Bulking when you hate cooking: the simple plan

If you're a skinny guy who's been training for months without the scale moving, there's a good chance the problem is on your plate. To build muscle, your body needs a small energy surplus and enough protein. Without that, even the best training program delivers little.

And that's exactly where it breaks down when you hate cooking. Eating a lot means making a lot: grocery shopping, cooking big volumes, doing it all again tomorrow. After a long day of classes or work, you end up with toast, a skipped meal or a fast-food order with barely any protein in it.

So the fix isn't learning to love cooking. It's building a routine where calories show up without effort, even on days you have zero motivation.

Forget seven-meals-a-day plans. Keep only what works when you don't feel like cooking:

• Two dense meals a day: lunch and dinner already made, high in calories and protein.
• Three no-cook snacks: food you grab on the way, no pan and no oven.
• Protein every time you eat: every meal and every snack includes a protein source.
• One weigh-in a week: same day, same time, so you adjust without guessing.

This plan works because it removes decisions. You don't wonder what to eat: you eat what's already there.

For protein, the International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand (2017) recommends 1.4 to 2.0 g per kilo of body weight per day for people who train. For a 70 kg guy, that's roughly 100 to 140 g a day. For comparison, Health Canada's reference intake for the general population is 0.8 g per kilo — a minimum, not a muscle-building target.

For calories, there's no universal number: it depends on your size, activity and metabolism. The most reliable method is practical: eat consistently for two weeks, weigh yourself once a week, and if your weight isn't going up, add a few hundred calories a day. A slow, steady gain limits fat gain.

A meal on the Protéine Express bulking plan has about 930 kcal and 60 g of protein. Two a day already give you around 1,860 kcal and 120 g of protein, before your snacks.

Here's what a bulking day can look like without turning on the oven:

• Breakfast: a bowl of Greek yogurt with granola, a banana and a glass of milk.
• Lunch: a reheated bulking meal (rice, chicken, vegetables, sauce).
• Snack: a peanut butter sandwich and a piece of fruit, or a protein bar.
• Dinner: a second bulking meal, different from lunch.
• Evening: cottage cheese, nuts or a protein shake if you're still under your target.

None of these steps takes more than five minutes. That's the whole point: consistency beats perfection, especially when cooking isn't your thing.

Always keep a few options on hand, in the fridge or in your gym bag:

• Milk or fortified soy beverage: easy calories and protein to drink.
• Greek yogurt and cottage cheese: high in protein, ready to eat.
• Peanut butter, nuts and seeds: very calorie-dense in a small volume.
• Bagels, bread, instant oatmeal: simple carbs to round out the day.
• Ready-made hard-boiled eggs, canned tuna, cheese portions.

If you're stuck, check these classic traps first:

• Skipping breakfast or lunch on busy days, then trying to catch up at night.
• Relying on fast food: plenty of calories, but often little protein.
• Changing plans every week instead of giving one plan two or three weeks.
• Forgetting sleep: recovery is part of progress.

To go further, read our article on how to gain muscle without fast food.

Meal prep solves the biggest obstacle: the two main meals. With the bulking plan, you get meals of about 930 kcal and 60 g of protein every Sunday, ready to reheat, from $13.49 per meal. Order by Friday noon and we deliver to Montreal, Longueuil, Laval, Brossard and elsewhere on the South Shore and North Shore.

The rest — the snacks — takes a few minutes a day. And since every dish's values are listed on this week's menu, you know exactly how much you still need to hit your target.