
I would do 25 min cardio post workout at this point to bro.. u want to can lean.. and you could stand to tighten up a bit. From the pic on bodyspace didn't look to bad on bf but the % is a little on the high side. Not ripping you.. just being honest.

 

[Cooky32]

What branch are you in, and where are you stationed? I am trying to add some size rightnow too. Kinda stuck at about 228 at 6'-1". I am navy E-6 and 36 years old. I have been training 10 years or so, consistently and off and on since high school. I have competed twice, but I lost a lot during deployment at sea and now I am trying to get it back. I eat at the galley on base, and even burger king when needed, but I also make sandwhiches etc in my barracks room. I eat chili canned, and cereal, and shakes with coconut milk cause its cheap. I will also buy some EFA oil to add to my shakes. Coconut milk just tastes better. I take fish oil, which you should also take. I use Barleans brand. You could also get a good natty test booster to help with your bulk. Does anyone have any good ideas for meals in the barracks room?

 

[bbeals00]

@sizeup, sounds good man, I know I need to lean and tighten up and no offense taken. That is one of the main reasons to wanting to make this a priority in my life. That body fat % that was posted was about a year ago and it was from a scale that supposedly measures weight and body fat. I hear they aren't accurate though and plan on getting a good set of calipers to take more accurate measurments. Thanks for the recommendations as well, I figured it was not to hard to get the right numbers, like I said I was at work so I would work on my diet for 2-5 minutes and then have to work for 10, so my train of thought was usually lost and would have to start over. I am going to take some time this weekend to work it all out. I will post what I have hopefully monday sometime. Thanks again. And I will keep you posted on my progress

 

[bbeals00]

@ cooky32, I am in the navy as well, and stationed in the memphis area. I am really not the one to get a lot of advice for because from your pic you are a lot better along than me. But in the past I had always wanted to just have decent arms and be ripped, but moved to shore duty and got fat. After doing research I decided I wanted to go in another direction. Still don't know if I will want to try to compete one day, but definitely want the physique. When I first came in the navy, I ate at the galley in A school. I weighed about 150 and bulked to about 183. The galley we had always had a salad bar with boiled eggs and tuna. I would practically drain it of both, and make sandwiches or eat a huge salad. And any time they had fish I got it as well (even though Navy fish is horrible). Basically thats how I put on a little mass back then. Now days though its hard for me to gain muscle without the fat (due to my metabolism slowing to a crawl). where are you stationed at?

 

[Cooky32]

Fort worth

 

[Cooky32]

@ cooky32, I am in the navy as well, and stationed in the memphis area. I am really not the one to get a lot of advice for because from your pic you are a lot better along than me. But in the past I had always wanted to just have decent arms and be ripped, but moved to shore duty and got fat. After doing research I decided I wanted to go in another direction. Still don't know if I will want to try to compete one day, but definitely want the physique. When I first came in the navy, I ate at the galley in A school. I weighed about 150 and bulked to about 183. The galley we had always had a salad bar with boiled eggs and tuna. I would practically drain it of both, and make sandwiches or eat a huge salad. And any time they had fish I got it as well (even though Navy fish is horrible). Basically thats how I put on a little mass back then. Now days though its hard for me to gain muscle without the fat (due to my metabolism slowing to a crawl). where are you stationed at?

I am at the NOSC in Fort worth TX. Its tough dealing with Metabolism, but you can manipulate it to a point by eating more often which forces your metabolism into overdrive. Make sure its clean foods as much as possible. The only catch is once you do you have to keep at it.
If you stick to lean proteins, good carbs, and healthy fats you can minimize fat gain, and maximize lean muscle gain.

 

[SizeUp]

hey bro, glad it helped you bro. And Cook's right once you start dieting consistently you will start to lean up and the metabolism will become more effiecient the bodyfat will steadily come down

 

[Cooky32]

Good one Sizeup, and thanks.

 

[BigGunn]

Insert shameless product plug here :Visit Cabergolean.com and use coupon code AM20 and save 20% on anything in our store:

The numbers i gave you should have been right... i wouldn't try to get every meal exactly how i broke it down that was just a real basic guideline. I have some meals that are 20 g fat others that have 6 and my carbs very as well i have a lot before training some during and a lot after then the rest of the day is a little more cut back.. the idea was just to give the basic structure...def let me know what wasn't making since. I'll check out the bodyspace.

And yea i've been taking the Cabergolean for 2 weeks and i really like it. It's one of the few products i have taken that i feel. The pumps are ridiculous and i think it helps w/ keeping bf levels in check as well. It does help boosts gh and test, might fit well into your program man. Check it out.

 

[bbeals00]

@ size up, I was having trouble getting the numbers right due to the fact I was trying to plan the day meal by meal. What I did though was just added a bunch of food up to get the right numbers for the whole day. Then just break all that into 6-7 meals a day. Like you said, more carbs in morning and post workout (since I usually work out in morning time) I stay away from carbs after 6 PM. It's funny cause when you hear the word diet, you typically think small amounts of food. But I just started my "diet" and I am always stuffed to the max. And that is staying around 3000 calories. I can't imagine doing 4000 or more. I guess it will take some getting used to to get my stomach used to it. I made some pretty food (crumbled ground turkey with cajun seasoning minus salt, brown rice, brocoli and peas, scrambled egg whites, kidney beans all mixed together), started out tasting good, but by the 3 time eating it was not so good. I have other things mixed in with the diet as well, tuna and such. My numbers were rushed this morning due to lack of time, so I know I am not exact, but wanted to acclimate to eating a ton of food as well as get the calories in, I am going to refine everything on my day off on weds. until then I gotta stick with what is quick and easy. I appreciate all the replies.

 

[bbeals00]

Cooky, I have heard what you are preaching, eating multiple meals will jump start your metobolism. I have done that in the past with no progress, I am guessing the beer drinking was inhibiting my progress ( crap calories). since then I have cut the beer out (for now) until I get to where I want to be. Then will only drink occasionally. What do you do at the NOSC?

 

[SizeUp]

Hey man def get some digestive enzymes and probiotics. You need to make sure the food is broken down and assimilated and moving the waist out. The probiotics will boost immunity and the healthier you are the better you will progress.

 

[mass hunter]

Dude just go heavy always heavy in all ur lifting no.light days ever and u will grow if ur diet is good. Brocley is ur friend. Carbs but good one process fast good before workout go heavy

 

[scherbs]

Dude just go heavy always heavy in all ur lifting no.light days ever and u will grow if ur diet is good. Brocley is ur friend. Carbs but good one process fast good before workout go heavy

Not to be harsh, but English is also a powerful friend!

 

[Cooky32]

Cooky, I have heard what you are preaching, eating multiple meals will jump start your metobolism. I have done that in the past with no progress, I am guessing the beer drinking was inhibiting my progress ( crap calories). since then I have cut the beer out (for now) until I get to where I want to be. Then will only drink occasionally. What do you do at the NOSC?

I support the reserve force by helping with travel, training and such. I am going to be eating 6 meals of chicken, and rice or potato or pasta, and also beef. I will eat breakfast at the galley due to time and convienance for now. Keep it clean and away from booze.

 

[Milas]

Here's some good basic info for hard gainers:

http://needtobuildmuscle.com/blog/2011/06/30/380/