I have some basic questions that the sticky doesn't seem

>>38691609
maybe

can you repeat the question

>>38691653

sure thing man

> If I eat less than 2000kcal and work out, how will that affect muscle gain?

>I go to the gym two or three times a week. I try to always have a rest day after going to the gym.

>s that even necessary? Will it affect muscle gain negatively if I train hard two days in succession?

>Any videos on how to do basic exercises properly?

if you need another repeat just ask away bruh

>>38691660
You won't gain muscle on a deficit. It's as simple as that. That's why people do a bulk/cut cycle.

>>38691660
>>38691666
He might notice some strength gains, but these are mostly or completely due to improving his capacity to recruit neural pathways and will reach a limit fairly quickly. Also known as noob gains.

>>38691666
Wrong but then again im on 650mgs test

>>38691666

so that's definite? that really sucks, but honestly, I figured as much

so really the only effect my working out is going to have is help toning, maybe minor strength gains and slightly up the amount of calories I can eat while losing weight?

man, that blows.

so, are there any solutions? if I overeat on the days that I work out, like 2500kcal, will that change anything? or do I need a constant caloric surplus?

>>38691724
Also, you can't "transform" your fat into muscle. I also thought this when I first started. I've only been lifting for 4 months but since I was a chubby beginner, I'm still burning fat whilst bulking, albeit slowly. Your best course of action would be to take it one step at a time. Either commit to bulking and get noob gains while slowly burning fat or cut for a few months to get lean then bulk up.

>>38691724
And no, it won't negatively affect your gains working out two consecutive days, assuming you're not hitting the same muscle group those two days. My routine is PPLxPPL, so I hit every muscle group twice a week. Getting enough sleep is crucial. Some may shit on me for doing a PPL but it's totally up to you which program to do.

>>38691753

what exactly are noob gains?

im committed to losing weight and as I said I'm mostly doing the exercise to get fit, get better control of my body, have some minor strength gains, not really for the muscle at all.

why do bodybuilders even workout while cutting? mainly to stay in shape?

technically a heavy caloric deficit would be enough, right?

>>38691771

I am not experienced enough yet to just do one muscle group a day, I barely know two or three exercises for each.

Still use the machines a lot, I'm doing all the free weight exercises I know, very few.

As I said I'm worried about proper form, could you help me out there?

For example I don't want to do deadlifts and fuck up my back. I would much rather use these 4 months for cutting and learning how to do all the exercises properly, work all the muscle groups and then start actually bulking when I'm back home (I'm in Korea rn).

>>38691724
As for your form, I use bodybuilding.com for videos on how to perform exercises with proper form. Also YouTube if bb.com wasn't clear enough (which they usually are).

>>38691773
Noob gains are the initial gains you get from working out as a newbie. Your body will build muscle faster when you first start, which is why it's so important to take it seriously. Working out while cutting helps maintain gains. If I stopped working out in order to lower my bodyfat, I would also become catabolic over time and my body would start eating my muscle because muscle is easier to break down than fat.

>>38691812

Ill check out bb.com, thanks my man.

>Your body will build muscle faster when you first start

I wasn't aware of that. I did some working out when I was a lot younger, but quit years ago so I guess I'm in for some noob gains.

> I would also become catabolic over time and my body would start eating my muscle because muscle is easier to break down than fat

I shoulda known that desu, very obvious.

Thanks so much for everything, answers were very concise and clear.

This is a surprisingly good board gotta say.

The sticky will also help with these questions. It was written by someone far more qualified than I.

>>38691843
You're welcome dude. Good luck with everything.

>>38691609
you want fat loss? lifting does not equal fat burning. get a good keto diet and if your desperate for weight loss do Cold thermogenesis or some shit similar that stuff will burn any fat off ya and improve your health.

muscles rest is always the most important give rest to the muscle used don't do the same body part twice in a row.

and form is super fuckin important in everything mobility wod is form central for squats and the like but just make sure you never compromise the spine when doing exercises and try and do everything slow so you dont jerk the fuck out of your joints

>>38691609
Sounds like you may be able to smell your Dick in your shit.

>>38691872

>you want fat loss? lifting does not equal fat burning. get a good keto diet and if your desperate for weight loss do Cold thermogenesis or some shit similar that stuff will burn any fat off ya and improve your health.

thanks for stating the obvious, I don't need advice to lose help, I've lost 85 pounds before.

>muscles rest is always the most important give rest to the muscle used don't do the same body part twice in a row.

thanks man, thats exactly what I meant. I'll keep that in mind

>and form is super fuckin important in everything mobility wod is form central for squats and the like but just make sure you never compromise the spine when doing exercises and try and do everything slow so you dont jerk the fuck out of your joints

I've been trying to do everything slow as fuck while keeping amount of reps low

the faster I do the exercise the easier, so I figured slow=harder=the right way

>>38691877

how does that even make sense?

