Length of BULKING Cycle

How long should a bulking cycle last.

I have heard that the longer your cycle lasts the greater the percentage of weight that you gain will be fat mass.

What type of results have you guys gotten from prolonged bulking phases?

what number of excess calories(above maintenance) seems to work the best for minimizing fat gain?

Once again I think you are hitting on a very individual subject as are all to do with training and nutrition to a point.

This one however I feel has less to do with the individual and more to do with the individuals approach to diet and training during the session, as well as patients and the acceptance of not being ULTRA lean for some months.

I myself perfer the longer slower, more moderate bulks and seem to get better results with less fat gain.

For example I am in month 5 of a planned year long bulking session. I have been successfull at gaining between 8-10 lbs of LBM. The amount of fat gained varies with each increase in diet. Going up each time my K/cals go up and then slowly trimming down as I add lbm and adjust to the increase.

I will increase by 300 at a time. Stay there until I quit gaining weight for a 2 week period, then usually maintain that level for another 2 weeks to actually shed a little fat before moving up anther 300.

This is my approach and what works for me.

Bottom line is experiment. Some find the shorter huge increases in intake better for them some like myself gain nothing but fat off them and go for the LONGER slow building process. The hard thing about the longer approach is accepting the BF% you will carry for a longer period of time. Just dont let it get out of hand.

Hope this helps,
Phill