iron addict
New member
As a trainer one of the biggest challenges I face is dealing with extremely lean guys with little muscle. Most of the time they are ecto’s or have lots of ecto tendencies. Take a 175 lb guy that is hovering at about 8% bodyfat and guess what happens if they add 2-3 lbs of fat? They can see it immediately. Compound this with the fact that many, if not most of these guys tend to carry the fat right around the waist and you have a guy that usually freaks out when they gain the slightest amount of fat.
Please, next time you are in the supermarket pick up a 3 lb package of hamburger or steak. Now first understand that 3 lbs of fat will take up more volume because it is not as dense. Hold the package next to your stomach (never mind the looks you are getting) and visualize what that would look like if it were 3 lbs of fat there. OK, as you can graphically see it can really make a difference.
Next thing to understand is that 3 lbs of fat can be dieted off by almost anyone in less than 2 weeks. It’s no big deal. BUT…..many of you see the slightest bit go to your mid-section FREAK-OUT and then either want to switch to diet mode, or you quit eating the macro-nutrients and kcals you need for mass gains. And you FAIL…..or at least make the process of accumulating mass WAY harder than it need be.
I train 70+ people at a time and many of them are yo-yo’s in regard to this. They just a couple of pounds of body-fat and immediately want to do a cut or mini-cut cycle. Since I have shown many of them just how easy it is to drop body-fat and maintain or build muscle while doing so they are constantly going back and forth. While there is nothing wrong with it, it is not as productive as eating a SLIGHTLY over kcal diet with tons of protein and adding muscle at a faster pace. Sometimes you need to take a ½ step back to go 2 steps forward.
I see guys all the time that are 8-10% bodyfat that think they are fat, and many of these guys just are afraid to eat enough to grow, slight anorexia and lifting don’t go together very well.
I don’t do traditional “bulk’ diets for anyone. I think it’s a misguided approach for anyone except for those VERY genetically prone to EASY body-fat loss, and usually doing gear. I always want the muscle to go on with a minimal amount of bodyfat accompanying it. But being extreme about ZERO bodyfat gain when seriously trying to add muscle does make the job harder. If I have my way the trainee cuts to about 8% “lean bulks” to maybe 12% and then does a quick cut to get back down. This has the trainee looking damn good year round while making the job easy for everyone, but those that freak-out about the slightest bodyfat gain.
Iron Addict
Please, next time you are in the supermarket pick up a 3 lb package of hamburger or steak. Now first understand that 3 lbs of fat will take up more volume because it is not as dense. Hold the package next to your stomach (never mind the looks you are getting) and visualize what that would look like if it were 3 lbs of fat there. OK, as you can graphically see it can really make a difference.
Next thing to understand is that 3 lbs of fat can be dieted off by almost anyone in less than 2 weeks. It’s no big deal. BUT…..many of you see the slightest bit go to your mid-section FREAK-OUT and then either want to switch to diet mode, or you quit eating the macro-nutrients and kcals you need for mass gains. And you FAIL…..or at least make the process of accumulating mass WAY harder than it need be.
I train 70+ people at a time and many of them are yo-yo’s in regard to this. They just a couple of pounds of body-fat and immediately want to do a cut or mini-cut cycle. Since I have shown many of them just how easy it is to drop body-fat and maintain or build muscle while doing so they are constantly going back and forth. While there is nothing wrong with it, it is not as productive as eating a SLIGHTLY over kcal diet with tons of protein and adding muscle at a faster pace. Sometimes you need to take a ½ step back to go 2 steps forward.
I see guys all the time that are 8-10% bodyfat that think they are fat, and many of these guys just are afraid to eat enough to grow, slight anorexia and lifting don’t go together very well.
I don’t do traditional “bulk’ diets for anyone. I think it’s a misguided approach for anyone except for those VERY genetically prone to EASY body-fat loss, and usually doing gear. I always want the muscle to go on with a minimal amount of bodyfat accompanying it. But being extreme about ZERO bodyfat gain when seriously trying to add muscle does make the job harder. If I have my way the trainee cuts to about 8% “lean bulks” to maybe 12% and then does a quick cut to get back down. This has the trainee looking damn good year round while making the job easy for everyone, but those that freak-out about the slightest bodyfat gain.
Iron Addict
