8000 kcal a day: building lean muscle

8000 kcal a day — the number sounds insane, but nutrition specialist Chris Aceto claims it’s the key to adding 5–10 pounds of quality muscle in two months without a noticeable rise in body fat percentage. The trick is simple: once a week, eat double your calories, and stick to your normal intake the rest of the days.

Why does 8000 kcal a day work at all?

Normally we fear excess calories because we believe they’re stored as fat right away. The reality is more complicated. If you do it only once a week, your body doesn’t feel the need to protect itself by building up fat stores.

So what actually happens? An occasional calorie overload dramatically increases thermogenesis — your body simply burns off part of the excess energy as heat. At the same time, it creates an anabolic environment in which the hormones needed for muscle growth are elevated. The result: more muscle mass, minimal fat gain.

A simple example: a 200-pound bodybuilder typically needs 4000 calories a day to maintain their body weight. On an overfeeding day, you double that — 8000 calories. The element of surprise keeps your body responding the way it should.

How to apply 8000 kcal a day

Step one: work out your daily calorie needs. Keep a food diary for 4–5 days, write down everything you eat and the amounts, use a calorie calculator and find your average. Then double that number — that’s your overfeeding-day target.

The first 5 weeks

Pick one set day a week. Ideally it’s a training day, especially if you’re worried about gaining fat — that way the extra calories go into muscle recovery. On that day you eat double your calories. Aceto warns that the first few times you may feel terribly full. That’s normal. By the third such day, your body has already adapted and it no longer feels so grueling.

Month two: higher frequency

After the first month, adaptation kicks in — your body has gotten used to the single overfeeding day and no longer responds as strongly. Step it up: have an overfeeding day every 5th day instead of once a week. If the results keep coming without added fat, tighten it further — every 4th day.

Important: on regular days, still eat your normal intake — for a 200-pounder, for example, 4000 calories. After an overfeeding day your appetite may be smaller, but you still have to get those calories in. If you skip them, your weekly calorie total stays the same and there’s no muscle-growth effect.

Food tips for hitting your calorie target

8000 calories is a lot of food. Here are some practical tips that will help you actually get it all down.

Drink your calories. Protein shakes and milk are easier to take in than solid food. Even when you’re full of solid food, your body can often find room for another 8–16 ounces of milk. These are quality calories that help you reach your target.

Spread your calories across several meals. Your body processes calories better in smaller portions. The more you eat at once, the more likely it is to be stored as fat. Keep each meal under 1000 calories and eat at least 6 meals a day. The meal plan includes 8 meals, shakes among them.

Macros on the overfeeding day:

• Protein: 1 g per pound of body weight (about 1.8–2 g/kg). More won’t speed up your results, but it won’t do any harm either.
• Carbohydrates: raise your intake to up to 1000 g a day. Pasta and maltodextrin are great for this.
• Simple carbohydrates: 50–100 g right before and after training — they help build muscle mass most effectively.
• Healthy fats: about 50 g a day. Good sources: avocados, salmon, nuts, seeds, natural peanut butter, olive oil — they support the production of the hormones you need.
• Saturated fats: meat and egg yolks help produce testosterone and other muscle-growth hormones — don’t avoid them. Do steer clear of packaged and fried foods, a.k.a. junk food.

FAQ

Won’t you inevitably gain fat on an overfeeding day?

Not if you do it rarely and in a controlled way. Your body responds to an occasional calorie overload with increased heat production, not fat stores. Eating this way once a week during the first month, the risk is minimal.

When should you schedule your overfeeding day?

Ideally on a training day. That way the extra calories go into muscle recovery. Pick a day when you have enough time to prepare and eat the food — it’s hard to get through 8000 calories in a rush.

What about the day after an overfeeding day?

Your appetite is smaller — that’s normal. But still eat the calories of your usual day. If you skip them, your weekly calorie total stays the same and there’s no muscle-growth effect. Be especially diligent that day.

Author: joker

Source: WHO – physical activity.

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