20 year-old aspiring bodybuilder thinks it is time for a coach- advantages of local or online?

[joe d]

Thanks for taking the time to write all of that out. I realize I didn't offer as much information in my earlier post as I thought and thus it probably sounded like I didn't have much of a current plan. Currently I am about a month into cutting and my diet is this:

Meal 1: 40 grams whey protein with 1 tablespoon natural peanut butter
Meal 2: 6 ounces chicken breast with 1/3 cup almonds, cashews, and walnuts
Meal 3: 40 grams whey protein with 1.5 tablespoons natty pb
Meal 4: 8 ounces steak, ground beef, or ground bison
Meal 5: 40 grams whey protein with 1 tablespoon almond butter
Meal 6: 4 whole eggs with 4 whites
Fish oil
Multi
Have 1 big cheat meal every Saturday

Monday/Back
3 sets lat pulldowns 8-12 reps
3 sets bent over rows 4-8 reps
2 sets dumbbell rows 6-8 reps
3 sets machine rows 8-10 reps
2 sets deadlifts 4-10 reps

Tuesday/Shoulders
3 sets press (dumbbell, barbell, occasionally hammer strength) 6-12 reps
2 sets side laterals 10-12
2 sets rear delt movement (I switch this up a lot) 8-12
2 sets front raises 8-10
2 sets barbell shrugs 8-12

Wednesday/Chest
3 sets incline bench press 8-12
2 sets regular bench 8-10
2 sets dips to failure
1 set hammer strength incline press to failure
2 sets cable crossovers 10-15

Thursday/Legs
3 sets leg extensions 8-14 reps
4 sets squats 6-12 reps
2 sets leg press 12 reps
2 sets hamstring curl 12 reps
3 sets leg press calf raise 15 reps
3 sets calf raise machine 15 reps

Friday/Arms
2 sets triceps pushdowns 12
2 sets biceps cablecurl 10-12
2 sets close grip bench 12
2 sets dumbbell hammer curls 8 reps
2 sets dips 12
2 sets overhead extensions 12
3 sets concentration curls 12
4 sets forearm curls 15

Cardio is currently being done 1 hour 5 days a week after lifting. Before this I was bulking at around 3200 calories a day and I got too fat. Not obese but I was holding a ton of water, had a distended but hard gut, etc. Back then I trained high volume sometimes up to 40 sets. I have since realized that was a bad idea.

Anyway man, thanks for replying to my posts. I always like to be 2 steps ahead of what I am currently doing and have just been wondering what I will do after I finish cutting and just where my journey is going to go in general. I know I need to ultimately add a lot of weight but it can't be fat and right now I think I need to get leaner still. I will certainly save your diet/training plan and perhaps I will give it a try when I want to gain size again. If you have any comments on my current plan, feel free to comment.

Thanks again.

your current plan is cutting. are you preserving your muscle and losing fat?

[joe d]

also the plan i suggested is not recommended as something to try to see if it works its more of a basic start point to build from. gaining mass comes through constant change but in order to know how to make the change you have to know what is happening and why. the start is just a pretty solid base that will definitely change as you go.

[cmeis90]

your current plan is cutting. are you preserving your muscle and losing fat?

As far as I can tell, I am still progressing on both of those things.

[cmeis90]

also the plan i suggested is not recommended as something to try to see if it works its more of a basic start point to build from. gaining mass comes through constant change but in order to know how to make the change you have to know what is happening and why. the start is just a pretty solid base that will definitely change as you go.

Yeah that's true. I kind of figured that and realized I may have came across as more of a novice with lifting because of the lack of info I gave. I know everything in my head but nobody can read minds and sometimes I forget to write it all out lol. Always want to keep things relatively short so you don't have to read a lot but then you risk leaving out important info.

I really appreciate your understanding and replying to all my posts. I think maybe I know more than I think I do and get caught up in doubting myself. Often in the quest to educate myself more on all things bodybuilding I just get more confused. High carb, low carb, need to eat this many calories per pound, etc. Sometimes you just have to figure out what works for you and if it does, who cares what some study says. I guess that's one of the reasons I was thinking about a trainer. Someone who would essentially give me the thumbs up on what I was doing. But then what's the point of paying him lol.

[joe d]

As far as I can tell, I am still progressing on both of those things.

then i wouldnt change anything until you are ready to change the focus to building while staying lean, or progress stops and you havent lost enough fat yet.

[joe d]

Yeah that's true. I kind of figured that and realized I may have came across as more of a novice with lifting because of the lack of info I gave. I know everything in my head but nobody can read minds and sometimes I forget to write it all out lol. Always want to keep things relatively short so you don't have to read a lot but then you risk leaving out important info.

