From Paris Hilton to the Pussycat Dolls' Lead Singer

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mellowbird

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I'm going to complete my "losing fat" stage in about 3-4 weeks, so I want to prepare for the next stage which is "adding muscle". I've been a big fan of this website for a while now. It has helped me lose 14 pounds to my goal weight last year, and it has now helped me again to lose my baby weight as I just had a baby a few months ago, back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I want to still be a size 4 but with ab definition, arm definition, firm thighs & butt. You know what I want as it's what most women want - firm and toned but still slim & sexy!

I know I need to have a calorie surplus in conjunction to weight training to add muscle, but by how much more calories? The last thing I want to do is derail my hard work and start putting on fat instead of muscle because I am consuming too many calories. Is 10% over my maintenance calories enough/too much?

Borrowing male terminology, I know how to "cut" but I don't know how to "bulk"..... Any help is appreciated. Thanks!
 
There are a couple of ways to avoid putting on too much fat while bulking. The most you should try to gain is about 2 lbs per week. That's a 1000 calorie surplus per day. That's a pretty fast bulk. I would recommend a slower one with a maximum of 500 calories as a surplus. Another thing you should do is make sure you are getting enough protein right after your workout. This will trigger protein syntheses, and you will build more muscle mass.
 
I wouldn't even touch 500 if I were you. Infact I would just do a hypertrophy program at maintenance, MAYBE add a 100 calories then 50 or so. If you want that specific style of body focus on building for the kind of body you you want. Be smart about it. Is it ass you want? Then don't need to be doing a bunch a bicep curls, this kind of thing.

I would draw out a little body comp diagram picture, outline where you need to build, find the movements to build them and then take your increase of calories VERY slowly.
 
Slow & Steady Wins the Race

Thanks for all the advice. I will start with maintenance calories and work my way up if need be, depending on the progress (or lack of) I see. It's better to be safe then sorry. I'll kill myself if I start putting back the fat I've lost so far. God knows it's hard enough being at home all day with a new baby and resist snacking, much less aim for a daily 500 calorie deficit... thanks again.
 
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