Strong as bull or ripped to shreds

[Todd]

Originally Posted by Firehawk

I'm always going to struggle with my weight, whether i'm at 10% (struggle more there) or at 35%.

The only reason I've posted the things I have here is because of statements like this by you Firehawk. First off, this is a very negative thing to believe, you are dead-ending yourself before you get started with that kind of thinking.

Secondly, what you stated above is not true, because the struggle you have now would be nothing like it is once you're down to 10% body fat...your metabolism will be completely different at that point, and maintaining a lean body will be that much easier...A LOT easier. But yes, of course, just like anyone else, if you were to go back eating calories way above and beyond what your body requires, then yes, you'd gain back the fat....JUST LIKE ANYONE would!

I am not saying all this to argue with you or try to piss you off, I am simply stating this to help you out and make you realize a few things. I am a firm believe in "what your mind thinks, your body follows."

[Firehawk]

But, skinny bastards like you used to be Todd, could eat 5000 calories and not gain a damn ounce. But if i eat 3000 and don't do anything, i put on half a pound. How's that fair? IT"S NOT.

I have every intention of getting to 10% one day but i'm being realistic here, that it will be a tough battle, tougher for me than for others. Just like the opposite, putting on muscle is easier for me than for others. Exact same thing.

I once had a conversation with a gentleman about fitness and health and the subject of smoking (cigarettes) came up. He said that he struggled for years trying to quit smoking but it wasn't until he identified himself as a "nonsmoker" (rather than someone who was trying to quit smoking) did he achieve the success that he so desperately wanted.

I think the same is true for people who have alot of emotional baggage from carrying around excess pounds for a good portion of their life. They identify themselves as a fat person. Until they change their identity from a fat person who gains weight easily to a lean & fit person who trains hard to stay that way, they'll always be a fat person.

And if that's where they want to be then so be it.

[Todd]

Originally Posted by Firehawk

But, skinny bastards like you used to be Todd, could eat 5000 calories and not gain a damn ounce. But if i eat 3000 and don't do anything, i put on half a pound. How's that fair? IT"S NOT.

Well, I could sit here and bitch to you and everyone else here about how it is not fair that I have to eat upwards of 5,000 calories just to gain a bit of muscle. You think that I have it easier than you? NO! I have it just as hard, but for other reasons. You can't lose the fat easily, well....I can't gain muscle that easily.

You are right, I can basically eat whatever I want and not gain, but is that a good thing, considering what my goals are? Uh not really...cuz you know what happens when I miss a meal or two out of just one day? My fast metabolism takes over and basically begins feeding on my muscles right then and there! Yah, that is right...if I miss even one meal...(that is going 4 hours without eating) for whatever reasons, I will get a huge headache, feel like my body is shutting down and I will immediately be taken out of a positive growth state...and at this time, I can literally tell that my body has gone after my muscles for fuel. So yah, I have to make sure I eat on time, every 2 hours, and I have to eat enough of the right things in order to just maintain what I have and gain a bit more. Same goes if I do not eat enough, because again my body will become catabolic.

It goes both ways dude, so don't think you are the only one who has it unfairly, cuz you aren't. I could sit here and bitch about it too...but you know what? It just means that I have to eat like a god damn horse every two hours, in order to keep my system in an anabolic mode so I can gain a pound or two here and there over time.

I have had to work my ass off to get to where I am now...and I have to do so each and every day for the reasons I just mentioned above. You think I have it easy don't you? You think that because I have the body I do....but that is not the case, I have to work extremely hard...but you know what? I am willing to do what it takes to reach my goals and make it as easy as possible on myself day in and day out.

So you too Firehawk, have to do whatever it is going to take in order for you to reach your goals. And you have to do this day-in and day-out. Ask yourself....have you been doing whatever it takes to reach your goals day-in and day-out for a several months on end? Have you been super strict and serious with your diet for losing fat? Or have you been cheating here and there? Have you been doing your cardio and weights day in and day out religiously all while keeping to a super strict diet aimed at gradually lowering your overall calories over the course of several months? Have you been doing everything humanly possible to make sure that the fat is dropping off your body at a slow but steady rate of 1-2 pounds per week over the course of the last several months? Be honest with yourself, because if you haven't done everything humanly possible, then you only have YOURSELF to blame...not the fact that your body type is this or that, or anything else. It comes down to YOU!

