[quote]Tonino wrote:
Good points. It’s amazing, though, how a loss of only 6 pounds is noticeable via the “mirror” test. As I’ve said before, I can’t see abs or striations yet, but I can definitely tell that I’m carrying less fat than last month. I never consistently measured body fat until recently, but I bet that when I first started bulking back last July, that I was already close to 15% bodyfat or so… and after reading Shelby Starnes article on body fat, that could’ve been a contributor to my bulk not being as successful as possible. Don’t get me wrong, I was very excited about gaining close to 20lbs, but since I never measured bodyfat, I’m not sure how efficient I was in terms of muscle:fat ratio. I look at this phase as not only “damage control”. but also, as Shelby pointed out, allowing my body to set a new “base” weight.
It’s funny, in your example you threw out 190 lbs at 15% bodyfat. When my peers (read: those NOT serious with bodybuilding) ask me what weight I’d like to be at by end of year, I always respond 190… to which their response is always… impossible! you don’t have the frame nor bone structure to hold that weight… you’ll just end up getting fat!
Anyways, I’m very excited about starting up the BULK phase again, but I’m very patient and willing to work my ass off to at least try and get below 10% BF. But I don’t want to sacrifice muscle in the process, especially not at my current weight of only 160 lbs! So I’ll stick with this phase until you feel that its starting to become counterproductive (which I’m sure will be evident in my numbers as well).
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Where’s this article that you’re talking about btw? I’ve heard good things about Shelby…
Don’t get me wrong, I respect many authors, and they definitely know their stuff, but sometimes some of them can be a bit too precise if you get what I mean. Sometimes it just seems like they are more interested in showing people how clever they are, than simply “getting it done”. I feel that they don’t always put themselves in the shoes of the newer lifter who often latches onto every word they say.
For the “average Joe”, living a pretty standard lifestyle, they need something simple and more ‘vague’ to follow. As an example, it’s no use saying that it’s better to gain 1.5lbs of bodyweight per month rather than 3 or 4lbs…“normal” people just can’t be that precise (besides the fact that this is terrible advice for those who struggle to gain weight). Better to simply over-shoot a little and trim whenever necessary. Is it optimal? Maybe not as much as “perfect” precision, BUT it doesn’t take the fun out of it and it prevents stagnation (ensuring longer term gains) - which happens 9/10 when people try to follow things to the letter.
LOL at your peers. 190lbs (30lbs in a year) is hardly over reaching…certainly not if you are gaining a little fat too (10lbs of fat out of 30lbs is hardly ALL fat). That goal maybe out of reach for the majority of trainees who don’t have a clue what they’re doing lol. But you still have plenty natural potential left to go.