# Bulking As a Skinny Guy



## roush18 (Aug 12, 2014)

Hey I'm new to this forum. I'll try to keep this short.

After 6 months of inconsistent diet and weight training and this previous month of consistent diet and weight training, I've gone from 5'5" 110lbs to 125 lbs. I still look pretty skinny from the outside but I've noticed with my shirt off, I've gotten a gut and look "fat". The fat has all gone to my abdominal area.

Is there any way i can minimize this noticeable fat gain, or is this what I should expect while bulking and should just continue what I'm doing?

I'm eating well over +500 cals of my maintenance, and I'm still fine tuning my diet to get to 40% protein 40% carbs and 20% fat.


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## bvs (Aug 12, 2014)

your diet may need tweaking 40% carbs seems pretty high and 40% protien seems pretty low. once you get going for a longer period of time on the bulk and add some muscle mass the little gut will be less noticeable. as men we naturally carry more fat around the belly area theres not much you can do to get around it


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## coltmc4545 (Aug 12, 2014)

Being that skinny I would continue to eat well above maintenance and not worry about gaining fat. I think 40/40/20 split is fine for your goals at this point. Just make sure you're eating good carbs and good fats.


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## CptFKNplanet (Aug 12, 2014)

coltmc4545 said:


> Being that skinny I would continue to eat well above maintenance and not worry about gaining fat. I think 40/40/20 split is fine for your goals at this point. Just make sure you're eating good carbs and good fats.



^ This.

Minimizing fat gain would be achieved by lowering your surplus... however I am agreeing with Colt and saying you should just continue eating without going too far overboard. Don't be afraid to lose sight of your abs for a while.


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## roush18 (Aug 12, 2014)

coltmc4545 said:


> Being that skinny I would continue to eat well above maintenance and not worry about gaining fat. I think 40/40/20 split is fine for your goals at this point. Just make sure you're eating good carbs and good fats.



Good carbs being..? Right now the majority of my carbs are from whole wheat bread, brown rice and potatoes.

Thanks for the reply!


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## roush18 (Aug 12, 2014)

CptFKNplanet said:


> ^ This.
> 
> Minimizing fat gain would be achieved by lowering your surplus... however I am agreeing with Colt and saying you should just continue eating without going too far overboard. Don't be afraid to lose sight of your abs for a while.



Understood, thanks for the advice.


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## roush18 (Aug 12, 2014)

bvs said:


> your diet may need tweaking 40% carbs seems pretty high and 40% protien seems pretty low. once you get going for a longer period of time on the bulk and add some muscle mass the little gut will be less noticeable. as men we naturally carry more fat around the belly area theres not much you can do to get around it



If I was to tweak my diet to your suggestion, would you say that 50/30/20 is good?


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## gymrat827 (Aug 12, 2014)

id still go 40/40/20.  

let you self gain some fat and than cut up once you have the weight/mass you want.


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## coltmc4545 (Aug 12, 2014)

It's amazing how much easier it is to cut fat then it is to build muscle. Try gaining 20 lbs of muscle in 60 days. I'm talking actual muscle, not water and muscle. It's next to impossible even on massive amounts of gear. But you can lose 20lbs of fat in 2 months. Worry about getting big and strong first. 

Good carbs being brown rice, sweet potatoes, potatoes, jasmine rice, oats, even apples and bananas.


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## gymrat827 (Aug 12, 2014)

coltmc4545 said:


> It's amazing how much easier it is to cut fat then it is to build muscle. Try gaining 20 lbs of muscle in 60 days. I'm talking actual muscle, not water and muscle. It's next to impossible even on massive amounts of gear. But you can lose 20lbs of fat in 2 months. Worry about getting big and strong first.
> 
> Good carbs being brown rice, sweet potatoes, potatoes, jasmine rice, oats, even apples and bananas.



oatmeal, apples, jasmine rice & potato's are mine.


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## Get Some (Aug 12, 2014)

set a goal for the weight you would like to achieve in a certain time period. Let's say that your goal weight is 150 lbs in 6 months. So, in reality you'll need to bulk to 165 or so and then cut off 15 lbs or so to get to your desired BF % and weight. From there you can reassess if you would like to gain more weight or just a little. Once you've gone through the entire process once, it will be that much easier to do it again.

for now....

go even further over your maintenance calories and eat more often. Eat right before you go to bed and eat big in the morning when you wake up. Schedule your complex carb meals for after workouts and make sure you are lifting pretty heavy and in the 5-8 rep range. I always find that any more than that is not beneficial for building muscle and any less with heavier weight is only good for powerlifting. 

Try to avoid protein shakes as much as you can. Normally I tell people to limit red meat to once or twice a week but for you I would say 4-5 times a week is fine for this period. Quality red meat is the absolute best muscle builder on the planet! Of course vary your protein intake with chicken, fish, etc. and be sure to log your progress both in the gym and with your diet.

WRITE DOWN YOUR GOALS AND ASPIRATIONS! If you don't write down your goals they are not goals, but rather merely a wish!


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## roush18 (Aug 13, 2014)

Get Some said:


> go even further over your maintenance calories and eat more often.



Yeah, about that.. I'm developing a much higher apetite now and eat a lot more. Im going way over my maintenance and recommended bulk caloric goal... Im supposed to eat around ~3200 calories a day but im finding myself naturually and easily going +1000 over that. Thoughts? I've read more isn't always better in body building.



Get Some said:


> Schedule your complex carb meals for after workouts and make sure you are lifting pretty heavy and in the 5-8 rep range. I always find that any more than that is not beneficial for building muscle and any less with heavier weight is only good for powerlifting.



So are you saying i can eat simple carbs pre workout and complex post? 
And regarding the 5-8 rep range, I'm going to try 5x5 for the first time. I plan to do it at least all of fall, and depending how it goes maybe all of winter too.


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## roush18 (Aug 13, 2014)

gymrat827 said:


> id still go 40/40/20.
> 
> let you self gain some fat and than cut up once you have the weight/mass you want.



As far as the 40/40/20 that i've been trying to achieve, it's been a bit challenging and confusing. After two days of anally counting all calories and macros, i've gotten 44% fat in my daily intake. Maybe i'm not eating clean enough? Today im trying to cut out the foods i see having the highest fat content, but the problem is theyre good foods that i think i should be eating so im kind of stuck on how to cut down the fat. The two things in my diet that had the highest fat content were peanut butter and milk so im cutting those two out for today's diet to see how low i can bring that 44% to. And by doing that i guess it gives me more room for carb and protein intake. Any advice is welcome!


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## transcend2007 (Aug 13, 2014)

I recommend keeping it simple....

1.  When you bulk ~ BULK!  Eat, eat EAT (as the Bro's in this thread have instructed).

2.  When you cut ~ CUT!  Calorie deficit, cardio, whatever it takes.

DO NOT TRY BOTH AT THE SAME TIME!


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## 69nites (Aug 13, 2014)

Eat lots and lift big weights.

Counting bulk macros is for us fat guys


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## Big Worm (Aug 13, 2014)

Gotta eat but eat good food like these guys have been telling you. If you turn into a fat slab of shit then its because you aren't training and using the food you are eating.


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