i naturally have a slow motabilism, and i eat way over my caloire limiit i eat 21 times my weight in pounds into calories, i have pretty much made the optimum diet, infact its so suffieciant i do stay the same weight the next day, if i eat any more i will put on fat and i used to be a big boy 16 and a half stone of fat when i was 14 som i no about my body, diet is not the issue
i have taken a three week brake off, went on holiday and have come back looking to start a fresh routine, one that i have not made myself but a proven one, have heard good things about wendlers and 5x5 routine, which one would be recomended, if theres better routines out there even better?
Unless you plan on "supplementing" with the magical muscle drugs, you should just forget the dream of gaining loads of muscle without fat gains. The burden of natural muscle building is that you're going to gain fat. It sucks, but it's how it goes. The sooner you accept that, and adjust your diet accordingly, the sooner you'll start seeing muscle gains again.
You can bulk on a fairly aggressive surplus, with minimal fat gain, though. The catch is you have to keep a very close eye on your diet, and if you can handle it eat the same things every day, or close to. Consistency in diet helps you see what works and what doesn't. Even the slightest adjustments like an extra tablespoon of flax oil versus olive oil can make a difference in the long run.
Don't forget about burning calories from exercise and daily activities, which will bring down your net surplus for muscle building. My maintenance is about 3,000-3,200. I bulk at about 3,700 to 4,200 depending on the day. That's a lot of calories right? Well, when you factor in calories burned from my training, cardio, and general day to day walking and whatnot I end up with a smaller number. Even if I net 300 calories it will take about 12 days to gain 1 lb of fat. Also, the better the calories you take in the more efficient your body will use those calories to contribute to muscle building and energy production.
Everyone says it's all about calories. While you do need a surplus, people too often neglect to address calorie quality. A good muscle building diet isn't 3 cans of tuna, 4 protein shakes, and some pizza and mr.noodles. You need to be very diligant if you want your body to build muscle. Your body doesn't want muscle; it's metabolically expensive and thus counterproductive to your survival. This is why you have to provide the absolute best dietary resources to put your body in the ideal anabolic state to facilitate tissue growth.
Some general formulae for:
Protein: 1-1.5g per pound of lean body mass (LBM) -- keep this number consistent, always...when bulking you have more leeway with the extra calories from fat and carbs, but when cutting things change...if you bulk on the lower end of this formula then move up to the higher end when cutting...I always use the higher end (1.5g per lb)
Fat: 0.5-0.75g per pound LBM -- this is a suggested minimum. Increase if you like. Just note that fat doesn't cause fat gain. Excess calories cause fat gains, regardless of the calories' nutrient origins.
Carbs: There are so many formulae for bulking carbs. I'd say something like 1.5-3g per pound LBM, but really it doesn't matter.
A general rule of thumb I follow: figure out your protein, then your fat. Once you have those numbers at your assumed ideal, fill in the rest with carbs. Carbs are expendable -- protein and fats (trans excluded) are not.
-don't avoid saturated, as it's necessary for testosterone production
-eat the egg yolks: they contain not only half the egg's protein but the majority of the vitamins/minerals; also, don't worry about the cholesterol -- dietary cholesterol has no proven link to blood cholesterol (that would be trans and to a lesser degree saturated fat, but most of all if you're genetically predisposed to suffer heart conditions)
-good "clean" fat sources: eggs, olive oil, flax seed oil, seeds, nuts, avocado, mayo, most fish, natural peanut butter
-good "complex" carb sources (i.e. slow burning): whole wheat pasta, whole wheat bagels, whole wheat bread/wraps, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oats (avoid pre-packaged flavoured oatmeal, as it's loaded with sucrose), rice, quinoa, fibrous green vegetables
-good protein sources: eggs (100% bioavailability: your body absorbs all of the protein), whey isolates, chicken, fish (salmon, tuna (yellowfin has virtually no mercury -- albacore does), tilapia, etc), beef (ground beef is considerably cheaper than most steak cuts), pork, turkey, milk, cottage cheese.
-digital food scales are a wise investment for weighing/portioning your food
-your body prefers whole foods (non-processed); avoid bars, cereals, shakes, etc, when possible
-general rule of thumb: no more than 1/5 daily protein from supplements
-the smaller meals through the day theory was debunked a while back; arrange your meals not by advice from mainstream bodybuilding sites but by comfort. I eat 5 meals a day, not because I think it's necessary to progress, but because I feel more comfortable feeding steadily throughout the day
-again, don't worry about mainstream egg myths like "only twice a week". I've been eating 4 a day in the 2 years I've been bodybuilding/powerlifting. In that time, my weight has increased from 140-145lbs at 10% bf to 192-195 lbs at 10% BF. My waist has remained a 32. I can deadlift 300 lbs, yet also run a half marathon in a respectable time. I'm even considering up'ing to 6 eggs a day. Don't buy into egg myths. Eggs are too useful to people like us.
-drink plenty of water (I drink about 8L a day...up to 12 in the summer)
-consider the calories/nutrients from often overlooked sources like condoments...1 cup of a typical pasta sauce will have 150 calories and up to 25g sugar...while it may taste good, there usually is little to no healthy fats, quality protein, etc....no the most useful food source...nothing wrong with eating foods that aren't the most efficient, but consider portion control...limit yourself to 1/2 cup sauce (80 cals, 1.5g fat, 11g sugar, 2g protein = not very useful) to a 170g (600 cals, 120g carbs, 24 protein = very productive) serving of whole wheat spaghetti. Ensure the pros far outweigh the cons and you're fine. I call this the calories to useful nutrients ratio. I make salmon sandwiches and wraps pretty much every day. It's common to use tartar sauce as a condoment in fish sandwiches. Instead, I use avocado, which is not only lower in calories by weight but also provides much more nutrient-dense, productive calories. No fluff.