>>38691953
btw if health is the reason you train id like to add that you need to take your sleep patterns seriously for muscle growth, recovery and overall health example being that in order to get you natural human growth hormone hit for the above purposes in the night you need to have a proper melatonin release and blue light from things like phones and computers interfere with that melatonin release therefore messing up HGH and therefore your recovery. also you only need like 7-8 hours. now i know you didnt ask but i personally think its something people ignore and don't understand at all.

Some tips OP
>a full body starter routine is best for someone not going straight for aesthetics (do starting strength or lifts as opposed to PPL, especially starting from fat)
>youtube videos and >>38691812 are your friend when looking at form
>don't be afraid to use a mirror or tape yourself doing exercises to ensure form, maybe can post a video in a thread for critique
>lift while maintaining your amount of kcals at first, don't bulk or cut
>once you can't put no more weight on the bar do a slight bulk at 300kcals, should allow fat loss still
This is the slow way but the best way (imo) for someone coming from being fat, a large bulk is just going to hurt the body.
Best to allow the most fat loss possible, if you are intent on "cutting" for 4months in Korea I recommend doing only a slight cut (500kcals) while also lifting and doing light cardio on off days.
You will be stronger at the end of those 4 months, have lost 16 pounds through diet alone, not including exercise, and the weight loss is slow enough to hopefully ward off stretched skin and marks.

Good luck m8.

>>38692273
Also would have helped if you told us your height and weight, I would recommend this to anyone in the 200+ range but if you are over 300 pounds I would honestly recommend a 1000kcal cut or more if you just care about health.
Everything else still applies, whether cutting or bulking lift and do cardio.

>>38692063

that is actually hugely helpful, thanks so much man

i go to bed between 2am and 5am usually and often dont sleep more than 5 or 6 hours. i need to get that in check!

>>38692273

>a full body starter routine is best for someone not going straight for aesthetics (do starting strength or lifts as opposed to PPL, especially starting from fat)

thats what i want to do, yes

>don't be afraid to use a mirror or tape yourself doing exercises to ensure form, maybe can post a video in a thread for critique

actually have a mirror here, ill do that. esp for squats and deadlifts.

>once you can't put no more weight on the bar do a slight bulk at 300kcals, should allow fat loss still

you mean 300kcal deficit correct?

aside from doing pushups/plank/stretching twice a day I will also try doing some cardio as suggested.

I should do that anyway, rly helps with my asthma

thanks vmuch

>>38691660
if you're a total beginner you will gain noticable strenght for the first 3-6 months even while eating at a deficit commonly referred to as newbie gains. after that it will seem like your progress stalls but really you just have to adjust your mindset. if your lifts aren't going down while you're still losing weight that means you're doing great. because you're making sure all the weight you're losing is fat. working out while on a cut is all about maintaining muscle mass and it's very important. just because you're not putting more weight on the bar doesn't mean you're wasting your time. also remember to eat enough protein.
>I go to the gym two or three times a week. I try to always have a rest day after going to the gym.
>s that even necessary? Will it affect muscle gain negatively if I train hard two days in succession?
training the same muscle(s) two days in a row is not recommended. for a beginner it's totally fine taking a rest day after each time at the gym but if you feel like you can up your schedule there's nothing wrong with it. just vary it around so you don't do the same exercises or target the same muscles on successive days and you should be fine.
>Any videos on how to do basic exercises properly?
it's literally as easy as going on youtube and typing in the name of an exercise. the first ten videos will be 2-5 minute videos demonstrating proper form.

>>38691689
newbie gains aren't just "neural pathways". it's very possible to gain muscle mass on a cut if you've neglected your muscles totally or if you're heavily overweight or obese. calorie deficit doesn't entirely stop muscles from growing, just heavily limiting it. for an experienced lifter it will effectively mean no growth at all.

>>38692322
them sleep times are pretty bad bro. your brain synchronizes its internal circadian biology to the light cycles in healthy people meaning that by sundown your body is preparing to do everything and usually HGH is released about midnight on that scale. you can tell if you got your HGH because you get morning wood but you can get the hgh and very little actual repair if your cycles be fucked.

if its a night shift thats messing up your sleep times id understand but if its just the chronic insomnia or existential crisis (that most of us suffer from) id advise you sup in some melatonin before bed or some sleep supplement.

otherwise i can say that one method of re-syncing sleep cycles is to stay awake through the night and then spend an hour or so outside in direct sunlight as the sun rises the body sense the sunlight and uses it to try and re-sync to the light cycles then stay awake and try to crash around 8sh that night. if you do this a couple times like over a weekend or something you can notice a difference.

oh and 5-8 be good hours of sleep anything over is bad

>>38692422
>oh and 5-8 be good hours of sleep anything over is bad
bullshit. it's personal but 8 hours should be the minimum if you're trying to build or maintain muscle. anything over 8 hours is not "bad".

