[quote]MikeRich928 wrote:
I really believe that we focus so much on Testosterone, but the body is such a complex machine… So much going on at all times, and especially during adolescence. We are amazing machines, no one substance is going to solely account for everything. Sex drive can be affected by many factors, psychological, physiological… [/quote]
I was referring to testosterone, estrogen, shbg, cortisol, prolactin, etc…
also important to know your fasting blood glucose levels.
Hi all, so I have an issue that I would like to clarify with you guys. Basically I bulked from 138 pounds to 178 pounds in a short span of 6 months and although I had certainly put on some muscle I had also put on quite abit of fat. I ended up looking quite sloppy at 178. Take note that I am only 5’6 so I’m definitely on the short end. I then spent the next 5 months reducing my weight to 155 which got me to a less fat state.
Since then it has been 3 months and I have gained about 14 pounds and I feel that I have definitely gotten much fatter. I had intended to bulk for one year to go up to 190lbs. That would put every month with an increase of 3lbs per month. Would that be a good idea? Or would that make me very fat? And then would cause me to have to diet hard again and then lose the muscle that I have gained?
Ideally in 5+ years done the road I would want to sit at a lean 190lbs and compete at possibly 170lbs. Not sure if those goals are attainable though but I will never know until I try it out. Anyway hope to receive some advice from the nation.
[quote]markwongty369 wrote:
Hi all, so I have an issue that I would like to clarify with you guys. Basically I bulked from 138 pounds to 178 pounds in a short span of 6 months and although I had certainly put on some muscle I had also put on quite abit of fat. I ended up looking quite sloppy at 178. Take note that I am only 5’6 so I’m definitely on the short end. I then spent the next 5 months reducing my weight to 155 which got me to a less fat state.
Since then it has been 3 months and I have gained about 14 pounds and I feel that I have definitely gotten much fatter. I had intended to bulk for one year to go up to 190lbs. That would put every month with an increase of 3lbs per month. Would that be a good idea? Or would that make me very fat? And then would cause me to have to diet hard again and then lose the muscle that I have gained?
Ideally in 5+ years done the road I would want to sit at a lean 190lbs and compete at possibly 170lbs. Not sure if those goals are attainable though but I will never know until I try it out. Anyway hope to receive some advice from the nation. [/quote]
190 at 5’6 is quite large…very difficult to attain naturally.
‘bulking’ is generally a bad idea… instead, following a diet plan and slowly increasing macros taking body composition into account and as strength gains begin to stall… much better idea.
you don’t want to get fat and then try to diet… we had a kid on here a long time ago who began quite skinny, ‘bulked’ up to 240 and was very fat…and then attempted to cut, and ended up looking way worse than before.
listen to walkaway
I went through something similar and thank god I caught my self early on that. Fat gains inevitable and maybe you won’t have perfect six pack abs all the time but keep lean.
it helps with muscle growth and general well being. PLus you’ll be much happier taking your shirt off at the pool etc.
eat and add calories slowly and do cardio or some other activity.
[quote]Mr. Walkway wrote:
[quote]markwongty369 wrote:
Hi all, so I have an issue that I would like to clarify with you guys. Basically I bulked from 138 pounds to 178 pounds in a short span of 6 months and although I had certainly put on some muscle I had also put on quite abit of fat. I ended up looking quite sloppy at 178. Take note that I am only 5’6 so I’m definitely on the short end. I then spent the next 5 months reducing my weight to 155 which got me to a less fat state.
Since then it has been 3 months and I have gained about 14 pounds and I feel that I have definitely gotten much fatter. I had intended to bulk for one year to go up to 190lbs. That would put every month with an increase of 3lbs per month. Would that be a good idea? Or would that make me very fat? And then would cause me to have to diet hard again and then lose the muscle that I have gained?
Ideally in 5+ years done the road I would want to sit at a lean 190lbs and compete at possibly 170lbs. Not sure if those goals are attainable though but I will never know until I try it out. Anyway hope to receive some advice from the nation. [/quote]
190 at 5’6 is quite large…very difficult to attain naturally.
