A common question among people looking to improve their body composition is, “How?” How long should I bulk up? for?”
While it seems simple, the answer is more nuanced than you might expect, mainly because it depends on several factors, including your starting point. body fat percentagegoals, preferences and level of experience.
However, most people want the same result when they bulk up: build muscle without gaining excess fat. With this in mind, we can establish some general guidelines.
A rule of thumb is to increase the volume until body fat percentage It reaches between 15 and 17% for men or between 25 and 27% for women.
In this article, you will learn why these are often good cut-off points and find out when stop increasing volume Before or after this, explore the results you can expect from a 1-month, 3-month, or 6-month bulk purchase, and more.
As How long should you bulk up? For?
There is no one-size-fits-all solution How long should you? in bulkIt depends on the following:
- Goals: If your goal is to gain a large amount of muscle mass, you will need to bulk up for longer than someone with more modest goals.
- Experience level: The more experienced you are with strength training, the longer it will take you… build muscle. Thus, while Beginners You may see quick gains as you bulk up, but experienced lifters generally need to bulk up for longer to make progress.
- From body fat percentage: If you start bulking up with a high weight body fat percentageYou may need to shorten your muscle mass to avoid excessive fat gain.
- Oversize: If you eat too much calories During volume increase, a greater percentage of the weight you gain will be fat, not muscle. Therefore, if overdo it As you bulk up, you may need to cut back to avoid gaining too much fat.
- Genetics: Some people Respond to training faster than others. If you respond more slowly, you may need to build muscle over a longer period of time.
Given these variables, setting a strict time limit for volume scaling is not practical – each scenario is simply too different.
For example, a lean beginner might need to bulk up for only a few months to gain 5 pounds of muscle, while a more advanced weightlifter with more body fat might need a year or more to gain the same amount while controlling their body fat percentage.
A more viable approach is to lean muscle mass for as long as possible and stop only when a point is reached. body fat percentage That seems too high for your preferences.
I have helped thousands of people achieve their goals. body composition goals, and in my experience this point is usually around 15-17% for men and 25-27% for women.
Note that I also said “gain lean muscle mass for as long as possible.”
This is crucial.
If you increase your body volume too quickly by eating too many calories (“dirty bulking”), too much of the weight you gain He will be fat, No muscle. As a result, you will reach a body fat percentage that is too high for your liking before you gain the amount of muscle you desire, forcing you to stop bulking and halt muscle gain.
When you bulk more conservatively (“lean bulking”), you don’t gain fat as quickly, allowing you to bulk (and build muscle) for longer.
How to gain lean muscle mass
To gain muscle mass correctly, you must calculate your lean muscle mass calories and macrosI’ll show you exactly how in a moment, but if you’d rather skip the number crunching, Take the Legion Diet Quiz.
Answer 9 simple questions and in just 60 seconds you will know exactly how many calories, how much of each macronutrient and what foods you should eat to successfully gain muscle mass.
Take our online diet quiz now to find your new science-based diet.
Or, if you prefer to learn the methodology behind the questionnaire and do the calculations yourself, here’s what you need to know:
- Calories to increase lean muscle mass: To maximize muscle gain and minimize fat gain, eat around 110% of your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE)For most people, this means consuming between 16 and 18 calories per pound of body weight per day. More specifically:
- If you are doing light activity (1 to 3 hours of exercise or vigorous activity per week), start with 16.
- If you are moderately active (4 to 6 hours of exercise or vigorous activity per week), go for 17, and then if you are not consistent, go for 17. gaining weight and strength, goes up to 18.
- If you are very active (more than 7 hours of exercise or vigorous activity per week), use This calculator of total daily energy expenditure to determine how many calories you should consume when you are increasing your muscle volume.
- If you are sedentary (no exercise or vigorous activity), you should not increase your muscle size because extra calories without resistance training will only make you fat.
- Macros to increase lean muscle mass: In addition to eating enough calories, it is essential to balance your intake of fats, carbohydrates and proteins (“macros”). Here we tell you how Calculate your macros For lean mass:
- Eat between 0.8 and 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight per day.
- Get 20-30% of your calories from fat.
- Get the rest of your calories (40-60%) from carbohydrates.
Or, if you want a more comprehensive guide to lean bulking (with a sample lean bulking meal plan), check out this article:
How to gain muscle mass properly
As How long should a batch last? Compared to a cut?
A 3:1 volume to definition ratio works well for most.
For example, if you bulk up for 6 months, spend the next 2 months court.
That being said, these numbers will likely change as you gain more experience with bulking and cutting.
Once you are good at controlling your calorie intake and can easily maintain health body fat percentageYou may prefer to shorten your cutting and bulking cycles by using mini cuts and lumps.
What does one do? Massive transformation Seems?
Most people overestimate how quickly their body will change while bulking. They imagine they will gain muscle mass after just a few weeks of eating more.
While new weightlifters may experience rapid muscle gain when they begin training (“rookie earnings”), progress slows significantly after the first 6 to 12 months of lifting.
And that’s why achieving truly impressive results often requires alternating between lean bulking and cutting phases several times
For example, the people pictured below dramatically changed their bodies with my body transformation training program, but it took them at least 1 year of volume increase and cutting to get there:
To get a more realistic perspective, let’s look at some examples of 1, 3, and 6 months. mass transformations From people in my body transformation coaching service.
These guys started bulking when they were already in pretty good shape, so they’re perfect for illustrating the results you can expect once you’ve gotten through the first few months of training. Just keep in mind that during this process, they had the guidance of an experienced trainer. Without one, your results may be different.
1 month Massive transformation
This is how Jeanon’s body changed after 1 month of volume increaseWhile the differences are subtle, you can notice that her upper body is a bit fuller in the “after” photo than in the “before” photo:
3 months Massive transformation
Jearon continued with his volume and this is how he progressed after 3 months of volume increaseTheir results are most pronounced in these images. In particular, their upper back, pectorals and arms are noticeably larger:
6 months Massive transformation
Eric did six months of bulking and this is how his body changed. While he clearly gained body mass in the upper body, his back—especially his dorsals—became significantly thicker and wider:
