Very confused and in need of help.

[DiGiTaL]

Hello,

I am currently really lost on what step to take further and not sure what to do. Here is my problem; I have been cutting ever since the end of march. I went from 186lbs to 173lbs, I cut because I wanted a smaller waist and lose the belly, but mainly my main focus was on my abs. Now I still see no abs at all but I can feel some muscles building underneath.

I don't know like cutting because while cutting I also lost some muscle and am not making any other progress (eg. not reaching the reps I want to be able to) in other words, while cutting I am mainting or losing muscle little by little but not gaining any to make any progress.

I was thinking of starting to bulk, but Im really confused. I've been working on these stupid abs for months and still see nothing and I am really frustrated. Whats you guys' say?. Should I cut some more until I can see them or just go bulking?...
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[CowPimp]

The paradox that plagues every bodybuilder. I don't know what your physique is like or what you true motivation for lifting is. It is pretty hard to make that judgement call...

 

[DiGiTaL]

Well, when i go home tonight, I'll take some pictures and show you guys.

As for my motivation for weight lifting. Its really good. I have never missed an exercises, I go by my orders and I make sure I put lots of pressure on my muscles. I sometimes miss a day of working out because of work but I workout my missed day the next day. I really do put my mind in my workouts, there has been a few times where i got distracted because of some friends being there but other then that, I workout alone and until I am really done.

 

[Brutus_G]

what did your cut diet and workout look like? I would bulk for 1 month to let your body rest then go back to cutting if you wish, but it is ultimately ur choice and ur body.

 

[DiGiTaL]

what did your cut diet and workout look like? I would bulk for 1 month to let your body rest then go back to cutting if you wish, but it is ultimately ur choice and ur body.

I am on P/RR/S program by Gopro but I made a little adjustments of my own. Instead of doing the same weight for 3 reps. I do eg. 40lbs one set, then i do 50lbs another set, then i do 35lbs for the last set (dumbell curls).

This was/is my cutting diet:

7:00AM, 1 Cup of skim %1 fat milk with Whey protein

10:45am, A power bar (in class)

11:50am, A sandwich (lettuce and a slice of smoked turkey)

3:30pm, Some vegetables or something healthy (mom cooks for afterschool)
- my workout starts at 4pm
5:00pm, after workout, a protein shake

6:00 some chicken/beef and a little juice (to not get hungry)

9:00 a medium size meal (i also watch how much of it i eat)
9:00 1 cup of %1 fat milk.

and thats one day.

 

[CowPimp]

Although you were on the right track with your diet, it seems to me like you were eating a very low number of calories even for a cut. It's better to be conservative with your weightloss so that you don't lose LBM.

 

[Brutus_G]

Eat veggies every meal. Eat 2-1.5g of protein per pound of bodyweight. Carb cycle ie 3 days at 100g carbs 4th day at 300g. No starchies ie bread and grains. Cardio 3-7 times a week for 20-45 mins work up to it. No more than 1 pound a week lost. Check body fat every week. If you stop loseing lower carbs. Eat most of your carbs in the morning. No power bars/sugar( i realise sugar is a broad term but you know what i mean).

 

[Seanp156]

Deciding whether to bulk, cut, or maintain does pretty much suck... The way I look at it, however is if you're relatively new to lifting, and eating healthy, then you will constantly be building muscle and getting leaner of the years, so personally, I wouldn't cut for longer than an 8-10 week period unless you're grossly overweight.

 

[DiGiTaL]

Yea my 9pm meal is usually lots of vegetables with white yogurt and pink salmon. And I also try and take as much as proteins as I can.

As for cardio, the reason I decided not to do it while working out is because; daily after my workouts I walk home for about 40mins then once arrived, I rest for about 30minutes and I play some intense basketball. I do a lot of movement and running while playing basketball for about 1 hour.

 

[DiGiTaL]

I wouldn't cut for longer than an 8-10 week period unless you're grossly overweight

nope, not fat at all just a little chubby and wanted to workout and have some visible abs.

 

[LoadedBats]

Not sure if this will help you. It's an observation i've noticed when I was cutting, what worked for me may not work at all for you, so take what i say with a grain of salt.

But when i cut, i eliminated dairy (i supplemented calcium however). For some, it seems the minimal amount of lactose in dairy can still leave what seems to be a thin layer of fat (Perhaps this was water) under the skin......

The only carbs i ate came from of course lots of veggies (which i never really counted as far as calories, i just ate a lot of them) and oats. No fruit or dairy or starches like rice, bread or potatoes (i think sweet potatoes would have pbeen fine....and maybe even better tasting in some cases.....i just never bothered preparing them due to a busy work schedule.

Once again, this was just from a personal perspective. Your diet looked a tad light as far as calories go....might wanna do what the fellas stated up above...little more protein, veggies at every meal, carbs in the morning, more fats in the evening, etc. etc......basics.

The only other thing i experienced that may or may not have helped, was that i also did not use any protein supps. I just ate whole food. But this can be a pain, and be pricey for some...so take it for what it's worth.......just my 2 pennies.

 

[DiGiTaL]

Thanks LoadedBats, despite on how much i knew about dieting, there is always and always room for learning more...

But my question mainly involved wether to still cut or bulk. I'll upload some pictures in awhile, i just got home and im very tired, i'll do them tomorrow.

