Should I bulk or cut?

[Chunnnky]

IMO don't waste your gains by cutting down to a ridiculously low bf%, which at your (our) age can also be detrimental to growth particularly of the organs and testicles. Keep making gains for a while and think about competing when you have a bigger base and realize the full consequences of getting into contest shape.

the problem is i need to cut for the competition. I am not standing on stage like a pile of lard

[Khazima]

the problem is i need to cut for the competition. I am not standing on stage like a pile of lard

The whole point of the post is to say don't do the show lmao, of course you need to cut to compete, and with competing comes the consequences especially at a young age.

If you really want to cut i'd say cut to 12ish % then bulk back up and make gains until your older. Cutting to really low bodyfats at any age has negative affects on your hormones and organs as well as other things like mood/sex drive, at a younger age this is magnified and now you're starving yourself (that's what cutting is, starving you body to force it to lose fat) including starving your organs and testicles and potentially hindering their growth/development.

[Back In Black]

The whole point of the post is to say don't do the show lmao, of course you need to cut to compete, and with competing comes the consequences especially at a young age.

If you really want to cut i'd say cut to 12ish % then bulk back up and make gains until your older. Cutting to really low bodyfats at any age has negative affects on your hormones and organs as well as other things like mood/sex drive, at a younger age this is magnified and now you're starving yourself (that's what cutting is, starving you body to force it to lose fat) including starving your organs and testicles and potentially hindering their growth/development.

With all due respect he is talking about one show. And doing it naturally. And doing physique so he doesn't need to much below 10%. Even if he gets to 8% he will be there for a matter of weeks.

[Khazima]

With all due respect he is talking about one show. And doing it naturally. And doing physique so he doesn't need to much below 10%. Even if he gets to 8% he will be there for a matter of weeks.

That's true, but why would you want to do only one show when your physique is unlikely to place, + the risks of such a drastic cut so young. No offence OP but that's how i feel.

I'm 19 (during my last cut, 20 now) and decided to cut my weight loss goals short because of the extended length of the cut, i didn't want to go past 10 weeks + furthering my deficit. I felt quite significant changes in mood and sex drive, pretty clear indicators my hormones weren't functioning the way they intended, then when i got back into a surplus i've been breaking out with acne since.

But BIB is right i may have an over-biased view on the negative effects of competing especially for physique, do what you will with your base of knowledge and the sound advice you've been given in the thread.

[gbrice75]

that's what cutting is, starving you body to force it to lose fat) including starving your organs and testicles and potentially hindering their growth/development.

Woah - I wouldn't go that far. Nobody should be starving themselves. One can safely and effectively reduce bodyfat without any repercussions you mention. Even very low bodyfat levels ( < 5%) can be achieved safely - albeit unsustainable for very long. We don't need a board of fatties petrified to cut because they read your post!

[Khazima]

Woah - I wouldn't go that far. Nobody should be starving themselves. One can safely and effectively reduce bodyfat without any repercussions you mention. Even very low bodyfat levels ( < 5%) can be achieved safely - albeit unsustainable for very long. We don't need a board of fatties petrified to cut because they read your post!

Haha well obesity has the same consequences on your internals as cutting to extremely low BF%, so i hope people at 15% wanting to get to 5% read it and reconsider.

The side effects of being in a deficit are not so prevalent with fully developed individuals, being a teen your entire body is still growing (including organs and testicles) so not giving them sufficient nutrients can be harmful. That's why it's advised for teens to either recomp or be in a (small) surplus unless they're already obese, in which case being obese is more harmful than being in a moderate deficit.