Any advice on lean bulking for a 5’6” 121 pounder?

[spiritualfriend]

Yo, I’m currently bulking and currently at 10% body fat (pics on my profile).

How much weight gain should I aim for on a weekly basis? I want majority of it to be more muscle or at least a 1:1 muscle-to-fat ratio.

Is it 0.2 lbs to 0.5 lbs per week or it should be okay to reach a maximum of 1 lb per week?

I really don’t wanna go above 0.5 lb per week since I’m worried maybe majority of it will be fat rather than muscle, is this scientifically true?

I’m also wondering until what weight should I bulk up to if I want to bulk up until 18% body fat max?

Should it be 165 lbs or less even like 150 lbs?

Really curious about this bulking phase as I don’t wanna pack that much fat and want majority of it to be muscle, just wanna know how to go about it.

It would be nice to hear feedback from other natural 5’6” dudes’ bulking phases and how they did theirs.

 

[mommajulesberry]

@spiritualfriend you are pretty fucking light. do not worry about bodyfat percentage. what rate can you realistically track and manage consistently? 0.5lb/week is probably the minimum as a noob to actually manage. i am on the side where i would rather not diet much and skew towards very relaxed bulks but chances are that it will be hard to properly manage a 3 year bulk without at least doing a few minicuts in between. training smarter and sleeping better will be your best tools.

 

[spiritualfriend]

@mommajulesberry Thanks man, I think I can manage to track 0.3 lbs to 0.5 lbs per week but I guess 0.5 lb per week is fine.

Can just bulk up to 155 lbs and cut down to 135-140 lbs

 

[wanderer61]

@spiritualfriend Dude eat. Eat everything. Anything.
You should be sitting at 150lb at a min.
How old are you?
Just train with a plan and intensity and eat. You'll grow

 

[derrickb]

@wanderer61 Don’t know why you’re getting downvoted. People on here really wanting to “lean bulk” at 120 lbs. sheesh

 

[csmnlm]

@derrickb Yeah, that’s true, this kid should not do a”lean bulk”. But I also don’t think he should just bulk from 121, to 150,unless he does it over the course of like a year or longer.

Like maybe six months? I don’t know a lot about bulking. But I don’t think it’s advisable for him to put on 30 pounds in just a few months.

 

[csmnlm]

@wanderer61 I’m at 150 pounds 5 foot seven and while I’m not fat or even chubby I don’t have a six pack or four pack and I’m currently cutting to get back down to like 146. I think if you tell a dude at 121 pounds to just go straight to 150 he’s just gonna be fat.

 

[dawn16]

@wanderer61 I'm his height at around 150lbs. I want to get ripped abs, but look big. Like lean muscular. Should I lean bulk at this rate?

 

[avalonforhim]

@spiritualfriend do 1 pound a week, its hard to track anything less than 1 pound. You also are new to the gym so it should be okay to bulk more aggressively

 

[oregongirl1]

@avalonforhim You can easily track 0.5 lbs per week, what are you talking about.

 

[avalonforhim]

@oregongirl1 Okay mayhaps for a 120 pound person but as a 200+ person i can have fluctuations greater than half a pound so it throws off tracking tissue gain.

He needs to do around 0.5% weekly

 

[spiritualfriend]

@avalonforhim Thanks but I’m worried it would be fat in majority?

Is it not the case? I’ve looked around other 5’6” bulk phases and when they did more than 0.5 lbs per week they got over 20% body fat in 1-3 years.

Considering I’ll bulk for about 30-36 months I’m worried about this

 

[avalonforhim]

@spiritualfriend you can do a mini cut, where for 4-6 weeks you cut 4-7 pounds of fat

 

[spiritualfriend]

@avalonforhim Thank you

 

[csmnlm]

@avalonforhim This is what I’m trying to do. I’m trying to balance between the 29 and 32 inch waist. It took me about a month to get from 29 to 32. So now I’m trying to cut back down to 29. I’m hoping to go up to 32 slower next time, I think I ate too much.

 

[avalonforhim]

@csmnlm dont be afraid to bulk. Also unless you are shirtless more so than the average person i wouldnt care too much about a six pack or 29 inch waist.

A natural is only gonna look like they lift when they arent super shredded. Atleast prior to having years or decades of muscle building

 

[csmnlm]

@avalonforhim Well I went from 29 to 32 in a month
I’m trying to go back down and then do it again but slower this time

 

[multifavs]

@avalonforhim Silly question I’m sure but would it be better to bill from 138lbs-145lb and then do a mini cut to trim up some fat or bulk on up to 148-150lbs and then do a legit cut to say 145?

 

[mmderivative]

@spiritualfriend LEAN bulk? Brother you weigh 120 pounds. You don't need "lean" anything

 

[confusedgirl98]

@spiritualfriend You should worry about packing on muscle, not packing on fat, at your stage.

0.5/lb a week is fine. Do that for like 2 years