The Clean Bulking Guide For Powerlifters

October 5, 2017J. HuffNo Comments

Not knocking the body builders out there, but. . . powerlifting is better. Who cares how big you are if you can’t throw your body weight over your head with seeming no effort and smile while doing it? Sure bodybuilders look better usually, but are they?

Nah. . .

But there may be somethings that powerlifters can learn from body builders. And that is the art of the bulk. Now I know, I know, bulking is a pain the butt and seems pretty pointless if you’re going just for strength, but not bulking can also have some pretty bad consequences. Do you remember the last time you stalled?

Yeah a bulk can help.

So I’ve scoured the internet for the bodybuilders’ secrets to a clean bulk that won’t leave you grossly huge, but definitely jacked.

1. Full Body Lifts

When you think of a bodybuilder do you think of the big olympic lifts? Or those crazy full body routines? That’s probably something that is more in your range, but you could probably amp up your usage for a real bulk.

This is something that many claim is their big secret to bulking up when they need to, it has some great benefits that a lot of people don’t think about.

You can almost entirely cut out cardio, one of your big gain killers.
Greater anabolic hormone stimulation, which is necessary for muscle growth.
They take less time to build muscle and less time+harder workout=better rest/gains
You’re still getting a killer workout.

This tip isn’t too scary to adjust if you’re already strength training, it’s more like: “don’t skip olympic lift day”.

2. More sets

One of the best things you can do for a bulk is to do more sets rather than more reps… I know, it seems like just semantics, but the logic is there. Growth is caused by two things, the contraction (i.e. stress) on the muscle fibers, and the release of stress which lets hormones and other goodies get in and start building (i.e. when you get swole at the gym). So rather than adding in another few reps per set which would build endurance, add another set which will add a stress period to your muscles and give you an extra break.

3. Slow Cardio Once A Week

AND. . . probably the best news you’ll hear all week… in a bulk you have to cut down your cardio to once a week, and take your sweet time doing it.

Cardio will always be essential, but maybe not to the same extremes as you were doing while building endurance or working on a cut. Doing a slow cardio session once a week will help your body remain some semblance of the endurance you’ve built up without holding back any gains.

You want to restrict cardio like this also because you should be pushing your muscles harder in strength training, and adding intense cardio can lead you to overtrain

4. Reverse Dieting

One of the major misconceptions everyone has about bulking is that you have to put a ton of weight on in order for it to be effective. This mindset leads to dirty bulking and frustration. There is a relatively new, and healthier way to bulk that can keep your lean gains while still resulting in gains.

Reverse dieting came into existence somewhere around the same time IIFYM did, as long as it fits in your macros your bulk should be slow but effective. Bodybuilders are engaging in this process, especially in competition prep, because it is healthier and more sustainable.

You would start this program at your base calorie rate, whatever you’re eating right now that has you plateauing. Then you begin adjusting. So say I am eating at maintenance level, which would be about 1800 calories for my activity level.

You should map the grams of protein, fat, and carbs and balance them.
Then start to add a few grams every week, the ratio would be something like 5:3:1; 5 carbs to 3 grams of protein to one gram of fat.
By the time you’re in the “official bulking phase” you should be eating between 2100 and 2300 and would be building muscle rather than putting on fat.

This mindset is great because it gives you a better relationship with food and it is much more sustainable. This is a form of bulking that you could keep up throughout the year with little to no change, even with holidays and vacations.

5. Weight gainers

Weight gainers in any sense are absolutely necessary to a bulk, the problem is that most of the weight gainers you can get on the market are SUPER bad for you. They usually have ridiculous amounts of sugar in order to up your carbs, and that not only leads to more fat gain than anything, but puts you at risk for high blood sugar and a whole myriad of other issues.

But certain weight gainers can be tastier and better for you because you control what goes in them. AND the recipes to beef them up are usually so simple it’s pointless not to make them yourself anyways.

The basics of any mass gainers are:

Milk (or ice cream if you don’t mind the extra sugar)
Peanut butter
Bulking Protein powder: I recommend XPI’s Myobulk because it is much cleaner and safer than most!
Bananas
Oats

Obviously other stuff can be added to this, I prefer to add a little more fruit and a bit of creatine as well. But this is such an easy and delicious recipe that literally anyone could make it.

6. Supplements

Supplements are a game for most people, which ones will work in this instance and which ones are going to give you a nice bloat and make you hate your bulk. Unfortunately they are absolutely necessary for any sort of gains, but they don’t have to be painful.

The best products for bulking are ones that work with protein synthesis because they’re going to help your muscles get bigger while not adding a bunch of fat.

Protein: typically I would tell you to stick to an isolate because you won’t deal with a messy stomach. But if you’re looking to bulk you need to invest in a product that is built to help you grow. I recommend XPI’s Myobulk simply because you are getting 5 different types of protein to hit your muscles at every stage of muscle building.

Creatine: Creatine is hit or miss for a lot of people, the wrong product will leave you gassy and nauseous during your workout, especially if you don’t take it at the right time before going to the gym. But it’s essential for priming your body for legitimate muscle gains because of it’s impact on your strength throughout the workout. XPI’s Decacor is a fantastic creatine complex that won’t leave you feeling bloated or gross, and it comes at an excellent price.
Nitric Oxide: An N.O. product is helpful, although not essential. It dilates your blood vessels which allows more blood to go to your muscles which is great for easing soreness the next day and having that killer pump in your muscles. This is better for motivation, but pretty excellent regardless. Our product Myonox is an N.O. compound that was built for focus, pump, and energy at the gym.

The right products are absolutely necessary for real gains and a clean bulk and getting them doesn’t have to be difficult!

7. Rest

And last, but not least, resting. This is probably the most ignored part of bulking because “who can rest when there’s gains to make?” The problem is that many athletes have full lives outside of the gym or have no lives outside of the gym, so they don’t get enough time to sleep, recoup, and rebuild.

Rest is a two-fold issue, either you’re not getting enough sleep or downtime in general, or you are overworking your muscles. Both can end up killing muscle growth and make bulking more difficult.

Typically it is best to get 8 hours of sleep at night minimum, and 48 hours before you rework a muscle. Don’t do legs 3 days in a row, but do alternate through several muscles throughout the week.

Being sure to give your muscles a full recovery period before activating them again will give you better gains and let you work for longer without getting burnt out.

Previous Post Does ‘No Sex’ Equal MORE Testosterone? Next Post It’s Time To Stop Pushing Through the Pain

MYOTEIN - 50% OFF - LIMITED TIME OFFER! CLICK HERE!