This may be a stupid question, but it has been bugging me for a while. It is obvious that cheating can be benificial in a fat loss diet, but is there such a thing as cheating during a bulking phase? Would it hinder my goals if say, one day a week, I didn’t meet my caloric requirements; or would a break from all those calories be a good thing?
when i am bulking, the only time i eat quickly absorbed carbs is immediately following workout. ive noticed better recovery since i began doing this about eight months ago.
id like to kno this also…
“Cheating” on a bulking phase really helps. I’ve been bulking sucessfully for about the past couple months. bulked april-june, got up to 180, lost 20!!! b/c I was in brazil for a month. Been bulking since august, gained back to 190. Anyway, I follow a mostly John Berardi protocol, but I throw in a couple “Pound a Week” meals. I do go hypocaloric about 1-2 days/week.
This really, really helps. Don Alessi wrote about it allowing the thyroid to reregulate, and it’s psychologically relieving to NOT eat every 2 hours. I’m an ectomorph (6’ 2") with a miserable appetite, so after having forcefed myself at 4000+ calories a day, it’s a relief to take a day off. It’s also helped keep me lean, too, my BF% hasn’t rose too much.
I think it is ok. It will give your mind and your digestion system a break. It can be stressful physically and mentally to be gorging yourself all the time. One lighter day isn’t gonna kill your gains.