Professor X: A Request

Training Bodybuilding
422

Prof. X you often give advice to the skinnier members of the site to just bulk up and not even think about cutting because they have no muscle to show. For the record I generally agree with that.

However, lets just say a kid came to you at 185lb. and 20% body fat. Maybe he’s in high school and is the typical overweight kid wanting to get thin but really has no significant amount of muscle to show. Would you still suggest he bulk? Psychologically I think the last thing he would want to do at that point would be to gain even more weight and put on even more fat. What do you think? I mean I see if its some kid with 10-15% but if the person obviously is overweight and even at the point of being mocked for his size what would you suggest?

423

[quote]pumped340 wrote:
Prof. X you often give advice to the skinnier members of the site to just bulk up and not even think about cutting because they have no muscle to show. For the record I generally agree with that.

However, lets just say a kid came to you at 185lb. and 20% body fat. Maybe he’s in high school and is the typical overweight kid wanting to get thin but really has no significant amount of muscle to show. Would you still suggest he bulk? Psychologically I think the last thing he would want to do at that point would be to gain even more weight and put on even more fat. What do you think? I mean I see if its some kid with 10-15% but if the person obviously is overweight and even at the point of being mocked for his size what would you suggest?[/quote]

id also like to know that considering well… those are my stats haha and im bulkin

424

[quote]Artem wrote:
ryanw2007 wrote:
Artem wrote:
pumped340 wrote:
Cephalic_Carnage wrote:
hardgnr wrote:
HolyMacaroni wrote:
X,

I was wondering, how do you sleep at night? On your back, your stomach, or in the fetal position? Do you alternate sides so as not to build imbalences?

lmao…I’m crying…

Well… Sleep on your shoulder while weighing a lot/being very muscular and chances are you’re going to end up with nerve damage at some point/nerve impingement and atrophy of that side’s arm/lat.
Happens to a lot of big guys, actually.
Some very prominent examples out there.

In which position(s) you sleep and pillow placement and all that is no laughing matter for large people, and neither is sleep apnea.

I’ve heard that before and I already can’t sleep on my left shoulder without pain. Not looking forward to how that might feel when i’m 200+lb. but on my side is by far the most comfortable position

Might wanna look into that. I’m 230 and sleep on my side just fine. I don’t use a pillow and fold my hand behind my head and rest my head on my bicep of the side I’m lying on. I can’t lye right on my shoulder, but on my armpit/arm/side is fine.

I usually try to fall asleep flat on my back though with no pillow, to help posture. It’s hard sometimes though… habit.

out of curiousity how old are your pics in your profile? cause you dont really look 230 more 130… and if u have gained 100 pounds in a year lol please tell me every bit of thing u did to get there cause i would love to do that in a year

I’m 15 and 150lbs in those pics, 16 now. They’re about 10 months old, shortly after I found T-Nation and learned how to train properly. I’ll be posting new ones before I decide to start cutting, which will probably be in around 2 months.

I’m 2-3% body fat more now than I was then. I’ll cut down to around 10% and get back to bulking, just so fat doesn’t get out of hand.

And I highly doubt I know anything you don’t… lots of milk and back/shoulders twice a week, I guess.
[/quote]

so your pretty much saying you gained 80 pounds in a year. are you shooting?if not u got some damn good genetics

425

[quote]Headhunter wrote:
This thread should be a ‘sticky’.[/quote]

Agreed.

426

[quote]pumped340 wrote:
Prof. X you often give advice to the skinnier members of the site to just bulk up and not even think about cutting because they have no muscle to show. For the record I generally agree with that.

However, lets just say a kid came to you at 185lb. and 20% body fat. Maybe he’s in high school and is the typical overweight kid wanting to get thin but really has no significant amount of muscle to show. Would you still suggest he bulk? Psychologically I think the last thing he would want to do at that point would be to gain even more weight and put on even more fat. What do you think? I mean I see if its some kid with 10-15% but if the person obviously is overweight and even at the point of being mocked for his size what would you suggest?[/quote]

Why would someone who is that fat “bulk” at all? Has ANYONE here ever seen me write that someone over 20% body fat needs to “bulk up”?

