# Caloric intake test e bulking cycle..



## Squats (Jun 4, 2013)

I keep getting mixed reviews on what a caloric surplus should look like throughout a test e cycle.


I'm 3 weeks in and I've kept my caloric surplus at 500 calories/day above maintenance.


I was thinking, how could anyone gain more than a pound of muscle on a 3.5k per week surplus???? Should I up my intake to a higher amount over maintenance or simply scale 500 calories over my rising maintenance as I get bigger????


Appreciate the input, I'm very precise about my diet but I'm confused on the numbers in regards to being on cycle.


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## SFW (Jun 5, 2013)

Squats said:


> I keep getting mixed reviews on what a caloric surplus should look like throughout a test e cycle.
> 
> 
> I'm 3 weeks in and I've kept my caloric surplus at 500 calories/day above maintenance.
> ...





The amount of cals needed is largely dependant on your activity level, and your weight.

According to my calculator (adjusted for my weight and for someone who trains heavy 5 days a week) it shows around 800 cals above maintenance for gains. 

Macro Nutrient Calculator


However, if youre 160 lbs, train 3 times a week and youre sedentary 99% of the day, you body will require less.


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## the_predator (Jun 5, 2013)

Along with your calorie uptake make sure that they are purposeful calories. What I mean by this is clean eating and high protein. I know it's been beaten to death but 1-2 grams of protein per pound of body weight. You can eat like a ox but if your protein is lacking your not going to be putting on quality weight.


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## Keyser Soze (Jun 5, 2013)

Depends on you GOALS to bro. If you BULK just eat what ever to get big. When i bulk i want size and strength. I not care my bf at all. I work that out later anyway.


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## Squats (Jun 5, 2013)

I'm just asking should I eat more than a 500 caloric surplus or keep it the same?? I just don't understand how people gain more than 12 lbs (not including water weight) on a 12 week cycle with only a 500 calorie surplus.


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## plazmic (Jun 5, 2013)

They can gain more than their surplus would suggest because feed efficiency is increased while on supraphysiological levels of testosterone (and even more with compounds like tren). Which means that the normal calories you eat are more effectively partitioned for muscle building. You aren't simply eating 1 lb of food, thats just the surplus, theres the remaining 20,000+ calories you already consume normally, and more of those calories are used more effectively for growth -- hence the term feed efficiency.


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## heckler7 (Jun 5, 2013)

why are you bulking at the beginning of summer?


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## J.thom (Jun 6, 2013)

heckler7 said:


> why are you bulking at the beginning of summer?



hahahah truth


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## Squats (Jun 7, 2013)

heckler7 said:


> why are you bulking at the beginning of summer?





I cut last summer and wasn't pleased. Sure I had abs and I wasn't super small but I wasn't my ideal physique either. 

 I decided this summer I'd bulk and deal with the repercussions of losing aesthetics. Next summer I'll be running a cutting cycle and getting shredded my diets already on point so it will be a golden age for me. Plus I'm only 13% bf at 201 lbs and my bf actually went down a little this cycle I've put on 9 lbs in 4 weeks. Going to do another hydrostatic bf test in 6 weeks to see what my bf% looks like.


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## Squats (Jun 7, 2013)

plazmic said:


> They can gain more than their surplus would suggest because feed efficiency is increased while on supraphysiological levels of testosterone (and even more with compounds like tren). Which means that the normal calories you eat are more effectively partitioned for muscle building. You aren't simply eating 1 lb of food, thats just the surplus, theres the remaining 20,000+ calories you already consume normally, and more of those calories are used more effectively for growth -- hence the term feed efficiency.



Excellently written. 

I was thinking about this even though it is difficult to wrap my head around when thinking of calories in vs calories out in the traditional sense. I know a lb of muscle is 600 calories so it would make since that a 3500 caloric surplus weekly with most of it being high protein ratios would naturally produce an abnormal increase in lean tissue.


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