Well, First Off I'm 28yo male/ 5'10"and I started hitting the gym and eating better in january. Seven months later I'm down 47lbs from 205 to 158. I originally thought that my goal of 155 would be near what I'd have to hit to get my abs to show but it still seems like I have a ways to go.

Below is a picture after my first 12lbs (193) lost and then again at the 45lbs (160) lost mark.

I am getting to the point where I have to decide to keep cutting and see if my abs show up or start gaining. I've been working out all 7 months and have seen some gains in strength (when I first started I had a hard time lifting the bar haha).

Currently (5x5):

Bench: 95lbs

Squat: 155lbs

Deadlift: 155lbs

OHP: 60lbs

My macros are normally around (grams of carb/fat/protein) 120/68/145. Myfitnesspal has me at 1650 cals for losing weight.

So do you think I can continue cutting and gain strength? Or should I start gaining. The thing I worry about with gaining is I don't want to get fat again! I have the losing weight thing down to a science but gaining is new territory and a bit scarey. Any advice on what you think is best? Gain/cut? different workout than 5x5? etc.

Also, I'm new to the forums but I have been subscribed to SH videos for a long time. Hello, and nice to meet you all!

Thank you for the help!

Hey Zion! First of all, I would like to congratulate you for your AMAZING transformation! You did a great job and you even did better than me as I was only able to lose 40 lbs in a matter of 1 year and you have lost 47 lbs in just 7 months!! WOW!!!

To answer your question, if I were you, I will start focusing on gaining muscles! Dont be afraid to get fat again if you are not planning to eat unhealthy at all! The key is from the food we eat! Eat healthy and gain MUSCLES - Eat unhealthy and gain FAT!! We need muscles to get rid of fat as it helps us burn more calories without doing anything!

You want to gain abs, right? So do I! I'm focusing on my diet right now and been doing ab workout 4 times a week and I follow Scott's advise to do it this way:

Day 1 - Upper and Lower Abs

Day 2 - Obliques/Serratus

Day 3- Rest

Day 4 - Upper and Lower Abs

Day 5 - Obliques/Serratus

Day 6 - Rest

Day 7 - Cardio

I combine it with some circuit training on the 1st week and then the following week I am combining it with other weight training then I repeat the cycle. Here is a sample of my weight training week:

Day 1 - Upper and Lower Abs + Chest and Triceps

Day 2 - Obliques/Serratus + Back and Biceps

Day 3- Leg/Hell Day

Day 4 - Upper and Lower Abs + Shoulders and Triceps

Day 5 - Obliques/Serratus + Back and Biceps

Day 6 - Super CHEST Day!

Day 7 - Cardio

I eat 6 times a day but I am not getting fat! I do it like this:

Breakfast: Oatmeal with Fruits and Skimmed Milk/Protein Shake or coffee

Snack 1 (After 3-4 hours): Raw fruits or Steam Vegetables or Fruit/Veggie Shake

Lunch: Chicken Breast or Tuna or 6 Eggs with only 2 yolks combining it with sweet potato or rice (I prefer brown rice if I have time to prepare)

Snack 2 (After 3-4 hours): Yoghurt/Nuts/Soy Milk or Cofee if I am going to workout in the afternoon

Dinner: Protein Shake whenever I workout plus some fruits and veggie salad or scrambled egg or oatmeal again

Snack 3: Green Tea

Make sure to drink plenty of water all throughout the day. Whenever you feel hungry but its not yet time to eat, drink a glass of water. If still hungry, eat an apple. If still hungry then go ahead and eat your next meal! :)

Hope this helps! #HTH

Ultimately it is up tp you as to whether or not you want to keep cutting or start gaining muscle. One reason why your abs may not be showing is because you may have not built them up enough. A lot of people think that when they train abs they are always supposed to do super high reps, but thats not the case. The abdominal region in my opinion is a large muscle group that can take a lot of punishment so I would recommend that you alternate between doing body weight exercises for high reps one workout and then the next workout do weighted abdominal exercises with machines ect with more resistance and less reps to really help actually build the abdominal muscles so they can start poppin.

