Gaining Weight but obtaining a six-pack?

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JMcCallum23
JMcCallum23 Posts: 4
edited February 2015 in Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
Hello, I am 18 years of age and I'm 6ft 2in. I currently weight 70kg and am aware I'm currently lower than I want. I workout about 6 days a week every second day being abdominal, my current body fat percentage is '10.7%'. My concern is that I am wanting to put on muscle mass but at the same time work towards a six-pack? Any suggestions on how to do so? should I bulk up first and then cut down? Also my diet I'm currently not sure what to aim for..
Thanks.

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  • JMcCallum23
    JMcCallum23 Posts: 4
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    * I also know the ideal BF% for te visible well defined and is 7% so cutting to that plus adding mass? Easy enough?
  • Trevornumba81
    Trevornumba81 Posts: 1
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    Your best bet would be a slow bulk where you consume 6 to 8 small meals a today with your macronutrients being 50% protein 30% fat and 20% Carbs this will take longer but will produce a leaner more toned you.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
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    Read this

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1161603/so-you-want-a-nice-stomach/p1
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    Trevornumba81 wrote: »
    Your best bet would be a slow bulk where you consume 6 to 8 small meals a today with your macronutrients being 50% protein 30% fat and 20% Carbs this will take longer but will produce a leaner more toned you.

    why would you do 20% carbs on a bulk???

  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    OP - your goals are not really in line with each other. While bulking you are going to put on SOME appreciable fat, it is impossible not do so. That being said you have two options…

    1. Do the traditional bulk/cut cycle
    2. Do a recomp where you eat at maintenance calories and lose some fat and gain some muscle. I am not really too familiar with recoup but my understand is that it can be a slow process, but given that you are 18 you may be able to take advantage of increased testosterone levels at our age and recomp over six months..


    If you go with Option 2 ..then I would suggest eating enough to get into a one pound per week surplus. I recommend one pound because at your age you have the potential for a lot of gains. set macros to 40% carbs/35% protein/30% fats < some recommend grams per pound of body weight and you can go that route too. Get on a structured lifting program where you lift progressively heavier things. Then when you get to your gaol weight cut back down to the body fat % that you want…

    is your current lifting program a homemade one or is it structured program like strong lifts…?
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,220 Member
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    ^Listen to ndj1979.

    I do want to add on that sometimes the road to gaining muscle means adding fat. It doesn't mean you'll add lots of fat, but you may add some. The process to your ultimate goal is going to take a while. That could be a few years of solid effort.

    1. A traditional bulk and cut will take about as long as recomposition, but you'll actually see more visual progress each direction (bulking and cutting) as long as you can adhere to a calorie surplus and a calorie deficit.
    2. Recomposition can feel like spinning your wheels. Most people still prefer this method because it doesn't require adding much if any body fat.

    Either way you do need to pick a solid program. If you are new to lifting or your stats aren't very great for your lifts you should pick a strength based program. If you have been lifting for a while and your lifts are in the intermediate range you could pick a hypertrophy program. At 18 years old I would say you probably should not be creating your own plan. Let the experts with many years of experience do that for you.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    ndj1979 wrote: »
    Trevornumba81 wrote: »
    Your best bet would be a slow bulk where you consume 6 to 8 small meals a today with your macronutrients being 50% protein 30% fat and 20% Carbs this will take longer but will produce a leaner more toned you.

    why would you do 20% carbs on a bulk???

    Why would you do 50% protein and eat 6 - 8 small meals a day for that matter.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    OP. How long have you been lifting for and what does your current routine look like?
  • joepratt503
    joepratt503 Posts: 191 Member
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    Buddy, you are 6ft 2in and weigh less than 160 lbs? Eat more and grind those weights. You should probably see that you can add weight easily on a weekly basis if you are really working. You may be able to add 8-12 lb of lean muscle first year just based on your body but the above is right....its a slow road, you gotta commit.

    Work toward getting a good base in now. There isn't a better time to grow than right now for you I expect. You are motivated, young, and already have getting into the gym down. Be a little patient and besides cutting those abs will be easier later AND you will have some muscle to compliment them.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    Sarauk2sf wrote: »
    ndj1979 wrote: »
    Trevornumba81 wrote: »
    Your best bet would be a slow bulk where you consume 6 to 8 small meals a today with your macronutrients being 50% protein 30% fat and 20% Carbs this will take longer but will produce a leaner more toned you.

    why would you do 20% carbs on a bulk???

    Why would you do 50% protein and eat 6 - 8 small meals a day for that matter.

    i had those two questions two ..but the 20% carb number on a bulk blew my mind so much that I forgot those two …lol
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    If I were in your position OP, I'd just make sure I"m eating and lift...eat...lift...eat...lift. Don't worry about the 6 pack right now...just eat...lift. My guess is you're going to be able to go quite awhile before you would actually need to cut.

    Also, carbs are important to a bulk...so you're going to need more than 20%.
  • jenglish712
    jenglish712 Posts: 497 Member
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    54427662.jpg
  • gio14
    gio14 Posts: 57 Member
    edited March 2015
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    While bulking your going to inevitably add body fat, so forget about seeing your abs for now if your goal is gaining muscle mass. BUT... what u can do in the meantime is work on "sculpting and shaping" your abs.

    Use slow controlled weighted movements to sculpt and shape..dont waste your time crunching away, you'll just be spinning your wheels. Slow weighted movements focus on full contractions and full extensions. Learn to initiate with your abs and incorporate some controlled negative. So when u start cutting there will actually be abs underneath there to show. Good luck!
  • Chieflrg
    Chieflrg Posts: 9,097 Member
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    MrM27 wrote: »
    Trevornumba81 wrote: »
    Your best bet would be a slow bulk where you consume 6 to 8 small meals a today with your macronutrients being 50% protein 30% fat and 20% Carbs this will take longer but will produce a leaner more toned you.

    OP, ignore that guy^^^^
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    If I were in your position OP, I'd just make sure I"m eating and lift...eat...lift...eat...lift. Don't worry about the 6 pack right now...just eat...lift. My guess is you're going to be able to go quite awhile before you would actually need to cut.

    Also, carbs are important to a bulk...so you're going to need more than 20%.

    Agree^^
    +2

  • moya_bleh
    moya_bleh Posts: 1,375 Member
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    Bulk? On 20% carbs? Not enough Kevin Hart memes available for that one!

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