Thoughts on my first bulk
Well, I’ve finished my first bulk since discovering Bodybuilding.com. I started the bulk after cutting hard to get to 163 (my body naturally tends to want to be about 180), and 4.5 months later I was 196. A good 4 or 5 lbs of that was just food in my system as it dropped away after just a couple days of cutting. So I’d say I legitimately went from 163 to 191 in 4.5 months. Hmmm just over 6 lbs a month. Hard to know just how much was fat and how much was muscle, but this bulk was a learning process for me, and my next one will be much better.
The changes: I am most pleased by my gains on my back. I naturally have a very flat back (shoulder blades don’t stick out at all), and now I believe I have an above average amount of muscle residing there. Thanks to the addition of deadlifts, I finally have some middle/lower back muscle mass.
Secondly, I finally gained some mass on my pecs. It doesn’t look like much, but considering my inability to put ANYTHING on my chest, it is a big improvement. I have recently lowered my weight considerably and have really focused on making that mind muscle connection that seems nearly impossible for me. For the first time in a very long time (and probably the 2nd time ever) my chest was sore (and has been getting sore consistently). Talk about a blow to the ego to have to drop a bunch of weight just because your shoulders are cheating for you.
Goals: I have been cutting since just about the second week of January, and I am now sitting at about 185 lbs. So in 8 weeks I’ve lost 6-11 lbs. Slower than I’d like, but I also have 14 weeks left to get to the low 170’s, so I’ve got time.
This is all I’m going to write for now since it’s a fairly long blog.
