Bulking strategies

[MaxxReps]

Hey everyone,

Just finished my first cycle of 500mg test cyp and learned a ton. I am a recreational bodybuilder - no interest in competing or getting to rediculously low bodyfat levels. I maintained a 7.5% BF level for a couple of years and no real interest in doing that anymore.

My new goal is to gain lean mass.

I am an engineer by trade, have very good nutritional knowledge, like to cook and am a perfectionist. I have exceptional control over my diet and am always playing with things (like macros, meal timing, calorie intake, substituting low/hi gi carbs at various times) to see the effect.

For this cycle, my philosophy was pretty simple. I started at 185lbs 14.5% BF. I ended up here from a natty bulk/cutting cycle. I reduced my cardio from 1hr/day to 1/2 hr/day and started eating 3500 calories / day. When I stopped gaining weight I added 500 calories / day and kept the cardio at a constant rate. By the end of the 11th week I had gained quite a bit of lean weight and also fat. I was pushing 18%!

I am now working on getting that back down - hopefully to 12% if I have the resolve and am going to do another bulking cycle but wondering if my philosophy was sound. Honestly I'd like to not gain quite so much fat if possible but don't want to hinder lean gains for being scared of gaining some fat.

It seems that most people who regularly post in the steroid forum are real BB's who are looking to do recomps so keep their calories around maintenance or just slightly above but whats a good nutritional strategy for bulking as much as possible without gaining too much fat?

For my next cycle I am looking at running tren or npp in addition to testosterone.

TIME TO GET BIG

 

[WolfpackAlpha]

I don't know if I agree with your plan if you went from 9 to 18% bodyfat, I rather not see guys gain more than 5% bodyfat during a bulking run. Have you considered doing an evolutionary diet or anabolic diet?

 

[MaxxReps]

I went from 14.5 to 18 which is still more than I would have liked. I will look into the diets you mention.

 

[RickRock13]

The correct way to add muscle and keep it lean is to limit yourself to 500-750 cals per day over maintenance, eat clean, and run a good macronutrient ratio. That is the way to effectively gain lean mass and limit fat.

If you want to just see the scale move, just eat as much as possible...but you will get fat plain and simple.

Most people are unrealistic when bulking expecting to gain 15-20 lbs of muscle. That's just not gonna happen no matter what you do. 20-30 lbs of mostly fat and water with a little muscle? Sure...but who the fuck wants that?

 

[BEAST420]

Agreed with Rick, and I'm sorta in the same boat. Natrually I have abs but it's just hard to get mass for me. Iv done a good job through diet but I also add some fat when I go high on the carbs . I'm just gonna go medium on the carbs and maintain where I'm at now , run some Sarms and then run a bulking cycle with npp nd dbol . I'm gonna eat super clean wile running them and add winny at the end . I feel I will bulk nicely with those compounds and if I eat clean I sure I won't gain much fat due too my body fat

 

[BEAST420]

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