How to Bulk as a Footballer

How to Bulk as a Footballer:

(If you want to improve your confidence on the pitch, make sure you read the full article)

 

Winter is here in the Northern Hemisphere. The holidays have come and the New Year is on its way.

It’s also the offseason for many footballers, so it could be the time to “bulk up” and gain some muscle if you really think you need that.

Generally for my clients’, and younger players looking to “bulk” up and add weight/muscle, I let them know that they don’t need to focus on that..

If you have a properly structured plan and you are eating the right foods, and you are still growing, you will naturally get bigger, “bulkier” and pack on muscle.

Though, some players obsess over getting bigger as soon as possible, and as their coach, I tailor everything according to their own individual goals, and I throw in my opinions and the bit of knowledge I have along the way.

Before diving into this article, I want to point out that it is absolutely not necessary to bulk and focus on gaining muscle, but for some players, it may help them from a self-esteem and confidence perspective.

And that alone there could be a reason to look to gain some weight. If you are playing against bigger players and you feel like you are weak and not strong enough, it may make you unconfident, which will lead to you not performing your best. If you are bigger and you “feel” strong and good about yourself, you will take more risks, and put your best performance out on the table.

With that being said, this article is for the person who wants to pack on some muscle to be able to be stronger on the ball and have more confidence on and off the pitch, which will naturally lead to better performances.

In this article, I want to breakdown a 6 ways to approach bulking and give you some tips to help you gain as much muscle as possible and gain as little fat as possible in the process, while keeping yourself performing at your best.

Misconception:

There is some sort of misconception from young footballers that you need to bulk and cut as a footballer. These terms are generally for the bodybuilding and the physique competitor industry.

Instead, your question should be, “how can I gain muscle/bulk up to improve my performance on the pitch?”

The number one thing that you need to focus on as a footballer is improving your performance on the pitch.

Your goal when going into the gym should be to maximize your performance when match time comes.

Looking good and aesthetics will come as a positive side effect from having a properly constructed gym plan, dialed in nutrition, and dialed in sleep and recovery.

The Difference Between You and a Physique Competitor:

There is a major difference in the bulking and cutting cycle when you are a physique competitor or an average joe looking to pack on some weight or lose some body fat compared to a footballer.

The physique competitor or average joe doesn’t have to worry about their on-field performance. The Physique Competitor gets paid the big bucks to look their best when they step on stage in a static position, flexing in some interesting static poses.

The average joe is just looking to turn some heads and impress some ladies.

Your Focus as a Footballer:

As a footballer, your main job is to perform your best. If your main goal as a footballer is to look good when taking your shirt off at the beach, you most likely won’t be performing your best on the pitch, and maybe you’re in the wrong sport..

When trying to gain muscle/”bulk”, you need to be in it for the long run and long game. Once you commit to the long game and you are not looking for a quick fix or short term results; I promise you will get to your goal. It may take longer than you think, but it will be worth it!

If you try to gain weight or lose weight too quickly, you will notice a significant decrease in your performance, and no matter if you are in the offseason, pre-season, or in-season, the last thing you want is for your performance to decrease.

Six Tips to Bulk as a Footballer:

1. Weight Gain should be done in the offseason or preseason before official competition rolls around:

 -In order to gain weight and gain muscle, you are going to have to lift heavy and lift often! This should be done in the off-season and as far away from competition as possible.

-Your main goal during the season is to maintain, possibly gain a little strength, power and speed, but not to make drastic gains.

-During the season, if you lift heavy and often, you will be very sore and you will feel “heavy.” That is the last thing you want during your season. Your goal should be to be as fresh as possible for every team training and every match.

-If you are really looking to reach your full potential and make your way up the football ladder, you need to aim to be the best performer and hardest worker in every team training and in every match.

2. Lift heavy, while maintaining proper technique with every exercise:

-Make sure you’re in the gym at least 3 days per week.

-You should be lifting in the 4-6 Rep Range for your main movements (squats, deadlifts) and in the 6-10 Rep Range for accessory movements (curls for the girls).

-In the offseason, you want to get as much volume as possible, which means you should do be doing 3-5 sets per movement.

-The focus should be lifting heavy, but your main priority is still proper technique in every exercise.

-Importance of Proper Technique: If you are moving poorly/incorrectly and loading your body with a lot of weight, you are at a huge risk for injury, and that’s the last thing we want.

3. Eat 1 Gram of Protein Per Pound of Desired Bodyweight:

-If you want to weigh 165 pounds, eat 165 grams of protein. Though, there’s a bit of a fine line here. I wouldn’t go more than that. Otherwise, you are may put your kidneys at risk.

-Protein will help your muscles recover quicker and grow bigger and stronger.

-Gaining muscle requires a lot of energy (calories), which means you are going to have to eat a lot. I know you’re happy, it’s the Holiday Season, but most of those calories should come from good quality protein and good quality carbohydrates. And of course, here and there, you can have a a piece of pie (pumpkin is my favorite!)

 

As Promised, Here It Is:

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4. Eat in a Caloric Surplus of Maximum 500 calories per day, not more:

-3500 calories = 1 Pound

-In order to gain weight, you will need to eat more calories than you burn each day (caloric surplus).

-If you eat 500 calories extra per day, 7 days per week, you can gain 1 pound per week (500 Calories x 7 Days Per Week = 3500 at the end of the week). That’s 4 pounds per month.

-I wouldn’t recommend trying to gain more than 4 pounds per month.

5. Accept the fact that you will gain some BodyFat:

-If you are in a caloric surplus, you will gain weight. It’s science.

-If you are following a properly structured gym training and nutrition plan, most of that weight will be muscle, but you will gain some body fat in the process.

-Body fat is not a bad thing at all.

All gains come at a cost. Slight increase in body fat is a reasonable price to pay for the muscle mass increase.

-Accept it, and don’t turn back! Be dialed in with your nutrition and gym training, and by the time the season rolls around, you’ll have plenty of time to shed off that extra body fat (if you don’t know how, I can help you out :))

6. Do not rush! Patience and consistency are the key:

-Do not rush the process of trying to “bulk”/gain weight/gain muscle (whatever you’d like to call it).

-Take it slowly and do not rush the process!

-You will learn a lot about your body along the way…..

Buckle up, and be ready for the ride!

If you have any questions, and/or if you need help putting on some muscle, losing some body fat, feel free to shoot me an email:

efriedlander94@gmail.com

Bulking is “semi-important” but the most important thing is being good on the ball!

Don’t know how to do that?

I’m here to help you with that!

There’s so much information out there! I understand, you may not know what to do…

Trust me, I’ve been there.

I got a simple answer for you.

I just released my app that I have been working on for 3 Years now.

You can start your 7 Day Free Trial Here:

https://www.ricfitacademy.com/

If you want to be the best player on every single pitch you step on, this app is for you.

Happy Holidays and a Successful, Healthy and Blessed New Year!

Much Love,

Your Boy Ricky

PS: I am grateful to have a large audience who speaks Spanish, so I went ahead and translated the entire article into Spanish to help you feel more comfortable. I hope it helps: