Stego Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 I'm doing the bulk/cut thing. I am in a serious bulk phase atm. If I do not do a cut phase following it, I may just be gaining fat in the long term. I am about 800 calories above staying status quo at the moment. The opportunity I have had this summer of lifting with the beasts I am lifting with was not worth missing out on. This is the decision I made about a month ago, despite being a large man as is. I'm currently about 265lbs, despite being at the lowest body fat percentage I've enjoyed in about a decade. Ehh, maybe I'll take some pics at Readercon this weekend to comp[are to pics from last years Worldcon so folks can have some reference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stego Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Kat, I wish someone would whistle at me. :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kat Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 I have a whistle on my keychain. Would you like me to use it in your presence? :P(I can't whistle on my own in any way, shape or form.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lany Freelove Cassandra Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Good luck on the operation, Xray. You show 'em. :thumbsup: I have bike underwear with padding. They're like boxer-briefs that I wear under other shorts, pants, or a skirt, depending on where I'm going. (Also much cheaper than the full-on spandex shorts.) I don't go fast enough that it would require cutting down on drag. I mean, seriously, I'm going like 10 mph most of the time, who would I be kidding? :PSpeaking of spandex, I have some gym capris/long shorts that turned out way more spandexy than I expected when I ordered them. I get catcalled when I run in them, so now I only wear them to the gym, where people are polite enough not to whistle at least. Sigh. Those were supposed to be my answer to Mina's "don't wear shorts to the gym that disobey the ____ length rule" (forget the inches exactly) but, while they are quite comfortable and flexible and I otherwise like them, they apparently call more attention than short running shorts.I have a pair of almost knee length black spandex shorts that I exercise and hike it. I happen to have very large thighs and I hate when they rub together...friction and sweat, not a pleasent combo.Good news is I think they are down about 4 inches each, but they are still way too big. I need to get another pair, I am now washing them way too much and I am afraid they won't last too much longer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stego Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Lany, Underarmor underwear will do the same job, and probably do it better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lessthanluke Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Jesus Stego 265lbs. That's big lol. How tall are you? My mini cut that I just did is the last time I'm doing that. I lost too much strength. Permenant bulk from now on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xray the Enforcer Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 I got yer back, Stego. I'm not exactly sure how I'll contribute yet (besides threatening you with my nose babies), but that'll come. For an idea, how much are you looking to cut? And what is your current vs. future caloric intake going to look like? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stego Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Luke, I'm so much smaller than my cousins it's absurd. :P I'm 5'10. Pretty broad -- I was blessed with wide shoulders. I'm looking to cut about 5% bodyfat. I'm down to ~20% now from ~40% after my surgery. I'm eating about 3800 calories a day. 3000 is my average upkeep to stay the same. I'm thinking about 2500 for two months. (2000 calories is how I dropped my initial 60lbs after my surgery.) I'm just worried I will lose too much strength. For me, I'm pretty damn strong right now. I'm feeling great. I don't want to slip too much. I'm hoping this added muscle will increase my metabolism to the point that I will cut faster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjfshaw Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 What is the point of a cut phase? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stego Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 To reduce body fat percentage. It is very hard to build a lot of muscle without a significant caloric increase. So you 'bulk.' Then you 'cut' to reduce your body fat percentage. This is how bodybuilding works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rubies & Jade Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Good luck with the surgery Xray! ... Yeah yeah, I know to other people this doesn't seem like much, but I've had skinny pencil arms since forever. ...seriously? :stunned: I can't match this up with the pictures you've posted of yourself recently, unless those pics really aren't of you! You look fabulous! and your arms certainly don't look skinny to me!...There is no excuse for a man to ever wear spandex shorts as an outer garment. In fact, while I am very much against most of the silly laws that are constantly streaming out of congress, a federal law against men in spandex would be quite welcome. Listen, I'm embarrassed for you. I'm embarrassed for your life partner (man or woman, I'm not judging). I'm embarrassed for your mom. I'm fucking mortified for your father. ... :lol: This made me almost choke on my coffee--hilarious! I needed a good laught this morning. and I'd sign the petition...How's your wrist feeling?Here is what probably is a stupid question... how do you make squats more weighted (so that they do more work for me)? do you just hold weights or dumbells? I saw a trainer yesterday and this was my burning question for her... and she said just to do them without any weight and do more reps, but that doesn't seem to do enough for me. I work out alone, so I have a hard time with major freeweights but I need some suggestions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minaku Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 The cut always sucks. Good luck, Stego. I find when I go on a super-clean diet like that I always end up hating certain foods by the end of week 4. Who wants my brown