Bulking up...

[PackerManDan]

Hey guys...

I want to lose some weight (body fat) but bulk up (increase muscle mass and size) at the same time. I asked some other people and they said in order to lose weight I just have to have a good diet and do cardio exercise. So for the past few days I have started eating right (cutting out: chips, ice cream, cookies, etc...) and also eating less (6 small meals instead of 3 big meals) and I've been drinking lots of water, eating lots of fruit and vegetables and doing some cardio. I have lost about 2 pounds in the past 5 days so that is going fine. But I'm confused as far as the bulking up part goes. Because I heard to bulk up you need to eat A LOT. But I'm actually eating less now than I was before because I'm also trying to lose body fat so how do I eat more and bulk up when I'm eating less and losing some weight?

Are there any good diets for people like myself who want to have a combination of losing body fat but gaining muscle mass and bulk? Could anyone suggest some eating tips for me? Also as far as lifting weights goes: how many reps and sets of a specific weight should I do in my lifting exercises? How long should I wait in-between each set of the same exercise? And how long should I wait to start a new lifting exercise after I have just finished the previous one?

Would you suggest taking any supplements? Protein shakes, bars, Creatine, Muscle Milk? Any of these? And one last thing...do you think I should just break up my weight lifting routines into 2 categories for separate days like: Arms/Back ; Abs/Legs and work each of those twice a week maybe? Thank you in advance...sorry for the long drawn out question; I worded it as best I could.

[Maddwraph]

im not really sure on these subjects, but ill try and help.

as far as losing wieght and bulking up goes, im not sure its good to do them both at the same time. but if your trying to bulk up, protein is very good. that goes for the shakes as well. also, other people will probably ask you to out information about yourself (hieght, weight, age) so then they can help you with your weight training routine.

unfortunately, id love to help you more, but im not sure. sorry, but best of luck.

[PackerManDan]

^ Hey thanks anyways. I'm 20 years old, 6 foot 1 and I weigh 197lbs. As far as my weight training routine...I don't have one that's why I'm asking for some help here. I know all the exercises for all the muscle groups and different parts of the body. I am just not sure about how to gain muscle mass and size while losing some body fat.

[ncole_91]

Go search bodybuilding on google, you will find endless information.

[Maddwraph]

this might help http://www.fastmusclegain.com/

best of luck.

[PackerManDan]

Ugh I really hate this stuff. It confuses the hell out of me. I have been reading up for the past couple of hours on gaining muscle mass/losing body fat and I just have more questions than I did before.

Now I know that I need to be consuming anywhere from 1 - 1.5 grams of protein for every pound I weigh. So I need to consume anywhere from 200-300 grams of protein a day. I need to eat 6 meals a day with lots of carbohydrates too...even though I thought carbs were the "bad guys." Drink lots of water.

I don't know I'm still confused on what to eat at every meal. As far as what foods will give me the right amount of protein, carbs, fat, calories. There are all sorts of equations in gaining muscle mass that I'm just so confused now.

[ncole_91]

You might want to try to post questions on a bodybuilding forum. There you can get as much info as you need, and keep askin questions.

[SevenStar]

the best way to do this is to decide which you want to do first - lose or gain. The body cannot be in both a catabolic and anabolic state at the same time (I just posted this on another thread here, so you can do a search), so in order to be at your most efficient, do one then the other.

Look at bodybuilders - they gain weight in the off season. that's when they lift big, eat lots and bulk up. During the on season, they are cutting weight and getting ripped. If it were easy to do them both simultaneously, that's what they would do.

[PackerManDan]

Okay well I finally just consulted with an old friend of mine who is REALLY into lifting. I mean this guy is HUGE. So I was talking to him and telling him that I want to bulk up.

Now one thing I'm not sure about is...I'm 6 foot 1 inches tall and I weigh 200 lbs. He told me I should try and get 300 grams of protein everyday, which is understandable but he also said I should shoot for around 6,000 calories a day! Isn't that way too high? I was thinking it would be somewhere around like 3,500 - 4,000 calories.

[JusticeZero]

Mm.. no, 6,000 sounds about right for what you're asking to do, from what i've heard. If 6,000 sounds out of line it's because what you're trying to do is out of line - which is what people have been trying to say. It's exactly like how a girl wanting to lose 50 pounds in a short period of time would be told to reduce their intake to an absurd level - it's equally unhealthy but if you need to get that amount of change that's what you need. And the point has been brought up that it's not clear what the need is. It certainly isn't for health reasons.