[richardbb85]

i am starting my cut next monday, sitting at 205ish now, will probably aim for 170 and see how i look. good luck everyone

[squishy]

Nice, what bf % do you want to be at?

Do you add/increase cardio on your cut?

I'm currently at 212#, want to get up to 230# by March 1st and cut down to 205# by May 15th.

[richardbb85]

Originally Posted by squishy

Nice, what bf % do you want to be at?

Do you add/increase cardio on your cut?

I'm currently at 212#, want to get up to 230# by March 1st and cut down to 205# by May 15th.

i am just gona cut down to about 180 and see how i feel/look. i dont do cardio when bulking, 3-4x a week when on a cut and aim for 300-350 calories per session. cardio isnt necessary anyway, i just let the diet do all the work.

[squishy]

Originally Posted by richardbb85

i am just gona cut down to about 180 and see how i feel/look. i dont do cardio when bulking, 3-4x a week when on a cut and aim for 300-350 calories per session. cardio isnt necessary anyway, i just let the diet do all the work.

OK gotcha.

I'm stuck at my weight atm, so I'm adding in just 25-30 minutes of cardio (walking on incline treadmill) and upping my fat and carbs. Hopefully I can keep the weight going...

If seems to just go up 10# in a few weeks, then stay steady for a month. Then go up 8#, etc...

I guess that's how the body works, so just gotta work with it!

[kevinbahnz]

It's good to see some of you guys still going to the gym, I'm still recovering from the my elbow . It seems that when the pain started to go away it comes back when I use that arm to carry my daughter in and out of the car in her car seat. I'm getting a little soft so I'm just gonna go back to the gym and do some cardio.

[UncleWede]

Yesterday was about 3 hours of wax-on wax-off as I did a full detail/seal on my nieces new car
This morning I did some leg work but toned it down on the weight a bit since I hadn't done legs in a while

[squishy]

Originally Posted by kevinbahnz

It's good to see some of you guys still going to the gym, I'm still recovering from the my elbow . It seems that when the pain started to go away it comes back when I use that arm to carry my daughter in and out of the car in her car seat. I'm getting a little soft so I'm just gonna go back to the gym and do some cardio.

Kevin, are you getting your vitamins and minerals in?

It seems that the fact that your recovery appears so slow could be due to; 1) age; 2) micronutrients; and/or 3) a deep strain.

Maybe try increasing your micronutrients and see how your elbow responds to that?

Many people neglect/underestimate the importance of nutrition.

[kevinbahnz]

Its probably a combination of all those factors. I take in about 1200-1500 calories a day, probably not the most nutrient filled foods either. I've been taking pseudoephedrine at night for the past month to help me breathe at night. I might be addicted to it.

[F1Venom]

I used to be a "meh" gym goer most of my life and always 20-30% body fat. The past two years I've been hitting the gym pretty regularly and in the past year I've gone from 220 to 160 lbs. I decided to reverse diet last month as my calories were too low, I don't have enough lbm, and I couldn't dip below 160 even at 1880 cals. Right now I'm at 2400 cals/day and am still reverse dieting. I started the RD at 163 and I'm up just a lb now. I don't ever want to go above 180 so I guess I'll just cut back down to 170 once that gets hit. Then I'll bulk up to 180 and cut back down, hoping to look leaner and leaner each time at higher weight.
My squat is 335lbs at 165, and I don't dead lift or bench.

[F1Venom]

Originally Posted by UncleWede

Yesterday was about 3 hours of wax-on wax-off as I did a full detail/seal on my nieces new car
This morning I did some leg work but toned it down on the weight a bit since I hadn't done legs in a while

Haha, nothing nicer than soreness after leg day because you haven't trained legs in over a week.

[richardbb85]

Originally Posted by squishy

OK gotcha.

I'm stuck at my weight atm, so I'm adding in just 25-30 minutes of cardio (walking on incline treadmill) and upping my fat and carbs. Hopefully I can keep the weight going...

If seems to just go up 10# in a few weeks, then stay steady for a month. Then go up 8#, etc...

I guess that's how the body works, so just gotta work with it!

why would you up your cardio and fat/carbs same time? it doesnt make sense

[squishy]

Originally Posted by richardbb85

why would you up your cardio and fat/carbs same time? it doesnt make sense

Adding in/increasing cardio speeds up your metabolism so you can eat more; everything you eat is digested faster; and in turn, you build muscle at a faster pace.

You almost turn your body into a machine by doing so, and you can really put on some serious size.

