How to Bulk Up Fast (5 Tips for Hardgainers)

Prem Joshi

24 Sept 202414:39

Summary

TLDRThis video provides valuable insights on effective bulking strategies for building muscle. The speaker discusses common mistakes made during bulking and offers five essential tips for successful muscle gain. These include understanding when bulking is necessary, avoiding excessive fat gain, maintaining a gradual weight increase, tracking calories carefully, and focusing on muscle-building supplements like creatine. Additionally, the video emphasizes the importance of discipline, consistent effort, and a proper diet in achieving desired fitness goals, especially during a bulking phase.

Takeaways

💪 You should question if you actually need to bulk up. Bulking isn't always necessary and could lead to unwanted fat gain.
🍽️ If your body fat percentage is between 15-17%, you may not need to bulk. Instead, focus on maintaining your current physique with a good diet and workout routine.
⚖️ Gaining too much weight too fast during bulking results mostly in fat gain, not muscle. Aim for a slow and steady increase of 250-500g per week.
🔍 If you’re already lean with a body fat percentage around 10%, then you should bulk to build muscle, but do it gradually to avoid excessive fat gain.
📉 Bulking should stop when you start gaining too much fat, as it becomes harder to build muscle during the cutting phase.
📏 Track your calories meticulously, and increase them only if your weight isn't going up after a couple of weeks.
🚫 There’s no need to consume mass gainers. Instead, focus on tracking your daily caloric intake and consuming nutritious, whole foods.
🧃 Liquid calories, such as shakes with bananas, oats, peanut butter, and milk, can help meet your caloric goals without overloading on unnecessary supplements.
🏋️‍♂️ Creatine can be an effective supplement to enhance muscle size and strength by helping your muscles retain water, making them look fuller.
📊 Consistency is key—track your progress like a professional bodybuilder, adjusting food intake and workouts as needed to hit your goals.

Q & A

What is the main theme of the video?
-The video focuses on effective bulking strategies, the mistakes people commonly make during bulking, and provides tips on when and how to bulk for optimal muscle growth.
What should someone consider before starting a bulking phase?
-One should evaluate their current body fat percentage and overall physique. If their body fat is already high, it's better to avoid bulking and instead focus on maintaining or reducing fat. Only those with a low body fat percentage and insufficient muscle mass should consider bulking.
What is a common misconception about weight gain during bulking?
-A common misconception is that most of the weight gained during bulking will be muscle. In reality, a significant portion will be fat, especially if the caloric surplus is too high. This is why it's important to bulk slowly and carefully.
How should the weekly weight gain goal be set during bulking?
-The ideal weekly weight gain should be between 250 to 500 grams. Setting goals like gaining 10 kg in a month will result in mostly fat gain, which is counterproductive.
Why do some fitness influencers appear lean even during bulking?
-Fitness influencers often gain weight very slowly, with just 250 grams per week. This allows them to maintain a low body fat percentage and visible muscle definition throughout the bulking phase.
What is the recommendation if someone has a very low body fat percentage?
-If someone’s body fat percentage is extremely low (around 7-9%), they should bulk up by gradually increasing their weight by up to 1 kg per week until they reach a healthier body fat level.
What are some pitfalls of bulking too aggressively?
-Aggressive bulking can result in a high body fat percentage, making it difficult to cut down later without losing muscle mass. It can also lead to an undesirable physique, such as a bloated stomach and overall excess fat.
How should one approach calorie intake adjustments during bulking?
-Calorie intake should be increased gradually. For example, start with a certain number of calories, and if no weight gain is observed over two weeks, increase it by 150-200 calories.
What is a good strategy for someone struggling to gain weight due to low appetite?
-Incorporate liquid calories, like shakes with bananas, oats, peanut butter, and milk, to increase calorie intake without feeling overly full. If consuming shakes is difficult, consume these ingredients separately throughout the day.
Is it necessary to use mass gainers during bulking?
-No, using mass gainers is not necessary. It's more important to track your calorie and protein intake. Instead of mass gainers, one should focus on consuming whole foods that provide the required nutrients.
What is a recommended supplement for muscle gain during bulking?
-Creatine is recommended as a supplement during bulking as it helps increase muscle size and strength by storing water in the muscles, making them look fuller and enhancing workout performance.