‘bulking’ is generally a bad idea… instead, following a diet plan and slowly increasing macros taking body composition into account and as strength gains begin to stall… much better idea.
you don’t want to get fat and then try to diet… we had a kid on here a long time ago who began quite skinny, ‘bulked’ up to 240 and was very fat…and then attempted to cut, and ended up looking way worse than before. [/quote]
Well yeah I thought so too. But then again I wanted to set an extremely difficult goal for myself so that I would have to push myself. If I recall correctly, the mighty stu said that he would get up to about 200 in his ‘off season’ and I think he is about the same height as me. And I am hoping to be able to look like him one day.
Considering that I am a beginner, my strength gains are relatively fast but body composition changes aren’t so easy to see. I figured if I increase my weight 2-3lbs a month I shouldn’t be putting on too much fat right?
I think I understand what you mean. I have no intentions of going past 200lbs and will rmb not to chase the numbers for the sake of increasing weight .
[quote]texas man wrote:
listen to walkaway
I went through something similar and thank god I caught my self early on that. Fat gains inevitable and maybe you won’t have perfect six pack abs all the time but keep lean.
it helps with muscle growth and general well being. PLus you’ll be much happier taking your shirt off at the pool etc.
eat and add calories slowly and do cardio or some other activity.[/quote]
Alright, thanks for the response. I’ll do my best to increase my calories slowly to allow minimal fat again.
Could you pls tell me why staying leaner would result in more muscle growth?
Cardio isn’t really an issue as I am doing quite a lot. I need all the cardio I can get as my weight seems to want to increase very fast lol
I don’t know the exact science, something that has to do with insulin sensitivity and how well your body processes nutrients
But it’s a common held belief that the leaner you are (to an extant) the easier it is to build muscle, something I’ve witnessed my self
[quote]texas man wrote:
I don’t know the exact science, something that has to do with insulin sensitivity and how well your body processes nutrients
But it’s a common held belief that the leaner you are (to an extant) the easier it is to build muscle, something I’ve witnessed my self[/quote]
Alright I’ll definitely try to stay as lean as possible during my ‘bulk’. This is definitely gonna be a challenge for me as I have always had difficulty getting/staying lean while putting on weight always seemed much easier.
everything works better when you are leaner, generally speaking.
when you are fat, you are typically less insulin-sensitive which makes you more predisposed to further fat gain.
also, iirc, fat gains promotes increase in estrogen, which in turn promotes fat storage… it’s a downward spiral
weigh and measure everything you eat, and log your workouts. if your strength stalls, increase your macros a bit. make sure you get plenty of sleep and water.
[quote]Mr. Walkway wrote:
everything works better when you are leaner, generally speaking.
when you are fat, you are typically less insulin-sensitive which makes you more predisposed to further fat gain.
also, iirc, fat gains promotes increase in estrogen, which in turn promotes fat storage… it’s a downward spiral
weigh and measure everything you eat, and log your workouts. if your strength stalls, increase your macros a bit. make sure you get plenty of sleep and water.
[/quote]
Alright then. Hearing all this makes me want to stop bulking and start cutting so I can start from a leaner point. But then again I just started gaining weight for 3 months so I have to continue for the next 8-9 months for so. I think I am currently about 15-16% bf and am definitely not thrilled about that. I am only hoping that my bf doesn’t go above 20%…
Yeahh since the start of the bulk I have been weighing all my food. But I guess I may have been eating slightly too much and I am definitely gonna decrease if slightly for the time being. Thanks for the responses!
Walkway knows what he is talking about.
I wouldn’t worry too much about putting on weight. Rather, focus on your strength/volume gains and improving aesthetics. Taking pictures on a regular basis will tell you how you are improving, not the scale.
Im no expert and even after 20 years of lifting im still learning, but in my opinion your a little too preoccupied with your weight. When i started lifting i was 5’6’’ and 115. I spent 2 years bulking to 160 and i was about 22% bf. i spent the next 10 years turning that bulk into muscle and got to 160 at appr 10-12 % bf. early on i obsessed about the scale. I think its easier for us smaller framed guys to do so bc its hard mentally to be short and thin.
At 155 your a pretty good size for your height and i would not try to forcefully gain weight. Just eat enough quality food to fuel growth and strive to get stronger and or add reps every week. You are young and the weight will come. Shoving calories down and obsessing about the scale will probably leave you fat and unsatisfied. Dont rush it. And unless you have symptoms of low T, dont obsess about that either.
[quote]Ripsaw3689 wrote:
Walkway knows what he is talking about.
