Inspired by @rugby_lifting I will share with you guys my bulking journey and the success it has yielded thus far, as I am finally about to cut for the first time in 2 years. I have basically been able to transform myself in a way that I don’t believe would be possible in this time frame without a long, dedicated bulk.
In April of 2021, I had just completed a cut that had got me down from the mid to high 170’s to 169, the lightest I had been since my 10th Grade year of High School. I wanted to start my bulk from a very lean place, which I think is generally a good idea.
By May of 2021 I had completed 30-10-30 by Dr. Ellington Darden, which was the beginning of my bulk phase. I got back to my baseline of 175, although the improvements appear somewhat minimal to me. It was clear to me at this point I needed to add more training volume and thus more food.
Enter Fortitude Training! June 2021 I had completed my first training cycle of Fortitude Training. This where I started really making noticeable gains. My weight here was now up to 183 and I may have even been a touch leaner than at 169.
Fortitude worked tremendously well for me, so I used it for another 7 week training cycle before embarking on DC training. So fast forward to October 2021, after the aforementioned second Fortitude and DC training cycles I ended up here at about 185. My progress had begun to stagnate.
It was time for something radically different. Add even MORE volume and MORE food. It was time for Deep Water. Following the Deep Water Beginner program, I had gotten my weight up to 194 and I was really looking bigger and more ripped than ever!
Around Christmas, my brother-in-law introduced me to 531. This was a game changer for me because I loved having a predictable method of planning progress! I combined this with my Bodybuilding assistance work and I got my weight up to 202 by the time this photo was taken at the end of January during my run of the Boring but Big Challenge!
I began to see stagnation again after several months on 531 with a more minimalist approach on Assistance (you need the periods of stagnation to keep from burning yourself out and not just get crazy fat) with my weight here being 206 in June 2022 before I began the Surge Challenge
The Surge Challenge was successful! My weight increased to 214 pounds in those 6 weeks! I was really putting away a lot of food and the Surge sure helped too!
I had not taken a whole lot of physique progress photos between then and now. I got married in October and have been very busy, but I continued diligently training and pursuing mass and strength gain. In the time been I’ve run Building the Monolith, 5x5 FSL, 531 and Widowmakers (2x), Forever Boring But Big, The Triumvirate, and currently Building the Monolith again. Which leads us to when this photo was taken a few days ago(Mar 31 2023). At my peak weight of 232 pounds.
My strength numbers were so sad in the beginning when I was 169.
Press:135
Squat:245
Bench: 245
Deadlift:315.
My numbers skyrocketed by the end of the bulk. My best numbers I hit (all coming in January 2023)
Press: 190x1
Squat: 350x2
Bench: 315x2
Deadlift: 500x1
Increasing my total that much as well as bringing my bicep measurements from 15.5” to 18.25” would never have been possible without a really long term bulk and intense focus on my goals. Don’t be afraid to mix up your training program. Push the limits of what you think is possible in the weight room and don’t try to gain all of your weight at once. I managed to stave off much noticeable fat gain for almost a year by taking a slow and measured approach. Don’t get too worried if your weight stagnates for a month or two. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.
I hope this is useful info for any noobs and vets of the iron game alike! I had 13 years of lifting under my belt as well as a lifetime of wrestling up through the college level before the first photo was taken. I had just been killing my progress by trying to stay too lean year round eating at or below maintenance rather than trying to grow. Remember, you always have more in the tank!