Clean Bulk, Dirty Bulk or a Hybrid of Both
Large amounts of nutrient-rich foods strategically eaten throughout the day are what it takes to grow. Clean sources of carbohydrates such as yams, oatmeal, and rice coupled with the leanest cuts of poultry, red meats, and fish as well as healthy fat sources like avocados, almonds, and oils should make up the majority of your daily food intake.
The calorie content of these foods are quite plentiful in nature but unfortunately, there are those of us who need ridiculous amounts of calories to induce any growth whatsoever, and the amount of clean food it would require to spur on growth just isn’t manageable.
When this type of scenario presents itself, you have to start incorporating other types of foods that carry a significantly higher calorie content for progress to occur. When bulking or when embarking upon your “offseason” you are faced with three options: follow a clean bulk, go to the dark side and start a dirty bulk or mix the two and create a ‘hybrid bulk.’ What works for you will depend solely upon your genetics first and foremost followed very closely by your overall efforts. In either of those cases, here is what you should keep in mind while you progress through whichever bulk you have chosen to do.
The Clean Bulk
My advice to anyone wanting to pack on muscle mass and overall strength gains is to start with clean foods first. Do your best to map out a diet in which you reach your macronutrient and overall caloric intake goals with good clean whole foods. Then wait and see how your body responds. If you are gaining weight and it’s good weight (relatively void of any fat accumulation), and you’re getting stronger, then keep doing what you’re doing. Ride these gains out for as long as possible and pay very close attention to when your gains start slowing down.
When this does happen, and it will, try adding in more clean food sources to see if you can speed the gains train up again and keep the progress rolling.
When you finally reach the point of not being able to stuff anymore clean food into your body and the thought of eating again makes you sick and you still haven’t reached your goal, you have to settle in on the fact that you’ve maxed out your clean food intake and it’s time for a change.
The Dirty Bulk
Of the three, the dirty bulk is probably the most favorite and easily the most fun and tasty. Meal times become celebrations, and the “see-food” approach to dieting quickly becomes your mantra. No calorie is ever left unturned with the dirty bulk, and the notion that not all calories were created equal is either forgotten or simply dismissed.
If you have set a very high caloric intake for yourself and figure whatever number that is will give you the gains you are looking for, then eating foods in a dirty bulk phase make things much easier for you.
When you use the dirty bulk approach foods found at fast food restaurants find their way into your everyday diet plan, sweets and desserts become a regular part of your meals and eventually you end up realizing that if you don’t pay close attention to your overall consumption for the day, you may significantly spill over your allotted calories for the day very easily. This will lead you to unwanted fat gain and in my opinion a lessened overall effect for true progress.
The fact of the matter is you still need superb sources of food for real gains to occur and the options presented under the dirty bulk guidelines are far from superb.
The Hybrid Bulk
The hybrid bulk is a combination of the clean bulk and the dirty bulk and in my humble opinion is the best approach of the three. I simply love the idea of maxing out your gains with good clean sources of whole foods and then once at that point, begin incorporating calorie dense “cheat meals” into the equation for a quick blast of additional calories that should spark growth.
By following a hybrid style of bulking you are still consuming all of those healthy nutrient dense, rich foods plus the extra calories but not to the point where you start hating food because of how stuffed you always feel.
I think this approach will help you stay the course for a much longer period; your gains will be solid, your overall fat accumulation will be significantly lower than a full dirty bulk, you’ll get a nice little psychological break from the mundane nature of always eating clean and for purpose rather than for pleasure. Most importantly you’ll be able to live a “normal” life where you can work things into your diet such as having cake on your son’s birthday or going out for pizza and wings with your buddies without feeling guilty about it.
However you decide to approach your bulking phase, you have to make sure if works the way it is supposed to work; gains in size, mass and overall strength without diminishing your overall look like a bodybuilder. And if you still feel like you are struggling with consuming all the necessary food it takes to grow then no problem. Just start incorporating Raptor-HP shakes into your day. You get all the benefits of eating natural sources of red meat with the added benefit of 3 extra grams of creatine included in the shake for more muscle energy and growth.
Incorporating Raptor-HP is a win-win and a no brainer when you can’t possibly eat another meal or if you’re looking to add one more meal to your daily schedule. Either way, you’re gonna grow, and that’s the name of the bulking game!
