Ab excerises during a bulk stage

[JerzeyBoy]

I am in major bulk right now. Plenty of carbs, lots of calories. Even fat.

It's working. It's making me get bigger all the way. My chest is more full as well as my arms and what not. My only problem is the fat going to my stomach as I'm gaining all this weight.

What are some good ab excercises to shed all this fat? I know to get a six pack it's diet first and I know I'll never get one during the bulk up stage but I want to keep it as flat as possible, so when I decide to cut, it won't be hard to see my abs come in soon.

thanks for the feedback

[freak_of_nature_86]

ab exercises alone wont shed the fat, since your bulking u dont need to worry about abs right now, but u should still train them to keep them toned and make them grow, i train them once a week when bulking, 3 exercises are enough

1-incline bench crunches - 3 sets - 25-30 reps
2-hanging leg raises or vertical bench leg raises - 3 sets - 25-30 reps
3-scissor crunches or cable crunches - 3 sets - 25-30 reps
30-45 second breaks.

[Zapp]

Are you doing any cardio? I do 20 min eod while bulking. I work my abs on the days I'm not doing cardio. I just do your basic crunches.

[chest6]

yup, training abs will not help you lose fat. I would still train them while bulking, yes.

[JerzeyBoy]

Are you doing any cardio? I do 20 min eod while bulking. I work my abs on the days I'm not doing cardio. I just do your basic crunches.

Well I weigh about 160lbs now and I'm looking to shoot 185lbs and I know cardio makes you lose weight so no.

It's been making me get tired so easy, like running up the stairs gets me out of breath sometimes, but I don't want to shed no weight right now so what I think I'm gonna start doing is those ab excersises freak of nat suggested (thanks bro) and do 10 mins a week of cardio to keep me sane until it is time to rip up

Good??

[JerzeyBoy]

yup, training abs will not help you lose fat. I would still train them while bulking, yes.

You mean would help right? I'm trying to keep my stomach as flat as possible to hold me until it's cutting season

[Zapp]

Well I weigh about 160lbs now and I'm looking to shoot 185lbs and I know cardio makes you lose weight so no.

It's been making me get tired so easy, like running up the stairs gets me out of breath sometimes, but I don't want to shed no weight right now so what I think I'm gonna start doing is those ab excersises freak of nat suggested (thanks bro) and do 10 mins a week of cardio to keep me sane until it is time to rip up

Good??

You won't lose weight doing cardio every other day if you are bulking right. Trust me, this is what I do and I still put on weight. If you are only gonna do 10 min of cardio a week, you might as well not even do it. You are wasting your time.

[JerzeyBoy]

You won't lose weight doing cardio every other day if you are bulking right. Trust me, this is what I do and I still put on weight. If you are only gonna do 10 min of cardio a week, you might as well not even do it. You are wasting your time.

How about 5 mins of running on the tredmill every other day?

Since it's only 5 mins my guess would be to run fast. How fast should I?

[Zapp]

If you think 20 is too much for you, do at least 15 min eod on the sm. Try it for 2 weeks. If you start losing weight, you can come back and tell me I don't know what I'm talking about.

[sputnik]

As the others have said, ab work won't get rid of fat...the right sort of cardio however, will not impede gains...I do sprint work whether i'm bulking or cutting to good effect..is 5 ins enough? depends on the intensity level and whether u walk between sprints...I never do more than 15mins.

check out http://magazine.mindandmuscle.net and have a lok for Loki's articles on sprinting...I think u will like

[JerzeyBoy]

If you think 20 is too much for you, do at least 15 min eod on the sm. Try it for 2 weeks. If you start losing weight, you can come back and tell me I don't know what I'm talking about.

lol thanks man. How often should I do ab exercises also? Someone just told me if I do them everyday even on a bulk diet and bulk cycle I'll still see a six pack. BS ain't it?

[Zapp]

lol thanks man. How often should I do ab exercises also? Someone just told me if I do them everyday even on a bulk diet and bulk cycle I'll still see a six pack. BS ain't it?

Well, put it this way. I can't see mine on a bulker.(Not a 6 pack). If you put on over 20 - 30 lbs in a matter of months, I don't see how it is feasible. I work my abs eod while bulking.

