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Bulking Tip for Hardgainers

Elvia1023

AnaSCI VET / Donating Member
Oct 28, 2007
5,816
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38
Obviously in a perfect world we would all have 5-8 solid meals of nutritious food every day and all grow like we want. However for many they simply struggle due to time constraints, work and appetite issues etc. This is a very obvious tip but no one really does it. Many will think for good reason but hear me out. I must state it will be horrible for guys who put on fat fairly easily (well even then it could still work). Although it's ideal for "hardgainers" and "ectomorphic" type physiques. It's also ideal if you're like me and do this for fun and can't be bothered eating 8 solid meals around the clock daily. It's also great for guys with appetite issues.

So simple but try it if you want to really push the size without having to eat every 2 hours to get your required calories for the day in. You simply pick a very high calorie weightgainer and take 2 servings per day. I like to have one first thing and another post workout. You are best having them when most active. If you have an active job in the day then have 1 for your first 2 meals.

Obviously these shakes won't be nutritious and making your own is great but you want something that you will process fast. So 200g carbs from oats and sweet potatoes may be a nightmare for many. Maltodextrin and Waxy Maize are not great sources of carbs but for many they would work well.

I done this over the years with the likes of Mutant Mass by PSL but I prefer a lower fat contant. That may seem strange to many as fat means more calories but for me a lower fat product works best especially when it's loaded with 150g+ carbs. I am doing this now with Optimum Nutrition's Gold gainer which is 115g carbs, 55g protein and 12g fat.

I plan to up things now and my next product will be Carnivor's Mutant Mass Big Steer 1250. Each serving contains 255g carbs, 50g protein and 2.5g fat. This is ideal for me and means for my 2 shakes per day I am getting a massive 2500 cals and 505g carbs. These shakes will fill me up but it means for the rest of the day all I need to do is add some highly nutritious and high protein meals for me to reach my required cals for optimal growing.

This isn't for everyone and I know many will say this is a terrible idea but it can still be effective. It should go without stating your other meals in the day need to be very nutritious (high anti-oxidant) with greens and good quality sources of protein, fats and carbs.

There is more to this as well in the form of possible slin, lr3 and gda usage. In addition to other ergo aids such as hgh, synthetine and syntheselen to ensure minimal fat is gained as you grow.

A very simple method that anyone could do. It's important to monitor fasted blood glucose when consuming so many carbs. Some may require some aids or additional supplementation to keep insulin sensitivity high and stay healthy whilst growing. I think controlling inflammation through the likes of curcumin, alpha lipoic acid and krill oil (etc) is also extremely useful on such a diet.
 

Elvia1023

AnaSCI VET / Donating Member
Oct 28, 2007
5,816
14
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Yes that looks perfect for this as well. I just used their preworkout before and it's great.

EDIT- Yes that looks perfect for this as well. I just used their preworkout before and it's great. I also like to rotate whey and beef products as well so I could use both. There are loads of weightgainers on the market and most are crap but under the right circumstances can be used with great effect.
 

d2r2ddd

AnaSCI VET
Apr 27, 2013
2,611
0
36
www.anasci.org
Another one which I may consider is Dedicated Nutrition's #Gainz, their main carbs source is Oats.

I also like taking these gainers for pwo, might try using for bfast too;(
 

Elvia1023

AnaSCI VET / Donating Member
Oct 28, 2007
5,816
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I wanted to also add this is just 1 tip for certain people and under certain circumstances. It won't work for everyone and for many would be too many cals/carbs and make you fat. It could be used for hardgainers who have active jobs and perhaps they work long hours. It could be used for guys wanting to really pack on size/strength. There are so many variables and it's not a one size fits all. Many may be better using closer to 100g carbs per shake with the same protein. Others may prefer using whole food sources for the shakes including sweet potatoes, rice and oats. The faster carbs work best for me and my circumstances though. There can also be different stages to this as well.

Take me for example I will up my carb intake to the Carnivor's Big Steer 1250 product soon. However I am using 115g carbs per shake now so I am not going from zero to 250 straight off. I will also be adding in IGF-1 LR3 which will only aid in the utilization of those carbs. I am using 5ml synthetine per day and maybe even add slin in before these shakes. Then there is my tren intake that I started at 10mg per day and I am now at 32mg per day. By the time I start I will be at a max dose of 40-50mg per day. Then comes my long workouts and I just added in cardio as well. In a perfect world fasted cardio but I will settle for some fast paced stuff post workout :eek::D Then there are the digestive enzymes and the gda's etc. Lot's of different factors which minimize the chances of fat gain on such a diet.
 

Elvia1023

AnaSCI VET / Donating Member
Oct 28, 2007
5,816
14
38
Another tip is to drink it slowly. The problem with these high calorie shakes are they are obviously massive. It's a lot of powder so make it with plenty of water and drink it very slowly. Guys who drink quickly are pretty much guaranteed to get bloated and have some issues. You may still have issues drinking it slowly but it helps matters.

