Why bulk? Somebody explain it to me.

[Swole_2112]

Even if they're eating clean, a lot of people in the off-season will increase their calories drmatically. My question is, 'why?' The most simple concept with regard to nutrition is that if you eat more calories than what you burn, you will gain body fat, nothing else. Now, I understand the idea of getting a slight excess on all your macronutrients so as to make sure that you are in a constant state of anabolism, but why the extreme excess? For simplicity sake, let's say that any given bodybuilder needs 200g of protein per day to facilitate maximum muscular hypertrophy. I could see doing 215g just to be on the safe side, but many will feel as though they need to be doing >300g/day. What do they feel like they are accomplishing? All that excess protein is going towards nothing. The same could be said of carbohydrates and fat. Your cells only need so much glucose and your liver and muscles can only store so much glycogen. Once you go beyond that point, it's fat storage time. You all see where I'm going with this.
Again, I understand the idea of getting a little more calories to make sure you don't fall inside the margin of error and possibly lose size. But, once you'e gotten enough macros to ensure that's not going to happen, what's the point of taking in more? By taking in excess, you're not going to force your body to absorb it. What the body will absorb is dictated by what it needs, not what you give it. I just don't see the point in it. If there's something I haven't considered, please, someone bring it to my attention. I'd love for gaining more lean mass to be as simple as eating more.

[ILIEKFUDE]

i think yr asking "why bulk dirty and to excess".
some people would rather overshoot than undershoot. all the hard work we put into the gym, id rather it be rewarded with as much muscle as possible even if that means gaining some fat as well.
also, its easier to eat a little dirty than clean when bulking for many. especially when you get into 5k+ cals a day territory. thats a fuck load of chicken n rice and broccoli and natty pb if yr tryin to do it clean ya know?
not to mention whos gona cook that shit, and work and clean and have a life and go to school and study.
finally, in some sports weight = leverage. regardless of what that weight is made of. so look at the athletic endevor they are pursuing before you critique their diet choices.
microwave southern fried 8 piece chicken for president. ($4.99 at market basket)

[bigdamray]

In order for it to work, you need to be on lots of drugs. It doens't work well for natural lifters but with roids, hgh, insulin ect. it's golden.

[MR.cashcream]

Why bulk? Strength

[Blut Wump]

It's a faster way to build muscle than constantly worrying about a 1% drift in BF. Cutting is easier than growing so it's not efficient to make the growing more arduous.

[Swole_2112]

I guess I'm thinking of this purely from a bodybuilding standpoint. I'm also absessed with staying as lean as possible in the off season while trying to add muscle. I don't like to get above 10-12%. And, I think that if I'm taking in the necessary amount of macros that matches my training, I'm accomplishing that. Just an opinion I've come to form through reading and experience.

[Kabeetz]

Everyone has their own preferences and body ideals and should train and diet as necessary to achieve them. But make no mistake you are trading in some lean mass in exchange for less fat when you clean bulk, and moreso when u don't raise calories whatsoever.

You certainly may have some dysmorphia issues as well based on previous posts, but thats another conversation.

[bluetwistedsteel]

Originally Posted by Swole_2112

I guess I'm thinking of this purely from a bodybuilding standpoint. I'm also absessed with staying as lean as possible in the off season while trying to add muscle. I don't like to get above 10-12%. And, I think that if I'm taking in the necessary amount of macros that matches my training, I'm accomplishing that. Just an opinion I've come to form through reading and experience.

I'm in the same boat as you. I don't like to get to much over 11% or so. Definitely that costs me some size in the short and long run. I'll never get as big as if I upped the cals and focused solely on growing.

[Sarge]

Originally Posted by Blut Wump

It's a faster way to build muscle than constantly worrying about a 1% drift in BF. Cutting is easier than growing so it's not efficient to make the growing more arduous.

QFT

However, I'm not sure that cutting is 'easier' than growing in regards to saying 'No' to some certain tasty substances

[Fedor]

Swole,

I consider it one of my biggest lessons learned when I realized that my dirty bulking (departure from controlled/structured diet) was the biggest mistake since I started in this game.

