Can someone help me please? 17 year old lifter in need of guidance.

[euanrob123]

Basically, I started a (clean) bulk in May 2013, I began at 74kg and am now 81kg, I am also 5'11. However a lot of times as it was my first time lifting so heavy, I gave in and ate more than i should have. I am at around 18% bodyfat and am ready to cut. I was just wondering, As I am 17, Is it possible to cut my calories to around 1800 but also keep a 5x5 training resume and keep my gains if not add to mass and strength gains? With this I will be doing 3 HIIT routines for 20 minutes, And then on average another 3 over an hour sessions of just jogging with brief moments high intesnsity. Is it possible to still put on mass? If i focus on hitting 180g of protein a day? Thanks very much.

[ChrisVigor]

"I'm 17 and lifting weights please give me attention."

[Gxp23]

Basically, I started a (clean) bulk in May 2013, I began at 74kg and am now 81kg, I am also 5'11. However a lot of times as it was my first time lifting so heavy, I gave in and ate more than i should have. I am at around 18% bodyfat and am ready to cut. I was just wondering, As I am 17, Is it possible to cut my calories to around 1800 but also keep a 5x5 training resume and keep my gains if not add to mass and strength gains? With this I will be doing 3 HIIT routines for 20 minutes, And then on average another 3 over an hour sessions of just jogging with brief moments high intesnsity. Is it possible to still put on mass? If i focus on hitting 180g of protein a day? Thanks very much.

At 17, I would not worry about counting calories/macros, just keep yourself active and eat like an animal when you are hungry, eat until you are stuffed, make sure to include plenty of foods you enjoy, as there is no such thing as a real "clean" food, unless you wash it under the sink before eating, just monitor your weight and adjust your activity or food intake as you see fit.

Try and enjoy the last of your teens before you are welcomed into the big bad world, which is not far away.

"I'm 17 and lifting weights please give me attention."

Solid advice, great job.

[Asguroth]

Op. You are 17 years old. I think you should focus on increasing your muscle mass meaning go on a bulk. Count your calories you can learn about that from Counting calories 101 if you are worried about gaining excess fat.

You should also familiarize yourself with Calories and macronutrients.

[Gxp23]

Op. You are 17 years old. I think you should focus on increasing your muscle mass meaning go on a bulk. Count your calories you can learn about that from Counting calories 101 if you are worried about gaining excess fat.

You should also familiarize yourself with Calories and macronutrients.

This is something you should look over for the coming months Op, by the time you are 18-19 it would be ideal to have a firm graps on these things ^^.

[Ammex]

eat like an animal when you are hungry, eat until you are stuffed


Solid advice, great job.

Solid advise, great job.

It's impossible to get fat until you're 18 so eat everything you can possibly jam into your face.

[Revolutionize]

Basically, I started a (clean) bulk in May 2013, I began at 74kg and am now 81kg, I am also 5'11. However a lot of times as it was my first time lifting so heavy, I gave in and ate more than i should have. I am at around 18% bodyfat and am ready to cut. I was just wondering, As I am 17, Is it possible to cut my calories to around 1800 but also keep a 5x5 training resume and keep my gains if not add to mass and strength gains? With this I will be doing 3 HIIT routines for 20 minutes, And then on average another 3 over an hour sessions of just jogging with brief moments high intesnsity. Is it possible to still put on mass? If i focus on hitting 180g of protein a day? Thanks very much.

I doubt that you're going to be able to put on mass while cutting, unless you're a real newbie. Even then, you're not going to put on mass with that much activity at 1800 calories. Even cutting, you can probably up those calories. And I would err on the side of too much protein so as not to lose muscle mass. You're (presumably) lifting, doing 3 HIIT routines and 3 hour long cardio sessions. That's a lot volume and with a lot of intensity (assuming your lifting is intense). I would say around 2300 calories and at least 180 (preferably more) grams of protein. You should still be able to lose around a lb a week assuming a BMR of around 1961 and activity level of 1.5 (which might be low). In the end, you just have to estimate and adjust as necessary.

All that being said, I agree with others here who think you should take advantage of your age and try to put on some mass. At your height, 180lbs is not all that heavy. You could take the next couple of years and really try to build up some mass. It's your body though, so you have to make that choice.

