Caloric surplus, over basal or overall calorie expendeture?

Hello! I am making this post asking if a person who wants to gain weight for the purpose of building muscle has to consume more calories than their basal metabolism, or instead over their entire daily calorie expediture (which means with activities counted in). I am guessing the second option, however, from the sources that I have read, the answer is not clear.

Answer

You need to intake more calories than you burn. Your bmr is the minimum amount of calories you burn just being alive, but it doesn’t account for any activity you do. You need to calculate your TDEE (Total daily energy expenditure) for how many calories you’re burning a day, then up it by usually 500/day for gaining a pound a week.

Answer

Yeah it’s total calories they are referring too.

I will add that it depends how well trained you are already and your current body composition.

If you are a new lifter it’s not necessary as you will gain muscle quite quickly for the first year even without a surplus but will be more efficient for growth if you can eat in a slight surplus around 5-10%.