Also the 5X5 method of training is primarily designed to help build over all strength, not muscle mass. If you would like to begin building muscle, but still want to increase your strength I would recommend that you start your routines with a 5X5 and then for the rest of the workout just focus on pure hypertrophy. Generally to build muscle the best rep range is between 8-12 reps per exercise. I've found that for me my body responds very well to high volume and a rep range of 10-12 reps and even 15.

The best way for you to start gaining muscle without increasing your body fat is to keep doing your cardio. Your cardio doesnt need to be as intense as if you were cutting, but by keeping moderate cardio into your regimen while focusing on muscle gain it will help you keep your body fat% down a bit. When bulking I like to do cardio 4 times per week for 15-20 minutes on the treadmill at a moderate pace any where between 3.6-4.0 mph. When I'm cutting I do 2 30 minutes sessions of cardio per day 5-6 days per week.

When trying to gain muscle you are definitely going to need to increase your protein and carb intake. I recommend 1.5 grams of protein per lb of body weight per day divided into 6-7 meals. I recommend 1.5-2 grams of carbs per lb of body weight per day as well. One trick I have for your carb intake when trying to build muscle and stay lean is to cut your carb intake in half on rest days as opposed to training days. This will ensure that you wont gain any excess weight on your off day when your most likely inactive all day.

Here is the best training split I have used over the years that has helped me build the most muscle:

Monday: Chest-Triceps-Biceps-abs-15-20 minutes of cardio.

Tuesday: Back-Shoulders-15-20 minutes of cardio.

Wednesday: Legs-abs.

Thursday: Chest-Triceps-Biceps-15-20 minutes of cardio.

Friday: Back-Shoulders-abs.

Saturday: Legs-15-20 minutes of cardio.

I typically do 5-6 exercises with 3-4 sets per exercise for the larger muscle groups like chest, back, and legs. for the smaller muscle groups like biceps, triceps, and shoulders I'll typically do 4-5 exercises and 3-4 sets per exercise. For abs I'll usually do 3-4 exercises per workout and 3-4 sets per exercise. I generally shoot for 10-12 reps per set of each exercise for each muscle group which like I said above seems to be the most ideal rep range for me to build muscle.

So the decision is yours, but I've basically covered everything you need to know to start building muscle while staying lean. Hope this helps.

Thanks to both of you. I don't currentlly do that much cardio. I run about once a week 2-3 miles (well, jog really). I also take two ballet classes a week (which I originally thought would be cardio but it works out to feel more like bodyweight exercising haha). I may have to add more in. I think I should be able to get more protien but 240grams seems like a lot! I will have more calories to work with if I will be trying to gain. What do people normally do for lean bulking? 200cals over TDEE?

I feel like my abs are still covered in fat cause I do cable crunches at least 3x a week (up to 130lbs now) so I would imagine that would help and the ballet is killer on the abs sometimes haha. But I will definitely try some new things!

I was mainly doing 5x5 as a beginner thing. I have the forms down, and oddly I enjoy squats and deadlifts, but I think thats because I'm terrible at bench/OHP lol.

I normally do intermittent fasting (although I did it befoe I knew it was called intermittent fasting haha) because I like to skip lunch at work so i get out earlier and I eat a big meal with maybe some almonds or pistachios for a snack. But I do have yogurt mixed with protien powder which is a good way to get that whey down.

I think I will try to do some gaining. My ultimate goal is to have good aestetics like most others I'm sure. It looks like you are both doing a split. . .I'm not really sure what to do on 'chest day' 'leg day'. I mean I know some exercises like leg day you'd prolly do squats/deads. Chest day bench/rows. I'm not sure what else to do though. Do you guys have a link to any good references for what to do for each day? Thanks again!

Brandon,

You got some great advice from Mervin and Nate to help you get to the next level.

I also have to say job well done. You look great and lost a lot of weight in a relatively short time. Keep it up and you will be lean with abs showing in no time :-)

John