So im 14 and have been training for 7~ months and thought bulking might be a good idea due to being in the middle of puberty. But the counting calories thing really fucks it up for me. I dont want to be calculating calories and protein at the dinner table with my family. I meanwhile dont want to develop an obsession with it. I just want to eat high quality food, 4 times a day till i get uncomfortable, which tends to be a good amont of food, along side a protein shake. I would consider myself to be at an age where counting calories and stuff isnt as important as if you were full grown adult. Would like to hear what more knowledgble people have to say. Thanks in advance
Try counting protein, instead.
Aim for 1.5 g of protein for every lb you weigh.
For the rest, eat good quality food until you are full. No need to stuff yourself to discomfort.
Enjoy your youth. So long as you wouldn’t describe yourself as an unhealthy size I really don’t see a valid reason to put yourself through the mental gymnastics of tracking cals and macros at 14 years old. That isn’t to say you shouldn’t educate yourself about healthy eating habits, but at your age the only thing matters is that you’re consuming quality food on a daily basis and adjust as needed.
It’s worth sitting down and doing the numbers on your average day once just to get a sense of if you’re in the ballpark.
You can track your weight and have a ‘feel’ for how much food you’re eating if you don’t want to count it all. You should bulk at about 1lb/week so just weigh yourself each day and adjust how much you eat based on the change in weight after a couple weeks. You can see how good your ‘feel’ for quantity of food is and get better at knowing how much to consume based on watching your weight.