What to expect on a bulking cycle

T

the goose

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Trusted Member
Giving it one last go , to make to the stage as a Master competitor

Tried to compete two years ago but fell short on the prep

Giving myself 20 weeks to bulk to 225 from a current weight of 208
I stand 5’7”

I have never done a pure bulking cycle and was wondering what to expect if I did entertain such an endeavour

Usually I run a simple cycle with a test base with some primo or small amount of tren , I follow a everyday clen /t3 to cut

What could I expect from a purely bulking cycle at the age of 58
 
I feel like you’ll need to give more details here for anyone to help. What kind of body fat you sitting at?

I’m not sure I understand what you mean by à purely bulking cycle? You either bulk, cut or maintain so please elaborate a bit more on what you mean exactly. Unless you mean the difference between a lean bulk or just going all out on the bulk.

You won’t want to hit the stage straight off a bulk, so when do you plan on competing?

Edit: I see funnyman joined the chat, there’s the man you want advice from.
 
ARUSH said:
I feel like you’ll need to give more details here for anyone to help. What kind of body fat you sitting at?

I’m not sure I understand what you mean by à purely bulking cycle? You either bulk, cut or maintain so please elaborate a bit more on what you mean exactly. Unless you mean the difference between a lean bulk or just going all out on the bulk.

You won’t want to hit the stage straight off a bulk, so when do you plan on competing?

Edit: I see funnyman joined the chat, there’s the man you want advice from.
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I normally carry about a 18% BF percentage and maintain an average weight of 205 lbs I am a large chested dude with decent “natural size “ if I can use that term, even when I don’t lift I get comments that indicate I must ( please not being boastful I value the feedback far more than to entertain such an opinion )

My last coach had a weight of aprox 168 for the show of which I came in a 176 from a high of 218 2 weeks out, he opted to suggest waiting a year I was devastated and lost all my desire to continue lifting I have since gone down to 2 days in the gym and holding the pads for my boxing enthusiast son

I am now starting to feel a pinch of arthritis in my right hip and I know my days of squat rack are numbered as much as I love doing squats thus prompting one last kick at the cat

I have taken the posing classes and have no problem following a diet ( I don’t like it the diet but none the less I understand it’s a necessary evil )

I love being 205 to 210 I feel comfortable here and I believe I carry it well , I understand that prep will take me considerably below this marker , but I want to be as big as I can for this upcoming show come next September

I was wondering if a purely bulking cycle would be of benefit or do I stay away from temptation and keep it clean
 
If you are in good health and not worried about abusing your liver, basic dbol and test cycle gained me the most mass out of any cycle I took.

I ate and trained like a beast and gained the weight extremely fast.

I would start with the dbol, then run the test for another 8 weeks after to help hold on to the new weight.

My cycle was small so you would likely need to adjust amounts

30 mg dbol a day for 8 weeks
300 mg of test e for 16 weeks.

I was likely 10% bodyfat when I started, so 163, ended at 185 and held it all. I think I may have even got a bit tighter, but I was eating clean, just lots of protien. My god did I sweat while sleeping every night, so bad I had to sleep on a towel. We are around the same height, well I’m an inch shorter.
 
Sorbate said:
If you are in good health and not worried about abusing your liver, basic dbol and test cycle gained me the most mass out of any cycle I took.

I ate and trained like a beast and gained the weight extremely fast.

I would start with the dbol, then run the test for another 8 weeks after to help hold on to the new weight.

My cycle was small so you would likely need to adjust amounts

30 mg dbol a day for 8 weeks
300 mg of test e for 16 weeks.

I was likely 10% bodyfat when I started, so 163, ended at 185 and held it all. I think I may have even got a bit tighter, but I was eating clean, just lots of protien. My god did I sweat while sleeping every night, so bad I had to sleep on a towel. We are around the same height, well I’m an inch shorter.
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I would add a bit of Deca.
 
I don't like short time frames so all I can add is, I'd do two or three cycles close together. I also don't like Tren for bulking.

I feel like a recomp with test, primo and NPP would be good. Since they're shorter compounds I'd do two cycles with six weeks off inbetween, diet inbetween. If you're bulking I'd think about insulin. 3lbs extra of muscle wouldn't be bad and you don't need to worry about how you'll look in the future.
 
Just my 2¢ and a few things for you to consider.
-You're 58. It's is already more difficult to add tissue at your age. Not impossible but you need to be more diligent in the approach.
-Starting a mass phase at 18% bf doesn't leave much room before you're just getting fat.
-On your last show you were not able to get into shape on time when starting at a lower bodyweight and you think adding more weight to lose is a wise decision?

-How long was your last prep? You'll likely need longer this time. If you still had roughly 8 lbs to lose on your last prep, that could be a significant amount of time added to the total prep time considering any possible breaks/stalls and the inevevitable slowing of fatloss near the end.