 

[LoadedBats]

Yeah, you can never stop learning. As far as whether to still cut....i suppose you could stop your cut for like....a week or two....i wouldn't really go into a bulk, but more of a maintenance phase.......i've never done that myself, but it doesn't sound like a bad idea, and if your stuck at the moment, changing it up for a week or so might help switch gears a little.. who knows.

 

[CowPimp]

Yeah, you can never stop learning. As far as whether to still cut....i suppose you could stop your cut for like....a week or two....i wouldn't really go into a bulk, but more of a maintenance phase.......i've never done that myself, but it doesn't sound like a bad idea, and if your stuck at the moment, changing it up for a week or so might help switch gears a little.. who knows.

Yeah, switching up to maintenance for a couple of weeks while your metabolism ramps back up and then removing calories again can be beneficial.

When you come back I would fine tune your diet more. That looks like it's not quite enough calories for someone your age, weight, and activity level. It is also lacking essentialy fatty acids, and it looks a little low on carbs to me as well. Protein isn't the only thing you need when you're bodybuilding.

 

[DiGiTaL]

Yeah, switching up to maintenance for a couple of weeks while your metabolism ramps back up and then removing calories again can be beneficial.

When you come back I would fine tune your diet more. That looks like it's not quite enough calories for someone your age, weight, and activity level. It is also lacking essentialy fatty acids, and it looks a little low on carbs to me as well. Protein isn't the only thing you need when you're bodybuilding.

I see, thanks. I'll be mainting weight for this week and the next week. A question about maintaining the weight, Do i gotta make sure i eat same amount of calories daily and with other nutrient included?

As for for other requirments, What else should I be getting more of?. I get amino acids from the whey proteins and my shakes, potassium & calcium from some of my meals, including cholesterol, sugar. What should I add to it.

 

[CowPimp]

I see, thanks. I'll be mainting weight for this week and the next week. A question about maintaining the weight, Do i gotta make sure i eat same amount of calories daily and with other nutrient included?

As for for other requirments, What else should I be getting more of?. I get amino acids from the whey proteins and my shakes, potassium & calcium from some of my meals, including cholesterol, sugar. What should I add to it.

You should really post your diet in the diet & nutrition section. My knowledge of diet is fairly rudimentary. As far as I can tell though, percentage wise you are getting plenty of protein, although you might need more total protein. It helps if you include calorie count and macro breakdown though.

 

[bludevil]

Also, if your stats are correct, you state that BF is 10.6%. Abs for most people usually doesn't start showing until below 10%

 

[DiGiTaL]

Bludevil: I used the bodyfat calculator posted in the Diet & Nutrition section and here is what my results are:

Estimate #1 based on height and weight
Your "Ponderal Index" is 12.74 which gives an estimated body fat of 18.7% (32.4 pounds of fat)

Estimate #2 based on waist size and weight
Estimated body fat of 9.3% (16.0 pounds of fat)

And

You should really post your diet in the diet & nutrition section. My knowledge of diet is fairly rudimentary. As far as I can tell though, percentage wise you are getting plenty of protein, although you might need more total protein. It helps if you include calorie count and macro breakdown though.

I'll get on to that right away. Thanks CP

 

[Duncans Donuts]

Crash diets aren't good. It's best to do a more meager caloric reduction; this will help reserve LBM (make sure you time your post workout nutrition carefully to avoid loss of muscle) and be more like to keep the weight off.

When I diet, they usually span 2 - 3 months, at a 3-500 calorie a day reduction.

Also pay attention to your genetics. I will never have a narrow waist because my hips are wide; at 245 pounds and 10-11 percent body fat I can see my abs but I still look hefty in the middle. Make sure you understand your limitations.

 

[DiGiTaL]

Duncans, I know crash diets arent good and i understand about limitations. I am big bonned, I understand I wont have amazing shaped abs but I know i can have abs. The only reason my diet is so crashing its because, i had diets before and they were very bad diets and it took me way too long to lose even 2 pounds so i just went with this one.

 

[CowPimp]

Crash diets aren't good. It's best to do a more meager caloric reduction; this will help reserve LBM (make sure you time your post workout nutrition carefully to avoid loss of muscle) and be more like to keep the weight off.

When I diet, they usually span 2 - 3 months, at a 3-500 calorie a day reduction.

Also pay attention to your genetics. I will never have a narrow waist because my hips are wide; at 245 pounds and 10-11 percent body fat I can see my abs but I still look hefty in the middle. Make sure you understand your limitations.

Well stated. Lately I have been using really small changes in caloric consumption of about 5% in either direction, which is 200 calories or so. Hell, I had been downing a hair over 4K a day, and I let it slip to around 3800 and I freaking lost like 3-4 pounds in a few weeks.

 

[Brutus_G]

How long is to long? 2 weeks? Cut out the breads and starches and see what happens to your abs in 3 weeks with carb ups every 4th day. Only eat veggies and 30g carbs of fruit a day. 40% protein 15% carbs 45% fat 200 below maintains on carbs up days eat 500 over maintains ratios are 20% protein 60% carbs 20% fat. Best carbs for carb up are sweet potato's/yams, oats,and whole wheat durum pasta.

 

[Brutus_G]

Lol cowpimp you shame my massive eatting.

 

[CowPimp]

Lol cowpimp you shame my massive eatting.

You should've seen when I went on a see-food diet right after I got back into lifting for real. I was downing 6K a day sometimes and didn't even realize it. I gained lots of muscle, but lots of fat too, heh.

 

[Brutus_G]

Shit. My tops is 3800 cals and i went out of my way only to eat very calorie dense foods.