However, that does not mean everyone who gets a reading of “20%” needs to immediately start dieting either.

The main problem that I can see on this board is the clear lack of intensity when training. If this were not the case, there wouldn’t be a hoard of people on this site who somehow hit about 15" in their arm circumference and then never move much past it.

If someone is a newbie, they need to first get their ass in the gym on a regular basis while lifting as if the goal is to gain size and strength.

Why?

Because losing body fat is NOT that damn hard, especially for the guy who truly understands how to make his muscles grow.

Going the route touted by some of the authors here seems to create newly lean people with skinny bodies who are afraid to ever gain much weight after that for fear of becoming obese.

I mean, LOOK AROUND and the majority here fit that category.

How many of these people drop weight as rank beginners using special diets…and THEN gain a ton of muscle? Are there even two people like that on this site?

No, they shouldn’t “bulk up” if they are already too fat, but they should start this training as if the goal is to improve and get stronger FIRST.

The exception being someone who is truly obese where their health is the primary concern.

However, why, on a bodybuilding discussion forum, would someone not have the goal of carrying a lot of muscle mass? Losing the body fat and leaning up to a significant degree is what you do when you have something to lean down to…not when the only thing holding your bones together is spaghetti-like muscles.

427

So basically you believe that someone in that position should lose fat but still go in to the gym with the focus of adding muscle/strength (and I assume let a calorie deficit help them lose fat until they are reasonably lean?). Ok, that makes sense.

In your opinion would the same apply to someone who starts at maybe 15% but gets up to that higher fat level but still doesn’t have a ton of muscle mass (for instance if someone started off like you and did well but by the time they hit 200 they were at 20% bodyfat roughly, but still wanted more muscle in the future).

428

I had question for X or any of the other people who have put on significant size - did you develop any sleeping problems (such as apnea)?

429

[quote]pumped340 wrote:
So basically you believe that someone in that position should lose fat but still go in to the gym with the focus of adding muscle/strength (and I assume let a calorie deficit help them lose fat until they are reasonably lean?). Ok, that makes sense.

In your opinion would the same apply to someone who starts at maybe 15% but gets up to that higher fat level but still doesn’t have a ton of muscle mass (for instance if someone started off like you and did well but by the time they hit 200 they were at 20% bodyfat roughly, but still wanted more muscle in the future).[/quote]

No, they shouldn’t initially be at a caloric deficit.

Why would someone jump into the gym and dive into pure weight loss when the overall goal is more muscle? Why wouldn’t they first see how their body responds to training?

You can’t predict someone’s genetics which means you base your actions off of how the body responds and the overall goal.

I would work on learning how to eat to make those gains in muscle happen. I would not start off training in a caloric deficit if the trainer is clueless to how they will respond to intense weight training to start with.

Would your response to how someone should train be the same if they jumped in the gym and gain 13lbs of muscle in one month while losing 5lbs of body fat?

What if they lack any drive at all and don’t gain any muscle at all in their first two months of training? Wouldn’t you fix that first?

There is no cookie cutter answer unless someone is trying to sell you something. At the base of it all, the guy who can’t even figure out how to work hard enough to gain any muscle will not be cut out for this in the long run anyway…and this is not some cult where the goal is to simply be skinny with abs.

430

[quote]Tumbles wrote:
I had question for X or any of the other people who have put on significant size - did you develop any sleeping problems (such as apnea)?
[/quote]

No.

431

Wow I just worked my way through all 18 pages and gotta say this was an enlightening read. Also gotta say there are some clingy newbs on here too lol. Cannot complain tho since I was one not too long ago.

I think having the internet as a resource when one sets out on their training journey is a double-edged sword because there is such a wealth of info out there - however so much of it is crap - that people just freeze with all of the conflicting info they are receiving.

