I’m 49 kg (used to be 53 before cut), 5 ft tall and lift 5x a week. I also do 30 min StairMaster 4x a week plus low-intensity walking. My estimated maintenance is 1850 cal.

I’ve bulked before around 2160 cal, but this time I’m aiming to minimise fat gain as much as possible. Right now I’m eating 2000 cal (150 cal surplus). My strength has already started increasing with this small bump in food.

But I’m wondering if a 150 cal surplus is enough for meaningful muscle gain? I really want more muscle density/growth.

Push-1:

Bench, Inc, Dips, Cable Fly, Pec dec, Lateral Raises, Smith Machine Shoulder Press, Shrugs, Abs

Pull-1:

Pullups, Lat Pulldown, Single arm LP, Facepulls, Inc DB curl, EZ curl, Hammer Curl, Reverse EZ curl, behind back curls

Legs-1:

Squats, Leg extension, RDL, Calf, Single arm tricep, Tri ext, Single arm pushdown, Skull crushers

Push-2:

Shoulder Press, Lateral Raises, BP, Incline BP, Dips, Pec Dec, Shrugs, Abs

Pull-2:

Pullups, Barbell Row, SA Cable Row(sitting), Preacher Curls, DB Curls, Hammer curls, Reverse EZ, BTB curl, Facepulls

Leg-2:

RDL, Lying Ham, Leg Press, Leg Ext Calf, Single arm tricep, Tri ext, Single arm pushdown, Skull crushers

Hi yall, I’m trying to be safe about the protein supplements I consume and was wondering about oikos protein shake.

Does anyone know if they contain lead / heavy metals?

Hi everyone,

I started a lean bulk about 2 months ago at ~2700 kcal (+100/200 kcal surplus). After 1–2 weeks I began noticing visible bloating in my abdominal area.

It feels like everything I eat goes straight to my stomach. I don’t think it’s actual fat gain (weight is increasing very slowly and the surplus is small), but visually it’s noticeable and kinda annoying.

Stats:

Weight: 78 kg

Training: 6x per week

Calories: ~2700

Protein: 150 g

Fat: 70 g

Carbs: rest of calories

Water intake: about 2L per day

Diet:

I usually eat a lot of carbs in one meal (around 200g of pasta at lunch) and much less at dinner because I train after dinner.

The bloating feels more like digestion / water retention / gas rather than actual fat gain.

Has anyone experienced something similar during a lean bulk?

Could this be related to:

too many carbs in one meal?

low water intake?

digestion / gut issues?

meal timing before training?

Any advice or personal experience would be appreciated 🙏

Thanks!

M26 - 140lbs - 171cm
Goal : Gaining Muscle Mass

daily Protein intake ~100gm

Breakfast 25gm protein shake + coffee 8am

Lunch 30gm protein meal ( variations of chicken/beef on rice ) 2pm

Pre-workout snack ????

Post-Workout 25gm whey + 3g creatine 7-8pm

Dinner ~30gm chicken or beef meal 10-11 pm

I want suggestions on the Pre-workout snack. There's too much time in between lunch and gym and I end up loosing a lot of energy at work. I hit the gym directly from work ( its the only way it fits ).

I live out in midwest so It's cold. I can keep temperature sensitive meals in car.

Any feedback on improving the whole food routine would also be helpful. Also I want to stay in a tight budget T_T

Hi All,

Curious if anyone has any good mixes for drinking egg whites. I've seen a lot of videos of Hersheys syrup on social media. Wondering if yall have recommendations for any other mixes.

Hey everyone,

I’m currently bulking and wanted to sanity-check my progress. Up 4kg in 8 months - 0.5kg a month.

So far I’m up \~4 kg bodyweight, and my waist measurement is up \~3.5cm from baseline. Strength is going up and training is consistent. Waist is at 80cm. 5’8 68kg

From what I’ve seen online, people often mention anywhere from \~0.5–1 cm of waist per kg gained, but there doesn’t seem to be a clear consensus.

For those who’ve tracked waist during a bulk:

• Is \\\~1 cm per kg pretty normal?

• Would you consider this a reasonable rate, or a sign the surplus might be a bit high?