[.V.]

Originally Posted by Firehawk

I have every intention of getting to 10% one day but i'm being realistic here, that it will be a tough battle...

But agian - you CAN do it. Just don't set yourself up for failure by being "realistic". Realisticly, you can do it. You will have to work hard, as you've already done. But considering what you've done so far - you have the work ethic to stick to it and do it.

I'm just afraid you are actually going to get yourself discouraged by worrying about how hard it is going to be. The fact doesn't change that as you build more muscle and burn more fat it WILL get easier. That faster metabolism that you build will make it easier. You'll see when you get there.

Hey rangers97,

Do you feel like uninvited company came over to your house, walked in and began a long-winded argument about fat. Kind of like those politics or religion debates at a party that don't seem to end.

[Todd]

Originally Posted by pierini

Hey rangers97,

Do you feel like uninvited company came over to your house, walked in and began a long-winded argument about fat. Kind of like those politics or religion debates at a party that don't seem to end.

Hey man, don't let us stop you from carrying on your own conversation...there is a such thing as a conversation within a conversation...or multiple conversations going on at once.

I'm pretty much done anyhow.

I was just joking, enjoying every bit of what everyone contributed.

[Todd]

oh, ok cool!

[Firehawk]

Well what the hell Todd? I thought you just said you can change your body type. I guess you can't really change ANYTHING.

You still gotta eat like a cow to maintain or grow. I'd have figured by now your body would learn that you'll be supplying it with food...guess not.

I will still have to eat next to nothing to drop fat when i'm really lean, actually to get any leaner ill have to drop the calories even further most likely

. For the umpteenth time i've said it over and over already in this thread, the person that has to eat like a cow to put anything on has it no worse than the person that has to eat next to nothin to lose fat.

Sure it's difficult for YOu todd, extremely difficult. You are achieving or have achieved where you want to be. I just want to REHASH this again, because it seems like nobody is getting it: All I'm saying is it's extremely difficult for certain people to achieve certain goals. You want to put 50 lbs of muscle on but your metabolism is raging, then you gotta work extremely hard at it. You wanna lose 50 lbs of fat but your metabolism is dead on a stick, you gotta work extremely hard at it. All i've been saying here is that it's easier for some, while more difficult for others. Just like it's going to be easier for me to put muscle on than someone scrawny, so will it be easier for someone scrawny to stay shredded or close to it.

I don't really see why people keep trying to say that I am discouraging myself or anything at all. I guess i have to remind myself I'm on a bodybuilding forum. Do i wanna be 10% one day? Definitely. Do i wanna stay under 10%? No. I have no reason to be. I do wanna stay under 20% though. That's my preference and that's where i need to be for my powerlifting goals and to be healthy. That's me PERSONALLY. All of what I've been saying has been more in a general sense, but that i've been using myself as an example and others I know.

[Firehawk]

I'll even go a step further and agree that you can change your metabolism TO A POINT, or rather, temporarily. But, for those with a naturally SLOW metabolism, it's never really fixed permanently. If you work yourself to the point you get your metagbolism up and burning fat more and more, but hten one day stop, you're gonna revert right back to a slow metabolism and things will start snowballing against you. There's no sudden complete change in the body's natural way. That's wishful thinking.

Todd, if you were to stop eating, or eat 3000 a day rather than 5000 or whatever it took for you to grow or maintain, you're gonna start losing mass. Your body didnt' one day reprogram itself and suddenly your metabolism will begin to slow. It's your body's natural way of things to have a fast metabolism. You cant permanantly change that. That's what i'm trying to get at.

[nitromoose]

Ripped to shreds I have fear of bodyfat lol.
I just prefer looking slender really, it wouldn't suit me to be big even if I did manage it.

[luke.w]

Originally Posted by pierini

I once had a conversation with a gentleman about fitness and health and the subject of smoking (cigarettes) came up. He said that he struggled for years trying to quit smoking but it wasn't until he identified himself as a "nonsmoker" (rather than someone who was trying to quit smoking) did he achieve the success that he so desperately wanted.

