Help Me Make A Decision

Bigger Stronger Leaner Competitive Bodybuilding
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so for the past month or so ive been spinning my wheels it feels like…basically i started off at 350…cut my ass off (literally for a bout a year and some change…got down to my all time lowest of 200lbs…for the past month ive sorta been i dunno…not laz …but maybe just not doing something right…ill take a cheat meal or cheat day…(yikes) and then bloat up and spend the next week cutting it all out again…repeat cycle…

i feel ive made a bit of some strength gains in the weight room following waterburys summer project, but this belly isnt going anywhere…i know i shouldnt really pay attention to the scale…but of course i do…my measurments seem to fluxuate daily…kinda just at my wits end…wondering iff ill ever see any definition or if i need to bulk first or what…id like to get down to around 10 percent bf…maybe a tad bit less…although i feel single digits isnt gonna be obatainable for me…anyway heres some recent pics…what should i do?

any ideas on a program that would help me dial in would be awesome…

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Single digit bodyfat is attainable for anyone. It might not be maintainable for long, though, depending on your lifestyle. If you’ve lost 3/7 of your bodyweight, though, and still don’t see muscles, then chances are they aren’t very big. I’d get good, solid strength and nutrition programs down and focus on gaining muscle for a year or two, then go back to cutting. You’ll definitely look and feel a lot better.

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i mean to attach these pics…

ive been looking into TBT…i just dont know how much i should be eating…ive been cutting cutting cutting…so eating more is frightning…

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You went from 350 to 200!!

Wow, grats on that.
What i can suggest is the last few pounds is where the discipline will come in. Extremly clean eating and focus on cardio and conditioning will help.
I went from 275 down to 224 but noticed that I had very little muscle underneath. Then began building up, but right this time.

Not to put down your amazing accomplishment, but there is nothing wrong with being 200 pounds and building.

It will be alot easier and more rewarding to see the definition you want to see, when you have a greater amount of muscle underneath.

Great work man. Do you have any before pics?

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i have just the one with clothes…i was far too embaressed to take pics shirltess…

i just am terrified of gaining weight…but at the same time i dont want to just go through motions for the next year…

[quote]maxx power wrote:
You went from 350 to 200!!

Wow, grats on that.
What i can suggest is the last few pounds is where the discipline will come in. Extremly clean eating and focus on cardio and conditioning will help.
I went from 275 down to 224 but noticed that I had very little muscle underneath. Then began building up, but right this time.

Not to put down your amazing accomplishment, but there is nothing wrong with being 200 pounds and building.

It will be alot easier and more rewarding to see the definition you want to see, when you have a greater amount of muscle underneath.

Great work man. Do you have any before pics?[/quote]

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Hope this doesn’t sound gay or anything, but I think you look really good now.

But do what you will man, kudos to you, great job.

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definitly doesnt sound gay…i appreciatte the comments…

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I was somewhat in the same boat as you a while back. I wasn’t 350, but close to 300. My lowest has been in the 180’s. I’m bulking now and am back up to 210 after a couple months. It took me a while to finally grasp the concept of purposely gaining weight after losing so much. I know how “frightening” it can be. But it really is the only way you’ll ever improve. After a couple months for me, I’m almost as lean as I was at 190, but I weigh 20lbs more. Sure I’ve put on some fat, but so what.

I honestly believe we all have a limited potential for losing weight and bodyfat. That potential is only limited by the quantity of lean mass we are carrying. Basically no matter how much you diet, you will probably never lose those last few “pounds” (you may lose more weight, but it won’t be fat) until you put on some muscle. Only then should you be concerned with trying to diet off those last few pounds.

As dumb as it sounds, your body is comfortable at a certain weight, or weight range. I don’t have any science to back this up, just personal experience. This is based on the endomorth body type, not the other two. So if your body is comfortable at 225, you’ll look a lot better with much more muscle than with less. Pretty simple huh? 225 and 12%BF looks better than 210 and 15%BF, and so on.

