Thread: New Member..please critique my bulking diet

What are you maintenance cals? Are you gaining weight at the minute?

Im not entirely sure about my maintenance cals, and yes I have been steadily gaining weight and strength.

As long as your gaining weight, and getting at LEAST 1g of protein and 0.5g of fat per lb of lbm your good to go.

What does your training program look like?

double your protein itake post workout.
your diet sems right...you amy want to "clean" it up a bit if you up your calories tho...

Originally Posted by Moondogg

As long as your gaining weight, and getting at LEAST 1g of protein and 0.5g of fat per lb of lbm your good to go.

What does your training program look like?

Currently im doing
Mon- Chest/ Tris
Tues-Back/Bis
Wed- off
Thurs-Legs
Fri-Shoulders/ Traps

I do 3 exercises per body part, 3 sets per exercise, 4-6 rep range, heavy weight

just out of curiosity: how much did you weigh when you first started lifting?
you say youve never cut and mostly bulk but you look pretty lean!

Personally I like to recommend the least amount of protein supps possible and more real food. But some disagree with that and feel it doesnt make a difference. I will tell you though, that I personally use to rely on protein drinks because of their convenience and when I switched to real food (it was tough at first to feel full all the time) there was a noticeable increase in my gains. Is there a reason why you use supps for more than 1/2 of your protein intake?

From what I have read it doesnt seem to me like you are much of a hardgainer.
If that even exists lol!

IMO it looks like your routine could use a little retouching...

But it seems like if you just keep doing what your doing you will keep gaining.

keep us posted if you stagnate and we can help with some periodization.

Originally Posted by sendit08

just out of curiosity: how much did you weigh when you first started lifting?
you say youve never cut and mostly bulk but you look pretty lean!

Personally I like to recommend the least amount of protein supps possible and more real food. But some disagree with that and feel it doesnt make a difference. I will tell you though, that I personally use to rely on protein drinks because of their convenience and when I switched to real food (it was tough at first to feel full all the time) there was a noticeable increase in my gains. Is there a reason why you use supps for more than 1/2 of your protein intake?

From what I have read it doesnt seem to me like you are much of a hardgainer.
If that even exists lol!

IMO it looks like your routine could use a little retouching...

But it seems like if you just keep doing what your doing you will keep gaining.

keep us posted if you stagnate and we can help with some periodization.

When I first started doing the typical bench and curls routine with the occasional protein shake I was around 115lbs at 16 years old. I recently turned 19 and I am very content with my progress. And like you said I take in alot of my protein from my shakes because I find it more convenient and cheaper than buying food.

PS: I jut did the math. I get around 48g from whey, 24g from casein, 20g from shotgun, and 12 from serious mass. Which puts it at around 38 percent of my total intake. Does that sound better?

Originally Posted by sendit08

IMO it looks like your routine could use a little retouching...

Could you elaborate on this please? Any input helps.

What lifts and rep ranges do you do? How much do you lift for these exercises? How many sets?

Originally Posted by CCG 24

Could you elaborate on this please? Any input helps.

your muscles dont really care if you think you are focusing on your chest or your shoulders. when you bench press your shoulders, lats, triceps, and many more muscles are involved.
if you concentrated more on the overall movement (push pull, lower body, etc) you can get a better scope of how much volume your body can handle. this will help you achieve the maximum amount of growth in accordance to your diet.

also... 50lbs in less than 50 months... naturally... you are by no means a hardgainer... I would say you have some pretty good genes considering how lean you still are. you most likely wont keep gaining at this rate but dont let that keep you from working hard.

Originally Posted by Built

What lifts and rep ranges do you do? How much do you lift for these exercises? How many sets?

(Based on my most recent workouts)
Mon- Barbell Bench 3 x 6 295lbs
Incline dumbbell press 3 x 4-6 100lb Dbs
Decline Hammer Strength Machine 3 x 4-6 360lbs
Close Grip BP 3 x 4-6 225lb
Overhead Tricep Extension 3x 4-6 80lb db
Hammer Strength Dip Machine 3 x 4-6 270lbs

Tues- Deadlift 3 x 4-6 365lbs
BB row 3 x 4-6 205lbs
Wide grip pull ups 3 x 4-6
Db row 3 x 4-6 100lb Dbs
BB curl 3 x 4-6 105 lbs
Dumbell Preacher curl 3 x 4-6 45lb Db
Db preacher hammer curl 3 x 4-6 40lb Db

Thurs- BB squat 3 x 4-6 315lbs
BB SLDLs 3 x 4-6 315lbs
Db Lunges 3 x 4-6 85lb Dbs
Calf raises 6 x 8-12

Friday- BB military press 3 x 4-6 145lbs
Db front raises 3 x 4-6 40lb Db
Db side raise 3 x 4-6 35lb
Shrugs 6 x 6-8

Yea, I would like to see your exact training routine as well.

Also, how often do you change it up and when/if you do what exactly do you switch up?

Personally, I'm not a big fan of chest/tri's and back/bi's. I used to do that when I first started lifting and it pre exhaust the muscle way to much for my liking.

Originally Posted by sendit08

your muscles dont really care if you think you are focusing on your chest or your shoulders. when you bench press your shoulders, lats, triceps, and many more muscles are involved.
if you concentrated more on the overall movement (push pull, lower body, etc) you can get a better scope of how much volume your body can handle. this will help you achieve the maximum amount of growth in accordance to your diet.

also... 50lbs in less than 50 months... naturally... you are by no means a hardgainer... I would say you have some pretty good genes considering how lean you still are. you most likely wont keep gaining at this rate but dont let that keep you from working hard.

I guess I considered myself a hardgainer because I was young, stupid, and barely ate. My training and diet were horrible.

Originally Posted by CCG 24

I guess I considered myself a hardgainer because I was young, stupid, and barely ate. My training and diet were horrible.

yes that is what I was getting at..
Ive read more than one published article that claim this type of attitude alone (the Hardgainer attitude) could limit your potential. its somewhere in the archives, pretty good read, check it out!

your lifts are pretty impressive for your age...
you should start logging your workouts. You can do it privately on you can do it on this forum in the journal section. It is a really good way to watch your progress and set short and long term attainable goals.