>>38692322
OP download f.lux if you're having trouble falling to sleep after sitting on a computer all evening. it takes a while (like a week) to get used to but it's really great. it makes it so that you get that natural tired feeling after sunset because you're not staring at a bring blue light source. IMO it feels comparable to reading a book under a small desk lamp.

also keep in mind that just because you can't gain much muscle on a cut after the initial burst you will continually feel stronger. maintaining your muscle mass while lowering your overall body weight will make it so that body weight exercises and just everyday movement feels lighter and easier.

>>38692301

I am below 200lbs, smth like 180 to 185, idk about conversion

I am 6'0", 184 or something centimenter

I don't count calories because I love food and cooking more than anything, but my goal was smth between a 1000 and 500kcal deficit every day

>>38692437
it is a simplification and I agree its personal as in its a habitual thing but to get the absolute best from your sleep you don't need to be asleep for more than 8 hours unless you've got some great physical or mental trauma to deal with.

if you go to bed at like 8pm then by 4am or so you have released HGH repaired the damaged muscles and burnt fat for the metabolic changes of tomorrow after all that it’s a slow rise in cortisol over a few hours to wake you up.

this is where habit comes into it since your body is trying to wake you up by releasing cortisol but your habitually used to staying asleep you wake feeling less aware then you should because your also dehydrated and have been for a while since cortisol releases water back in to the body and you've been sitting there asleep when your body wanted its morning drink.

>>38692422

>if its a night shift thats messing up your sleep times id understand but if its just the chronic insomnia or existential crisis (that most of us suffer from) id advise you sup in some melatonin before bed or some sleep supplement.

its voluntary my friend. I enjoy living like this to be honest.

>otherwise i can say that one method of re-syncing sleep cycles is to stay awake through the night and then spend an hour or so outside in direct sunlight as the sun rises the body sense the sunlight and uses it to try and re-sync to the light cycles then stay awake and try to crash around 8sh that night. if you do this a couple times like over a weekend or something you can notice a difference.
>oh and 5-8 be good hours of sleep anything over is bad

i'm pmuch aware of this, matter of fact I'm doing it absolutely entirely wrong. on the weekends I sleep for 10+ hours which in itself is unhealthy, combined with only 5-6 hours during the week makes it even worse

for some godforsaken reason I'm very healthy and feel pretty great most of the time. my parents have been living like this for close to 40 years, no idea how they're not zombies yet.

maybe the body adapts? who knows

>>38692437

it's only bad in that it often makes you MORE sleepy. if I sleep 10+ hours I can barely get out of bed. I can't imagine it being bad for exercise in any way.

>>38692504

I have no trouble falling asleep whatsoever actually.

I am using f.lux already, it's great.

>so that body weight exercises and just everyday movement feels lighter and easier.

yes, that is exactly what I am striving for.


thanks everyone ITT, you guys are extremely helpful

>>38692588
>you don't need to be asleep for more than 8 hours
this is true. but if you go to bed without an alarm set and happen to sleep 9 hours you're not hurting your body. after 8 hours it doesn't benefit anymore but saying it's "bad" implies harm is being done

>>38692560
>I don't count calories because I love food and cooking more than anything
I love food and cooking too, don't let that be an excuse. If anything it's a fun challenge making tasty dishes that have good macros. Don't fall for the "food is fuel" meme, with proper techniques and knowledge about seasoning it's absolutely possible to eat tasty and healthy at the same time. I eat nothing but home cooked meals 6-7 days a week and counting calories hasn't hurt my cooking hobby. In fact I'd argue it's very benefitial that I already knew how to cook since preparing everything yourself is the best way to know exactly what you're eating. At least where I live restaurants and such don't typically show the nutritional info unless they're McD or something.

>>38692826

hmmh, you have a very good point I suppose

I write down everything I eat every day ever since I started working out. if you want I can post it-

On my journey of losing 80+ pounds I think I learnt how to count calories, I don't think I have to actually count them anymore, but then again the mind is pretty good at tricking itself innit?

>>38693013
I typically just round to the nearest 50 or 100 (always round up) so it doesn't really require much effort. I don't keep a log or anything just pay attention to form a daily estimate.