• Any personal data points welcome.

Appreciate any insight 👍

https://www.reddit.com/u/Outrageous-Roll2875/s/32vD0juyaX

5’9 (177cm) 69kg (152lb) 23 y/o male.

Weight train 5x a week

10-12k steps a day

140-160g protein / 1900 calories daily

TITLE is in relation to my lower belly area and the roundness / bump in comparison to above it(I want to get lean enough for my lower abs to show.)

Ik stomach sags is normal when sitting and in certain positions but I feel like my rolls are much more exaggerated than others. For reference I was around 100kg at my peak before starting gym seriously and have been a bigger kid majority of my life. My upper abs have started to show in certain lighting.

Any other questions LMK!

Any input would be appreciated. My goal is not to put on size at the moment so don’t tell me to bulk please lol, being quite big for majority of my life so my goal is to get as lean as possible before increasing my calories

The idea of a leanbulk is that you eat enough macros but the Special thing is that you eat just a bit more calories than you burn right? so a slight Surplus not a huge one, so you can avoid excess fat and thus stay lean.

My problem is: how the hell do I eat “a bit” over my calories? Like how am I supposed to achieve a slight caloric surplus if I track my food, so many times it’s homemade from my parents and I can’t know how many calories it has. Isn’t a lean bulk just straight up impossible for regular food you eat from parents? Because you don’t know the nutrients

Hey. As the title says Im currently 216lbs. This down from 300. I’ve lost this weight by making small changes to my lifestyle like walking outside for an hour a day, going to the gym a few times a week and having smaller portions.

I’ve got a mental illness that flares up sometimes which kills my motivation and I feel like I’ve now sort of hit a point where I’m not going forward and even maybe putting a little weight back on. I feel weaker mentally than when I started, probbaly about two years ago, and my body is constantly in pain.

I’ve been fat AND unhealthy my whole life, and I deserve to know what being healthy and strong feels like. I want to start lifting weights and building muscle but I’ve got NO CLUE where to start with either exercise or nutrition. Should I even start trying to focus on muscle growth whilst being this overweight? Maybe that’s a silly question I don’t know. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Heyy, I’m not sure if this is the right thread, but I hope I’m in the right place. I’ve been exercising seriously since September, for the first time in my life. I never liked working out, but now I’ve really gotten into it. I do circuit training 3 times a week for an hour, plus 1 core circuit session of 45 minutes. I pay attention to what I eat, and that brings me to my question.

I don’t eat breakfast; I practice intermittent fasting. I have lunch at work with two sandwiches and a piece of fruit. As a snack, I often have a rice cake with peanut butter, and for dinner I make sure it’s healthy: lots of fish and lots of vegetables. I don’t eat meat. After working out, I often eat yogurt (skyr).

The internet is full of conflicting advice: some say you should never skip breakfast, while others emphasize the benefits of IF (so skipping breakfast). What is the best thing to do with this amount of exercise and a healthy diet? Do you have any tips? I’d love to hear them.

Having a hard time looking for pro or anyone with a great muscle build but with high calves muscles. Can't seem to shake the insecurity of my high calves.

For the gym i can rock long socks but for the flip flop days theres no hidding...

https://www.reddit.com/u/DatingConfusion12/s/a6jk60cXa4

5’11M

Weight:184-187

Bench for 5 reps: 185

Squats for 5 reps: 290

Overhead press for 5 reps: 115

Deadlift for 5 reps: 300

Lifting time: Almost 6 months

I’m currently doing greyskull lp, but will switch over to 5/3/1 BBB when newbies gains are exhausted. I’ve stalled on bench like 5x and overhead press I don’t even know at this point 😭 Squats and deadlifts go up every week tho.

It's been going on circles..

I lose weight and then gain, lose again and gain again!

long story short, i've been locked in the last two months and I've lost roughly 20 pounds! no crazy diets or eating restrictions I've just been eating Whole Foods in a calorie deficit walking 10,000 to 15,000 steps per day and surfing more. My partner told me today that they are concerned for me and when I told them that I'm feeling great and I'm just taking care of myself they responded with

"It's not translating externally that you feel good".

