Thanks guys for all the suggestions. I’m smashing my log book every workout at the moment so I’ll add some measurements in as well. I find the mirror a hard thing, some days I wake up and think “do you even lift” and then other days think “looking bigger” , the kind plays tricks I’m sure.
Brilliant thread everyone.
Take pictures.
Same place, same time of day every time, etc. The mirror always lies, but a consistent log of pictures will show changes over time.
It’s OK. The thread is brutal after all—brutally brutal! @Lonnie123
If you’re worried about fat gain then you could take some simple caliper measurements (if you can get one). I don’t worry about doing the whole body fat estimate, but a skin caliper measurement of my quad, abdomen, and chest are easy to do on myself and a good indicator of body fat increases and decreases.
It sounds like you’re doing well so far; keep up the good work!
I’ve been focused on hypertrophy for most of the year - trying to maintain (or modestly gain) muscle on a slight caloric deficit. I can’t believe my lyin’ eyes, so I rely on the tape measure to tell me the truth in key areas (arms, chest, shoulders, thighs, waistline …)
I think I could get pretty big at 6 foot 3. Currently I am 280 and not what I would consider lean but the outer lines of my Abs are beginning to show pretty well (don’t know what percent this roughly translates too). I doubt I ever would go to contest body fat percentage but I would like to get to around 15% at 280 natural (I think it can be done). This would give me a lean mass of 238 lbs.
Edit for current sizes:
Chest just shy of 50 inches
Arms at 19”
You sound like a freaking giant! Got any pictures and lift stats? Full homo
Freaking huge though!
I have been told this before quite a bit. I will work on getting pictures soon.
A lot of people in gyms I have been to over the years have said I have good genetics and could be an excellent pro bodybuilder but I have no desire to use gear (I have had genetic liver issues since I was about 15)
I will take this as a compliment. My nicknames used to be “Tree Trunk” and Colossus (from X-men)
Photos below. Sorry for crappy bathroom quality. Only me available to take bad selfies. Wish I could get a good front double bi and front lat shot but hard to do by ones self
Edit: This is “walking around size” not pumped.
Set the phone down and take a video of you posing, then play the video, hit pause, and then drag the video thing with your finger and take screen shots of the poses. BAM! Pictures
Genius!
only old boys like me. Momo was ans is one of my favourite all time bodybuilders. I still remember reading in Flex when he beat Dorian at NOC 1990. Amazing.
You’re a large guy for sure. But you are drastically underestimating your body fat. Arnold was 6’2 and competed at 235, meaning even if he was 3% BF his LBM would have been below that. At your current estimate, you can lose less than 40 pounds and be contest ready. I would say you’re closer to 70 pounds. For clarification, Larry Fitzgerald is your height at 218 lbs. andI would be surprised if you had more muscle mass that him.
I think he was saying he wanted to get to that level, not that he was already as that LBM and just needed to lose a little fat.
I think you’re right, haha.
Your point was still well made. Pretty hard to get to that level and be natural.
I agree - to get to a truly lean level at that weight would not be natural at all (I look at Ferrigno as an example - I have seen that his contest weight was as high as 280 and he was pushing 300 when competing in strongman).
When i was at my leanest (training for MMA competition) I had a 4-pack of abs and was still at 250lbs. I know I have more underlying muscle mass now (that was about 11 years ago). No desire to get into contest shape - but I would like to look lean when I go to the beach since I live in Florida.
Any of you guys remember Bauber? Just curious, not all that relevant to this discussion, but I remember half of T Nation trying to chase him away when he posted that he was 300+ lbs, and ‘relatively’ lean. Benching 400 for sets of 15, shit like that. Then he proved it. lol. That dude’s a monster.
