Need advice on bulking

[cajunbob]

Hey all. I was looking for some good advice on bulking up and was hoping I could give you my stats and get some advice. So here goes nothing. . .

I started lifting weights 3-5x per week about 7 months ago. My workouts consist of about an hour of lifting followed by 15 minutes of cardio. I work out in the evenings after work. I am 25 years old and about 5'10" tall. Body type is ectomoprh with very thin bone structure. When I first started I weighed 150 lbs and was super skinny. Now I weigh 167lbs.

My current diet is as follows:

meal 1: 1/2 grapefrut, bowl of oatmeal, 2 whole eggs, 100% optimum whey protein shake (with 8oz skim, tbs peanut butter, and a bannana)
meal 2: 2 slices of beef jerky
meal 3: cottage cheese and pineapple slices
meal 4: chicken breast, 2 small baked potatoes, whey shake (same as morning shake)
meal 5: chicken breast, white rice, side of corn, EAS simply strawberry whey shake (8oz water, bannana, crushed ice, 4 small scoops whey)

The problem I have is that I have an insanely fast metabolism. I think most might consider this to be a bulking diet (works out to about 3400 calories). I thought it was, but my weight is not increasing. For example, it seems so extreme that if I spend a weekend away from home and miss a few meals (i.e. only have 2 meals a day instead of 5), I will drop 3-4 pounds very easily.

By the way, I guess I should point out that when I first started working out and weighed 150 lbs, I treated my body like shit when it came to diet. I would eat only 1-2 small meals a day. When I first started eating heavy, I was eating crappy stuff like McDonalds Deluxe Breakfasts and Wendy's Burgers. I think this is primarily how I gained the weight. I switched to the diet plan above about 2 months ago and now feel pretty lean at 167 lbs with the exception of a little fat on the abs.

My goal is that I would like to become a lean 190 lbs and eventually a lean 210 lbs.

Ok, enough information. . .time for the questions:

-What I did was by accident, but did I actually go through a bulking stage and not realize it?
-Is this how most bodybuilders bulk up?
-Bulk with fat and then cut or bulk with quality?
-Should I go out and purchase a weight gainer?
-Should I just add a few extra protein shakes to my diet?
-Should I eat what I am currently eating but add a ton of fattening foods?
-Based on the info I have given, how would you recommend I bulk?
-Any good articles or links on bulking techniques?


Sorry if this was a wordy email but any thoughts or suggestions would be helpful. . .

Thanks all,

Cajun Bob

 

[blood_drinker]

Cajun bob:

1) What I did was by accident, but did I actually go through a bulking stage and not realize it?

You mean the eating mcd and wendys? er...perhaps.
As long as this amounted to more than your AMR then yes, you did go through a bulking fase.

2) -Is this how most bodybuilders bulk up?
Most bbs bulk up with fast foods, since they are so huge, they need to attain 5000+ cals, so fast foods are usually a requirement to attain that high amount of cals.

3) -Bulk with fat and then cut or bulk with quality?
I attempt to maintain a balance of both. However, you need to bulk with anything and everything. Keep quailty in mind obviously (dont get 3000 cals from sugar pop)but definetely eat fast food and greasy oily crap. You have a fast metabolism ! dont sweat it...
Any fat gained will EASILY be leaned out through a cutting diet which obviously wont last long at all.

-Should I go out and purchase a weight gainer?
Not unless its convenience you are looking for. But a weight gainer in between meals wouldnt hurt. (note, you need BIG cals man, BIG). I say 4000 cals should get you a good start. You could even aim for more. Remember, fat for you will come off like mr . clean on a stain.

-Should I just add a few extra protein shakes to my diet?
Whoa, you got a lot of protein there. 1 g per pound while bulking is sufficient, although I like to aim for 1.5.
However, its not the norm .By the looks of it however, you got enough. make the count

-Should I eat what I am currently eating but add a ton of fattening foods?
yes

-Based on the info I have given, how would you recommend I bulk?
BULK as the name says. Go on the see food diet it works for you especially. see food, eat food. If you see a mcd while walking by, stop for 10 cheesburgers.

-Any good articles or links on bulking techniques?
No, but I suggest you fix a postworkout meal.
1g per KILO of bodyweight of simple carbs (like honey, fructose from juices like grape or apple, or dextrose, PLUS whey)

Good luck cajun bob

 

[zlivan]

I'd say if you're not eating a couple of burgers in a single meal or 5-6 whole eggs for breakfast - you aren't really bulking I hit McDonald's on a regular basis when bulking, but I like to skip fries and shakes. Excess fats and carbs won't do much good for me.