Lean bulking requires a careful and calculated balance between working out and eating properly. Helpful Hint: Build more muscle mass during your bulking period with our 90-Day Advanced Challenge Fitplan! Lean bulking is much more flexible because you can make quick adjustments to your calorie intake and don’t run the risk of putting on lots of body fat before you realize you need to make adjustments. Say, for example, you were taking in 300 more calories than you needed, your body would have a much easier time turning the extra energy into muscle mass and not into body fat.īulking is challenging because it requires very close attention to your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) and there’s no way to know if it’s working other than monitoring your weight to see if you’re eating too much or too little. Lean bulking is a more modest version of the bulking phase with a more reasonable calorie surplus. While that certainly is better health-wise, even whole foods can cause lots of weight gain in large quantities. Of course, some people practice dirty bulking but don’t gorge on junk food. It can be hamburgers, tons of protein shakes, or even processed foods, as long as it has tons of calories it fits into the dirty bulk diet. In a dirty bulk, the caloric intake can come from any source. Some have side effects and health risks that will negate any muscle gains they give you and make the cutting phase that follows even more difficult. There are a few different bulking methods. Your body type might be built to create huge muscles, leading you to think your chosen method of bulking is unsuccessful. Most of these disagreements come from individual personal experiences that are likely to differ. Some even go so far as to say that bulking is completely unnecessary as long as you have the right fitness plan. Many in the fitness community are divided on bulking and the proper way to do it. To build muscle, the body needs a calorie surplus, so bodybuilders increase their caloric intake.
#Bulking and cutting for female beginners trial
( Note: Want our elite trainers to help you lean bulk? Start your Fitplan free trial today!)īulking is the opposite of cutting, which is a phase during which bodybuilders are dieting to get a calorie deficit so their body will burn off pesky body fat.
Understanding the difference between lean bulking with a moderate calorie surplus and dirty bulking with tons of dairy and fatty meat is key to getting the muscular build you want without gaining tons of body fat in the process.įor the cleanest and most effective bulking phase, follow the 10 tips in this guide for a truly powerful body. Your body needs a calorie surplus to build muscle, but an unhealthy balance or absence of macronutrients can cause it to build up fat stores instead.