However, I don’t wanna get any fatter. I’m also really starting to miss my abs and want to actually look like I lift. Should I cut down to 10% fat and then slowly bulk up again? I’d hate to lose the strength that I worked so hard to build but at the same time I’m getting a little too fat
cut fatty.
[quote]StevenF wrote:
cut fatty. [/quote]
Fatty has powerlifter complex and is terrified of losing strength 
[quote]shadowbobo8028 wrote:
Should I cut down to 10% fat and then slowly bulk up again? [/quote]
Yes.
Drop fat slowly and don’t completely kill of carbs.
Keep a track of your Wilks score and measure progress against that instead of absolute strength. As you put weight back on, you’ll surpass where you previously were.
Learn how to “bulk” and “cut” at the same time. This swing between one and the other has been debunked over and over again, with plenty of articles on this very site, by people better at diet and body building than anyone who is going to post in this thread.
Lose weight but do it very slowly. The more time you give yourself, the less muscle you will lose along the way.
Haha! Woah dude! Yeah, you definitely need to cut.
been seeing your posts for awhile with what you have done so far, some of your questions do not fit with what you have done
[quote]cavemansam wrote:
been seeing your posts for awhile with what you have done so far, some of your questions do not fit with what you have done[/quote]
What do you mean?
Why let a bunch of internet strangers decide your future for you?
If you want to be leaner, get leaner. If you want to get bigger, get bigger. If you don’t want to get weaker, don’t get weaker.
[quote]shadowbobo8028 wrote:
[quote]cavemansam wrote:
been seeing your posts for awhile with what you have done so far, some of your questions do not fit with what you have done[/quote]
What do you mean?[/quote]
I think he means that you’ve progressed enough that you should know enough to be able to make your own decision on what the best path for you is on decisions like this.
That said, it’s definitely possible to make strength gains on a slow, controlled cut. IMO, if you’re feeling dissatisfied with how you look, it won’t get better by continuing the permabulk train. I think the best mindset is to focus on the positives of whatever you’re doing. Getting big and fat and strong? Great, enjoy the faster strength gains and getting to eat like a horse. Leaning out? Great, enjoy looking better, having a better Wilks, and not having to stuff your face all day long. Make the decision that makes you the happiest.
[quote]mutantcolors wrote:
…with plenty of articles on this very site, by people better at diet and body building than anyone who is going to post in this thread.[/quote]
I used to think this way.
Then I realized not all published authors are equal. Some just mastered the art of parroting what they read elsewhere - including forums which I’m convinced some of them do.
And remember - these people have an agenda such as payment for articles, growing their coaching business, staying relevant in the public eye…
And let’s not forget some authors use peds - yes, that elephant in the room - and this does make a difference.
I agree most comments here and similar forums are worthless. There are exceptions from those who don’t need to be a published author; they simply want to exchange ideas from like-minded people.
I’ll give you a personal example. There was a time when it was fashionable for a published author to argue that direct biceps work is unnecessary and all you need are pull ups and chin ups. This coincided with articles in which authors touted high-volume/high-frequency pull ups. I fell for this shit hook, line, and sinker. All I had to show for it were fucked up elbows and mediocre biceps.
In retrospect, those authors who dismissed direct biceps work had nothing show themselves; yet I naively bought into it. And those authors who barked about high-volume/high-frequency pull ups probably ‘borrowed’ the idea from Pavel or another author who ‘borrowed’ the idea from him.
Forum regulars know exactly what I’m talking about. Otherwise, this place would have stopped existing long ago, leaving only articles and the store.
You have every right to your opinion. I disagree and am a little curious why you don’t just read articles if you feel this way. Regardless, I think the sooner you change and learn to find the occasional hidden gems you might surprise yourself.
[quote]shadowbobo8028 wrote:
I’ve been dying to hit a 315lb bench, 500lb squat, and 600lb deadlift for some time now.[/quote]
Then I’d keep the focus on that.
