About 7 weeks ago, I made a post outlining a diet I was following. I believe the total calories exceeded 8,000. About a week into this diet, I switched everything up. I began following a modified version of Dr. Berardi’s diet from the HoIllywood Muscle article. It began like this:
Meal 1 (8AM): 6 eggs, 2 cups oats
Meal 2 (9:30-10:30): 3 pb&j sandwiches
Meal 3 (12PM): 2 ground beef patties, 2 cups oats
Meal 4 (1:30-2:30PM): 3 pb&j sandwiches
Meal 5 (4PM): 2 ground beef patties, 2 cups oats
Meal 6 (5:30-6:30PM): 3 pb&j sandwiches
Meal 7 (8PM): 6 eggs, 2 cups oats
Meal 8 (9PM): 1 pb&j sandwich
I worked out on a 6-day split, alternating ub & lb lifting days with Sundays off. This list does not mention workout nutrition, but it’s in there.
In the 7 weeks that have transpired, I have made several changes, mostly inspired by things I’ve read on here and also kinks that needed to be worked out. Here is the diet I am currently following:
(Workout nutrition only applicable during the 3 workout days)
6AM-7AM: lift while sipping 32oz gatorade & 2 scoops whey in water
7AM: 64oz gatorade, 3 scoops ON whey in water
8AM: 2 beef patties, 3 cups oats
9:30AM: 3 peanut butter on whole wheat sandwiches with whole milk & 1 scoop of whey
12PM: 12 eggs, 2 cups oats
1:30PM: 3 pb sandwiches & milk/whey
4PM: 2 beef patties, 2 cups oats
5:30PM: 3 pb sandwiches & milk/whey
8PM: 12 eggs, 1 cup oats
9PM: 1 pb sandwich & milk/whey
By the end of the day, I’ve finished a gallon of whole milk and 2 gallons of water. I’m doing Waterbury’s Total Body Training, and following a diet similar to the aforementioned Berardi diet.
Clearly, this is a T-Nation-inspired bulking program. My current diet is over 11,000 calories, I believe. I think the 2 gallons of water actually helps with satiety. In the 7 weeks, I have gained 27 pounds, with a negligible amount of fat. I am a staunch proponent of Dr. B’s G-Flux principles; I do a ton of cardio, but not for fat loss (obviously). I run three times daily (two quick ones each in the morning/night for stretching sessions, and also during track workouts), shadowbox/skip rope (do BJJ once a week), and swim daily. I’m going to add some stationary bike work as well, although I may take next week off from most of the cardio, because I am deathly afraid of CNS fatigue from all this activity.
I will post some before and after pics right before I go back to school, but I have to say that I could not be happier with my results. The knowledge I gained from reading through forum posts and articles on this site has helped immeasurably. I actually plan to continue bulking through April of next year, with the hopes of weighing 200lbs after a 2 month cut for summer. That very well may be too heavy for a 400m runner, but I might end up playing football junior year along with track if the strength keeps increasing like it is (and i know it won’t lol).
In conclusion, words cannot describe how much I appreciate the wealth of information on this site. Granted, muscle doesn’t make the world go 'round, but for many (myself included) it can make for a huge confidence booster. Thanks again to both those who replied to my original post, as well as anyone who has contributed to the think-tank that is T-Nation.
-Matt
P.S. I used to think I was an ectomorph, but I’m starting to think I may be ecto-meso. It’s scary to think about how muscular “hardgainers” would be if they just knew what they were doing…and for those who wonder how I eat so much, I took a semester off from school for personal reasons. I have plenty of time on my hands to eat, train, and sleep because I work and go to school part-time, much like the actor scenario in the Hollywood Muscle article.