[Gxp23]

Solid advise, great job.

It's impossible to get fat until you're 18 so eat everything you can possibly jam into your face.

Hence the reason monitor your weight and adjust your food and acitivity as you see fit, plus I never said to eat "everything" ofc there will be obvious choices to make, I am not expecting op to think to himself "Ok ill go eat a full bag of dohnuts everyday"..

[euanrob123]

Not looking for any attention at all, Just some knowledge. So if i was to up my calories to 2300ish, Maintain my protein at 180 or go up, Along with my cardio I would still slowly lose fat also? While building my foundations with Squat, Deadlift, Bench press, Military press and Bent over barbell row? Cheers

[Gxp23]

Not looking for any attention at all, Just some knowledge. So if i was to up my calories to 2300ish, Maintain my protein at 180 or go up, Along with my cardio I would still slowly lose fat also? While building my foundations with Squat, Deadlift, Bench press, Military press and Bent over barbell row? Cheers

How much dietary fat are you getting in?

[euanrob123]

Im getting around 40 grams of total fats a day

[Gxp23]

Im getting around 40 grams of total fats a day

I would up them to around 70g, but your best bet if you are gonna be counting etc is to check out the threads links posted by Asguroth in post #4.

[Revolutionize]

Not looking for any attention at all, Just some knowledge. So if i was to up my calories to 2300ish, Maintain my protein at 180 or go up, Along with my cardio I would still slowly lose fat also? While building my foundations with Squat, Deadlift, Bench press, Military press and Bent over barbell row? Cheers

You certainly should. Your estimated TDEE (at 1.5 multiplier) is around 2941. Of course, that's just an estimate, as everybody's metabolism is different.

Also, Gxp23's question about fat intake is a good one. You need to take in enough fat - too many people avoid it, at their peril. Eating fat doesn't make you fat, eating too many calories does. Get at least your minimums of protein and fat (especially EFAs). Fill in the rest of your calories with whatever you want.

[thelast10]

Solid advise, great job.

It's impossible to get fat until you're 18 so eat everything you can possibly jam into your face.

I really hope you were being sarcastic... As a teen I was obese, I lost 75 lbs, and had the same problem as this young man at times when it came to bulking and gaining unwanted fat on top of the muscle gained....

To the OP, Getting the proper ratio of macro nutrients per the amount of calories is very important, as is the way you get these macros... For example having 50 g of carbs can come from a muffin or come from oatmeal, you want to aim to eat as many Low GI carbs as possible. When it comes to fats you can get it from ice cream or you can get it from nuts, sunflower seeds, natural peanut butter, fish oil/flax oil, eating a clean diet with a ratio of macro's that works for YOU is what will help you achieve your goals...

[MrM27]

I really hope you were being sarcastic... As a teen I was obese, I lost 75 lbs, and had the same problem as this young man at times when it came to bulking and gaining unwanted fat on top of the muscle gained....

To the OP, Getting the proper ratio of macro nutrients per the amount of calories is very important, as is the way you get these macros... For example having 50 g of carbs can come from a muffin or come from oatmeal, you want to aim to eat as many Low GI carbs as possible. When it comes to fats you can get it from ice cream or you can get it from nuts, sunflower seeds, natural peanut butter, fish oil/flax oil, eating a clean diet with a ratio of macro's that works for YOU is what will help you achieve your goals...

You really need to actually study the facts on the whole GI stuff since you push it so hard.
You don't need a "clean diet" to lose weight/get lean. I'm choosing ice cream over some sunflower seeds or nuts 10/10 times.
OP, listen to the advice the other guys have given you.

[thelast10]

You really need to actually study the facts on the whole GI stuff since you push it so hard.
You don't need a "clean diet" to lose weight/get lean. I'm choosing ice cream over some sunflower seeds or nuts 10/10 times.
OP, listen to the advice the other guys have given you.

Really? Im wrong.... Where the hell are you getting your bs info from. I guarantee you will bulk a whole hell of a lot cleaner by eating healthy than eating like crap. Not only that, this is probably to hard for you to comprehend, but the timing of when you eat your macros has an impact as well...