So the only way to really build that muscle is to work very hard and eat accordingly. There are many articles on this site about eating big to build muscle. Keep in mind most of those do not completely apply to you. You will need to do it smarter. Bulk, but eat clean foods, and only the occaisional junk food. There is no use bulking if all you gain is fat. 1-2lbs a week of weight gain is just about right, as long as you are training hard.

I’m currently two weeks into the Waterbury Method. I like this program. It’s like TBT, but not really. You should give this one a look. ABBH is always good too.

Good luck and stay strong!

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Okay, it’s real common these days, but I think you are mistaking being out of shape for being fat. You don’t have a lot of fat on you. Unfortunately, you look a little malnourished at the same time.

I’m not saying that to be mean, but I want to give you a friendly kick in the head to help change your thinking!

If you want to develop a physique that you will really like, then you are going to have to learn to eat again. You need to feed yourself to put on some muscle mass.

Throw some shoulders on you, maybe a little lat and trap development and suddenly you are a different person. But, you probably can’t do that if you are afraid to eat.

Don’t fret over the damned scale on a day to day basis. Buy a tape measure if you don’t have one and measure around your gut. Measure upon waking in the morning, say, so that as the day progresses and your gut sags a little more, you don’t throw off your measurement based on time of day.

Also, know that a belly full of food will possibly increase the measure a bit too. Basically, don’t freak over minor changes, but make sure you know whether you are gaining fat or gaining weight.

Then, if you haven’t, start reading all the articles about nutrition and eating to gain some mass. You’ll want to make changes slowly and track your belly measurement. You will know you are on the right track when you slowly gain a bit of “weight” but your belly is not growing to match it.

You will find the small amount of fat you carry now will look much better on you if you have some more muscles on your frame.

One last thing, work on your posture. Your belly is sticking out, but it isn’t because it’s fat! Lift your chest up, arch your back appropriately, and contract your abs to fix your pelvic tilt.

Man, I hope this doesn’t come across as harsh, you have made tremendous progress and you are sitting in a great position right now. You know that you can successfully lose weight. You are down at a low bodyfat level. It will take some time and effort, but you are just sitting there ready.

Go fucking get it man!!!

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WOW …thank you guys…i really appreciatte the well thought long replys…i need a lil kick in the ass for sure…

im going to wrap up this summer project this week and then look into bulking up a bit…im gonna look at those rograms reccomended…

right now ive been taking in about 3000 cals a day…keeping my starchy carbs around my workouts…
so would it be safe to bump up the cals to about 3500…maybe over the course of a couple of weeks…about 200 cals a week…??..

my head is very very screwed…i do know that i have the will to change…i can sit in a resturaount with all my favorite foods with all my frineds and not eat…even starving…i can wait to get to a store and pick up some almonds and tuna…so the will is there!

i do however take a cheat meal on sundays…but what frustrated the shit out of me is after i take that day i baloon up considerably…5 pounds if i take a meal…around 10 if i do a day…and once i did a 3 day cheat binge due to some personal issues , and i packed on 23 pounds in 3 days…now i understad water, glycogen balances and such…but geez…

thats what frightens me about bulking…is the cheating…i need my indulgences like everyone…when i starting working out and studying nutrition i always read about people who bulked way too soon…thats what terrifies me…i havent felt that i was at a low enough body fat percentage to put on some more mass…

but i trust everyones opinion…and it seems week in week out im just depleting myself over and over and then refilling with cheats…

how long should my bulk cycle last??..ive been cutting for a year and a half…?

do i take in carbs throughout the day?

is the 40 40 20 split still optimal for bulking?

how much cardio shoudl i do on a bulk?..

i also do extra sports such as marathon style bike rides, and skateboarding…wonder how this will affect me…
thank you everyone for your help

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I’d hit it ! :wink: And I’m a chick, so that’s not way gay or anything. I love your ink, it’s really hot.

Kudos on how far you’ve come !! You will find excellent guidance here. Keep training hard and eating right. You’ve come SO FAR already, why turn back now?

