I’m very confused… I’m 6’4, 200lbs and not sure whether to push real hard to bulk, or cut. I feel like I have a bit of extra fat that would be nice to get rid of, yet on the other hand, I feel I need a good 20lbs more muscle to look sufficently large. I think my BF% is around 18%. What do you think? I just feel that if I cut, I’ll probably end up around 185lbs and when I was 185 before, I looked like a little twig. Don’t really want to go back to that.
infin|ty, start reading some of Berardi’s work. He addresses just this topic. Cut down to 10-12% BF and start to bulk at that point.
Start with getting your BF%. I’d recommend the ones being reviewed in the T-Jack Forum, AccuMeasure 2000. I’ve gotten good results with it. From there, start keeping a food log. Tracking your progress and food intake will allow you to really fine-tune your diet.
Good luck!
Terry is right that at 18 percent you would be best to get down to 12 percent before bulking up. How did you determine your fat level? get it tested if you really want to know where your body composition stands. Most universities provide this service.I personally dont believe that it is necessary to get fat to get big. In fact if you do things right you should maintain your starting fat level or lose a little fat. Ask yourself this; how did i put on the fat in the first place? Was it in the last year? If so, on the plus side it will be easier to lose than if slowly put on over years, BUT it also means that you have had excess calories, poor nutrient timing and\or poor macronutrient composition. Take a careful look at your diet, clean it up and set the goal of losing fat but no muscle! Bulking isnt about eating anything and everything it is about filling the machine with high quality fuel. Take care and good luck!
I’m in the same position as infin|ty. I got my bodyfat tested today and I’m at 19.5% (3 site) and 18.06% (7 site). I’m 5’10" and weighs 165lbs.
Don’t mean to hijack your thread, infin|ty, but what do you guys think of using Red Bands while on T-dawg2, while on ABBH (all the 4 variants)? Is that a good fat loss workout?
Is it good for fat loss? Yeppers, ands I would reach as far as saying the perfered method by quitye a few ppl.
Add in some Alpha Male, and Surge PWO, and you git ine hell of a stack. Not to mention you will be much like many of us. Seemingly having more Biotest pumping through our systems than blood. LOL
It a good thing though.
But yes that is a great plan for fat loss. ABBH does a great job of hold/gaining LBM and strenght while cutting.
Hope that helps,
Phill
Thanks Phill for your reply. Yeah, I was begging for it the other red bands thread! LOL!
As a doctoral student, I don’t have enough cash to get Biotest products pumping through my blood! 
But I bit the bullet and got two bottles of Red Bands and will be concocting my own PWO. So hopefully it’ll work just fine. I guess I’ll just let my body take care of my T-level itself. Can’t do much about it, no $$ left… 
Wish me luck!
Well ok then, I will. “GOOD LUCK”
No in all honesty I hope everything works as well as you planned. If you dial in your diet and approach the ABBH with the intensity and focus it requires I am sure you will reach and possibly surpass your set goals.
Keep us informed on the transformation.
Phill
Hmm, I suppose. Do you think it would be possible to do a very clean bulk and go from 196 (weighed today) at approximately 18% to maybe 215 at 15% BF? Assuming I incorporated some HIIT, lifted hard and ate clean? I really hate the thought of going back under 200 too far.
IMHO, this thread epitomises the over-cerebrification of gaining. I was built just like you - same height and everything. Now i’m not. I’ve left dozens behind on the way, gained and lost more kilos than I can remember (travel through Egpyt, Asia and Africa on a shoestring and see how much you lose - I gained them all back, and more), and ended up living by what my best friend and long time training partner said from the start.
More. (He’s not a complex man).
Thats it.
Lift more, eat more, rest more. Train hard. Not ‘Wow, that was fun!’ hard, but serious hard. The gym is about serious work. Not socialising or chit-chat or shit. Work hard, lift more and above all BE PERSISTANT. Growth takes time. At our height we need muscle. LOTS of muscle to fill out our frames. All these pygmies are lucky that a few pounds is a visible gain. Forget their shitty little numbers and think big - REALLY big. FUCKING MASSIVE big. We are different. Your frame can hold a SHITLOAD of weight before people think you look ‘big’. Until they stand next to you or you (literally) pick them up. Then just smile. You’ll have something they’ll NEVER acheive and have more inner confidence than you ever dreamed. Trust me - I’ve lived in Bean-Pole Land. It sucked.
STOP sweating numbers. Change your mindset and think BIG. And do MORE. It worked for me. (And no I didn’t do shitloads of gear.)
lol… nicely put by girth.
Girth hit it on the head! I’m a fellow skyscraper (6’5) and recently had to make the same decision you’re trying to make right now. Clearly I decided to gain and now I wonder how I ever could have doubted my choice.
I started my bulk at about 210 and at my current weight of 225, I still feel small. Granted my bf was more like 10% when I started but still…
I guess you’ll just have to ask yourself whether you want to go from skinny to frail or skinny t-male! Ha Ha I rhymed…
Start lifting big! Start eating bigger!