Please help a beginner transform his body.... [quick questions] [reps]

Hello everyone,

I've been working out since Jan 2012... so it's almost been a year. However for the first 8 months I was doing random cardio and isolation workouts... which helped somewhat since I was out of shape but not that much. After joining these forums and putting in some research I finally started doing compound exercises (squats, dead lifts, bench, bent over rows, etc) and following a clean diet.

Right now I'm following All Pro's Simple Beginner's Routine, I'm 8 weeks into it.

I'm currently 5'8", 162 lbs at 16%-18% body fat (maybe less now to be honest). I can see my frame developing but I'm still not anywhere near where I want to be.

My questions are:
[b]
1) Do you recommend that I should be cutting or bulking?[/b] I am cutting at the moment because I'm seeing more changes that way (facial aesthetics increasing, jaw line showing, muscle definition forming) so I figured I should continue cutting for the next few months, at least until I'm at a desirable 9-11% bf. What would you do?
[b]
2) Should I be taking creatine?[/b] I'm taking creatine right now to help me increase my strength. Should I be even taking it while cutting though? Because I'm at a calorie deficit diet and if I'm not building muscle is it counterproductive to take creatine?
[b]
3) While on creatine, should I be taking it EVERYDAY? [/b]Like even during my off days? I'm going on vacation this weekend and I won't be in the gym for the next 3 days, should I still take my daily dose of creatine?
[b]
4) Is All Pro's Simple Beginner's Routine a good routine for a cutting phase?[/b] Like I said I recently started doing squats, deadlifts, etc so I want to continue to strengthen my cores. However if I'm not eating enough calories to build muscle, will this workout be any good?


FYI, my routine (all pro's simple beginners, the lbs represent the weight of the plates on one side of the bar). Yea I'm not that strong...

MWF: (reps increase by 1 every week)
Squats – 15lbs x8, 25lbs x8, 55lbs x8, 55lbs x8
Overhead Barbell Presses – 5lbs x8, 5lbs x8, 17.5lbs x8, 17.5lbs x8
Barbell Curls – 5lbs x8, 7.5lbs x8, 17.5lbs x8, 17.5lbs x8
Bent-Over Rows – 10lbs x8, 25lbs x8, 45 lbs x8, 45lbs x8
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts – 15lbs x8, 35lbs x8, 70lbs x8, 70lbs x8
Bench Press – 10lbs x8, 20lbs x8, 45lbs x8, 45lbs x8
Calf Raises – 45lbs x8, 90lbs x8, 280lbs xfail, 280lbs xfail

TR:
15 min cardio
Dips - 4 sets
Abs Workout - multiple sets til failure
Pull-ups - 4 sets



Will rep anyone who helps with the measly greens I have. Thank you

inb4 TL;DR

1. Only you can make that call.
2. Sure. Why not?
3. Arguments can be made for both. In the grand scheme it won't matter, just pick the easiest path and go with it.
4. It is fine.


My guess is you need to go to the nutrition section and learn more about fixing your diet.

at 16-18%bf its your personal opinion. If you dont mind bulking while gaining a bit more fat than bulk, but if you dont like your bf% being that high than cut

Ok, thanks guys. I wasn't sure because I heard it's harder to gain muscle with lower body fat. And around here it seems like it's standard to squat at least twice your weight.. I'm far from it.

fat loss section>>>>>>

post pics for better 'opinionated' advice on whether to cut or bulk.

definitely take creatine if you're lifting weights, it will not slow fat loss at all. simply take 5g a day, every day, starting from day 1.

as far as routine, All Pros isn't a bad choice, but i would also stroll over to the workout programs section and read JasonDB's stickied program for beginners, it's based around the compounds and also has a couple extra exercises for direct work to arms/calves/etc if hypertrophy is your ultimate goal.

edit: OP, gaining pure muscle is typically easier around the lower body fat range, generally 10% is the recommended area to start bulking IF you have a good enough base to even go THAT low. and don't worry about lifting numbers...they come with time under iron. i can't high bar squat 2x my body weight yet...at least i haven't TRIED to...but my guess based off performance in the gym is that i would probably need more work before i could. it still doesn't change anything.