rice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lessthanluke Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Luke, I'm so much smaller than my cousins it's absurd. :P I'm 5'10. Pretty broad -- I was blessed with wide shoulders. I'm looking to cut about 5% bodyfat. I'm down to ~20% now from ~40% after my surgery. I'm eating about 3800 calories a day. 3000 is my average upkeep to stay the same. I'm thinking about 2500 for two months. (2000 calories is how I dropped my initial 60lbs after my surgery.) I'm just worried I will lose too much strength. For me, I'm pretty damn strong right now. I'm feeling great. I don't want to slip too much. I'm hoping this added muscle will increase my metabolism to the point that I will cut faster.Gotcha. I'm 5"10 as well. Weighing 207lbs at around 16%bf.Just for reference I was cutting on 2800 cals. Just a couple of tips, don't lose too quickly, anything over 1-2lbs a week and you will lose muscle/strength. Make sure your protein intake is high in order to preserve muscle. Oh and I lost more upper body strength than lower. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ztemhead Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 last thing to add, from a psychology perspective rather than a biochemistry one. IMO you'll have to sacrifice the strength training goal for the weight/ fat loss one, a realization which can make the baby Jesus cry. this month I've been more about fat loss than anything. I was stalled out for a bit until I realized I had to cut back on my post and pre workout meals. (among other things) I still do them, but now they're greatly reduced in portion size. If I ate more appropriately I'm sure I wouldn't have plateaued in certain lifts, but so be it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ztemhead Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Good luck with the surgery Xray! seriously? :stunned: I can't match this up with the pictures you've posted of yourself recently, unless those pics really aren't of you! You look fabulous! and your arms certainly don't look skinny to me!Hey thanks! I'm down another 10 lbs since the last photo; I've been meaning to take another one. Here is what probably is a stupid question... how do you make squats more weighted (so that they do more work for me)? do you just hold weights or dumbells? I saw a trainer yesterday and this was my burning question for her... and she said just to do them without any weight and do more reps, but that doesn't seem to do enough for me. I work out alone, so I have a hard time with major freeweights but I need some suggestions.squats should look like this: good thought too by the way. consensus hereabouts is less reps, more weight is generally better. for more weight, just load up the bar. I've tried them with dumbells, I don't like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AutumnEvenings Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 I decided to up frequency rather than duration for my cardio, so I'm doing it five times a week. I seem to have broken through my plateau, and lost 3.5 lbs this week.I haven't bought any resistance bands yet, as I'm not quite sure how to use them. Sticking with the pilates-stuff. I did look at that website someone here linked, but you have to register to even just see anything, so I didn't. I mainly want to build strength to reduce my chances of getting osteoporosis (sp?) and because I've heard lean muscle is really good for you in lots of ways. I plan on getting pregnant in about a year, and I've heard (on average, of course) that the better shape you're in before, the easier it goes and the easier it is to get back to normal afterwards. So those are my main motivations. :)Edit: I'd always thought that more weight, fewer reps was for building muscle, and more reps, less weight was for maintaining what you've already got, more or less. Not so? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xray the Enforcer Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 BJT -- try to increase weight rather than the reps per set, unless you have endurance goals you need to meet. (as a general rule, anything more than 15 reps/set -- UNLESS you're on a specific training or physical therapy regimen meant to build endurance around a specific joint -- is pointless. [this is per my trainer, BTW] For peeps like you, me, Chataya, ztem, etc, the most efficient and useful option is to add weight and work at 8-10 reps/set). What options do you have at your gym? Kettlebells? Dumbbells? Just the rack? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xray the Enforcer Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Oh man, Stego. Good luck with the cut. You try to eat small meals more frequently, right? Because that should help the hunger pangs (physically smaller stomach), as should drinking a lot of water.My suggestion -- make a shitload of vegetables and have them in the fridge at all times. If you feel like you're gonna snap, get a helping of spinach/whatever, nuke it, and chow down. Very few calories, lots of vitamins, and it'll help take the edge off until your next proper meal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nichole Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Good luck on the surgery X-ray. I hope it helps you feel better. If you don't mind me asking, what is the surgery for? From the little you have said about your symptoms, they sound similar to some problems I've been having recently. I hope it is just allergy issues, but sometimes I wonder if it is something more. If you don't care to share, I understand.And Stego, best of luck to you. I don't know if I could do that. Luckily, I have different goals. Do you continue to exercise while doing your cut?Keep up the good work everyone! I know it is not easy and there are days you just want to sit down be wonderfully lazy. It is a hard temptation to fight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xray the Enforcer Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Edit: I'd always thought that more weight, fewer reps was for building muscle, and more reps, less weight was for maintaining what you've already got, more or less. Not so?No. Hypertrophy (building muscle) happens in the 6-12 rep region. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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