I think everyone should start out reading a classic bodybuilding book like Arnold’s Modern Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding, then lift for 2 years, and then be allowed access to these forums lol.

Anyways, Professor X you are truly kind to share your knowledge with everyone. I think this is my new favorite thread on T-Nation :slight_smile:

432

Hey X I was wondering what your thoughts are on a clean bulk. I was thinking of eating above my maintenance level of calories but not by too much (like 500 cals). I know eating all clean it will be too difficult so some junkier food is necessary.

433

hey x my friend is going to join a gym and start training soon. he is 18 years old 5,10 and about 190 lbs. however he is likely between 15-20% bf. he looks OK in a shirt but hes soft and shapeless. his overall goal is to build as much strength and size as possible. however he doesn’t want to look like a fat guy the entire time which is understandable. he also has no dietary control at the moment he just eats whatever he wants.

My first thought was since he has no dietary control he wont need to go on a caloric deficit to lose fat, just cleaning up his diet with 90% clean foods will do the trick and he can continue to eat enough calories to grow optimally.

Am i right to assume that clean excess calories combined with his newbie weight gains would make him lose fat and gain muscle at the same time?

i would like you to keep in mind he doesn’t really care about getting lean, he just doesn’t want to look like hes overweight.

434

Professor X, what kind of toothbrush should I use?

435

[quote]Brown_Lifter wrote:
Professor X, what kind of toothbrush should I use?[/quote]

Where are you going to use it Brownie?

436

[quote]Clifford wrote:
hey x my friend is going to join a gym and start training soon. he is 18 years old 5,10 and about 190 lbs. however he is likely between 15-20% bf. he looks OK in a shirt but hes soft and shapeless. his overall goal is to build as much strength and size as possible. however he doesn’t want to look like a fat guy the entire time which is understandable. he also has no dietary control at the moment he just eats whatever he wants.

My first thought was since he has no dietary control he wont need to go on a caloric deficit to lose fat, just cleaning up his diet with 90% clean foods will do the trick and he can continue to eat enough calories to grow optimally.

Am i right to assume that clean excess calories combined with his newbie weight gains would make him lose fat and gain muscle at the same time?

i would like you to keep in mind he doesn’t really care about getting lean, he just doesn’t want to look like hes overweight. [/quote]

LMAO! is this your same “friend” who wonders if being aroused at NCAA wrestling replays is normal?

437

[quote]HolyMacaroni wrote:
Clifford wrote:
hey x my friend is going to join a gym and start training soon. he is 18 years old 5,10 and about 190 lbs. however he is likely between 15-20% bf. he looks OK in a shirt but hes soft and shapeless. his overall goal is to build as much strength and size as possible. however he doesn’t want to look like a fat guy the entire time which is understandable. he also has no dietary control at the moment he just eats whatever he wants.

My first thought was since he has no dietary control he wont need to go on a caloric deficit to lose fat, just cleaning up his diet with 90% clean foods will do the trick and he can continue to eat enough calories to grow optimally.

Am i right to assume that clean excess calories combined with his newbie weight gains would make him lose fat and gain muscle at the same time?

i would like you to keep in mind he doesn’t really care about getting lean, he just doesn’t want to look like hes overweight.

LMAO! is this your same “friend” who wonders if being aroused at NCAA wrestling replays is normal?
[/quote]

your confusing me with someone else.

438

Professor,

I really appreciate the help you have given my thus far. One last thing - I’m having trouble with my diet. I don’t want to hijack your thread so could you please click here: http://www.T-Nation.com/free_online_forum/diet_performance_nutrition_supplements/need_diet_help_2

Thank you.

439

wow, 18 pages but it was definitely worth the read, thx for all the info X.

