How To Choose a Goal?

Training Beginners
1

I’m angry. Scratch that, I’m down right pissed. I’m pissed at myself, and I have been for a few weeks now. Want to know why I;m pissed? I can’t seem to pick a goddamn goal, and my last weeks workouts have all sucked. For awhile, all I wanted to do was add muscle. I was “bulking” I suppose. I did gain weight, both muscular and fat. But now, I just don’t know what I want/should/need to do anymore. I have this problem at the beginning of the summer, but ended up purely maintaining over the summer due to a lack of direction. Please T-Nation, you’re soul is hard, judge me and help me decide!

Here are my current stats:

Age: 17
Height: 5’8"
Weight: 194lbs
BF%: ~25% (Not entirely sure, I have pictures and that’s the estimate I got from the guy who owns my gym, as well as an electronic machine over half a year ago. All I know is, I certainly feel like a fat ass).
Bench Press: 165X3
Deadlift: 275X3
Squat: 225X8 (Haven’t done it in awhile).
Front Squat: 225X1 (Been working on it over the summer).
Dips (BW) - 14
Pull Ups (BW) - 4

I have winter track season coming up in December, I believe, however, the Spring season that starts in March/April is much more important too me. My goals are both aesthetic and athletic. I’d like to be faster for track in spring, and I’d also like to look better nekkid (like just about everyone else).

I’ve been working out semi-consistently (missed a few weeks due to vacations here and there) for about a year and a quarter now (~15 Months). I’ve done many different programs, including WS4SB, Designer Athletes, ABBH, BBB, TBT, and a few others.

My overall goals for the year:

~Drop my BF% down to <15.

~Break 12.0s for the 100m dash (current PR is 12.4s and a 12.2s that I believe was a clock mishap). Break 25.0s for the 200m dash (current PR is 25.8s).

~Get my lifts up in general. I feel week compared to my (admittedly larger) friends, despite how much longer I’ve been working out (not to say I haven’t come a long way, as I started off pretty pathetic).

~Eventually, probably post-Track, I’d like to bulk up and gain a LOT of lean mass before/during my freshman year of college.

My questions:

~In what order should I proceed with achieving these goals? This is the one that has me most confused.

~When i comes to fat loss, should I be doing TBT (in general) or a heavy Upper/Lower split with circuit work? Lots of cardio? HIIT? How should I structure this? How can I transition into winter/pre-season track and field?

~How can a really motivate myself to diet? Should I try something like the V-diet to kick my ass into shape (sounds a bit extreme for a teen however)? Should I just try my best to follow Berardi’s rules? Should I low carb it? Even it out? Should I be meticulously counting calories and macro nutrients, or should I just eat healthy and do my training?

~How can I incorporate things like plyometrics into a fat loss program?

~Should I just forgo the cut, and continue to bulk up? Will this help me more than losing weight would for track? Is it truly worth it?

The reason I’m asking all of this stuff (I hang out around here and have been here long enough to know the standard answers), is that there’s been a lot of new information being thrown around. Stuff about being lean being optimal for growth, about how to cut, ect… I don’t feel like I’m a typical “bulk or cut” teenager who weighs in at all of 150lbs. I don’t care about my abs (ok, it’s be nice to see em, but I don’t make judgments based of that desire), and I really do have a significant amount of fat, just not enough for me to be sure that cutting is the answer. As well, I’m an athlete (or I play one after school) and I have to take that into account.

I’ve got a friend as well in a very similar situation who is convinced he can cut for wrestling and continue to gain strength/use the same routine as he has been at the same time. I don’t think that kind of thing is possible.

I feel like a weak fucking dumb ass asking these questions. Question which, if I was ten or twenty pounds lighter, wouldn’t even enter my head. For the record, If I cut, it’d never be to under 160. As well, for the record, I want to be big eventually. 200lbs at <10%BF big, maybe even bigger, maybe a little smaller, but that’s about where I think I’d like to be as of now.

If you actually got all the way thought that and didn’t tl;dr, thanks a lot. If you comment/give advice, thanks even more. I still feel embarrassed to type this, cutting has never and probably will never be my thing :confused: .

2

no offence but your lifts aren’t that great for someone as heavy as you are. Not meaning to diss or anything but I think you could go either way but I would just add more cardio and try to drop a few calories and lose some fat first.

3

Yes, I know they aren’t good, especially for my size, but considering I started off squatting 140 for one, benching 110 for five, and dead lifting about 155 for 3 I think I’m doing ok…

4

Dude if you feel fat then you probably are. Get down to a leanness you can be happy with, which also will help you athletically and then you can work on gaining some size. If you “bulk” now you’ll end up as what, a slightly more muscular unhappy chubby guy? Is that what you want?

5

Its simple you need to stop and figure out what YOU want You not any one else but YOU. in the end it dont mean shit what others think do what makes your motor run what makes you happy. if thats running a damn marathon GO do that shit if thats GFH and being a big strong mother at all cost do it. But do your self a favor and take time to figure out YOU once you do youll figure it out

Phill

6

Keep it simple.

Pick a strength feat, like squatting a few hundred lbs.(something reasonable)

Then start doing it. You will find out along the way what is required of you to accomplish this goal.

One thing will work for a while, then it whon’t. Time to change.

Ask questions as they arise.

7

[quote]Phill wrote:
Its simple you need to stop and figure out what YOU want You not any one else but YOU. in the end it dont mean shit what others think do what makes your motor run what makes you happy. if thats running a damn marathon GO do that shit if thats GFH and being a big strong mother at all cost do it. But do your self a favor and take time to figure out YOU once you do youll figure it out

Phill[/quote]

I’m actually more confused on the execution than on the what I want. I want to be leaner, stronger, and more muscular in that order at the moment, backwards later on.

I’m just confused over cutting. I’ve never done it before. Should I do fullbody or a split with tons of cardio? ect…

8

[quote]Beowolf wrote:

I’m actually more confused on the execution than on the what I want. I want to be leaner, stronger, and more muscular in that order at the moment, backwards later on.

I’m just confused over cutting. I’ve never done it before. Should I do fullbody or a split with tons of cardio? ect…[/quote]

Any program really will work, your going to have to concentrate a lot on diet. Lift hard and eat right.

I personally like full body for cutting and have at least one day HEAVY!!! 5 or less reps preferably 3-1 rep trying to hang on as much strength as I can. Keep the session brief and brutal based in BIG compound moves. then tack on cardio as needed to progress.

Phill

9

Oh and id prob pick leaner or stronger and more muscular, one of the two as a main goal. and just do your best to maintain the others and HOPE the stars align to gain in all those at once with awesome execution of training, diet, rest/recovery and supplementation

Phill

1 Like
10

So I should do TBT again, focusing more on my diet? Should I be doing a precise diet, or just cutting out junk? Should I just do T-dawg 2.0 (or do my best to attempt it)?

The only problem I’d have with doing something like TBT again is the lack of sprinting and/or HIIT I could do while on the program; I remember not being up for much more than playing a pickup game as QB after doing a week of TBT.

11

[quote]Beowolf wrote:
So I should do TBT again, focusing more on my diet? Should I be doing a precise diet, or just cutting out junk? Should I just do T-dawg 2.0 (or do my best to attempt it)?

The only problem I’d have with doing something like TBT again is the lack of sprinting and/or HIIT I could do while on the program; I remember not being up for much more than playing a pickup game as QB after doing a week of TBT.[/quote]

the answer to all those is Yes and NO. they all can work. You have to do one find what works for you and adjust to your goals

Phill