The Incredible Bulk
Never let it be said that I pick the easy topics. This is, again, one of the most debated subjects in bodybuilding today. I think one of the reasons people argue about bulking is that they have completely different perceptions of the concept. Is bulking just an excuse to eat whatever you want with no guilt from the extra weight gains or is it a positive tool to pack on muscle? It can be one or the other and sometimes a little of both. Did you really think I was going to give you a simple answer? If you did, you haven’t been following along.
When I first started competing, mullets were cool, people were posing to Ratt, and I believed that I needed to gain as much weight as possible in the off-season to get bigger muscles. All of those things served me well at the time, but their time has long passed. I will not go into details about my former hairstyle or my musical taste, but I will tell you why gorging myself did work to some extent and why it doesn’t work for me now.
I was what you call extremely lean (skinny) when I was younger. It was mostly because I never sat still. When I started lifting weights, I ate everything that I could and it seemed to go to muscle. Starting from a very low body fat level, the extra fat just seemed to fill out my winter clothes better. At that point in my life, I needed all the extra nutrients I could get to make muscle and make it fast. Dieting for a contest was only a 4-week venture because I never had that much weight to lose (and because it was the only way I knew). Actually, I was pretty successful with this method for a while.
A few years later, I graduated from college and moved to Atlanta, Georgia. Once there, I tried to repeat the formula that had been so helpful to me in the past, and I failed to achieve the same level of success. After not placing well in a contest, I was forced to reevaluate my extreme bulking and cutting formula. I realized, as for bulking, more was not always better. For several reasons, I had packed on a lot more bulk in Atlanta than I did in College. One reason was that I could afford more food. Anyway, I was still trying to diet for only 4 weeks and that just didn’t get it anymore. The extreme bulking was followed by extreme weight loss and that made me lose most of the gains I had made. So, as for dieting, more (or longer) was probably better. Realizing my mistakes, I began to control my bulk better and diet longer. Soon, I was back to getting good marks from the judges on contest day.
Today, my whole perception of bulking is different than it was in the beginning. I try to eat only healthy foods and keep track of my intake for more accurate results. Also, I try not to gain too much weight after a show and I do more cardio in the bulking phase than before. A little extra weight can help you with strength training and gaining muscle size but too much can be unhealthy and just is more to take off later.
Filed under: Diet and Nutrition | Tagged: Diet and Nutrition, Hardcore Training
It sounds like you were like me growing up, bodywise–skinny with a fast metabolism. Now that I’m old I’m still skinny with a fast metabolism, unlike you. I do have some muscle and some definition, and I’m short. That makes me look bigger than I am. People guess I have 15″ biceps, when they’re more like 13 1/2, for example. I get frustrated at eating all the time, working out hard and not gaining weight. Maybe it’s a function of when one starts working out.