22Y/o Cut or Bulk

[TalenD2014]

Hey everyone, I know you guys probably see this type of post daily, but the reason I can't decide is that most of my journey has consisted of focusing on weight loss. The past year I've made some achievements in gaining a little bit of muscle but the past few months I've been doing calisthenics/gymnastics training and I feel like I still have a lot of visceral fat around my abdominal and am not seeing any progress. I've been hovering around 185 for the past few months, whereas last year I was around 175 for the whole year. I'd like to be able to see a six pack this summer, but I also don't want to lose any gains. At this point in my journey, would you recommend I focus on losing weight and cutting, or focus more on eating more and possibly increasing my training? Or do you think I just need to increase my training overall? I have no set eating plan at this point. Knowing how to proceed will help me create a plan of action.

Right now I am training twice a week for about an hour and a half. I work 7 days a week every other week so that's been a stressor for me.

Currently sitting at 188lbs and 5'10".

Any advice would be appreciated.

I attached some progress photos to let you see where I'm at. I also have some on my profile.

[MVMolotov]

I mean, you wouldn't look bad if you cut, assuming you maintain most of your muscle. If you're willing to take the long road, you can always recomp, which it seems like a good solution considering where you are now.

[BBryan098]

You have rounded shoulders and a little bit of a pelvic tilt going on. I assume you have a sedentary job. Let me know if my assumption is correct. With that in mind, it's a little harder to lean out when we're basically sitting all day. We need to increase activity or lower calories more than usual in order to hit a calorie deficit. Stress obviously doesn't help, which not only increases cortisol (which makes it harder to burn fat and build muscle), but may aso affect us negatively psychologically (like binge eating due to stress or skipping workouts for example). Cathlistenics/ gymnastics are ok for muscle growth, but in terms of hyperthrophy nothing compares to lifting weights. I would try adding 2-3 days of weight lifting. Focus on getting stronger on the compound lifts (bench, squat, deadlitft, etc). Nutrition wise, I would do a slight deficit of about 250-500 calories. If you're losing more than 1-2 pounds a week increase your calories slightly. Crash diets do not work. 95% of the people that do crash diets gain all their weight back and more. Eat about your weight in grams in protein, try drinking at least half a gallon of water a day, increase your step count if possible and try ways to lower your stress (sauna, meditation, etc). Good luck, brother. Feel free to reply to this thread or shoot me an email to bryanbaezp098@gmail.com if you have any questions and I'd be glad to help

[sirus22]

I would eat maintenance and up your protein intake. You will gain mass and loose fat simoutansouly like a recomp.

[TalenD2014]

I mean, you wouldn't look bad if you cut, assuming you maintain most of your muscle. If you're willing to take the long road, you can always recomp, which it seems like a good solution considering where you are now.

Thank you, yea I think I'm going to focus on cutting and getting enough protein to maintain my muscle

[TalenD2014]

You have rounded shoulders and a little bit of a pelvic tilt going on. I assume you have a sedentary job. Let me know if my assumption is correct. With that in mind, it's a little harder to lean out when we're basically sitting all day. We need to increase activity or lower calories more than usual in order to hit a calorie deficit. Stress obviously doesn't help, which not only increases cortisol (which makes it harder to burn fat and build muscle), but may aso affect us negatively psychologically (like binge eating due to stress or skipping workouts for example). Cathlistenics/ gymnastics are ok for muscle growth, but in terms of hyperthrophy nothing compares to lifting weights. I would try adding 2-3 days of weight lifting. Focus on getting stronger on the compound lifts (bench, squat, deadlitft, etc). Nutrition wise, I would do a slight deficit of about 250-500 calories. If you're losing more than 1-2 pounds a week increase your calories slightly. Crash diets do not work. 95% of the people that do crash diets gain all their weight back and more. Eat about your weight in grams in protein, try drinking at least half a gallon of water a day, increase your step count if possible and try ways to lower your stress (sauna, meditation, etc). Good luck, brother. Feel free to reply to this thread or shoot me an email to bryanbaezp098@gmail.com if you have any questions and I'd be glad to help

Yes I do have rounded shoulders which is driving me crazy. I have recently been trying to pay more attention to my posture lately so that I'm not slouching. My job isn't that sedentary. However it does have it's days where I'm sitting in the office if were rained out. This week I'm focusing on my macros and activity levels, and will likely implement some running into my routine. I do need to be better with my stress management and will also focus on that this week. I also agree with adding weight lifting to my routine because I know if I add just a couple of days I will probably add on muscle fast. That's a good idea on the calories, I probably would have gone a little extreme. Thank you for the thoughtful reply, I appreciate it!

[TalenD2014]

I would eat maintenance and up your protein intake. You will gain mass and loose fat simoutansouly like a recomp.

I think that's a good idea. I'm going to try and reduce my calories by 200 and then when I implement weight training, I'll add that back on to reach my maintenance

[gbullock32]

Yes I do have rounded shoulders which is driving me crazy. I have recently been trying to pay more attention to my posture lately so that I'm not slouching. My job isn't that sedentary. However it does have it's days where I'm sitting in the office if were rained out. This week I'm focusing on my macros and activity levels, and will likely implement some running into my routine. I do need to be better with my stress management and will also focus on that this week. I also agree with adding weight lifting to my routine because I know if I add just a couple of days I will probably add on muscle fast. That's a good idea on the calories, I probably would have gone a little extreme. Thank you for the thoughtful reply, I appreciate it!

Posture and hit rear delts too, a lot of people neglect them; bent over raises or face pulls, rows, ect to build up the back of those shoulders.