Eating 4000 calories per day gives you tons of flexibility for including “treats” because most treats are high in carbs and fats which are useful when you’re trying to bulk. Protein provides the building blocks (amino acids) for building new muscle tissue. Muscle growth happens when protein is combined with a challenging resistance training program.
Most research shows that snacking causes people to inadvertently eat more calories (study). Most people have a hard time eating in a sustained calorie surplus, and people who are naturally thin struggle most of all. We wanted to help other people going through those same struggles.
How does it compare with dirty bulking?
When not lecturing, training, researching, or writing, Patrick is busy enjoying the sunny climate of Cyprus, where he has lived for the last 20-years. While the number of calories you consume is critical during a bulk, where those calories come from also matters. There are three food groups, and you need an abundance of each for a successful bulk.
Post-Workout Meals
Adjusting these ratios based on individual needs and preferences can help optimise results (source). You’re meant to adhere to a limited number of foods to prevent excess fat gain and maintain good health. For instance, you’re largely discouraged from eating processed items high in fat or sugar, such as pizza, cakes, sausage, bacon, and regular soda.
But if you go overboard and eat too much, you’ll kick-start the fat-storing process. So the key is to eat just enough to facilitate the muscle-gaining process but not so much that you’ll add fat along with it. Old-time bodybuilding dogma once preached that muscle hypertrophy is a binary — an on-off switch that flips based on your nutritional behaviors. If you’re in a calorie deficit with low energy availability, you have no shot of adding muscle mass, so don’t push it too hard in the gym. Many people believe that gaining muscle requires expensive supplements and high-end foods. The key lies in understanding your nutritional needs and knowing how to source affordable yet nutritious items.
Foods to Eat and Avoid
While you’re clean bulking, you may eat as many or as few meals as you wish, as long as your total calorie and nutrient intake remains in line with your goals. Some individuals may find it easier to consume a slight calorie surplus by spreading their meals out throughout the day, while others may prefer larger, less frequent meals. Track your unimeal customer service calorie intake and make sure you’re consuming a slight surplus rather than just eating as much as possible. This will prevent excessive fat gain and allow for more controlled progress. In addition, make sure to prioritize resistance training and aim for progressive overload in your workouts to stimulate muscle growth. When you’re eating a surplus, your body will be able to use the extra energy (carbohydrate, protein and fat) to train harder and build muscle.
- This is simply because it’s always nice to be shredded in the summer when you wear shirts in public or no shirt at all!
- For intermediate and advanced lifters/bodybuilders, we don’t have to tell you what to do.
- Depending on your desired weight, that’s three to six meals each day.
- We also use it to help our clients bulk up, both in person and online.
- Build your grocery list around inexpensive but nutritious options.
- The excess calories provide the energy needed for muscle growth, recovery, and, unfortunately, fat gain.
This can be accomplished by following a healthy balanced diet and exercise plan. Managing the right calorie intake for your fitness goals sure is no easy job, and a lot of us often take drastic measures if you’re looking to lose or gain weight. However, for your results to be long-lasting, a stable process is the way to go. If you’re aiming for lean muscle gain, we recommend the clean bulk meal plan as the healthiest and most sustainable route. So dive into https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/nutrition-basics/your-guide-to-healthy-eating-habits-that-stick this article to learn more about the lean bulk meal plan, along with a sample high-protein diet that can help you structure your own routine. In old-school bulking and diets, bodybuilders would eat as many calories as possible from any type of food source for the purpose of putting on extra pounds – known as the “dirty bulk”.
How Do You Start on a Clean Bulking Plan?
Common mistakes include poor planning, excessive energy intake, and eating the wrong foods. This makes it much harder to get back in shape when changing to a cutting diet. You eat in a calorie surplus, perform consistent, well-organized resistance exercise, and start to grow. However, it’s not as easy as just eating more and stepping into the gym.
Supplements For Bulking
Ingesting adequate calories is key for muscle gain, and you may need to increase your total calorie intake in order to support your goal. Experts recommend eating 10% to 20% above the calories you need for your target weight gain. 1.6 to 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of weight should be consumed throughout the day with 0.4 to 0.55 grams per kilogram of weight per meal. Depending on your desired weight, that’s three to six meals each day. However, learning how to bulk properly provides a great starting point. It ensures slower muscle growth but reduced fat gain as your body digests the excess energy.
get our bulking recipes—smoothies, snack, & protein balls
Isolation movements (single-joint exercises) can be used to increase workout volume. Specifically, consuming food, particularly carbohydrates, puts your body in an anabolic state conducive to building muscle. On the other hand, fasting or eating low-carb meals can result in a catabolic state and the breakdown of muscle tissue. However, the rule of thumb to consume one gram of protein per pound of body weight is too simplistic. This rule can lead to an overweight person consuming too much protein, while a skinny hard gainer would not be consuming enough.
Day 6: Omega-3 Fatty Acids for Inflammation Control
This means that protein is a very important macronutrient for those looking to gain size. This plan is better suited to extremely active men with high muscle mass looking to gain or maintain their weight for physical performance and/or bodybuilding aesthetic goals. Cardio can help speed up recovery from training, but it also burns calories. The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for protein is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight (source). However, for muscle gain, experts often suggest consuming around 1.2 to 1.7 grams per kilogram (source). But, as much fun as that sounds, unfortunately, gaining weight fast and in excessive amounts can take its toll on our bodies, and that brings several different health risks, too.
How to Build an Attractive Body
Years later, I was looking up the micronutrients in that chili recipe (which is a totally normal chili recipe I learned from my mum). It’s high in protein, rich in every single vitamin and mineral, and a great source of fibre, plugging every nutritional hole in our diets. The latest fad diet is exciting because its limits haven’t been found yet. Perhaps you’ll get better results than anyone has ever seen before.
Cutting vs. Bulking: Training Differences
Lastly, your results will depend on being consistent with your 3000-calorie intake. I recommend using a tracking app (I use MacroFactor) to monitor your targets. So once you’ve downloaded the meal plan, read everything below so you have all the tools necessary to achieve success on this meal plan.
Protein provides the essential amino acids needed for muscle building. In terms of how much protein to build muscle, aim for 0.7–1 grams per pound of body weight. The general idea of a bulking diet is to maximize your muscle gain while minimizing your potential fat gain. This requires balancing your energy and macronutrient intakes while maintaining a consistent resistance training routine. One of the biggest challenges when bulking is preventing unnecessary fat gain.
Day 4
Creatine has a well-earned reputation in the health and fitness industry. There’s a reason creatine monohydrate is a staple in nearly every supplement stack on the market — it’s safe and it works. Remember, though, that your training is only as effective as your recovery. The hours between when you step through your gym’s doors are when muscle is built back bigger and stronger. Everything you need to know about gaining muscle the right way.
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