Fall Bulk Day 9
Body weight is holding steady at 2.4 lbs gained in the first 9 days of the bulk. Here’s what day 9 entailed for meal plan and workouts.
The ninth day of the bulk was another active one with a 1.7-mile slow jog for fasted cardio in the a.m. and a short but intense 40-minute leg day in the afternoon. My wife and I also took the dogs for a 15-minute walk.
I burned about 2,900 calories and consumed just under 3,000 for a minimal 3% calorie surplus on the day. As a result, my weight held steady at 174.4 lbs this morning.
| Nutrient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Protein | 268 g (36%) |
| Carbs | 296 g (40%) |
| Fat | 81 g (24%) |
| Calories In | +2,985 |
| Calories Out | -2,894 |
| Calorie Surplus | +91 (3%) |
One of my goals for day 9 was to bump my fat down because it was a bit too high the previous day. And I achieved this by swapping out ground beef for chicken breast.
I recommend keeping your fat intake in check during a bulk because your carbohydrates are higher, which results in higher insulin throughout the day. And when insulin is elevated, it’s typically beneficial to keep dietary fat intake lower to avoid storing it as body fat.
For this reason, most of the fat I consume is in the meals with lower carbs, away from the workouts. Before and after workouts, I consume meals higher in carbs with protein.
This nutrient timing strategy is one of the levers you can use to optimize your nutrition for muscle gain and fat loss. Of course, you must also eat healthy foods and the appropriate amount of calories.
For day 10, I’m aiming to get my surplus back up to around 5% to see if that moves the need on the scale. Check back tomorrow to see where we’re at!
