Getting Fat To Make GainZ: Bulking & Cutting For Weebs & Cosplayers

Do you need to get fat to put on muscle? No, and 9/10 times it’s a bad idea.

You're never gonna catch Goku, Jotaro, and Doffy bulking

Why?

You can’t force feed muscle gains. Recent data has shown that a daily caloric surplus of 350-500 is where muscle gains top out depending on training age, genetics, and intensity of training. For the purposes of an aesthetic physique eating more than that will not add a significant amount of muscle for the additional body fat gained.

Not only that, but if you’re doing this for health and aesthetic purposes why would you only want to be in shape half the time? If you want to look like you go to the gym, if you wanna look like an anime character, you need to be able to put on the breaks at some point.

You have two effective options for you so you can remain looking shonen AF all year round, the first is probably superior but really adherence is what matters most.  The best protocol in the world means nothing if you can't stick to it.


Firstly: Lets keep this in context

Before discussing both options keep in mind that these protocols are for people who are already lean and want to put on muscle. Ie men already within 8-15% body fat. If you're over that range, you're far better off cutting weight. Depending on how much fat you have to lose you may not have to worry about muscle building either as you have plenty of stored calories which can contribute to muscle gain. 

With that in mind, let's continue with the options.


Option 1: A weight range

Choose a weight range and never spend too long out of that weight range if you can help it.

Using me as an example I don’t like being over 192lbs as I start losing definition and begin to look blockier, a right smooth boi. On the other end of the spectrum I can’t maintain much leaner than 182lbs for long and I start to look a bit weedy, not to mention that my performance also starts to suffer somewhat.

So in this case I would slowly diet until I hit 182lbs and then slowly bulk until I hit 192lbs. That roughly puts me in the 8-12% bodyfat range all year round. Of course, this method 


Option 2: Gaintaining

This is what I currently do, but it's only applicable for people who are already lean. firstly you need to be  and although it's probably inferior for mass gain it's way easier for me to adhere to. I choose an ideal comfortable weight (192lbs for instance) and I just eat at maintenance calories.

That way I don't have to go through long cutting cycles, it allows me to be a bit more flexible with my diet, and I'm always focussed. When gaining weight, it's much easier psychologically to eat shitty foods 'for the gainz bro'. This gives me the freedom I need to stick to a diet without fully letting me off my leash.

The real problem with this approach is that you will gain muscle at a far slower rate than a bulking cycle. You don't need to force feed muscle gains, but there is only so much muscle you can gain without a calorie surplus. However, this might be somewhat offset by the lack of a cutting cycle. Since you're not going a long time in a calorie deficit, you're not going through long periods of catabolism.


Conclusion: 

If you’re wanting to look aesthetic like an anime character then it’s in your best interests to avoid the extremes of over-cutting and over over-bulking and remaining somewhere in the middle. There’s no benefit of gaining additional fat for the purposes of aesthetics and if that is your goal you want to look good all year round rather than just a few months of the year.

If you just lift because you like it, don’t care about aesthetics, or you’re gaining fat for a competitive advantage in a strength sport then more power to you, go all in! But if you’re doing it for a healthy aesthetic anime looking physique you’re better off remaining in an aesthetic weight range year round.

That's the Be More Shonen way 💪

If you want to know more about getting as ripped as a shonen anime protagonist check out my free training manual 'The Super Saiyan Six'

Have a nice day guys and always remember: Be More Shonen