I wouldn’t worry too much about putting on weight. Rather, focus on your strength/volume gains and improving aesthetics. Taking pictures on a regular basis will tell you how you are improving, not the scale. [/quote]
Thanks for the advice
[quote]stoicwarrior wrote:
Im no expert and even after 20 years of lifting im still learning, but in my opinion your a little too preoccupied with your weight. When i started lifting i was 5’6’’ and 115. I spent 2 years bulking to 160 and i was about 22% bf. i spent the next 10 years turning that bulk into muscle and got to 160 at appr 10-12 % bf. early on i obsessed about the scale. I think its easier for us smaller framed guys to do so bc its hard mentally to be short and thin.
At 155 your a pretty good size for your height and i would not try to forcefully gain weight. Just eat enough quality food to fuel growth and strive to get stronger and or add reps every week. You are young and the weight will come. Shoving calories down and obsessing about the scale will probably leave you fat and unsatisfied. Dont rush it. And unless you have symptoms of low T, dont obsess about that either. [/quote]
I’m slowly weighing myself less and less now and have been focussing on eating clean and training hard. I do admit that I sometimes obsess about the scale. However, it is an important tool for me as helps me track my progress so as not to get too sloppy. Everyone says not to rush it as the progress will come but hey we all want to progress the fastest way possible . I’ll definitely be keeping in mind to not base all of my progress being made by the scale. Thanks!
[quote]markwongty369 wrote:
[quote]stoicwarrior wrote:
Im no expert and even after 20 years of lifting im still learning, but in my opinion your a little too preoccupied with your weight. When i started lifting i was 5’6’’ and 115. I spent 2 years bulking to 160 and i was about 22% bf. i spent the next 10 years turning that bulk into muscle and got to 160 at appr 10-12 % bf. early on i obsessed about the scale. I think its easier for us smaller framed guys to do so bc its hard mentally to be short and thin.
At 155 your a pretty good size for your height and i would not try to forcefully gain weight. Just eat enough quality food to fuel growth and strive to get stronger and or add reps every week. You are young and the weight will come. Shoving calories down and obsessing about the scale will probably leave you fat and unsatisfied. Dont rush it. And unless you have symptoms of low T, dont obsess about that either. [/quote]
I’m slowly weighing myself less and less now and have been focussing on eating clean and training hard. I do admit that I sometimes obsess about the scale. However, it is an important tool for me as helps me track my progress so as not to get too sloppy. Everyone says not to rush it as the progress will come but hey we all want to progress the fastest way possible . I’ll definitely be keeping in mind to not base all of my progress being made by the scale. Thanks![/quote]
we all did it mate, don’t worry. I doubt there’s a lifter on this site who hasn’t gotten a little fatter than they needed to purely for the sake of seeing that little number tick tick ticking it’s way up!
You know, it was good that you learned this bulking lesson so young. Now, you can learn from your mistake and take advantage of your best years with a good game plan: slow and steady progress gaining while staying leaner. I wish I would have learned this at your age, instead of wasting years just treading my wheels.
So I have reached the max weight that I wanted to achieve and I hope to get some advice here. Should I maintain this top weight to create a set point? And is there even such a thing as a set point? Or should I not waste time and jump straight to start cutting?
[quote]MikeRich928 wrote:
I really believe that we focus so much on Testosterone, but the body is such a complex machine… So much going on at all times, and especially during adolescence. We are amazing machines, no one substance is going to solely account for everything. Sex drive can be affected by many factors, psychological, physiological… [/quote]
Yes,
Those 2 guys are steroids user themselves, of course they will have this point of view. I don’t even know why the topic of hormones and 15 years old bodybuilder is in the same thread. Some males have their puberty at 15 years old.
[quote]markwongty369 wrote:
So I have reached the max weight that I wanted to achieve and I hope to get some advice here. Should I maintain this top weight to create a set point? And is there even such a thing as a set point? Or should I not waste time and jump straight to start cutting? [/quote]
Focus on getting better at lifting weight: more weight for more reps with good form. About your bodyweight the thing you should focus on is not getting too fat and that’s it. Eat quality food.
[quote]myself1992 wrote:
Bodybuilding is basically about getting stronger over time in a high rep range.[/quote]
This is what you should be focusing on. I’m not a bodybuilder myself so i can’t comment on training splits but whatever program you choose should have some sort of plan to add weight/reps/volume over time. Imo, you don’t need a dozen variations of the bench press, etc, just focus on the basics until youve got some solid weight on the bar.