Need expert advice

[JordyQ]

A but long winded but would appreciate any experienced advice.

My goal: 80 kgs (175 lbs) cut, less than 10 percent body fat and serious abs showing.

Where i am now: 174 lbs with a small belly.

Been bulking for 6 months and went from 160 lbs to now 174 lbs following this basic workout and its worked wonders.

Day 1:
Flat bench 5x8
Incline bench 4x10
Chest cable Flys 4x10
Rope triceps pull down 5x10
skullcrushers 4x10
Dips 4x10

Day 2:
Bicep barbell curls 5x8
Seated incline hammer curls 4x10
Concentration curls 4x8
45 degree leg press 5x10
Leg extension 4x10
Hamstring curls 4x10
Calf raises 5x10

Day 3:
Dumbell shoulder press 5x10
Lat raise 4x10
Shrugs 4x10
Lat pull down 4x10
Seated cable row 4x10
1 arm bent over dumbell row 4x10

Day 4 rest

And start over.

Got fantastic results from this however now I've reached a wall and can't out anymore weight on.

I'm eating about 3,500 calories a day and workout 5- 6 times a week.

my questions are as follows:

1. How do I accurately find my body fat percentage?
2. If I aim time so be 175 lbs cut, what weight should I aim for before It go on a cutting phase?
3. If It need to change my bulking workout due to hitting this wall, how much do I need to change it up? Just sets and reps? Different exercises?

thanks

[BoB335]

I know you'll hear where are the Squats and Deadlifts.

[ironwill2008]

Got fantastic results from this however now I've reached a wall and can't out anymore weight on.

If you're not gaining weight, you're simply not eating enough.

I'm eating about 3,500 calories a day....

"About" 3500 calories a day? Do you not know exactly how much you're eating?

Buy an inexpensive digital food scale (~$30 at any big-box discount store), weigh your portions, and track them here: http://fitday.com[/b]

1. How do I accurately find my body fat percentage?

DEXA or Hydrostatic are probably the two most accurate methods, but each has drawbacks. Probably the most practical method for a casual trainee is to buy an inexpensive pair of body fat calipers and then learn how to use them.



That said, you'd do better to forget all of that and simply use the mirror, your scale weight, the fit of your clothes, and the numbers in your training logbook to track your progress.

2. If I aim time so be 175 lbs cut, what weight should I aim for before It go on a cutting phase?

Obviously, this would depend on how much body fat vs muscle you'd have gained along the way, and is impossible to accurately say, but a very rough estimate would be to train very hard on a routine of mostly compound lifts, and reach about 200-210 pounds before considering a cut.


Historically, people underestimate the amount of body fat they're carrying (for a number of reasons), and most first-time 'cut' trainees are shocked at how much weight (hopefully, fat and not muscle) they have to drop in order to get really lean.

3. If It need to change my bulking workout due to hitting this wall, how much do I need to change it up? Just sets and reps? Different exercises?

For the present, don't change anything except how much you're eating. Add enough additional food per day so that you again start to see about a 1-pound increase on your body weight each week.



You'd do well to revisit your leg training; your posted routine is imbalanced in favor of your upper body, and you're neglecting your legs.

[JordyQ]

For the present, don't change anything except how much you're eating. Add enough additional food per day so that you again start to see about a 1-pound increase on your body weight each week.



You'd do well to revisit your leg training; your posted routine is imbalanced in favor of your upper body, and you're neglecting your legs.

Thanks for all the info.

I did notice my belly getting slowly slowly bigger and I'm sure the majority of the weight I've been putting on has been fat. Is there any way to minimize the amount of fat I put on? Eg. No carbs after 6 etc? Just trying to avoid the belly getting too big and it's pushed my shirt size into a medium although the test of my body is till a small shirt size.

also how would you recommend I tackle my leg workout? I've recently recovered from a disc herniation so always kept legs really light but now I'm leg pressing 250 kgs so it's time to step it up. I do each muscle group twice a week. What would you recommend?

