Bulking up quickly and naturally is not easy. Still, it’s definitely possible to get bigger and stay cut with the right balance of nutrients and training. While careless bulking works for some guys, to others, it’s not always that obvious. Don’t just turn into a dump to gain a considerable amount of weight, then work on those newly formed fat and muscles hoping to burn all the belly fat. There are more efficient ways to go about it.
This post will go over how to bulk quickly and naturally without putting your health at risk.
How to Bulk Up Quickly
Eat More
It goes without saying, if you want to gain more muscle mass, then you need to increase your calorie intake, meaning eating way more than usual.
To put it simply, you should be consuming more calories than burning throughout the day. Otherwise, you won’t be able to grow muscle mass. That said, your diet should consist of nutritious, unprocessed foods rich in carbs, protein, healthy unsaturated fats, and essential nutrients required for muscle growth, energy boost, and sound health. Try to avoid processed, sugary and fatty foods that only promote fat gain.
Carbohydrates are essential for energy and to fuel your muscles when you exercise to incite muscle growth. Opt for complex carbohydrates like brown rice, whole grains, grainy bread, pasta, whole oats, and sweet potato. These types of carbs will supply you with ample energy.
Eat 4-5 Smaller Meals
Eating 4-5 smaller meals throughout the day guarantees that your body receives a consistent supply of fuel and amino acids to grow and rebuild muscles. Drinking a protein shake around 30 to 60 minutes after exercising will help promote muscle growth by increasing the production of anabolic hormones. Protein smoothies are another tremendous post-workout beverage made with healthy ingredients such as banana, berries, LSA, chia seeds, yogurt, and protein powder.
Up Your Protein Intake
Protein is essential for furnishing your body with amino acids, which are indispensable for growing and repairing muscles. Include some quality protein in your diet after each meal (snacks, protein shakes, nuts). Having protein after each meal helps increase amino acid levels to maximize muscle growth.
Opt for healthy, lean protein choices like lean meat, eggs, chicken, fish, legumes, and low-fat dairy foods. Healthy protein-rich snacks include quinoa, yogurt, nuts and seeds, and protein bars and powders. There are tons of protein powders on the market, so you are sure to find one you like. You don’t need to go overboard with these homemade protein shakes. Simply make some after breakfast and lunch and have a snack after dinner.
Note: Excessive amounts of protein can put your health at risk.
Keep Your Reps High
If you are serious about lean bulking, you should be serious about your workouts as well. If you’re the dude/dudette at the gym who half-assed his reps, pick yourself up and keep your reps high. Even if that means you have to bring the weight down to complete the total reps. The goal here is to stress the muscles long enough to incite growth. For most workouts, aim to achieve anywhere from 10-15 reps per set.
Include Some Drop Sets
Complete your regular lifting set until you crash. Then grab some weights that are slightly lighter and get as many reps in as you can. Doing so pushes your body to use every muscle fiber for total burnout, which equals accelerated growth.
Get Just Enough Cardio
Aim for a day or two of cardio a week! Doing so will help you avoid substantial fat gains and keep your heart healthy without burning off all the calories needed to bulk up. Keep it simple— go for a light jog, play some basketball at the gym.
One to two times a week include 20-30 minutes of cardio in your routine. You’ll steer clear of undesired fat gains and improve your heart health. You’ll also enhance your endurance so you can push harder during resistance training, which ultimately helps build more muscle mass.
Include Some Compound Movements
Get creative, mix your workouts with significant, compound movements such as squats, presses, deadlifts, and pullups, along with isolation exercises like curls or calf raises. Compound movements build strength and release more testosterone, which is an essential factor when bulking.
Get Enough Sleep
Your body releases the highest amount of growth hormone during sleep, a vital component to building a meaty yet ripped body. Your body also repairs its muscles during sleep. Meet your body halfway – get seven to eight hours of restful sleep every night.
Apply Time Under Tension
To grow more size and muscle, combine high-intensity workouts with high-volume. For example, do 10 to 15 reps per set to build your time under tension (TUT) and concentrate on hypertrophy. While regular strength training of 5 or 8 reps strengthens some muscle, many of the gains you want won’t happen until you optimize your reps.
Evaluate Yourself Before a Clean Bulk
Before you begin your clean bulking, evaluate your body’s muscle/fat ratio. Suppose you’re around 10% body fat or have visible abs. If that’s the case, your body can adequately spread nutrients between muscle and fat. However, predisposed skinny guys might have a more challenging time gaining muscle versus fat. We recommend you get your desired level of leanness first, then bulk your way up to meet your goals.
Takeaway
Want to go from a skinny guy to a swole badass? Follow these tips above and track your progress every four weeks (1 month). Now get out there, eat, and put in that extra work!