[Gxp23]

Really? Im wrong.... Where the hell are you getting your bs info from. I guarantee you will bulk a whole hell of a lot cleaner by eating healthy than eating like crap. Not only that, this is probably to hard for you to comprehend, but the timing of when you eat your macros has an impact as well...

Performance wise yes timing can matter, body composition, not so much. High gi foods are not exactly crap, they can be implimented into ones diet and you can still make optimal gains along with your other macros. Ratios are kinda outdated though, ofc you will have a ratio in the end but choosing something like 40/40/20 for example isnt ideal, assuming this is what you meant by ratios.

[thelast10]

Performance wise yes timing can matter, body composition, not so much. High gi foods are not exactly crap, they can be implimented into ones diet and you can still make optimal gains along with your other macros. Ratios are kinda outdated though, ofc you will have a ratio in the end but choosing something like 40/40/20 for example isnt ideal, assuming this is what you meant by ratios.

What I meant was for example Ice Cream, it has high GI carbs and fat, the insulin spike you will get from the high GI carbs with the fat would be worse for you than eating a low GI carb where the insulin spike isnt nearly as high, it will give you sustained energy as opposed to a short burst from low GI carbs... Can we agree on this at least?

[MrM27]

Really? Im wrong.... Where the hell are you getting your bs info from. I guarantee you will bulk a whole hell of a lot cleaner by eating healthy than eating like crap. Not only that, this is probably to hard for you to comprehend, but the timing of when you eat your macros has an impact as well...

Actually you are wrong, on my current bulk which is about to end on Monday I have eaten plenty of ice cream, cookies, bagels, kids cereal, pop tarts etc. Gxp already responded to the timing stuff.

What I meant was for example Ice Cream, it has high GI carbs and fat, the insulin spike you will get from the high GI carbs with the fat would be worse for you than eating a low GI carb where the insulin spike isnt nearly as high, it will give you sustained energy as opposed to a short burst from low GI carbs... Can we agree on this at least?

My energy levels are great...If I feel like eating a lot before training I do, if I don't then I don't. After training I could go 20 min before I eat or it could be 3 hours. At the end of the day I hit my macros and calories and my preformance in the gym is where I want it so that is all that matters. You do realize that protein also causes an insulin spike right?

[RocketDog85]

"I'm 17 and lifting weights please give me attention."

Why bother commenting if you have nothing useful to say? Sure you knew it all at 17.

[thelast10]

Actually you are wrong, on my current bulk which is about to end on Monday I have eaten plenty of ice cream, cookies, bagels, kids cereal, pop tarts etc. Gxp already responded to the timing stuff.


My energy levels are great...If I feel like eating a lot before training I do, if I don't then I don't. After training I could go 20 min before I eat or it could be 3 hours. At the end of the day I hit my macros and calories and my preformance in the gym is where I want it so that is all that matters. You do realize that protein also causes an insulin spike right?

We'll if you were blessed with a great metabolism , or are mesomoprhic all the power to ya, just like when I tell people I did a basicly >2% carb diet and it worked great for me, I always say it worked for me it's not everyone, just like being able to eat as much as you want whatever you wantn works for you, won't work for most others...

[celtic723]

We'll if you were blessed with a great metabolism , or are mesomoprhic all the power to ya, just like when I tell people I did a basicly >2% carb diet and it worked great for me, I always say it worked for me it's not everyone, just like being able to eat as much as you want whatever you wantn works for you, won't work for most others...

**** types don't exist.

I'm an endomorph based on my avi. In 4 months time i'll be an ecto/mesomorph.

[thelast10]

**** types don't exist.

I'm an endomorph based on my avi. In 4 months time i'll be an ecto/mesomorph.

Huh? You can be an endo and put on muscle, or lose weight, doesn't mean you've changed the body "type" you were born with...

[dmacdonal9]

What I meant was for example Ice Cream, it has high GI carbs and fat, the insulin spike you will get from the high GI carbs with the fat would be worse for you than eating a low GI carb where the insulin spike isnt nearly as high, it will give you sustained energy as opposed to a short burst from low GI carbs... Can we agree on this at least?

Nope. You're operating on some outdated information mate.

[celtic723]

Huh? You can be an endo and put on muscle, or lose weight, doesn't mean you've changed the body "type" you were born with...

**** types don't exist.

There is no such thing as an endo/meso/ecto.