Serious questions...

[VSUdude]

Ok guys, if this gets little long I apologize now - but I have been wanting to ask someone these questions for a couple of years but haven't found anyone who would talk HONESTLY about it until now. So, here goes...

Question 1
I've been lifting for almost 4 years now. Before I started lifting I was badly out of shape - a regular rolly-polly. I started lifting my senior year and got addicted. Been going ever since without any breaks of more than a week. I know a LOT about nutrition and supps and I research different workouts all the time.

But even with all of my knowledge and hard work, I just can't seem to get the size or strength that I want without adding too much bodyfat. I can do a cut phase easilly and drop down to 13% bodyfat but all of my mass seems to go right with it. I can get my body parts to the right sizes but my waist gets bigger along with everything else when I try to bulk so I usually have to stop bulking before I get too fat but then I never get my arms/chest/legs to the size I want.

Also, just for more info, I am 6'5 and currently weigh in at about 255lbs. I'm 21 and I'm trying to bulk again right now. I eat pretty clean and take in plenty of carbs/protein and drink about a gallon of water a day. I've never taken juice of any kind - I've only used protein, creatine, glutamine, and ephedra.

So here's what I'm wondering: Is juice the only way to get some size without a lot of extra bodyfat? And are the gains from juice permanant? (I've heard they are and they're not)

Question 2
Ever since I was a kid, I've had gyno. Nothing terribly major but it bothers me. Even when I cut down to a low bodyfat percentage it doesn't go away although there is a size reduction.

Is there a way to chemically fix this or should I just try to cut down to an even lower bodyfat percentage?

ANY help on with these two questions is GREATLY appreciated!!!

Thanks!

 

[Bruce]

firstly you may need surgery for your gyno. you can try some femara and nolva but i doubt you can get rid of it if youve had it since puberty. if you can get down to 13% then taking gear isn't a horrible idea. i mean i think you should be at 10% minimum to start gear but thats me. diet can always transform you. if i were you i would run a simple var cycle 40-50mg ed for 6-8 weeks. var will curb your appetite and harden you up and make you more vascular if you are at a low bf. do you cardio on an empty stomach and check out makavelli's diet. i gaurantee you if you follow it you will cut up fast

 

[Slyder190]

At 13% BF you should be able to put on size, unless you're currently cuttin calories drastically.

Try Nolva for the gyno for a month or two and see how it goes. How bad is it really?

 

[bigcountry61]

how does ur diet look like. I am 6'5 like u but i am 300 @ 14-15 % bf. How much are u tryin to gain? I was 245lbs @ 18 i am now 22.

 

[VSUdude]

My diet is relatively clean. I take down two muscle milk shakes a day, stick to bread, pasta, oatmeal, and potatoes for carbs, and try to avoid too much fat. I also eat a lot of veggies. I use only extra lean ground beef and cook chicken on george foreman.
I haven't been watching my diet as closely since I stopped cutting, but I'm right around 200g protein, 600-700g carbs, 70-80g fat with a half to a full gallon of water a day.

The gyno isn't very bad, it just bothers me. The bigger my chest gets and the leaner I am it gets better, but still doesn't vanish completely.

 

[black sheep]

What is the Macro Breakdown of your diet when you try to bulk and gain fat?

What is your maintenance calories, and how much do you exceed this by when your bulking?

Do you have Gyno or chest fat? I get chest fat very easily, which stays until I get around 10%

 

[Outtlaw]

My diet is relatively clean. I take down two muscle milk shakes a day, stick to bread, pasta, oatmeal, and potatoes for carbs, and try to avoid too much fat. I also eat a lot of veggies. I use only extra lean ground beef and cook chicken on george foreman.
I haven't been watching my diet as closely since I stopped cutting, but I'm right around 200g protein, 600-700g carbs, 70-80g fat with a half to a full gallon of water a day.

The gyno isn't very bad, it just bothers me. The bigger my chest gets and the leaner I am it gets better, but still doesn't vanish completely.

Maybe your diet isnt as clean as you think it is. It's hard to tell without seeing it posted in full. But I can say that for me, if I was really trying to cut down... bread, pasta, and potatoes would not be part of my diet plan. Especially not the pasta.

 

[SwolK]

first thing that i see is that you need to take in more protein. at 255 pounds only 200g of protein is not enough.

 

[BigCracker]

Maybe your diet isnt as clean as you think it is. It's hard to tell without seeing it posted in full. But I can say that for me, if I was really trying to cut down... bread, pasta, and potatoes would not be part of my diet plan. Especially not the pasta.

I agree. Those starchy carbs literally stick to my ribs. I try to eat just enough carbs to fuel my workouts and daily activities. Then again, I gain weight easily. Some guys I know will lose 5 lbs in a day if that don't eat a shitload of carbs, but they're usually hard gainer types. If you were a fat ass all through high school it's gonna take awhile for your skin to tighten up. My physique didn't really start to mature that way until I was 25 or so and had my diet dialed in a couple yrs. That's when my love handles finally disappeared.

It sounds like you don't have gyno, just a genetic predisposition to storing fat in your chest. Hitting the chest from different angles, especially incline, should give your man boobs a lift. Eliminating them is just a matter of time, but your genetics may prevent your chest from ever looking like you really want it to without some surgical procedure.

As far as losing gains on AAS, you can minimze this with proper PCT-but don't expect to train as hard or look as good when you're off. It's a total mindfuck that a lot of guys can't deal with, so they just stay on year round-which I definitely wouldn't recommend for you at this point.

 

[VSUdude]

Ok...so from everything you guys have said, it seems that maybe I should take a harder look at my diet to control the bodyfat gains while bulking and perhaps do some different chest exercises to change the look of my chest.

This works out well because three weeks ago I started working incline the way I used to work flat bench. I'm starting out doing a 10-8-6-4-2 and sometimes 1 routine with a barbell on incline. After that, I go for 3 sets of 6 on flat bench with barbell and then 3 sets of 6 on decline. I finish chest up with 2-3 sets of DB flies at 12 reps. I use a really wide grip on the barbells since my arms are so long. Does this sound like a good mass-building routine? Am i advanced enough (as far as being able to recover without overtraining) to do two chest days a week and would that be beneficial? Should I incorporate more dumbbells into my chest routine?

I know some of the things I'm talking about stray from questions about gear, but everyone is giving so much helpful input I figured I'd just keep asking questions...lemme know if I need to post these questions in another section of the boards.