I want to stay at my current weight, but add muscle

proteuspal

Hi Guys
I am 6 ft male, 13 stone (182 pounds), with a 19% body fat. I want to remain at 13 stone as being any heavier is just no use to me. I want to get my BF down to a number where i will have a six pack, i guess about under 11%ish?
I know i need to build the muscle first though so i assume i need to gain more weight as muscle and then attempt to cut the fat after? Also, what kind of time frame am i looking at for basically converting 10% of my total weight from fat to muscle? i.e. losing 18 pounds of fat and building 18 pounds of muscle?

Your help is greatly appreciated!

cardio,shoot me

Well time could vary alot depending on where you want to build the muscle and what equipment you have access to, why dont you want to get heavier?

proteuspal

well i am reluctant to get too heavy as i play GAA and do tae kwon do. I do however play rugby in winter, but play in the backs so being massive isnt something i need. but then again i prob wouldnt mind going to 13.5 stone.
I have just moved to a town with a really good gym, all free and machine weights. I know u gotta eat enough to allow you to build muscle. How long do you reckon on average it would take to do an 18 pound turnaround? I know ppl vary but i could feasibly attend gym up to 5 days a week.

cardio,shoot me

well if you have access to a squat rack id say do Starting strength and milk. You could feasibly notice a Huge difference in 2-3 months.

proteuspal

yes i agree, i believe i am going to have to focus as much as possible on the big muscle groups, legs and back. If i was to really hit the legs and do some good squat work, this will surely increase my weight in pounds quite noticably providing i get my basics right?
Ok, so if its possible to make noticable difference in 2-3 months, is it possible to make an 18 pound turnaround in 6-12 months?

cardio,shoot me

Yes. easily possible imo, id say youd be able to do it closer to 6m than 12 aswell. Nice to know your willing to squat most people arent, and doing squats and deadlifts will help you grow big,not to mention they are quite draining exercises, burn alot of calories etc.

proteuspal

yes I defo would be willing to squat. have tried it out with friends but never done them seriously or consistently. so have i worked it out correctly-i weigh 182 pounds, 19% BF, thus if i lose 10% of my total body weight as fat, that will bring me to 9% body fat and surely a six pack will be visible?
sorry for all the questions!

cardio,shoot me

the thing about bf is everyones different, some store fat on their abs more than others, altho at around 9% you should see some definition

proteuspal

one last question-i am going to work hard to get to this goal, but i believe creatine may help me. Its just there are so many different types. any tips on which one is best? sorry about this question if you dont use it.

proteuspal

proteuspal wrote: »

one last question-i am going to work hard to get to this goal, but i believe creatine may help me. Its just there are so many different types. any tips on which one is best? sorry about this question if you dont use it.

A couple of points.

Re: Creatine, I don't think you need it but if you're going to insist on using it (client gets what client wants etc) then buy the one whose story you like the most because essentially you have monohydrate and ethyl ester and hundreds of brands who try to market in different ways. I'd buy standard monoyhydrate stuff. The lads can tell you where (myprotein.co.uk ?) as I haven't used it in years and don't need it.

Monohydrate has been around for years and years and has proven to be no different than ethyl ester (the newer, so called "faster" absorbed creatine) - well, it is cheaper so I'd go for standard monohydrate, ignore the loading phase and take it on the days you work out. You can take it on off days if you want but i don't see it as being efficient.

Another point to remember is your weight for sports, muscle outweighs fat so control your muscle growth - I can put muscle on easily enough and it is easy to get carried away as your physique improves and improves - just keep an eye on it for sports and get the balance right.

The whole 6 pack being visible thing is largely genetic (as is whether you can see an 8 pack or not) - I can have a 6 pack at below 12%, I think I look my best at 10% bf as that's what my eyes are used to seeing me look like - but it depends from person to person and where the fat deposits are largely stored.

I get away with it at 12% because my love handles although small and not noticable at 12% are where my fat deposits are stored - at 10% I have neither.

Good luck with it.

proteuspal

Cheers for the tips entrepreneur. What ill do is train without it for a set time, then start to introduce it on training days to see if there is any benefit. that way ill know if its worth it. Thanks for the help.
Regards