Thanks for the response man, that helped a lot. Alright it's good to know that I'm heading in the right direction. I'm still having some difficulty with proper dieting, but I guess I will get used to it.

One last question... when calculating maintenance calorie requirements, I need to factor in all the calories I lose in the gym right? How can I calculate how many calories I burn during weight lifting? For example, how many calories would I burn from the routine I mentioned above?

[QUOTE=DafarheezyRises;976776253]Thanks for the response man, that helped a lot. Alright it's good to know that I'm heading in the right direction. I'm still having some difficulty with proper dieting, but I guess I will get used to it.

One last question... when calculating maintenance calorie requirements, I need to factor in all the calories I lose in the gym right? How can I calculate how many calories I burn during weight lifting? For example, how many calories would I burn from the routine I mentioned above?[/QUOTE]
Only way to get an accurate count is to get a heart rate monitor and track your calories.

There are various calorie estimations online that you can roughly use.


Here is one calorie estimation formula you can use, that tries to roughly account for exercise throughout the day:

A) Your weight in pounds: _____

B) Multiply A by 11 to get your resting metabolic rate _______

C) Multiply B by 1.6 to estimate your caloric expenditure through basic daily activities: ________

D) Multiply the number of minutes per wee that you lift weights by 5: ________

E) Multiply the number of minutes per week that you run, cycle, or play sports by 8: ______

F) Add D and E, then divide by 7: ________

G) Add line C and line F to get your daily calorie needs: ________

[QUOTE=DafarheezyRises;976316573]Hello everyone,

I've been working out since Jan 2012... so it's almost been a year. However for the first 8 months I was doing random cardio and isolation workouts... which helped somewhat since I was out of shape but not that much. After joining these forums and putting in some research I finally started doing compound exercises (squats, dead lifts, bench, bent over rows, etc) and following a clean diet.

Right now I'm following All Pro's Simple Beginner's Routine, I'm 8 weeks into it.

I'm currently 5'8", 162 lbs at 16%-18% body fat (maybe less now to be honest). I can see my frame developing but I'm still not anywhere near where I want to be.

My questions are:
[b]
1) Do you recommend that I should be cutting or bulking?[/b] I am cutting at the moment because I'm seeing more changes that way (facial aesthetics increasing, jaw line showing, muscle definition forming) so I figured I should continue cutting for the next few months, at least until I'm at a desirable 9-11% bf. What would you do?
[b]
2) Should I be taking creatine?[/b] I'm taking creatine right now to help me increase my strength. Should I be even taking it while cutting though? Because I'm at a calorie deficit diet and if I'm not building muscle is it counterproductive to take creatine?
[b]
3) While on creatine, should I be taking it EVERYDAY? [/b]Like even during my off days? I'm going on vacation this weekend and I won't be in the gym for the next 3 days, should I still take my daily dose of creatine?
[b]
4) Is All Pro's Simple Beginner's Routine a good routine for a cutting phase?[/b] Like I said I recently started doing squats, deadlifts, etc so I want to continue to strengthen my cores. However if I'm not eating enough calories to build muscle, will this workout be any good?


FYI, my routine (all pro's simple beginners, the lbs represent the weight of the plates on one side of the bar). Yea I'm not that strong...


TR:
15 min cardio
Dips - 4 sets
Abs Workout - multiple sets til failure
Pull-ups - 4 sets



Will rep anyone who helps with the measly greens I have. Thank you

inb4 TL;DR[/QUOTE]

1. You should bulk.

You have absolutely no body mass. Your lift numbers tell that story. Cutting to 9-11% will be pointless because you'll be cutting into nothing. I wouldn't be surprised if you lost a ton of mass cutting.

2. I'd suggest creatine.

It's a good way to increase your strength and help with recovery.

3. Everyday.

Creatine works by saturating your body. Taking 3-5 everyday keeps your body saturated.

4. It's fine to use for either bulking or cutting. As long as you are following a program, I think that's a good start.

Thanks guys. I know what you mean Yodus but I think I'll continue cutting since I've been seeing some progress in looks