Its hard to make any recommendations without seeing what you actually need.
If I were to guess I would say you'd likely be better off just aiming for a lean bulk or recomp.
If you're serious I would say hire your coach now and start working together right away. The more time you have to work together the better for both of you.
Diet down to around 10% now, come new year spend a few months trying to slowly add mass and keep fat acrual to a min. Take a few week maintenance phase, then a pre prep phase and then begin prep.
 
Rhyno said:
Just my 2¢ and a few things for you to consider.
-You're 58. It's is already more difficult to add tissue at your age. Not impossible but you need to be more diligent in the approach.
-Starting a mass phase at 18% bf doesn't leave much room before you're just getting fat.
-On your last show you were not able to get into shape on time when starting at a lower bodyweight and you think adding more weight to lose is a wise decision?

-How long was your last prep? You'll likely need longer this time. If you still had roughly 8 lbs to lose on your last prep, that could be a significant amount of time added to the total prep time considering any possible breaks/stalls and the inevevitable slowing of fatloss near the end.

Its hard to make any recommendations without seeing what you actually need.
If I were to guess I would say you'd likely be better off just aiming for a lean bulk or recomp.
If you're serious I would say hire your coach now and start working together right away. The more time you have to work together the better for both of you.
Diet down to around 10% now, come new year spend a few months trying to slowly add mass and keep fat acrual to a min. Take a few week maintenance phase, then a pre prep phase and then begin prep.
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Agreed, for what it is worth. You are getting up there to try and pack and a bunch of extra weight especially if you plan to push PED's to do it. My first recommendation would be hire a coach who can assess you now and put a realistic plan in front of you (Diet, training, safer perspective with PED's, recovery - a lot hard at 58 than 25). A decent coach will be honest with you, and discuss getting your BF down, and a lean bulk to put on some lean muscle. To be frank, it would not be safe to compare you to @BanditNOLIMIT - he is younger, under the advice of a coach, and I believe checks his health markers closely (I only use Bandit as an example as he just went through this twice).

I only state that because many coaches will put you on a ridiculous amount of PED's, but at 58 and if you have been using PED's for years, I would be concerned about my health. Are you trying to compete at 225 or bulk to 225 and then cut? The massive weight swing is not healthy for anyone, especially someone almost 60. The time frame needs to be longer so you can do it in as healthy a way as possible. Just being frank and thinking of your health. Of course if it up to you. Number one, as mentioned, hire a coach who will work with you.
Good luck, whatever you decide to do. Essentially, I am agreeing with everything @Rhyno said above.
I am not qualified to say don't use something, but if I was 58, there is no way I would be using months of orals to bulk or to lean down for a competition. This is based on the fact we know most orals are harsh on the liver/kidneys/lipids.
 
@the goose Moderate dosage test+primo+npp will get you where you want to go.

PEDs will help you achieve your goals only when you've got 100% perfect routines for sleep, diet, training, cardio, etc.

dBol, Stromba or Halotestin tabs at your age might be harsh, but if you're gonna do it then take low dose and get your values checked VERY often. Don't stay on numerous compounds for more than 6-8 weeks.

Guys in their 30's get bent outta shape at the thought of a 60 year old guy staying fit and muscular. Those guys in there 20's 30's and 40's can just wait a few decades to realize that PEDs are about more than getting big or getting cut.

Hope your coach is teaching you to visualize. Train your mind.
Discipline in ALL dimensions of being an athlete is key.

 
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Thanks to everybody for taking the time to reply

You have all provided a wealth of info for me to consider

My bulk will be 30 weeks aimed at 1/2 pound per week followed by 6 week maintenance/ health phase then that would leave me 20 weeks to cut for the show

I do have a coach who is absolutely methodical and meticulous that I am very comfortable with

I believed my last prep failed because my body just stopped responding to cutting despite my best efforts I missed my target goal by 9 lbs aprox and I was believe I was about 9 % bf ( according to that machine that hold the handles and it analyzes your bf ,it’s suppose to be extremely accurate but who knows )

Again thanks a ton for your responses I appreciate the time you took out of your day to respond
 
That's a better approach but could hashed out a little tonight out a bit more.

4 week aggressive cut to get your bf down.
24 slow mass phase
4 week maintenance.
2-4 pre prep
Remaining time to prep.

The fatter you are when you start the longer prep will likely need to be.
And with excessive body fat to loose comes the potential to need excessive cardio or steeper defecits ( or both ) and with that comes greater potential to burn through that tissue you just spent 20+ weeks trying to add.
Just my 2¢.

Good luck with whatever you and your coach decide. At the end of the day, you hired your coach because you trust him so follow his lead.
Will you be logging any of the process?
 
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