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I think raising the calories slowly is a great idea. Try it, raise them by small increments every week, and when you’re starting to grow, maintain. Shugart did a great article on bulking for FFBs (Former Fat Boys, which is also what he calls himself):
http://www.T-Nation.com/findArticle.do?article=06-061-diet

Also, check out the complilation of Dr. John Berardis most influential work (I suggest reading 2 or 3 articles a day, and when you feel good about it, start bulking):
http://www.T-Nation.com/findArticle.do?article=199ess2

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Tedpod, I’m a FFB myself, so I understand the mindset, but you do have to change it.

Weight is no longer the issue, it’s now fat. Eating some carbs or some salty food will change your weight, quickly, but not necessarily your level of fat. Start to distinguish the difference and it will help put your mind at ease. Get that tape measure pronto.

Also, don’t be afraid of little variations in fat. One thing you can now take to the bank, you know you have the will and the ability to lose fat if you need to!

So, be cautious, go slowly, but know that if you make a mistake, you have proven you can set your mind to it and stay the course again if you need to.

As RP said, check out the articles, there’s no rush to jump into it. Maybe keep a food log if you haven’t been, read up on some other people asking questions about bulking diets, then look at your own habits and just slowly keep tweaking composition or quantity until it is aligned with your goals.

Alternately, some people just jump in and do everything at once… but it sounds like you probably aren’t comfortable with that approach, which is cool too.

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I think losing all that weight took a lot of hard work.And since you lost the weight,stop cutting.Please.You need to put that hard work into gainin some weight in muscle because it looks like you have very little muscle.

Great job though on losing the weight,all you gotta do now is shift into 3rd gear.

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mauser": ill have to keep that in mind next time in in NY…hahah…but seriously thanks for the comments everyone …its taken me alot to get where i am, some days i just feel like a fat slob…guess its gonna take me a while to get used to this body

ive done alot of reading …

heres what i think ive come up with…

im gonna give the Waterbury method a try…im sorta partial to split routines for some reason…but what the hell…

diet i havent really figured out yet…i know i need to take in more…so ill try to just up the cals a bit ad some more carbs in there see what happens…

i have a myotape…when i measure around my belly it reaches 35"(thats just below the bellybutton…so ill keep track…monday i will start bulking.!!!

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[quote]Tedpod wrote:
i mean to attach these pics…

ive been looking into TBT…i just dont know how much i should be eating…ive been cutting cutting cutting…so eating more is frightning…[/quote]

Anterior pelvic tilt.

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ive been doing tons of research…ive already just started bumping my cals a bit…more of a lax clean eating…ill eat oats at dinner…ive been eating a ton of broccolli…probably too much…

i have a dilemma…im about to go on a work related vacation in a week …ill be gone for 10 days…no training…and diet??..who knows…im worried becuase i tend to baloon up horribly when i go off course…10 days in the city of boston wont be easy…so i guess ill hold off on my actual bulk until i get back…

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[quote]Tedpod wrote:
ive been doing tons of research…ive already just started bumping my cals a bit…more of a lax clean eating…ill eat oats at dinner…ive been eating a ton of broccolli…probably too much…

i have a dilemma…im about to go on a work related vacation in a week …ill be gone for 10 days…no training…and diet??..who knows…im worried becuase i tend to baloon up horribly when i go off course…10 days in the city of boston wont be easy…so i guess ill hold off on my actual bulk until i get back…[/quote]

First rule of fight club. Stop making excuses.

No seriously. There is no better time to start than right now. I’m sure you can find a place to train while on your “vacation.” Most hotels have small gyms, or you can do bodyweight exercies in your hotel room at night. Do lunges, push ups, pick up the hotel TV and do squats (just don’t drop the TV), basically anything you can think of.

And even if you wait, as it’s only 10 days, there will always be something getting in your way. You need to adapt.

http://www.T-Nation.com/readTopic.do?id=912565