I really appreciate your understanding and replying to all my posts. I think maybe I know more than I think I do and get caught up in doubting myself. Often in the quest to educate myself more on all things bodybuilding I just get more confused. High carb, low carb, need to eat this many calories per pound, etc. Sometimes you just have to figure out what works for you and if it does, who cares what some study says. I guess that's one of the reasons I was thinking about a trainer. Someone who would essentially give me the thumbs up on what I was doing. But then what's the point of paying him lol.

thats the whole thing. to much confusion. hearing what works for 100 different people means nothing when it comes to you once you pass the initial phase where you can progress with ease by just lifting some weights and buying the shakes the gym sells. learning how to get where you want to be after that comes through self research and patience. you have to study your body with a scientific approach. once you figure yourself out you will be the best trainer/coach in the world for you.

heres an example of something i did along the way. i picked a program and stayed with it throughout. it was moderate lifting with moderate cardio 4 day split. i took my base diet that i was working with similar to what i suggested to you. then for 1 month i doubled the fat then went back down to the start diet for a few days then repeated the process with carbs, then again with protein. i got to see whar differences each made. i then re adjusted my diet and waited a month or so to confirm that the changes where for the better then i started doing my research on fine tuning the sources of each macro. this was more involved and took a bit longer like 2 years lol. then i fine tuned the amounts. then i had my picture perfect diet for being natural. once i started using enhancements i had to constantly make alterations depending on what i was on and how much i was on. that was even more tricky but would have been impossible without the stuff i did in the beginning.

[cmeis90]

thats the whole thing. to much confusion. hearing what works for 100 different people means nothing when it comes to you once you pass the initial phase where you can progress with ease by just lifting some weights and buying the shakes the gym sells. learning how to get where you want to be after that comes through self research and patience. you have to study your body with a scientific approach. once you figure yourself out you will be the best trainer/coach in the world for you.

heres an example of something i did along the way. i picked a program and stayed with it throughout. it was moderate lifting with moderate cardio 4 day split. i took my base diet that i was working with similar to what i suggested to you. then for 1 month i doubled the fat then went back down to the start diet for a few days then repeated the process with carbs, then again with protein. i got to see whar differences each made. i then re adjusted my diet and waited a month or so to confirm that the changes where for the better then i started doing my research on fine tuning the sources of each macro. this was more involved and took a bit longer like 2 years lol. then i fine tuned the amounts. then i had my picture perfect diet for being natural. once i started using enhancements i had to constantly make alterations depending on what i was on and how much i was on. that was even more tricky but would have been impossible without the stuff i did in the beginning.

That is all so true. People couldn't believe Evan was doing his own prep for the Flex show and the Arnold and he didn't do too bad to say the least. He certainly beat a lot of guys using coaches. Of course he had people who taught him along the way, but much of that information is out there and it is just up to me to find and apply it.

Patience is definitely something I have to work on. I look at the pros and then look at myself and what I see, it is a little different lol. Then I realize many of them have been doing this for 20+ years and if I don't make dramatic progress in a few months I think I am doing something wrong. That's just silly.

Your example is a great idea that I have actually thought of doing myself but was always scared to do. "Oh no I might mess up my progress because that would take awhile." 2 years is nothing in the long run when you think about it and if that helps you for the next 20, then it was a darn good investment in actually figuring out exactly what your body needs. When I get lean enough I may just try that out.

I get what you are saying about the pharmaceutical side too. If you don't know your body on how you were born and in its natural state, it is going to be harder to know it on different hormones and enhancements. I do sometimes feel that I need to start now because I know I would certainly make more progress in the short run than I am making now, but guys like you who have been around awhile and seem to know their stuff always tell young guys to wait. I know that you say that for good reasons. Once I know everything pretty well naturally, my progress enhanced will hopefully be so much faster once I do make that step. It all goes back to the patience thing and if I am truly going to be in this for the long haul, then 20 or 23 doesn't make much difference. If I can learn more now, then those future years can be put to better use because I will know more of what I'm doing.

[The Big Sexy]

The good thing is - you have time. Time to figure your body out, and time for someone who is working with you (and knows what they are doing) to figure it out... how to grow it, cut it, etc.

Personally, I like the idea of having someone local - to be able to see you at any given time - to be able to talk to them face to face, etc.

Then, you have guys like PJ Braun who do many online preps for people and give them a lot of time/attention. If you are going to go this route - make sure it is someone like PJ who has time (I'm sure there are others - Scoobs (a FL on RX)) to take a look at your photos, etc.

[joe d]

The good thing is - you have time. Time to figure your body out, and time for someone who is working with you (and knows what they are doing) to figure it out... how to grow it, cut it, etc.

Personally, I like the idea of having someone local - to be able to see you at any given time - to be able to talk to them face to face, etc.

Then, you have guys like PJ Braun who do many online preps for people and give them a lot of time/attention. If you are going to go this route - make sure it is someone like PJ who has time (I'm sure there are others - Scoobs (a FL on RX)) to take a look at your photos, etc.

i agree with this too, in the beginning it can help speed the process quite a bit (if you have someone good which is hard to find). but there comes a point where it comes down to you and your ability to self evaluate and make the changes. it may slow you down in the beginning but once you have it you will have it and have a better understanding of yourself without having relied on the trainer/coach/whatever in the beginning. at least thats my opinion.