It is very, VERY effective. I recommend everyone try it.

I used to run about 5-6 miles every morning and lost 65# in 1.5 months last summer. I maintained that cardio and my weight, and this summer, I started eating at a 1000 calorie surplus, and put on 25# of mostly muscle in 2 months.

[vantagesc]

A person would be lucky to put on 25 pounds of muscle in an entire year, never mind 2 months. This assumes no steroids. If you are putting on weight that fast, chances are you are gaining a decent amount of fat. Some of it may be water weight / glycogen. Sometimes you don't realize it because the extra fat isn't that noticeable if you are above say 15% BF.

IMO, try for no more than a 4 pound gain / month when bulking, otherwise you will constantly be cutting your bulking phases short to cut, and going on a yo yo cycle. Slow bulking is best.

[squishy]

Originally Posted by vantagesc

A person would be lucky to put on 25 pounds of muscle in an entire year, never mind 2 months. This assumes no steroids. If you are putting on weight that fast, chances are you are gaining a decent amount of fat. Some of it may be water weight / glycogen. Sometimes you don't realize it because the extra fat isn't that noticeable if you are above say 15% BF.

IMO, try for no more than a 4 pound gain / month when bulking, otherwise you will constantly be cutting your bulking phases short to cut, and going on a yo yo cycle. Slow bulking is best.

Never weight lifted in my life prior to that...very possible.

Completely disagree with 4# a month...

You know, it's completely OK to put on a bit of fat, right? In fact, it's good to gain a bit of fat while gaining muscle, which means you're giving your body the most possible growth room.

I recommend 1.5-2# a week, but expect fluctuations with that. Some weeks might be 2#, others might be .5#.

[vantagesc]

If you have good nutrition, you don't need to eat at a severe excess to gain muscle at a good rate. Just 10-20% over daily expenditure.

Putting on fat cannot be avoided when bulking. But at an average rate of 1.5-2 pounds per week as you suggest, you are gaining 6-8 pounds a month. If you bulk for 4 months, you gain 24-32 pounds in that time alone. At least half of that is going to be fat. Why? In your first year of serious weight lifting, you might be able to gain 25 pounds in lean muscle at most, but in the second year it will be less, and in the third year even less than that. I think people severely underestimate how long it takes to put on lean body mass.

So at your proposed rate of weight gain, you will have gained a large amount of fat at the end of your bulk. You will have gained MORE fat than muscle. Eventually you will have to go on a prolonged cut period because you are putting on too much fat too quickly, whereas if you went on a SLOW bulk, you'd be able to bulk longer (getting stronger and stronger) and look good for more of the year, rather than getting fat and having to spend half your time cutting. If you are starting off very skinny, then it doesn't hurt to put on some fat to look more full, but I personally don't want to spend that much time cutting. I'd rather bulk more slowly.

With your suggestion, after four months, you have gained 24-32 pounds of weight, but only 10 pounds of muscle (at most if your a normal adult, no steroids, beginner weightlifter). Now you have 14-22 pounds of fat to lose. If you try to lose the fat too quickly, you will end up losing muscle too, which is counter-productive, so you have to take it slow (unless of course you are severely over weight, then the fat can come off faster). You've now spent four months bulking and four months cutting for a net gain of 10 pounds of muscle. Bulking slower you can gain the same mount of muscle in four months, but now you only have to cut for two months. The slower bulk comes out ahead over the course of a year.

Everyone is a little different of course, so do what works best for you. Just consider how much weight a non-steroid person can gain in a year, how long you want to spend cutting, and whether you care about being at a higher body fat percentage. My advice applies to someone who wants to be in the 10-15% range year round, which means a fairly flat stomach and even some visible abs at the lower end of the range. Obviously power lifters tolerate some extra fat to completely prioritize strength.

Good discussion.

[UncleWede]

This morning, about 22 hours since my leg workout the gluets started to hurt. Soon it was tough to get my socks and shoes on. I took a nap then went and hit chest/tri, but I may have to wear my shoes to bed tonight. My legs have obviously grown at least 3 feet

[richardbb85]

Originally Posted by vantagesc

A person would be lucky to put on 25 pounds of muscle in an entire year, never mind 2 months. This assumes no steroids. If you are putting on weight that fast, chances are you are gaining a decent amount of fat. Some of it may be water weight / glycogen. Sometimes you don't realize it because the extra fat isn't that noticeable if you are above say 15% BF.

