Gym And Supplement Discussion

[TM7GTR]

How much of your 22kg gain would you estimate to be muscle?

It's very, very hard for me to gain weight as it is (being an ectomorph) so i've always had a fairly low BF% , but I'm not gonna lie, I've gained a slight bit of chub around the lower abs. I'm also only 18 so it would have been some natural growth gains in there, but most of it is muscle. My girth measurements around the waist however didn't change too much, originally 29 inches (small waist, epic V in the making lol), up to 33, now back down to around 29-30 while maintaining the weight (came off of the dirty bulk and opted for a cleaner bulk recently). In response to "if it was that quick everybody would do it" , it's really not that impossible to achieve with focus on compound lifts, very little cardio, and a dirty bulk focusing on carb loading and at least 200g of protein per day. It took me just about 15 months (60 weeks) to gain 22kg, which is around 1.5kg a month. Compare that to steroids or HGH supplements where many people gain 10-15kg in one or two cycles (8-10 weeks max) and suddenly you can see it's not fiction.

Now back on to the dirty bulk for this winter, aiming for 90-95kg by the end of the year (although my gains will start slowing) and then I'll lean out to around 90kg. Set your goals high

[Birds]

Good way to find out is by getting a DEXA scan (essentially an x-ray with body composition results).

It's good to get a benchmark figure before you plan on doing a particular routine for the year for example.

I got one done in Sydney at MeasureUp (was $85 for just the scan or $150 for a consultation) but there's one in Hawthorn for you Melbourne boys as well.

Sydney - MeasureUp

Melbourne - BodyScan

I ended up being 13.3% body fat, which I was reasonably happy with, but room to improve...

It'll tell you individual mass and composition of limbs as well. Scan itself took about 5 minutes flat.

Nice! Thanks for the link. Always wanted an accurate measure of BF and the individual limbs part sounds good. Well worth it!

[God_speed]

No worries mate. Yeah I usually use one of those electronic scales (which are notoriously inaccurate but okay if using for longitudinal measurements to track fat % over time), so went home that day and got a measurement off my scales so I could say "13.3% via body scan = 19.0% using POS scales". Then I might be able to apply that ratio in future.

I gotta say, after doing some cutting, you look at yourself and see some abs coming through and go "I'm never letting these disappear again".

Only to go and polish off a bag of chips a few hours later

[Birds]

lol yeah abs are addictive. Good motivators to stay trim and healthy, but I can't knock back a whole bag of chips once in a while. Consequently, I'll never be shredded, but I'm pretty happy with my stomach

[Trozzle]

lol what's with all the sweat talk? in other news, anybody have some tips on how to not lose weight during illness? I've had two gainer protein shakes today (50grams protein, 70grams carbs per serve) already, and plan on having another before bed. May be overkill, but i'd rather overdo it than under-do it. P.S. Eating solid meals is ridiculously hard

Damnit, just wound up in the same boat as you - only I'm getting shafted harder.

TONSILLITIS I f**kING HATE YOU!!!!11!!1!one!!11

[God_speed]

Damnit, just wound up in the same boat as you - only I'm getting shafted harder.

TONSILLITIS I f**kING HATE YOU!!!!11!!1!one!!11

Tried drinking gargling water with a bit of salt in it? Don't overdo it as you'll dry out your tonsils too much and cause more irritation, but the salt will draw out some of the water and crud that has built up in your tonsils and reduce the swelling a bit.

[Trozzle]

Tried drinking gargling water with a bit of salt in it? Don't overdo it as you'll dry out your tonsils too much and cause more irritation, but the salt will draw out some of the water and crud that has built up in your tonsils and reduce the swelling a bit.

Yeah I've always done that with throat irritations, though the swelling and pain makes it very difficult to do right now. I did it with just normal water and nearly choked haha. Will give it a shot shortly though.

[rev210]

No worries mate. Yeah I usually use one of those electronic scales (which are notoriously inaccurate but okay if using for longitudinal measurements to track fat % over time), so went home that day and got a measurement off my scales so I could say "13.3% via body scan = 19.0% using POS scales". Then I might be able to apply that ratio in future.

I gotta say, after doing some cutting, you look at yourself and see some abs coming through and go "I'm never letting these disappear again".

Only to go and polish off a bag of chips a few hours later

Percentages don't matter anyway. If you are happy with the lean you are then it's all good. Being 'ripped' is a relative term.

eating chips ,drinking pints and still having visible 8 pack abbs means more hard work...ha ha..

[Birds]

Downlights behind a mirror or standing side on to the sunshine in the reflection of a car window can help too...lean is indeed all relative. And I'll never give up the snacks lol.

Body builders look "good" on stage because they've tanned, greased, dieted and dehydrated themselves to death over the last day or so. When you see them outside of competition, whilst still large in stature, it's amazing the difference between the two forms. In pro bodybuilding there can be as much as 15kg difference between on-season and off-season.

Still, we can't deny the solidity of statistics...if nothing else, the baseline is good for monitoring your progress. And it's not as if the mirror doesn't lie to us from time to time

[Trozzle]

In after birds posts a pic of himself (somewhat of a rarity)

[NickR33]

standing side on to the sunshine in the reflection of a car window can help too...

haha I do this! still I'm not as lean as you... all photographic 'techniques' aside looking good... nohomo

In the right light I've got the top 4 in now... but I'm also pretty hairy so sure if a shaved it would better for seeing definition but I CBF going that far... shit gets all itchy and annoying when you shave it... I'm rocking a beard at the moment as I CBF even shaving my face lol

[Birds]

LOL Troy, I have to make up for the fact I don't have a build thread

Forgot to mention shaving as a technique for bringing out definition...and once you shave, you don't go back...do it Nick

[NickR33]

lol there's a lot to shave I clipper it nice and short but never gone the full razor treatment

I kinda like being called chewbacca or manimal lol... plus when you have a tan and obviously work out, being a bit hairy stops people from thinking your auditioning for Jersey Shore!

[Trozzle]

I has no chest or back hair, and I shave my face once a week.

ujelly?

[NickR33]

no... I prefer not to look like a tween Twilight fan

[TTT]

I has no chest or back hair, and I shave my face once a week.

ujelly?

I was the same back in 1989

But the next year I turned 13 and started turning in to a man.

It'll hapen for you too mate.. don't be too worried.

[GTR_JOEY]

haha definatly a rarety birds

any idea what percentage body fat u are?

not that it really matters, as long as your happy with what u see in the mirror..... or car window

[Trozzle]

I was the same back in 1989

But the next year I turned 13 and started turning in to a man.

It'll hapen for you too mate.. don't be too worried.

ooooooo shit, no he didn't!

[Birds]

haha definatly a rarety birds

any idea what percentage body fat u are?

not that it really matters, as long as your happy with what u see in the mirror..... or car window

No clue, that's one of the reasons I want to get a bodyscan done. I'm 188cm @ ~80kg with something of a narrow bone structure, if that gives any indication. And yeah, I'm 99% happy with what I see...you'll never be 100%, but you can get pretty damn close I reckon

How's your cutting going?

[GTR_JOEY]

No clue, that's one of the reasons I want to get a bodyscan done. I'm 188cm @ ~80kg with something of a narrow bone structure, if that gives any indication. And yeah, I'm 99% happy with what I see...you'll never be 100%, but you can get pretty damn close I reckon

How's your cutting going?

well youd have to be under 10% i reckon.. maybe closer to 7-8. results will be interesting

gettin there mate, bout 90kg atm... i dont really have a goal which is probably not a good thing

ideally id like to keep as much lean mass as possible.. even try and put on some lean mass if i can