Thread: making gains, improving fitness and no gut

I'm not a "top bodybuilding pro" but I can tell you firstly that cardio is not going to get you a six pac so if you're jumping on the treadmill to loose your gut it's not the prudent approach. You need to stimulate your abdominal muscles, directly and indirectly, just like any other muscle in your body in order to get the results you're looking for.

It's very difficult to try to bulk up as a hard gainer and not put on a bit of fat unless you're on steroids. Everyone's body is different and in your case it seems like your excess fat likes to store itself around your waist. If I were in your shoes, given you're going natural, I wouldn't worry too much about putting on a bit of fat when I'm bulking. I would pick a goal weight I'd like to be at ultimately ripped. Say for example you're ultimate goal is to be 185 lbs shredded. Then I would bulk up to about 205 - 210 lbs and at that weight I would then start cutting my weight to achieve the goal weight. During the cutting phase you should be focusing on loosing that gut not while bulking.

The only other suggestion is regarding diet. I would not only be focusing on how many calories I put into my system daily but concentrate just as much on the "type" of calories. Adjusting your diet might help you with your problem area and you can find many great diet plans on this website.

Regarding your training, if that has been your workout routine for over a year I would change it up and maybe consider training each major muscle group twice weekly by means of compound movements with a day of rest between each workout, ie. Upper body, off, lower body, off, upper body, off, lower body, off etc. This is a great way to achieve muscle size/bulk. If you're going to stick to your existing workout, given you're doing each muscle group once weekly with high intensity, I would definately not be training shoulders after a chest day. I would do legs, chest, back, shoulders, arms.

CaptainNapalm made some excellent points there with regards to putting on fat and using compounds for efficiency.

On a bulk you're going to put on fat, unless, as he said, you're on steroids. There are two other exceptions: you're a complete beginner or you're obese (in which case it's possible to gain some muscle while losing fat).

Keep in mind men tend to store fat in the lower torso first and last, meaning it's the first place you'll put on fat and it's the last place you lose it. For women fat tends to store for prominently in the hips and thighs.

Like he said, I wouldn't worry about it. It's just some fat. If you're putting it on via healthy means then it's controlled, and you just as easily drop it. Besides, if you're squatting and deadlifting, etc, you're developing a lot of muscle under there anyway that when the time comes to cut you'll have some impressive abs (direct work should be used as nothing more than accessory work). Also, as you develop more ab muscle (squats will seriously do this as long as you squat controlled (i.e. don't drop and cheat)) your torso will tighten up, despite the fat there. Muscle distorts the appearance of fat. For instance, prior to BBing I was a distance runner. Back then my BF was about 4%, whereas now it's about 13-14%. However, because I have significantly wider lats, thighs, and shoulders (as viewed from the front) I appear thinner and leaner. It's an optical bodily illusion. Pretty cool!

Also, you could always have bloating. My stomach is always flatter when I wake up because it's devoid of water and food. Either way, don't worry about some fat. As long as you keep it under control, it's all good. That fat will help you gain.

Bulking fat is your buddy!

You either want to get big or not,.... thats your choice. Only way you are gonna pack on the mass in the shortest amount of time is with a heavy diet, ~a good amount of cals, and chances are you will see an increase in BF%. If you wanna stay lean, go for it,.. but be prepared to grow a lot slower. This is just the way it is,.... for people that are natural.

If you are that worried about it, google "Vaccuum pose/exercises" for the abs, which over time will pull up and in your gut both when posing and relaxed. I personally would rather be lean right now,... but I enjoy the gains and mass off of a hefty diet, and good sleep. You can always burn off the fat later on.

Generally abs are made in the kitchen because its more about the layer of fat over the ab muscles than the muscles themselves. As mentioned above - more cardio is really just going to negate all the efforts you are putting in growing. As a competitive bodybuilder, it becomes just part of the game to get used to an "on season" (when you look & feel great and get to wear all your tight, sexy clothes), and then there's "off season" (when you're big as fuck, make all your PRs and nothing fits except sweats & spandex). Just like bodyfat loss, muscle growth isn't linear and because your body composition is lean muscle mass & body fat they both come or they both go. You can optimize your diet & focus on a slow, clean bulk, but IMO if you're younger (I'm guessing from the weight & growth gain you've had), you're at your optimal in terms of natural testosterone production , so use that to your advantage and grow and eat and lift and grow and eat and lift. It takes time to develop lean muscle mass and more time to develop muscle maturity - this is when the mass you've developed is yours - it won't just disappear when you start to cut. Its a cyclic process to build and then cut - if you want a "lean season" and a "growth season" but its very hard to have both.

What is your current diet & training right now? It may be there are some places that can be tweaked to get less belly w/o losing strength or mass.

^^ Great Info.

hey guys,

I'm glad I joined this site, thanks for all the replies, this is why I joined.

Sounds like I should just keep bulking hard passed the weight I want to be and then commence a program that will help me get shredded.

Thanks Napalm and Phineas for your advice, Im probably a year or so away from my "cutting phase" but I'm looking forward to it. Now that youve said it 185lbs shredded is probably my target. I am doing it healthily so I'll keep in mind that bulking fat is my friend.

BRK, thats how I'm seeing it I'll burn the fat off later on. Besides I was real scrawny so im the only one noticing my "gut" anyway.

Sassy if that's actually you, goodness me woman, youre in tremendous shape! my company gym certainly doesnt have women like you in it, wish it did haha. You guessed right Im 25 and my metabolism seems like its slowing down, in the last three months its been easier to pile on the pounds. But I'll keep away from the spandex though thanks.

My diet consists of
two eggs two toast
two chicken drum sticks
two protein shakes each with a pint of milk instead of water
a 1/4 of medium sized chicken with potatoes and salad, cucumber, peppers, tomatoes
then in the evening I have a large dinner, could be anything, curry, fish pie, im half malaysian so I eat a lot of rice/noodle based dishes. I try not to eat too much red meat but every so often I cant resist a bacon sandwich or pork pie.

training wise
i do my legs, shoulders, chest, back arms in that order.

Cap.Napalm said i shouldnt do my chest after my shoulders what dyu reckon sassy? I dont feel burnt out but i think hes right as its a larger muscle group. best to session that group hard first right?

i do 5 or 6 exercises per session, 4 sets 8-10 reps of the maximum weight i can do getting that number (8-10) of reps. i up the weight sometimes to see if i can get maybe 6 reps but then my technique goes all weeble wobble.

I dont do my core at all, i really should start, any idea how i can throw it into my routine? do i need to worry about my core?

I will post pics as I progress people. Will take a snap of what I am now and let the ransformation begin, shame i didnt take a snap of when i was stick thin, but im still pretty thin anyway.

Thanks everyone.