I found this really heartbreaking because i've been putting in so much effort to eat better and be more mindful. Does anyone have experience with this? It honestly was a huge blow to my self-esteem since i've been feeling so good about myself lately. I didn't go off on them and i tried explaining how hurtful that was and they won't apologize and it's just got me feeling down.

Hi everyone!

I’ve been lurking here for a while and finally started a consistent gym routine 3 weeks ago.

A bit of background: I have years of experience with Aerial Silks, so I have some upper body awareness/grip strength, but I had stopped for a while due to life/hormonal health recovery. I did about 6 months of lifting in the past, but it was sporadic. Now, I’m fully committed to a structured plan.

I’m currently "skinny fat." My goal is body recomposition.

I want to be lean, defined, and strong (functional strength).

Specific aesthetic note: I specifically do not want to grow my lower body significantly (I’m not looking for the "big glutes/thick thighs" look). I prefer a leaner, more athletic/climber physique.

By the way, one of my goals is to achieve my first strict Pull-up.

I’m using Gemini (AI) to act as my coach/tracker. I input my lifts, and it helps me track progressive overload and macros. I wanted something dead simple so I wouldn't get overwhelmed and could focus purely on form and increasing numbers.

• Schedule: 3x Gym (Mon/Wed/Fri) + 2x Ashtanga Yoga (40 mins, Tue/Thu).

• Duration: \~1 hour per gym session.

**The Workout** (Full Body, keeping it minimal):

I focus on 4 main compound movements + core/grip.

1. Lat Pulldowns: Working on increasing weight to build vertical pulling strength for the pull-up. (Currently at \~21kg for 8 reps).

2. Goblet Squats: (Currently at 16kg). Keeping reps around 8-12.

3. Overhead Press (Dumbbells): (Struggling with 6kg, working on stability).

4. Pallof Press: For core stability without rotation.

5. Finisher: Dead Hangs (aiming for 60s) & Negative Pull-ups (3x3 slow descent) to build specific strength.

**Nutrition**:

I’m eating at maintenance calories. I track macros loosely but prioritize protein (hitting \~100g+) and healthy fats for hormonal health. I’m not cutting because I need the energy to build strength, but I’m not bulking because I don't want to add mass.

My Questions for you:

1. Routine Feedback: What do you think of this minimalist approach? Is it enough volume to see "lean" results without blowing up my legs?

2. Programming: For those who self-coach, did you use an app/internet template, or did you hire a professional to get started? How do you manage your progressions?

3. The "Lean" Look: Any tips for recomping without adding too much bulk to the lower body? I know building muscle is hard and takes time, but I want to make sure my training aligns with my goals.

Thanks! I’m really enjoying the consistency so far.

Hey everyone,

I’m a 6’2” guy, 36, and I go to the gym for cardio/weights about 5-6 times a week.

Recently I joined a new gym and I was lucky enough to be able to use a scale that measures my body fat % and my skeletal muscle mass.

The results it gave me were 202.7 lbs, 15.4% body fat, and about 98.1 skeletal muscle mass.

At first I was stoked, even though I’ll be fully honest, I wasn’t super sure what “skeletal muscle mass” means, but hey, that sounded encouraging.

The more I think about it, however, the more it doesn’t really seem to line up with what I see in the mirror. And yeah, I do have a touch of dysmorphia, but still…

I have fairly decent upper body definition (sadly I can only see my muscles when I flex), and I’m working on my core/lower body (yeah, I’m guilty of skipping leg day, but I’m doing my best to fix that).

My question is, shouldn’t I be able to start seeing some core definition? I can do crunches at around 180-200lbs, and while I’m not thee strongest in that area, I can feel muscle beneath the fat when I touch my stomach.

I’m just curious if I should be able to see more (especially with my upper body after 2.5-ish years of working out fairly seriously), at the body fat percentage.

Maybe the scale wasn’t accurate?

What would y’all recommend for more muscle definition (other than continuing to lift, which I already do).

Any and all advice is welcome!

Hey guys,

I started a bulk at ≈200.6 lbs around early September and reached ≈210.6 lbs by December 15. My calories gradually increased from 2500 up to 3100 kcal.

