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Originally Posted by chissler
I've been working out regularly for almost 2 years. I'm 6'0 feet tall and currently 170lbs. About a year ago I was 225lbs. I've lost over 50lbs and went from a 38" waist down to a 31". I'm very satisfied with the muscle mass that I've developed and I'm in the best shape of my life. I'm the same story of so many others. Very active as a kid and teenager. Hit 20, lacked the opportunity to stay active and ballooned. But I've finally been successful in breaking that trend.
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You're a stick. I'm 6'0" 210 and I'm bulking. True I'm putting on some extra fat in doing so, but I wager I'll hit 240 in a year or so and start to cut back down to 220, and that's about as low as I want to go. I remember when I was 165, and I was a fucking skeleton. You're not cut, you're emaciated.
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But for 4-5 months now I've stagnated. I continue to build more muscle but I'm not getting cut in the way that I want to. Through my abdominals is where I'm really looking to cut. Any help?
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You probably can't see much muscle cause you don't have much to see. I'll say it again: you're a stick. and you can't spot reduce. think of bodyfat as a pool: if you remove water from the deep end of the pool, it just fills in. You can't reduce fat on your abs, you need to reduce total bodyfat to get definition.
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I usually hit the gym 5 times a week for about 90 minutes each session. I'll get about 15 minutes of cardio in that 90 minutes but it is usually a sprint on the bike. So the 15 minutes I am doing cardio, it's fairly intense. With weight lifting, I continue to mix it up every 2 months. Recently I've started lifting a bit lighter with long, slow reps and doing 75% of my sets on a work-out ball. I've found my strength increasing steadily, even with the lighter weights, due to the balancing act with the ball. I've really liked this regime the past few weeks but I'm even going to swap something new in soon.
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5 days a week, 75 minutes of lifting a day... sounds like your routine sucks ass to me. Let me guess: chest, shoulders, back, bi's and tris, and legs, all on different days? 3 sets of 8-12 reps on most things? lifting advice:
- go read the FAQ in strength and power.
- Throw away the swiss ball
- stop lifting slowly, your muscles aren't meant to move slowly and growth comes from explosive and maximum effort movements. whether you're trying to get stronger, bigger or more cut, slow lifting is counterproductive.
- go read the FAQ in strength and power.
- do intense cardio at the end of a workout
- get a real routine and burn all your bodybuilding magazines. they have lead you astray.
- go read the FAQ in strength and power.
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But I'm looking for a few guidelines or hints to try to get cut.
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Lift heavier and less frequently (3x a week is probably all you need), less frequent, more intense cardio (get off the exerbike and hit the track), fix your diet.
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I eat good, but not great. And I know if I have the will power to eat smarter, I'd probably meet my goal soon. So even with my diet, I'm looking for any advice.
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Stop eating good and start eating great. go to the diet and suppplements forum and learn to eat.
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I avoid salts and sugars as much as possible. I avoid all white flour. I try not to eat late at night, but I do from time to time in small amounts. I've been successful with smaller portion sizes and more meals throughout the day, but I can still improve some in this area. I'm not a fish or seafood guy in any way. Just can't do it. I enjoy my meat though. Not a big veggie guy either. I can handle a standard salad and the typical vegetables, but in moderation.
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No sugar, no white flower are both good, but I'd extend that to grains in general. no pasta, no bread, no rice, etc. Grains are bulking food as far as I'm concerned. Case in point, it wasn't until I started eating oats every day that I started gaining weight. Fruits, veggies, meat, tree nuts. that's your diet. now go to diet and supplements and figure it out.
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I eat eggs on a regular basis. Are these helping or hurting?
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Quit fretting and eat your damn eggs. Bulking or cutting I average four a day.
Final thoughts:
- your a stick, you need to gain weight.
- your lifting routine sucks
- your cardio plan sucks
- you suffer from a couple dietary misconceptions
- you need to read the FAQ in ALL three relevant forums.
