Ok so I have been attempting to bulk for the past 4 weeks. It isn't going that well...I have not been counting calories so far because I cannot afford to buy my personal food right now, so I have just been eating what my parents have bought and drinking a lot of skim milk. Also I have not been able to do any cardio due to knee pain (hurt my knee about 7 weeks ago and it is still bothering me). However, I have been lifting heavy(to me) and have made progress every week on my current lifting plan.

I think I have put to much fat on in 4 weeks (scale has gone from 147 to 167)and it is driving me crazy. I have never been able to really bulk successfully becauce I am so scared of putting fat on. I realize I have quite a bit of fat on me, but I feel that a bulk is needed due to cutting for 2 years and a lack of muscle mass. Even with that thought though I am half tempted to start cutting again and just keep cutting even though I don't know if it will do any good.

I guess I am just looking for advice even though I know what I should do(Start counting calories, light cardio, and lift heavy).

Anyways here are the photos

November 02 2007 (Weight 147)
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w47/KineticPoet/PICT0178.jpghttp://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w47/KineticPoet/PICT0182.jpg
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w47/KineticPoet/PICT0190.jpghttp://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w47/KineticPoet/PICT0193.jpg
November 30 2007 (Weight 167)
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w47/KineticPoet/PICT0219.jpghttp://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w47/KineticPoet/PICT0222.jpg
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w47/KineticPoet/PICT0221.jpghttp://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w47/KineticPoet/PICT0226.jpg

My advice would be to watch the scale and back off a bit on food intake if you notice you're gaining more than 0.5-1 pound a week. You've been gaining weight at a rate of 5 pounds a week for the past month. At that rate, I would wager that most of your gains aren't going to be lean.

Cut or bulk, you have to eat clean not to gain fat.
Post sample of your diet. Diet is sooo important!!! What you eat counts for 80% of your results.
Oh, and I would totally skip the skim milk. No fat but lots of sugar. I'll rather eat my calories.

Cut or bulk, you have to eat clean not to gain fat.
Post sample of your diet. Diet is sooo important!!! What you eat counts for 80% of your results.
Oh, and I would totally skip the skim milk. No fat but lots of sugar. I'll rather eat my calories.

Listen to what she says she knows her stuff!!!

This is a temporary setback if you step up and re-focus. You've proven you have the will, so you need to get back on the horse.

I responded to your original bulking post and what is happening to you happened to me. Your metabolism is slow after a prolonged cut and you shift to a bulk right out of the gate. I found the first bulk 2x as hard as the cut. All of the sudden you can eat and eat and eat. You go from strict limited intake to your now loose bulk.

If I were you I'd continue to lift heavy, but go back to maint. calories for a month or so and see if you grow into your heavier weight a little. Keep your protein up and play with your carbs so you have just enough to recover. You should gain no more than 5 more pounds over that month. Then it's time to cut again. You will find your second bulk to be better.

Drop the milk all together as mentioned above. Why drink your calories unless it's all protein and that's only because you can't physically eat enough to get your macros.

Also, if you don't count your cals/macros you will not be successful.

You've come so far, time to buckle down. Good luck.

I'm guessing the milk consumption is related to a loose skin tactic that sometimes comes up around here. Like anything else, I'd look for multiple sources to determine the validity of an idea before buying into something that possibly contributed in one person's transformation.

If it's just resulting in a whole lot of unaccounted for calories, then obviously this is kind of shooting yourself in the foot.

Wait a sec... are you guys saying that Milk... is not a good choice when bulking?

That's what it sounded like to me, and I don't really understand why you advise AGAINST drinking milk? I love milk. I think he just needs to continue to hit the weights and go slightly above a maintenance diet.