Adopting a bulking diet is a great way to up your calories, protein, carbs and fat intake. As a result, you will gain muscle and strength. You may also gain some body fat.
Richie talks all things bulking diets including common mistakes, the importance of calories and macros and how to gain the most muscle with the least body fat.
Basic Bulk
Richie talks through the most efficient way to carry out a bulk.
“With a dedicated bulking phase, you want to tailor your nutrition so you’re eating more calories than you need to maintain weight. This is called a calorie surplus and is essential for building as much muscle as possible. If you eat way more calories than you need, you run the risk of putting on a lot of extra body fat.”
Dreamer bulk
Richie then introduced another kind of bulk, which is less difficult to follow. You basically can eat anything. And everything... if you want.
“You just eat as much as possible of anything that’s not nailed down with the intention of putting on as much weight as possible. Don't get me wrong dreamer bulks do work. You will put on muscle, and you will gain strength, but you’ll also put on a load of extra body fat.”
This is a great option if you’re fine with the extra body fat, or if you’re happy to adopt a huge cut.
Looking out for your macros
Richie broke down the basics of nutrition which is essential for a successful bulk. If you’re not sure, here’s you quick guide.
Calories
“Calories provide the energy you need to fuel your workouts and for all the metabolic processes needed to build muscle”
Protein
“Protein provides the raw materials, amino acids, needed to construct your muscles. Protein also stimulates muscle protein synthesis (MPS), which is the process we use for building muscle tissue."
Carbs and Fat
“Getting sufficient fat is ESSENTIAL for maintaining a good hormonal environment that will be conductive to muscle growth. A lot fat diet, below 20% calories and fat is probably not a great idea for building muscle.”
Take Home Message
Check out the whole video for Richie to impart all of his wisdom about bulking diets to you. It’s important to remember, everyone is different so do your research about how many calories you need to adjust your diet by. Alternatively, you could try the dreamer bulk, as the name suggests, it’s just what dreams are made of.
Our articles should be used for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to be taken as medical advice. If you're concerned, consult a health professional before taking dietary supplements or introducing any major changes to your diet.
After completing an internship with Myprotein, Emily returned to university to finish her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management and Marketing.
With experience in lifestyle writing, Emily aims to entertain and educate through her work. Her focuses include recipes, real and inspiring stories, and working with writers to help provide easy-to-digest evidence-based research.
Her work on recipes has been previously featured in The Supplement magazine, with a particular focus on high-protein, nutritious meals, plus advice on how to properly fuel your body.
Outside of work, Emily’s top priority is food. She’s a self-professed star baker and a connoisseur of all things baked. In her spare time, she’s either cooking up a storm, our looking out for the opportunity to try out Manchester’s newest restaurants. But as a huge fan of carbs, if it’s not pasta or pasta-adjacent, she’s not interested.
If she’s not in the kitchen, she’s tucked up with a book for an early night, or you’ll find her in the gym working up a sweat. Afterall, all those carbs require quite the appetite.