[chest6]

You mean would help right? I'm trying to keep my stomach as flat as possible to hold me until it's cutting season

Doing abs will not limit fat gain if it is inevitable, other than a calorie expenditure exercise, no.

[Superballer]

Since, cardio during a bulk was mentioned I thought I'd ask it here since it should be a straight forward question:

What do I want my heart rate to be at during my AM cardio on a bulker? And I start the time as soon as my heart is at that rate correct?

[Flexor]

What do I want my heart rate to be at during my AM cardio on a bulker? And I start the time as soon as my heart is at that rate correct?

When on a bulker cardio isn't really necessary, since you want to intake a lot more carbs to help muscle growth. Cardio would only really serve to cut, but this would conflict with your current diet for bulking.

However, if you still want to do cardio on a bulker, you want a heart rate of between 60-70% for fat burning. I wouldn't take it any higher than that % or for periods longer than 45 mins otherwise it would impact on your growth through burning muscle and decreasing nutrient supply to the muscles that you are trying to bulk. 30-45 mins at 65% would be sufficient when on a bulker as it wouldn't take too much of the carbs you intake, and it will burn fat not muscle because of the relatively short time involved.

Yes, start the timer when you hit that rate, it won't take you long to reach 65% your MHR at all.

[sputnik]

The other option during a bulk is to simply do 2 days off sprints, but only doing 70-80% intensity max per sprint....this seems to limit fat accumulation and does not impede muscle growth due to the nature of sprints. I'm currently bulking and doing sprints 1-2x per week at this intensity for about 15mins.

[Superballer]

So, going by 60-70 % of your Max heart rate...

How do you calculate your max heart rate?

[Superballer]

Well, put it this way. I can't see mine on a bulker.(Not a 6 pack). If you put on over 20 - 30 lbs in a matter of months, I don't see how it is feasible. I work my abs eod while bulking.

20 - 30 lbs is incredible.... Zapp - Am I supposed to expect these type of gains if Natty?

And of this 20 - 30 lbs what ends up being lean mass?

It just amazes me that you have to shed 15-20 lbs to get ripped. That's like all the weight I've gained in my 4 months of bulking.

[chest6]

20 - 30 lbs is incredible.... Zapp - Am I supposed to expect these type of gains if Natty? simply put, no

And of this 20 - 30 lbs what ends up being lean mass?

It just amazes me that you have to shed 15-20 lbs to get ripped. That's like all the weight I've gained in my 4 months of bulking.try to keep the amt of lean mass you gain each time, which should be a few lbs every couple of months natty.

Just say you are 220lbs at 12% bf in October. You bulk and gain 12 pounds until February. You are now at 14%. In Oct at 220 (193.6lbs LBM) 12% bf before and now you are 232 (199.52lbs LBM) at 14% bf. Try to shed that extra 200LBM-194LBM=6lbs LBM gain
12lbs total weightgain-6lbs LBM gain=6lbs excess fat to lose to get back at 12% bf

This is ideal, dont expect this much LBM gain in this short of a time, its just an example. Certainly doable, though. It is at times hard to preserve lean mass while cutting naturally. You would have to lose the extra 6lbs of fat to get back to 12%, and continue from there to drop below 12% obviously. This make sense?

[Flexor]

So, going by 60-70 % of your Max heart rate...

How do you calculate your max heart rate?

(220 - Age) x 0.65

[Superballer]

Thanks Flexor... got it written down for my future reference.

Chest - Yeah that makes sense. I've given it some thought and you helped clarify.

I can see what a fine line it is to bulk and then cut back down, tricky to keep all the mass you've gained. Makes me want to just stay in an indefinite bulk (I'm an ectomorph)..... cutting seems SOOOOO much trickier.

[Flexor]

Thanks Flexor... got it written down for my future reference.

Chest - Yeah that makes sense. I've given it some thought and you helped clarify.

I can see what a fine line it is to bulk and then cut back down, tricky to keep all the mass you've gained. Makes me want to just stay in an indefinite bulk (I'm an ectomorph)..... cutting seems SOOOOO much trickier.

Yes I never cut. I've always had 6-8% bodyfat, I can't really put on fat even if I'm eating loads when I'm bulking, I guess because I'm so active with a high metabolism.