Then find a way to maintain your bodyweight while getting stronger. Figuring that out from a diet and conditioning/cardio standpoint will probably be helpful in the future anyway.
I’d treat this as a primary goal, and a secondary goal.
Primary goal is to get stronger and hit those lifts. Secondary goal is to get leaner.
When you reach a point where you actually have to make the choice of “be leaner” or “be stronger”, go for the “be stronger”. But I think you have a long ways before that’s actually an either/or. I think you can get leaner (or stay where you are if you’d prefer) and get stronger for awhile.
Personally, diet-wise, as far as not having to really track or think about it in any meticulous fashion… I’d reduce the amount of fast food/processed food, increase the amount of green vegetables (broccoli and spinach [not together], blanched and sauteed in oil with some freshly chopped garlic), reduce alcohol and simple sugar intake and replace with rice/potatoes/pasta/bread and sugar-free condiments, and drink more water (with crystal light/mio/etc.). Also consider eating more eggs.
But that’s me and that’s what I’d do.
Of course, obviously what you’re doing has gotten you stronger, so just make small adjustments to see what works for you to keep you on that path.
You know what it will take to be a great powerlifter, if that’s what you aspire to be. You will need to get both stronger and leaner to be highly competitive. I’m curious what your diet is like now. Do you pay much attention to it? My advice may or may not be good, depending on what you’re already doing, but this is sort of what I’ve been favoring in general lately:
Clean up your diet, as far as food choices go. We all know what a clean diet looks like. Cut out the fast food, cut out the sugar, cut out the typical bulking-type foods (assuming you eat these… you look like you do). You don’t need to go on a true ‘cut’ necessarily. Just develop better habits and make better choices. This will allow you to continue to progress in the gym, as you’ll be fueling your body better, and you will lose fat in the process. Over the next year, if you’re consistent with this, you should see substantial physique changes.
[quote]flipcollar wrote:
You know what it will take to be a great powerlifter, if that’s what you aspire to be. You will need to get both stronger and leaner to be highly competitive. I’m curious what your diet is like now. Do you pay much attention to it? My advice may or may not be good, depending on what you’re already doing, but this is sort of what I’ve been favoring in general lately:
Clean up your diet, as far as food choices go. We all know what a clean diet looks like. Cut out the fast food, cut out the sugar, cut out the typical bulking-type foods (assuming you eat these… you look like you do). You don’t need to go on a true ‘cut’ necessarily. Just develop better habits and make better choices. This will allow you to continue to progress in the gym, as you’ll be fueling your body better, and you will lose fat in the process. Over the next year, if you’re consistent with this, you should see substantial physique changes.[/quote]
I eat pretty clean actually. My only problem is that I eat way too damn much of it lol XD
I’ve been scaling back on my portion sizes as of lately. I’m not counting macros right now cause it drives me crazy but I do have a good idea how many calories and protein I am eating per day just by looking at it. I’ve also dropped from 6 meals a day to 5. Debating whether to add in fasted LISS cardio because I’ve had great success with it in the past, but I lost a ton of strength in the process
[quote]shadowbobo8028 wrote:
I’ve had great success with it in the past, but I lost a ton of strength in the process[/quote]
That is really an interesting interpretation of results given you compete in powerlifting…
[quote]shadowbobo8028 wrote:
Debating whether to add in fasted LISS cardio because I’ve had great success with it in the past, but I lost a ton of strength in the process[/quote]
Don’t do this.
[quote]tsantos wrote:
[quote]shadowbobo8028 wrote:
I’ve had great success with it in the past, but I lost a ton of strength in the process[/quote]
That is really an interesting interpretation of results given you compete in powerlifting…[/quote]
I actually did a bodybuilding show once back when I wasn’t such a fat@$$
Granted I wasn’t shredded either lel
There’s some solid advice in here if you decide to go this route: How to Stay Strong When Dieting
cavemansam wrote:
been seeing your posts for awhile with what you have done so far, some of your questions do not fit with what you have done
shadowbobo wrote
What do you mean?
this
i think i got link right this you?
