Thread: Help - Bulking question...

Originally Posted by ChrisROCK

I'm having a hard time getting down 3500+ cals in a day with whole foods, supplemented by protein shakes.

I'm sure I'm missing some things, but can any of the diet gurus here or others recommend a source of good, clean calories to supplement my regular intake? Preferably something easy, and inexpensive too, and doesn't require even more time in front of the stove (my home within my home). Does such a thing even exist?

eat things that are real calorie dense like fats. Natty PB. When I was bulking I would have a hard time getting down 5000 cals (3500cals?? that is hard for you??? LOL....I diet on that.) so I would eat natty PB on sprouted whole grain bread with a protein shake. Almonds, cashews. fats are great for adding cals to your meals. What does your daily diet look like right now??

Originally Posted by P-funk

(3500cals?? that is hard for you??? LOL....I diet on that.)

Welp, perhaps I'm taking in more than I think I am...but according to fitday, I'm not. Of course, maybe my measurements or approximations of amounts are off.

Lets see, a typical day consists of:

6 AM: 2 scoops whey with water (too much milk doesn't sit well with me)

8 AM: 2 whole eggs/3 EWs (sometimes with cheese and/or ham), coffee

11 AM: Medium chicken breast, 1 cup brown rice

1:30 PM: 1 to 2 Cans tuna/light mayo on Whole Wheat, Apple

4 PM: Medium Chicken Breast Or Salmon Steak, 1 cup sweet potato

7 PM: PWO Shake - 2 scoops whey, banana, 1 cup milk, 1 cup oats... / 1 cup sportsdrink

8 PM: One of Chicken/Fish/Skirt Steak, Sweet Potato, green veggie

10: 1/2 to 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese.


That's it more or less. I often will throw in a Natty PB/Jelly sandwich as well as a snack. I probably could use more healthy nuts like almonds and cashews. Do those add much in the way of cals?

I should have prefaced all of this by saying that while I am trying to bulk, I'm fearful of putting on unwanted fat at the same time. I know it's probably hard to avoid, but thats why i'm trying to keep the calories clean!

Originally Posted by ChrisROCK

I should have prefaced all of this by saying that while I am trying to bulk, I'm fearful of putting on unwanted fat at the same time. I know it's probably hard to avoid, but thats why i'm trying to keep the calories clean!

Welcome to the club. I managed to gain about 8lbs and now I've stopped cold. I'm eating about 3500 cals per day and it's all clean.. but each day there is no weight gain. I even managed to lose 2 lbs over the weekend. I dunno how I can possibly add more cals without eating junk. I might try some nuts like Mudge suggested.

Too... many... stripping... hotties.... argh....

Muscle "I hate it when CR posts 'cause I can't concentrate anymore" Pump

3500 cals shouldn't be to difficult to down. I'd say def add some nut butter in there or some nuts. And you need more EFA's in general...I see none there besides some fish. Add soem flax, olive oil, nuts, nut butters, and fish oil. Very easy to add plenty of cals. Each tbl of natty pb has 100cals so you add a few tbls here and there and you can pack in alot more cals.

Also try and up your protein a little...how many oz's are you currently taking in. You could try and up each meal like an oz or two which will provide some more calories. Not sure what your macro break down is...provide us with all that and we can suggest what you need to increase.

Thanks DB... I try to eat as much natty PB as possible, but again, i come back to my stomach issues.. Stuff like that kinda upsets it if i have too much. Can you expand on what EFAs to include? What nuts, fish oil caps?

What kind of calories do those provide? thx.

EFA's=essential fatty acids. These are a must in your diet. Omega 3's and 6's. These are fat calories and are very calorie dense for their amount. 130 calories for 1tbl flax and you would never notice it in your diet.

You should include a variety of efa's from flax oil/flax meal, fish oil caps, and nut butters. Not sure what exactly else to tell ya except you need to add some into your diet b/c other then the 2 egg yolks and the every so often nut butter sandwich you have no fats in there. Start by adding some flax/olive oil and some fish oil caps to your diet. That should put you easily into the 4k range without much effort.

What is your macro break down?

Macros...

Where do i get that? fitday.com

Macros are total protein/fat/carbs for the day. Should be listed at the top of your fitday plan, or whatever in the pie chart. mmmmm pie..

I am starving on 3500cals.. damn.

Macros=total of calories from each fat/protein/carb

For every gram of protein & carb its 4 calories and for every gram of fat its 9 calories. Dependign on your cal range and how you split your calories up depends on where you need to icnrease. Figure out how many g's of p/f/c's your taking in and adjust from there for your goals.

Originally Posted by PreMier

I am starving on 3500cals.. damn.

Well not all of us can be monsters like you prem!! LOL

Thanks Premier...thats what I thought!

Here are my macros from yesterday...

source grams cals %total
Total: 3165
Fat: 82 737 23%

Carbs: 286 1084 34%

Protein: 353 1413 44%

I'm right there with you Chris...I can't seem to continually eat 3500 cal's a day myself. I've added a lot more nuts to my diet though to bump up my cals.

Whats your weight? That seems to be alot of protein and not enough carbs for a bulk. Most would go higher carbs to protein during a bulk...more protein less carbs on the cut more carbs less protein on a bulk.

I'd say you could up your fats some by adding in some efa's and you should be fine for now. Gradually increase the cals to minimize the fat gains.

yeah, i guess in looking at my macros my carbs could be a good bit higher. I'll definitely get myself more EFAs into my diet. Those macros are particularly protein rich though...b/c i had 3 whey shakes of two scoops each, and was determined to take in more cals than normal....and when i do that, i have a tendency to gravitate towards protein in an effort to keep it "clean". Be it right or wrong...force of habit, i guess.

I weigh about 185 right now...just shy of 5'9".

Originally Posted by ChrisROCK

yeah, i guess in looking at my macros my carbs could be a good bit higher. I'll definitely get myself more EFAs into my diet. Those macros are particularly protein rich though...b/c i had 3 whey shakes of two scoops each, and was determined to take in more cals than normal....and when i do that, i have a tendency to gravitate towards protein in an effort to keep it "clean". Be it right or wrong...force of habit, i guess.

I weigh about 185 right now...just shy of 5'9".

To much protein will induce fat storage...just a thought for ya bud...well rounded meals are a better choice then loading up on a shit load of protein.

Originally Posted by DeadBolt

To much protein will induce fat storage...

excess protein intake DOES NOT trigger lipid biosynthesis in the same manner and at the same rate as carbohydrates and fats.

Originally Posted by ChrisROCK

Welp, perhaps I'm taking in more than I think I am...but according to fitday, I'm not. Of course, maybe my measurements or approximations of amounts are off.

Lets see, a typical day consists of:

6 AM: 2 scoops whey with water (too much milk doesn't sit well with me)

8 AM: 2 whole eggs/3 EWs (sometimes with cheese and/or ham), coffee

11 AM: Medium chicken breast, 1 cup brown rice

1:30 PM: 1 to 2 Cans tuna/light mayo on Whole Wheat, Apple

4 PM: Medium Chicken Breast Or Salmon Steak, 1 cup sweet potato

7 PM: PWO Shake - 2 scoops whey, banana, 1 cup milk, 1 cup oats... / 1 cup sportsdrink

8 PM: One of Chicken/Fish/Skirt Steak, Sweet Potato, green veggie

10: 1/2 to 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese.


That's it more or less. I often will throw in a Natty PB/Jelly sandwich as well as a snack. I probably could use more healthy nuts like almonds and cashews. Do those add much in the way of cals?

Dude, where's the carbs at breakfast? Where's the fats? More veggies needed also!