Thanks again

[magician27]

your routine is bad . if you are not gonna train legs , you can put on maximum 2-3 kg muscle per year , if you have the patience keep going. i would start squatting and deadlifting ASAP

[JordyQ]

your routine is bad . if you are not gonna train legs , you can put on maximum 2-3 kg muscle per year , if you have the patience keep going.

Specifics as to why it Is bad? And I do train legs twice a week.

[magician27]

Specifics as to why it Is bad? And I do train legs twice a week.

my bad didnt see leg presses in the middle of arm exercises. why you neglect squats & deaadlifts ? for how long have you been lifting , your volume sounds too high to me. and yea its mentioned above if you cant gain any more weight you will start eating 3800 cals

[JordyQ]

my bad didnt see leg presses in the middle of arm exercises. why you neglect squats & deaadlifts ? for how long have you been lifting , your volume sounds too high to me.

Disc herniation, stopped me from doing any sort of heavy lifting associated with my lower back. Cracked a disc, fluid seeped out and hit nerve in my leg, really bad. But we'll on the road to recovery but still don't test my back enough to attempt either.

[magician27]

Disc herniation, stopped me from doing any sort of heavy lifting associated with my lower back. Cracked a disc, fluid seeped out and hit nerve in my leg, really bad. But we'll on the road to recovery but still don't test my back enough to attempt either.

oh i see , thats not good , its sad i hear people with herniated disc so often , i wonder when i will slip mine

[ironwill2008]

Thanks for all the info.

I did notice my belly getting slowly slowly bigger and I'm sure the majority of the weight I've been putting on has been fat. Is there any way to minimize the amount of fat I put on?

Yes. As mentioned above, buy a food scale. Use it, along with the mirror method of self-critique I already advised.

Eg. No carbs after 6 etc.

The 'no carbs after xxx time of day' is a lay media myth with no basis in science; disregard it, along with everything else you've heard on the dr oz show.

Track your calories/macros accurately, and adjust them every 3-4 weeks dependent on what the mirror is telling you.

also how would you recommend I tackle my leg workout? I've recently recovered from a disc herniation so always kept legs really light but now I'm leg pressing 250 kgs so it's time to step it up. I do each muscle group twice a week. What would you recommend?

If, and only if, you have medical clearance from your Ortho to weight train, here's a good basic leg routine:

Ironwill2008's Basic Leg Routine for Bodybuilders
--------------------------------------------------

Barbell Squat 4 sets of 6-8 reps (not counting warm-up sets)

Leg Press 3x10-12

Barbell Lunge 3x6-8

Romanian Deadlift 3x6-8

Leg curl 3x10-12


Calves can be done on a separate day, with an upper-body part.

Leg Press Calf Raise 3x10-12

Seated Calf Raise 3x12




This routine is to be done once a week. On all exercises, work to increase the weight lifted, with good form/full ROM, week-to-week, within the rep ranges listed.


Example:
For Squats, after warm-ups, load the bar with a weight with which you can get 6 good reps on all 4 sets. Stay at this weight until you can Squat it for 4x8, at which time you'll add enough weight to the bar (try 10 pounds) to drop you back to 4x6. Progress this new load up to 4x8, and then add more weight the following week, and so on.

Use this same progression scheme for all exercises.

Again, I'm not a doctor or a Physical Therapist, and even if I were, I wouldn't be handing out what amounts to medical advices on an interwebz forum. That leg routine is only for someone with normal spinal function as diagnosed by a doctor. If that's not your current situation, talk to your Orthopedist on the best way for you to train your legs.

[JohnMariettePT]

Thanks for all the info.

I did notice my belly getting slowly slowly bigger and I'm sure the majority of the weight I've been putting on has been fat. Is there any way to minimize the amount of fat I put on? Eg. No carbs after 6 etc? Just trying to avoid the belly getting too big and it's pushed my shirt size into a medium although the test of my body is till a small shirt size.

also how would you recommend I tackle my leg workout? I've recently recovered from a disc herniation so always kept legs really light but now I'm leg pressing 250 kgs so it's time to step it up. I do each muscle group twice a week. What would you recommend?

Thanks again

Totally off topic but at 5'11 you wear smalls or mediums?