How can I do that exactly? Do I try to cut while maintain strength and keeping protein high?
This will give you a starting point. Assess after a week or two of strict adherence. Be conservative when estimating your activity modifier.
I can’t give you a real number, but it’s completely arbitrary regardless. You should be fuckin LEAN by the time you get there.
Yes. I can see the difference in your arms and shoulders. Would be easier to tell with less hair though, lol.
This is fine, but I like Phraks Greyskull LP more. It’s more balanced in approach, and works well for rapid progression whilst allowing some freedom for assistance work.
Either way, Starting Strength is fine for where you’re at.
I’m happy to give pointers, but the best way for you to get your ass in gear is to start taking your training seriously.
Start a training log and tag me.
A desirable physique takes years to achieve.
You aren’t spinning your wheels as there is noticeable change in your pictures… you just haven’t put YEARS into this.
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You think continuing a bulk is a bad idea?, in order to hit my goals of 405 for 5 deadlift 225x5 bench ohp 155x5 315 squat for 5. Or cut now? And btw been lifting for years on and off got fat then skinny then fat. So it just angers me I gotta cut.
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Both of your goals are possible to chase at the same time, at least for now.
I think you should be able to cut reasonably well while maintaining strength, so long as you don’t crash cut again.
1% bodyweight loss per week at max if you want to maintain muscle.
You weigh 183lbs now, so 1.8lbs loss per week is your max weight loss rate.
When you weigh 170lbs, it will become 1.7lbs per week.
You get the picture.
Time your carbs around your training, prioritize sleep, and keep hitting the gym with the same intensity you’ve been to get where you are.
Keep your protein at 1g/lb bodyweight; this is mandatory.
Ideally, your fats will be 0.3g/lb, and the rest of your calories would come from carbs.
But if you are better at complying with higher fats, just do that instead. You’ll just get better performance with more carbs.
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So just focus on maintaining the strength? And do u think if I get to 160lbs I’ll be lean? And u think bulking more is not smart?
I think we’re talking past each other.
Your goals are to look good and be strong.
- Your program is good for getting and staying strong.
- Your diet will control whether or not you look good.
- Continue training as you have been. This is what you must do to get stronger and/or maintain strength while leaning out.
- Adjust calories down such that you are losing weight at a rate not greater than 1.8lbs per week. Do this until you are lean.
I cannot tell you that you will be lean at 160lbs. I don’t know how lean you are willing to get, nor do I know what you would look like at 160lbs.
Stop looking for a goal post that cannot be defined.
I can tell you that once you get lean, you should go on a very conservative surplus of about 300cals per day - primarily from carbs - to facilitate muscle growth. This should equate to about 0.5lbs weight gain per week, which is the maximum recruitment rate of new muscle tissue. Chances are you will still add some fat alongside it, and that is okay.
I think when most people say “bulking”, they mean “eat whatever I want”. If this is your definition, then yeah - bulking is not smart.
A more educated and effective definition to “bulking” is as I described above… still a highly restricted diet, but with about 300cals surplus coming from carbs.
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I’ll briefly throw in my 2 cents.
Totally drop “bulk” and “cut” from your bodybuilding vocabulary.
You have set some strength goals. Focus only on those. Initially change those to some shorter term goals so that you can be boosted to train hard to achieve the next goals.
Don’t worry about your weight. BUT… totally clean up your diet. Absolutely no more processed foods and no foods with added sugar. Double your protein intake. Some fat should begin to drop. It will probably be slow, unless your diet is full of sweets and processed foods.
This is the cruel part and I know it is because I addressed it. It will hurt your mother’s feelings, but in time I believe she won’t be hurt. You eat only the protein she makes and maybe taste the sides (NO BREAD), and refuse her desserts that she believes are your favorites. Initially she will not understand. Bring flowers to show your love, or something you know she likes.
During this process you can track your weight and strength metrics. Ideally, if your weight doesn’t change your strength should be gradually increasing if you are eating sufficient protein. This IMO is your best road to improvement.
Have you dropped “bulk” and “cut” from your vocabulary yet? The bodybuider’s Yo-Yo diet is a recipe for failure.
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So maintain while increasing strength? You think I can reach my strength goals without putting on anymore extra weight? And btw you think cutting 15-20lbs wouldn’t be smart at the moment?
You can believe you can or believe you cannot. In either case you are correct.
For one, you need some patience. Your genetics will determine how fast you reach your goals. You are very young to be throwing in the towel.
IMO, you need to refuse to get fatter to get stronger. Put in the time, effort, and eat even more protein.
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If you were in your 40’s I might say get leaner. But at your age I believe you can gradually reach a level of leanness and strength that you will be satisfied with (until you get there, at which time you will want to be stronger and leaner.)
Plus, I don’t believe you know your body well enough to cut effectively. In a few years you should be able to read how your body responds much better.
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This thread is getting frustrating because I don’t think OP knows what he wants.
@HairyLifter
I see 0 replies saying you should continue a bulk, but you keep looking for responses asking if you should continue with it…
Sounds like you are looking for someone to give you permission to do the thing you want, instead of the thing that aligns with your goals.
FWIW, the best answer is this one:
If you don’t want to follow this advice, don’t.
But don’t be surprised if you are still:
I know you’re at a weird stage in life where you’re figuring yourself out and all that, but you don’t need anyone’s permission to do what you want.
It’s a confusing time where you have the freedom to make decisions against your own self-interest. I’d advise you make the hard choice at every turn.
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Your 100% correct, i need to reevaluate my goals. If I never cut before then I’d be much more open to cutting, but the fact that I’ve been lifting for years (5 years on and off) and still pretty weak, it’s making it hard for me to do another cut unless I cut really fat. Thank u for your help.
So would you recommend trying to reach those strength numbers I want while keeping any extra body fat at a minimum? Then I should reasses my body and goals after? Is that a good plan?
Fantastic advice all the way through.
OP, if you’re just asking whether you can keep working to get stronger without getting fatter, the answer is “yes.”
The Starting Strength forums tend to have a bias toward weight gain as the primary driver of adding weight to the bar. The target audience is, as the name implies, beginners. They’re talking to 15 year olds that have never eaten. I’d also argue they’re talking to a bygone era when teenagers had metabolisms and real food.
In any case, the advice here is clear and consistent from big, strong, lean dudes… which should tell you something. I think you’re probably stressing a bit because you’re 21 with “tons of free time.” It’s certainly not my business to give advice you didn’t solicit, and this is not a dig, but having too much time to think does tend to breed neuroticism. Could you also pursue self-growth outside the gym?
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X1,000
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Cut the apron strings.
Your goals are to look good and be strong. No need to reevaluate the goals, just your approach.
I think the issue is you don;t know how to cut. Just cutting a ton of cals will not only cut fat but as you have seen you also lose muscle.
As i have said. You need to fix your diet and training.
Start logging your diet/training daily in the “training log” section. You have already started a thread. Here is a link to my training log if you wanna use it as a template.
You can also see my diet pretty much daily. At least on training days. Once we get a handle on what you are actually eating/doing in the gym we can help you adjust to meet your goals.
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…
Stop overstating how much training you’ve really done, and your mental hurdles will be less cumbersome.
The sooner you stop feeling like a victim, the sooner you will start seeing progress.
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Please listen to advice from others. It’s genuinely the way to help you from continuing to spin you wheels. My only advice is this… get a job, move out (if possible) and start taking ownership for your life.
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