IMO, try for no more than a 4 pound gain / month when bulking, otherwise you will constantly be cutting your bulking phases short to cut, and going on a yo yo cycle. Slow bulking is best.

slow bulking is good but then that means u have to track your macros all year long.....which IMO gets frustrating. sometimes i think ur brain just need a break from thinking "oh man i am not gona hit my macro today". if your competing and doing this for a living, then yea go ahead with slow bulk. IMO, dirty bulking is best if you know your body well/or know how to diet down.

[squishy]

Originally Posted by vantagesc

Bulking slower you can gain the same mount of muscle in four months, but now you only have to cut for two months.

See, this is my main issue with your claims. You can't say for certain that you will gain the same amount of muscle in four months if you "slow bulk" at 4# a month, rather than 6-8# a month. In fact, I'm willing to bet you wouldn't gain the same amount of muscle.

To gain muscle, a few things need to happen. First, protein muscle synthesis needs to occur (proper muscle stimulation by, 1) hypertrophy; or 2)increasing overall volume). Second, you must be in a caloric surplus to build muscle. Based on your posts, it seems you believe that (and I don't intend to put words in your mouth, correct me if I'm wrong) one can simply gain muscle after muscle stimulation and a tiny caloric surplus. That's simply not the case. Protein muscle synthesis occurs when sufficient calories are present, and it occurs in a inconsistent progressive rate. You don't know how many "sufficient calories" are. I don't know how many "sufficient calories" are. As a result, eating at the bare minimum to increase muscle size without adding fat, will result in an individual not maximizing their potential for lean muscle tissue growth.

As for my second claim, protein muscle synthesis occurs inconsistently. Why do beginners plateau? Why can't we just lift heavy week after week and keep gaining at a consistent rate? Well, that's simply because muscle grows when enough factors align that would allow for growth (nutrition, muscle stimulation, rest, recovery, etc.). Sometimes, chemical properties restrict growth even after an intense workout. Other times, physical environmental changes restrict growth. And the list goes on.

...I believe I just took the long-winded road to conclude the following: it's best to be safe than sorry. I almost 100% guarantee you that one would not put on the same amount of lean muscle tissue gaining 1# a week, as one would while gaining 1.5-2.0# a week. Yes, this would certainly result in an increase in body fat, but would also certainly result in an increase in lean muscle tissue.

In my opinion, it is best to listen to your body and eat when/what your body craves, while on a bulk. Our bodies are far more intelligent than we think they are. The human body will naturally began to crave certain foods that it needs for growth, if that's what the individual is after. According to this approach, you may only gain 0.5# a week, or you may gain 2.5# a week. But, you are listening to your body and therefore giving yourself the best opportunity for growth.

Edit: For clarification, and to summarize my main point, at some point, the amount of lean muscle tissue an individual gains tapers off, and increasing calories in order to gain 1# a week is simply not enough, in my opinion. 1.5-2# a week should be a better and safer number to aim for. Other factors, like metabolic rate, age, height, and years training, must be taken into consideration as well.

[UncleWede]

Christmas Eve morning I knew gym hours were 8-1 so I had some breakfast then went with the intention of trying out the muscle beach. It was a pleasant mid-70s here. Finished about 11 but felt really bad, muscles were failing at times they shouldn't doing back/bi. Gave up, went to car, and realized I forgot my insulin after breakfast. When I got home my blood sugar was 529! MAJOR screw up

Then there was another car waiting for me at home. Paint all oxidized. Spent 4 hours on the wax-on/wax-off there. Came in almost too tired to eat but still took a shot. About 8 my bs crashed to 32 and I barely recovered after soda, cereal, juice, quesadilla.

So this morning I'm just chilling and not going for a run

[UncleWede]

Hit the beach again today to do shoulders. It was only mid 50s with the wind blowing but the sun reflecting off mirrors was nice. After an hour I went to the heavy bags for a final push but I think I snapped the last knuckle in my pinky. The left one has already been fused from poor softball catching and age. It was so traumatizing to see those little rods sticking out the top of the left I may just have them cut the tip off instead this time

[UncleWede]

I'm going to end up with huge shoulders. Today it was 4:30 on the wax-on/off routine. I did my parents' highlander but also had to swamp the interior. A whole bag of goodies came out the back then I had to wash the panels before vacuuming, THEN break out the polisher for the exterior. I'm driving it for the next couple days

[pukicabuki]

Let the gym season of "why the f*ck is everyone in my way" and "what the hell is that person doing" begin!

Happy new year everybody!