I think the same is true for people who have alot of emotional baggage from carrying around excess pounds for a good portion of their life. They identify themselves as a fat person. Until they change their identity from a fat person who gains weight easily to a lean & fit person who trains hard to stay that way, they'll always be a fat person.

And if that's where they want to be then so be it.

great post pierini!!! :
I beleive the same with strength gains!!!

[Todd]

Originally Posted by Firehawk

Well what the hell Todd? I thought you just said you can change your body type. I guess you can't really change ANYTHING.

Yes, I did say that you CAN change one's body type, and one's metabolism. So, I don't know where you are getting your idea that you can't change anything.

You still gotta eat like a cow to maintain or grow. I'd have figured by now your body would learn that you'll be supplying it with food...guess not.

Um, yah I do have to still eat like a cow to grow, because I place such high demands on my body in the first place. And the more muscle mass I put on, the more I have to eat just to maintain and grow more. You have to remember that I chose to keep my metabolism high and running efficiently, because I don't want unwanted fat gain. Now, on the other hand, I could very easily slow my metabolism down, just by eating what I do now and not working out (expending less energy). Like I said before, if I wanted to, I could very easily get to 30% body fat, but that is not what I want.

I will still have to eat next to nothing to drop fat when i'm really lean, actually to get any leaner ill have to drop the calories even further most likely.

Yah, in order to get lean, you will have to gradually drop your overall calorie intake over the course of a lengthy time period ....but that is not all you will have to do. You will also have to expend more energy than what you consume via more frequent cardio bouts, more intense lifting, etc, and other activity. You should also eat more often throughout the day to increase your metabolism...this in itself burns more calories and makes your system more efficient.

For the umpteenth time i've said it over and over already in this thread, the person that has to eat like a cow to put anything on has it no worse than the person that has to eat next to nothin to lose fat.

Well, yes, you are right about the above statement, and that is obvious....but from the way you talk about it all...you make it seem like it is going to be near impossible for you to reach 10% body fat, and really it is not. It is very possible for you and anyone else on this forum to get down to that low of body fat%. Yes, it will be hard, but what in life isn't hard? You think it was easy for me to go from 11% body fat to 4-5% for my comp? Hell no! I went to hell and back for 9 weeks to achieve that. And it will be hell for you... you will have to put forth a lot of discipline, a lot of effort, and consistency while making sacrifices and being strict with yourself. That is what it is going to take...and if you don't do it, then you will see crappy results.

I just want to REHASH this again, because it seems like nobody is getting it: All I'm saying is it's extremely difficult for certain people to achieve certain goals. You want to put 50 lbs of muscle on but your metabolism is raging, then you gotta work extremely hard at it. You wanna lose 50 lbs of fat but your metabolism is dead on a stick, you gotta work extremely hard at it. All i've been saying here is that it's easier for some, while more difficult for others. Just like it's going to be easier for me to put muscle on than someone scrawny, so will it be easier for someone scrawny to stay shredded or close to it.

Well, I get it...and yes, I agree that is more difficult for some compared to others to get to the same point, but so what? That is obvious...just like some are born with more strength naturally...like Jay Cutler who benched 315 on his first time ever walking into a gym. For others it is naturally going to be more difficult to ever get to that point....same thing, but that is all very obvious. The main point is, just because it is more difficult, does not mean that it is not possible to achieve those goals in a reasonable amount of time.

You do what you have to in order to get to where you want to be. And how long it takes you to get there will depend on YOU and your positive actions towards doing everything humanly possible to reach your goals, if you really are that serious about them to begin with.

[Firehawk]

Way i undestand it, you were a scrawny littel guy before. Soudns to me like you didn't have a choice on the high metablism unless you just never ate anything.

Looks to me like for you to become 30% bf you'd have to eat 6-7000 calories a day if your requirement is 5000 right now, and then all you'd have to do to lose your fat is cut back down to 5000 or even 4000. Doesn't seem like you've changed anything about your body type. You're still an ectomorph.

Show me studies done that prove you can change your body type. I'd like to see them.