In my case, I feel that I used the concept of "bulking" to make myself feel better about my lack of discipline and addiction to bad foods. A few years ago, when I was eating Taco Bell or eating chicken fingers w/ a beer at the bar w/ friends, I'd just say to myself, "Its ok..I'm bulking right now...my arms are getting bigger b/c of this." What a fucking joke! I'm getting fucking pissed off thinking about that. I feel like inventing a fucking flux capacitor to turn my car into a time machine so I go back to that time in my life where I had that attitude and punch myself in the face. It angers me b/c all those pounds of fat were added after I worked my ass off to get lean and then it took me a long time to lose the fat I gained. Self Sabatoge is a bitch.


I am an endomorph. There should be no breaks in clean eating and controlled calorie intake, no matter if I'm trying to gain muscle or not. It has been almost a year now of eating clean, and I feel DAMN good and proud of myself for my life change. I look better too.

	ASS Nelson Montana

[Fedor]

Originally Posted by Kabeetz

Everyone has their own preferences and body ideals and should train and diet as necessary to achieve them. But make no mistake you are trading in some lean mass in exchange for less fat when you clean bulk, and moreso when u don't raise calories whatsoever.

You certainly may have some dysmorphia issues as well based on previous posts, but thats another conversation.

I don't fully grab the concept of dysmorphia. Lets say a person were to set a bodyfat percentage goal for getting lean and a bodyfat percentage limit for muscle-gaining phases... How is that individual delusional about his/her body when it all boils down to numbers? Numbers don't lie.

Now, Anorexia is a different story. Dysmorphia, from what I've come to understand, is not the same as Anorexia b/c a person isn't starving themselves to death.

[Kabeetz]

Numbers do not lie. But they don't tell the whole story. If you have an illogical fear of getting fat, or think u are fatter than others perceive you, or think you are smaller in size than you actually are, constantly feel like you are basically the same as when you started or that others in the gym are much bigger, are never even 1% satisfied with your appearance in the mirror, etc. these are signs of dysmorphia. A distorted vision of your own appearance.

It is extremely common. I know few lift-a-holics who don't have it to one degree or another.

[bigdamray]

Dysmorphia is real. My buddies wife has it and she is FUCKING NUTS!! I think most of us are obsessed or a better word is dedicated.

[Fedor]

Originally Posted by Kabeetz

Numbers do not lie. But they don't tell the whole story. If you have an illogical fear of getting fat, or think u are fatter than others perceive you, or think you are smaller in size than you actually are, constantly feel like you are basically the same as when you started or that others in the gym are much bigger, are never even 1% satisfied with your appearance in the mirror, etc. these are signs of dysmorphia. A distorted vision of your own appearance.

It is extremely common. I know few lift-a-holics who don't have it to one degree or another.

But isn't the constant state of wanting to progress what drives a person in fitness in the first place? If you just go through the motions, put time in during the week, and just occasionally eat clean (this is where the Grey area is), you will be stuck in physique limbo. If you are healthy and happy while in such limbo, great, but I think the desire for further progress is the only way to progress. Physique changes don't happen on their own by mistake, maybe gradually if one does the above limbo routine and is lucky, but never by mistake.

I think if a person writes the perceptions off in one's head as mind games and focuses on strictly numbers, then all should be well.

Start at the goal of getting b/w 10 and 12% bodyfat so you can see your abs, and then cycle your muscle gain/fat loss phases until you get to the desired size with abs.

[Sarge]

Originally Posted by Fedor

But isn't the constant state of wanting to progress what drives a person in fitness in the first place?

Skewed perceptions of self image and what your goals may be are MUCH different.

No matter what you see (whether it's 'right' or 'wrong' or big or small) in the mirror, your goals don't change.

I have it to certain degrees sometimes, for sure. But obsession and eating 1 extra almond and then doing 2 hours of cardio to compensate for it would be on the other end of the spectrum.

Alot of people have a hard time enjoying the moment, being happy where they are now and what got them there, basking in the joy of reaching a goal before setting a new one.

[Tweak]

Originally Posted by MR.cashcream

Why bulk? Strength

lol

I'm sorry, but it made me giggle to see after the word "strength".

RAWWWWWWWWR POM POMS