I have one question regarding the intensity of your working set. For someone who is not pushing a gigantic weight, but pushing somethin heavy relative to their strength, would you advise they train to failure, avoid failure, or go past failure using forced reps etc

Also, does this depend on the exercise, eg if i was bench pressing at the start of a chest workout, or finishing off the chest on a peck deck

Cheers

440

[quote]Anonymas wrote:
wow, 18 pages but it was definitely worth the read, thx for all the info X.

I have one question regarding the intensity of your working set. For someone who is not pushing a gigantic weight, but pushing somethin heavy relative to their strength, would you advise they train to failure, avoid failure, or go past failure using forced reps etc

Also, does this depend on the exercise, eg if i was bench pressing at the start of a chest workout, or finishing off the chest on a peck deck

Cheers[/quote]

I’m not really answering for X here, but try to use some common sense…

For example, if you have no spotters, then you simply can’t train to positive failure on the bench. You could do it on squats if you were doing them in a rack… And on most machines and smaller exercises like curls you obviously can go until you can’t lift the weight anymore.

Forced reps… If you have a good training partner… But imo they tax recovery a lot and you may end up having to take more time off than necessary.
Also, they sort of screw up progression somewhat.
How much did you do on that forced rep, and how much was done by your training partner?
If you want to do them, imo do 'em on the lifts you really want to bring up badly or so and do your other exercises normally… And maybe count only the reps you did all by yourself in your logbook.

Now on free-weight bench and such without spotters etc, you’re pretty much half-a-rep short of failure (stupid to try another rep if you just barely made it to the top on this rep! Rack the bar and improve next time if you can…)
Besides, you can “make up” for it by going to failure on db incline or whatever else you do afterwards.

Failure or not is imo not as important as everyone seems to think.
What’s important is that you use more and more weight on your work set /do more and more reps (and eat enough because otherwise you wouldn’t be able to make drastic improvements).
How you get there is irrelevant.

Imo you pretty much go to positive failure on all the “progression” movements where you can do it without getting buried under the bar…

If you do a pump exercise after your 2-3 main movements though, then that’s a different matter. Just put on some lighter weight on that one and do lots of reps, maybe another set or so until you get a skin-stretching pump going.

Edit: Ok, to make it even easier…

Example chest routine

-Incline Bench (main exercise 1, focus on progression!)
ramped, 4 sets (first exercise for chest that day so we gotta warm up really well, start with the bar or so if you’re a weak beginner, maybe 90 or 135 once you’re stronger)
Stopped once I just barely managed to get the bar back up.
(or once I thought that another rep may bury me)

-Flat DB presses (main exercise 2, focus on progression!)
ramped, 3 sets (skipped the lightest because we’re already warm from inclines)
Went to positive failure (couldn’t lift the bells anymore)

-Pec deck (just for the pump)
did some straight sets with very light weight and no real warm-up, just to get a pump. Progression is of no concern here. failure or not… Who cares. Probably kept going until the burn got too bad :wink:

441

[quote]Anonymas wrote:
wow, 18 pages but it was definitely worth the read, thx for all the info X.

I have one question regarding the intensity of your working set. For someone who is not pushing a gigantic weight, but pushing somethin heavy relative to their strength, would you advise they train to failure, avoid failure, or go past failure using forced reps etc

Also, does this depend on the exercise, eg if i was bench pressing at the start of a chest workout, or finishing off the chest on a peck deck

Cheers[/quote]

Along with what CC wrote, does it really make sense to anyone to hit absolute failure on an exercise like squats when you have over 405lbs on your back? Failure means you can NOT move the weight anymore. For anyone moving a lot of weight (weight heavy enough to KILL YOU), it would make little sense to put yourself in that position unless you:
a) had a great spotter
b) were using a plate loaded machine that required no spotter
c) have a strange fetish for wearing blue and red spandex in broad day light while showing off how the yellow sun makes bullets bounce off your eyeballs
d) liked death

I personally come close to failure on most exercises…meaning there is only enough left in me to put the weight down without killing myself. Exceptions are the HS machines because I need no spotter on those so i can lift until I literally can’t.

Why would anyone do it any other way?