Nothing is exact but at least 20 mins. For me I would say 3 hours between larger meals sounds about right. So if I have a big shake I sometimes even drink it at my desk slowly over about 1 hour. That means your stomach isn't hit with such a large volume of fluids/cals straightaway. I sip it over about an hour and within approx 2 hours I can eat again. Definitely makes a big difference for me.
 

*Bio*

Super Moderator
Oct 30, 2012
2,454
5
38
And stay consistent! Can't mass up if you're not consistently moving iron!!
 

Elvia1023

AnaSCI VET / Donating Member
Oct 28, 2007
5,816
14
38
And stay consistent! Can't mass up if you're not consistently moving iron!!

Of course. That's another reason I don't become a fat mess on so many carbs. I usually train less days but right now and in the foreseeable future I am doing approx 2 hours 5-6 days per week. Now a guy training 3 days per week for 1 hour at a time not pushing the intensity shouldn't be having these shakes unless they have a very active job.
 

Slowmoe

Registered User
Feb 18, 2015
29
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When cruising on a TRT dose, how many calories above maintenance would equal fat gain if carb sources are properly chosen?
 

Viking

Registered User
Nov 11, 2011
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I do the same but with less carbs. Shakes really make a big difference in helping me reach my calories and protein for the day. Some act like shakes make you look worse than food which is something I have never noticed in myself.
 

Elvia1023

AnaSCI VET / Donating Member
Oct 28, 2007
5,816
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When cruising on a TRT dose, how many calories above maintenance would equal fat gain if carb sources are properly chosen?

That's impossble to answer. If you are over maintenance calories you could put on fat. However, your training is the obvious massive factor in all of this. Putting muscle on whilst using TRT is very possible (easy in some cases). Your current stats would dictate just how much room (how easy it would be) you have to go up. Meaning if you are 160 pounds at 16% bf you have room to put on large amounts of muscle (whilst losing bf at the same time). Now if you are 210 pounds at 7% on TRT you could be maxed out in a sense and have little room to build more muscle as you are at your genetic max.

Everyone also has a different capacity of possible muscle they can carry at TRT levels. I would simply start at 200 calories above maintenace and train very hard and use the right foods and go from there. You can move up when needed and whenever unnecessary fat is gained you lower accordingly. As I mentioned in this thread it's important to go up in stages (calories/carbs).

I do the same but with less carbs. Shakes really make a big difference in helping me reach my calories and protein for the day. Some act like shakes make you look worse than food which is something I have never noticed in myself.

Exactly. I do prefer using mainly whole foods when I don't have to hit high calories. So if I am cutting I tend to stick to whole foods and maybe some smoothies. In that event my shakes/smoothies are also much more balanced (no more than approx 80g carbs). Shakes are obviously very useful when consuming more cals than you want to eat :D
 

Elvia1023

AnaSCI VET / Donating Member
Oct 28, 2007
5,816
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38
I am still using 2 shakes most days. I am up to about 34mg tren a per day. I am also using synthetine/syntheselen which is a big factor in minimizing potential fat gain on such a high carb diet. Tonight I also added IGF-1 LR3 at 100mcg post workout. My 2 meals after dosing LR3 will always contain 150-200g carbs each. Tonight I had 200g carbs from pasta and then 150g from rice cereal. Although many days the first meal post inj will be a shake as discussed in this thread.

My plan is to carry this on and gain size, strength and fullness. Over time I will lower carbs and increase protein. During that time my shakes will also be much more balanced containing no more than approx 80g carbs.

I recommend if you want to do something like this to do so in cycles. It should go without stating to keep an eye on insulin sensitivity when consuming so many carbs. As already discussed high carbs can be a disaster for some people but in the right circumstances can have great effect. It's also important to move up in stages with all of this.
 

SURGE

Registered User
Aug 26, 2010
706
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0
I would get fat doing this as I am not active enough. It makes a lot of sense the way you outline it though. I may try this out as I get tired of eating but will go lower with the carbs each shake.
 

Elvia1023

AnaSCI VET / Donating Member
Oct 28, 2007
5,816
14
38
I would get fat doing this as I am not active enough. It makes a lot of sense the way you outline it though. I may try this out as I get tired of eating but will go lower with the carbs each shake.

As posted earlier everyone is different and there can be different stages to this as well. Many may be good adding in a weightgain shake of approx 50g protein and 100g carbs. Then they could add in another shake if they need. Obviously whole foods should be fundamental in your diet but these shakes can be extremely useful for some people and at certain times. I find them very useful when I am pushing the size and need extra calories. I simply would not eat as many calories from whole foods only and I need a lot to grow.
 

chooch69

Registered User
Dec 20, 2018
38
0
6
boy, i had to use a weightgainer shake with every meal because the amount of food i had to eat to get 4200 cals was daunting.
i put on 2 pounds a week and got hella strong on a gram of test; course, i got fat.
i couda cut it down 500 cals a day and made the same muscle gains w/o the belly.
 

striffe

AnaSCI VET
Feb 6, 2012
2,450
0
0
USA
I am trying to grow so shakes are a must for me these days. This idea would definitely work for someone struggling to put on mass. At the moment I am having 3 meals, 2 shakes and a few snacks. I like the idea of a big shake post workout.