Tips to lean bulk?

[bell1986]

Morning Guys


Just got back from a holiday a few days ago. Seemed to maintain my weight (1 pound difference) over the 8 days abroad trip which fell off after a couple days of eating clean and upping water intake. I never trained on holiday but we did hire bikes and covered 65km's in a few days so seemed to keep my weight stable without having to watch my food to much. I had 2 buffets in that period also. Which i got my moneys worth!

Anyhow

Im lean enough to be happy enough to start a bulk again.

5ft 9
156 pounds
Around 10-12%bodyfat

I would like to be in the 8-10% but my body would look great at this weight but i have the classic skeletor face when im too light so i would rather look healthy and still be leanish. So i dont mind a little fluff as i still look good and got a ton of good comments on holidays. Makes you feel good.

Just looking for some advice.

Bulking macros
Carbs 375g
Protein 225G
Fats 67g

I usually start on 3000 calories which is about 200ish calories above my maintenance.

Would this be what everyone else would start with and the macro breakdown seem balanced enough?


Whats everyone's tips to lean bulk. If you have done one yourself and felt quite successful?

Here is what i was thinking.....

Incorporating some LISS cardio. More steps (Smart watch) I cycle alot also so i get cardio from thier aswell. Just a very mild addition as i still want to remain in a surplus consistently.

Training split i just go for the classic
Legs + Abs
Push
Pull
Abs
Legs + Abs
Push
Pull
Rest

Im adding abs 3x per week roughly to try put some size on them and one of the day is purely focused on hitting them hard where as after a leg day it will be 2 exercise x 4 sets so a quick 8 sets after training legs. I feel i cant see my abs too well just do to the fact they aren't as developed as i would like them to be.


What does everyone else incorporate?

Is it all about stabilising blood sugars ie less insulin = less fat storage?

I dont use any GDA's but i do incorporate some blood sugar supports.

1. Adding Cinnamon to food's.. Ie Oats ' Sweet Potato etc
2. Chromium Picolinate (Actually seems to respond well inside my body)

Thats it for the blood sugar side. I will have heightened insulin sensitivity just due to the training.

What does everyone else do?

Any tips folks? I prefer asking here as other forums just say EATTTTTTT and dont worry about getting fat. Sorry man but thats just setting up for a long cut in the future and we can't synthesise anymore muscle with what a 300 calorie surplus over a 1000 calorie surplus would do. Just seem's an ineffective outlook on a bulk in my opinion

Anyway..


Thanks guys... Appreciate any feedback ' Supplements to incorpate...... Comments and advice etc

Appreciated

 

[john.patterson]

Looks like you've thought through all the different angles of a successful lean bulk - this is nicely written.

I think for starting off, your macros look great. I prefer to keep fat intake low while lean bulking also, which gives me more calories allotted for carbs. I've always found this to be helpful with keep off unwanted body fat during a bulking phase.

Training setup looks good, but I did notice that your "split" is 8 days. It's perfectly fine if you do it this way, but each week will be different days. I personally prefer to set up my schedule on a weekly split so it's easier to keep track of, but that's my personal opinion.

Adding in cinnamon is definitely a good idea. I would also consider using a nutrient partitioner/GDA product for higher carb meals. These can help a lot with blood sugar levels and they can be beneficial for helping to keep off unwanted body fat while consuming a higher amount of carbs. I would look into Slinmax, which has gotten stellar reviews across the forum. Very complete profile and it works great for both bulking and cutting.

 

[TheBigJS]

I prefer asking here as other forums just say EATTTTTTT and dont worry about getting fat. Sorry man but thats just setting up for a long cut in the future and we can't synthesise anymore muscle with what a 300 calorie surplus over a 1000 calorie surplus would do.

This is incorrect.
You may achieve a more favorable body composition, you may get to your goal quicker (especially if you don't want to get that big), you may avoid stretch marks, loose skin and some health issues staying small and light.
But if you take identical twins, have them train the same, do everything else the same but have one on 300 cals over maintainence and the other 1000 cals over. Even if the extra excess is purely from fat the twin eating more will gain more muscle and more strength. And if there was a third identical "twin" (so triplets) on another 1000 cals extra a day (2000cals over maintainence, 1700cals over "lean bulk") he would gain even more muscle and strength.

 

[bell1986]

This is incorrect.
You may achieve a more favorable body composition, you may get to your goal quicker (especially if you don't want to get that big), you may avoid stretch marks, loose skin and some health issues staying small and light.
But if you take identical twins, have them train the same, do everything else the same but have one on 300 cals over maintainence and the other 1000 cals over. Even if the extra excess is purely from fat the twin eating more will gain more muscle and more strength. And if there was a third identical "twin" (so triplets) on another 1000 cals extra a day (2000cals over maintainence, 1700cals over "lean bulk") he would gain even more muscle and strength.

Then when you go to cut? The twin with the lower surplus will have to cut for very little time and the twin with the big surplus has to cut for alot longer.. Both will end up at the same goal.

Our bodys just dont synthesise muscle at a fast rate no matter the surplus.. Unless your using steroids and we use the food more efficiently

 

[TheBigJS]

Then when you go to cut? The twin with the lower surplus will have to cut for very little time and the twin with the big surplus has to cut for alot longer.. Both will end up at the same goal.

Our bodys just dont synthesise muscle at a fast rate no matter the surplus.. Unless your using steroids and we use the food more efficiently

To your first point, maybe, or if the cut is too hard the fattie may end up worse off, that wasn't my point.

To your second point, again, incorrect, yes they do (synthesise muscle at a fast rate the higher the surplus), just the act of consuming more food is in itself anabolic, you will gain more muscle if you have more calories available. You could just eat, not train and gain muscle, though you woukd gain fat at a less than desireable rate.
And as we get towards either our genetic limit or the limit imposed by how strict we are with all factors of our lifestyle (how well we eat, train, rest, remove stress etc) we can gain more muscle purely as we have a bit (or a lot) more fat. Take all the drugs you want, no one lean is ever going to be Eddie Hall type strong. To carry that much muscle you need to be fat.