I used to consume thousands of calories of pure sugar (mixed with water) for long gym days. I did this in line with recommendations for athletes that simpler carbohydrates are better for endurance activity for their ease of digestion and because the calories were used to fuel exercise as opposed to being converted to excess adipose tissue. Cake is typically 'dirty' in my opinion because regular consumption of cake tends to not be correlated with a healthful diet and because the calories that cake takes up can push out more nutrient-dense foods, but cake, and most all 'foods,' I don't think are bad per se but only insofar as they contribute to a dietary pattern that is lacking in nutrients. But if you're bulking and are adequately meeting nutrition targets then eating calorically dense foods is, I think, neutral wrt health, though eating lots of fatty nuts might be more healthful. Lmk if studies for any of the above claims would be helpful, and for a less evidence-based example, I think of Michael Phelps eating lots of candy and 'unhealthy' foods when training.
I used to consume thousands of calories of pure sugar (mixed with water) for long gym days. I did this in line with recommendations for athletes that simpler carbohydrates are better for endurance activity for their ease of digestion and because the calories were used to fuel exercise as opposed to being converted to excess adipose tissue. Cake is typically 'dirty' in my opinion because regular consumption of cake tends to not be correlated with a healthful diet and because the calories that cake takes up can push out more nutrient-dense foods, but cake, and most all 'foods,' I don't think are bad per se but only insofar as they contribute to a dietary pattern that is lacking in nutrients. But if you're bulking and are adequately meeting nutrition targets then eating calorically dense foods is, I think, neutral wrt health, though eating lots of fatty nuts might be more healthful. Lmk if studies for any of the above claims would be helpful, and for a less evidence-based example, I think of Michael Phelps eating lots of candy and 'unhealthy' foods when training.