Outlines

00:00

Importance of Assessing Body Fat Before Bulking

05:02

Ideal Weight Gain During Bulking

10:03

Managing Caloric Intake for Controlled Bulking

Benefits of Using Creatine for Strength and Muscle Growth

Avoiding Excuses and Fast Food in Bulking

Creating a Sustainable Bulking Plan

Committing to Consistent Weight Gain

Proper Calorie Tracking vs. Mass Gainers

How to Consume High-Calorie Meals

Personalized Coaching and Diet Plans

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Bulk Up

Bulk up refers to the process of increasing muscle mass by consuming more calories than the body burns, usually combined with weight training. In the video, the speaker emphasizes the importance of carefully managing calorie intake during the bulking process to avoid excessive fat gain and suggests that bulking may not always be necessary depending on one's current body fat percentage.

💡Calorie Surplus

Calorie surplus means consuming more calories than your body needs to maintain its current weight. This excess energy is used for muscle growth during the bulking phase. The speaker advises following a small calorie surplus of 250-500 grams per week for gradual and effective bulking to avoid unnecessary fat gain.

💡Body Fat Percentage

Body fat percentage is the proportion of fat in one's body compared to overall weight. In the video, the speaker explains that individuals with higher body fat (around 15-17%) should avoid bulking, while those with lower body fat (around 8-9%) may benefit from it to build muscle.

💡Muscle Gain

Muscle gain refers to the increase in muscle size through resistance training and adequate nutrition, particularly protein intake. The speaker stresses that muscle gain doesn't always require bulking, especially for those with a higher body fat percentage, as one can still increase muscle mass without significantly increasing body weight.

💡Cutting

Cutting is the process of reducing body fat while maintaining muscle mass, usually by eating in a calorie deficit. The speaker explains that excessive bulking can make the cutting phase more difficult, as the individual will need to lose the additional fat gained during the bulking phase.

💡Creatine

Creatine is a popular supplement used to increase strength and muscle mass by drawing water into the muscle cells. The speaker recommends using MuscleBlaze Creatine to enhance strength and muscle fullness during workouts, highlighting its benefits for both muscle size and performance.

💡Skinny Fat

Skinny fat describes individuals who appear thin but have a higher body fat percentage, with little muscle definition. The speaker mentions that people who are skinny fat may not see visible abs or muscle definition and should avoid aggressive bulking in favor of a more balanced approach to body composition.

💡Weight Gain

Weight gain is the overall increase in body mass, which can include both fat and muscle. The speaker advises against rapid weight gain, explaining that slow and steady increases of 250-500 grams per week will help minimize fat gain and focus more on muscle development.

💡Protein Intake

Protein intake refers to the amount of protein consumed, which is crucial for muscle repair and growth. The speaker emphasizes the importance of tracking daily protein intake to ensure adequate nutrition for muscle building and advises against relying solely on supplements like mass gainers.

💡Personalized Coaching

Personalized coaching involves tailored diet and workout plans designed for individual needs. The speaker offers personalized coaching services to help viewers with their bulking journey, ensuring they get customized nutrition and exercise guidance for optimal muscle gain without excessive fat.

Highlights

Assess if you actually need to bulk up; unnecessary weight gain won't be mostly muscle.

When starting out in the gym, the first assumption is that bulking is necessary to build muscle.

If your body fat percentage is around 15-17% with no visible abs, bulking isn't necessary.

Instead of bulking, maintaining weight while working out and following a good diet will still increase muscle.

Bulking too much can make it harder to build muscle during the cutting phase.

Gradually increase calories by 150-200 every two weeks if weight isn’t increasing, but do not rush it.

If your physique shows a body fat percentage of around 8-9% and lacks muscle, you should bulk.

Aim to gain just 250-500 grams per week during bulking to prevent excessive fat gain.

Professional fitness influencers bulk slowly, adding only 250 grams per week to retain muscle definition.

If your condition is extreme, you may need to increase weight by 1 kg weekly, but that’s not typical.

Avoid setting goals like gaining 10 kg in a month, as most of it will be fat with no benefits.

Track calories meticulously; even if bulking, you should not rush calorie increases unless needed.

You don’t need mass gainer supplements unless you’re tracking calories and protein intake properly.

Creatine supplements can help increase muscle size and strength by retaining water in muscles.

Fast metabolism and lack of appetite are common obstacles in bulking, but they can be managed through calculated calorie intake.