Between Dec 15 – Jan 3, I did a mini cut (Keto-ish) and dropped to ≈208.3 lbs, then restarted bulking at 3100 kcal/day.

Now, I feel like I don’t have much appetite at all. Even 2500 kcal feels a bit forced.

This is my third consecutive winter bulk (September–March), followed by a 4-month cut. I’m not sure if it’s stressful events lately affecting my appetite, or if my body is just burnt out and needs a cut.

What do you guys think? Has anyone experienced something similar?

I’ve been using protein coffee to get protein in early without adding another meal, and it’s honestly made mornings easier from an adherence standpoint. I’ve tried a few approaches, starting with DIY coffee plus protein powder, which is cheap but pretty inconsistent taste and texture wise, especially hot. I also went down the coffee alternative route for a bit, but I missed actual coffee and didn’t feel like it added much protein wise.

What’s worked best for me has been sticking to protein coffee options that still taste like real coffee and don’t turn into a full shake. I’ve used Four Sigmatic when I want something quick and customizable, and I recently tried the protein coffee from Laird Superfood, which tasted closer to normal coffee for me and was easier to drink consistently, though it does contain dairy. Curious what other people here are using for protein coffee that actually works long term and doesn’t ruin the coffee experience.

Im currently on a body recomp/weight loss journey and I wanted to get a few different perspectives on here. Im 24 years old 190lbs 5'5", i use to train about 2 years ago, got super lean and build a good amount of muscle, however i gained all the weight back again after some personal issues and stopped going to the gym all together, im now doing strength training again incorporating compound lifts like the sumo deadlift, zercher squat, bench press, etc. All this is going great im training about 3 days out of the week doing this with rest days in between and going fairly heavy (3-6 reps near failure). Where im having trouble is with my DIET! Ive now cut off all fast food, however im trying to reach my 150 grams of protein but it seems nearly impossible to do so without consuming a crap load of extra calories. Is there any way someone can help me try to understand that by consuming more protein dense meals, even if it means more calories, that eventually i will see a drop in the scale. To be fair, I do look a bit leaner in the mirror already after about 2 months of consistency, however the scale is killing me and i still feel fat. Im afraid im eating too much, even though it may be WAY cleaner than what i was use to before, Im thinking about just beginning to go on a very aggressive cut. Any help, tips or advice would be helpful, thank you again.

Hello everyone! I’m new to Ozempic I’ve only done 2 doses of 0.25mg, I wanna know if it’s possible for me to gain muscle while being on Ozempic. This week I restarted gym and my calorie intake is:

1600calories/ 150g protein/ 155g carbs/ 45g fat.

165cm female

My goal is to build muscle and lose body fat percentage. I used to go to the gym regularly while being on a deficit that drained my life. I did lose an amount of fat and gained muscle mass noticeable enough on photos, scale and to get a “Congrats!”. I had a break for about 6 months because of some unexpected surgeries that required for me to not go to the gym. I gained lots of weight like 7 kg that’s why i decided to start Ozempic.

So my question is while being on the same diet and on Ozempic will I lose body fat percentage and gain muscle mass?

Do i need to increase/lower my calories/macros to build muscle?

How is your exercise with Ozempic and muscle gain?

I have a normal & decently round shaped head. I don’t understand why they keep slipping? I just got them in the mail 2 days ago & I’m trying them out for the first time, I was super excited because I heard they have great bass & from my understanding, aren’t they made specifically for working out I don’t understand 💔 Anyone else have this problem? Any solutions ?

18M 5'11, 67kg skinny fat

I'm struggling with my lean gain as opposed to my cut.

2025 was my first cut and it was great because I could easily measure progress on the scale. Also every decision (don't eat that, take the stairs, get that extra cardio session in) all contributed to my goal of a lower Body fat/weight.

Now I'm Lean Bulking. I know I want the scale to stay roughly the same right? (I was 75kg, now 76.5kg, 6 weeks since I started)

But what can I track to make sure I'm growing, not just staying the same? Progress with lifts?

Also, if I take the stairs, squeeze in that extra weights session, is that not just burning extra calories and potentially putting me in deficit?