Two pictures

[Mattv]

Well, Im 15 and weight about 154. These are some pics I took a few days ago at a friends house. I know lighting helps a bit, but these are the only pics I got. I didn't really flex my tricep in that one pic, sorry.

I want to work on cutting my abs more, any tips would be helpful.

Haha, and I know, I do the weirdest poses...

 

[Chillen]

How tall are you at 154lbs? Just curious. (Im 154 on average)

You have a VERY GOOD base to begin training from. A nice lean base to begin overall training from, on a good clean diet.

 

[Typhon]

The camera angles don't help much, they're a bit 'Myspace' but I get the idea. You're a 'skinny-muscular' teen who wants Brad Pitt abs. Is there any reason for the ab desire? In my opinion yours look fine as they are, if you want them more prominent then you need to cut bodyfat. However I think you could look better by bulking a bit and building muscle all over.

What are your long term goals?

 

[Mattv]

How tall are you at 154lbs? Just curious. (Im 154 on average)

You have a VERY GOOD base to begin training from. A nice lean base to begin overall training from, on a good clean diet.

I'm between 5'8 and 5'9, haven't measured in a while.

Oh, and thanks man. Telling me that, kinda pumps me up and makes me wanna like train reallly hard. I'm really working out hard this summer.

I'll try the diet thing. So all I have to do is eat like fruits and vegetables pretty much right?

BTW: Should I get into the whole cardio excercising deal to help cut off body fat?

 

[Mattv]

The camera angles don't help much, they're a bit 'Myspace' but I get the idea. You're a 'skinny-muscular' teen who wants Brad Pitt abs. Is there any reason for the ab desire? In my opinion yours look fine as they are, if you want them more prominent then you need to cut bodyfat. However I think you could look better by bulking a bit and building muscle all over.

What are your long term goals?

Haha, I didn't even know Brad Pitt had abs. I just want deeper cut abs, kinda like my brother. He doesn't do any ab exercises and he's had abs since he was born, haha.

I just need to work on them because thats really the only thing that isn't "up to standards" in my eyes.

 

[Chillen]

DO some squatting and deadlifts, I suggest a very small caloric surplus to build muscle. You just may be surprised what these two lifts will do for you. I OWE ALOT to the SQUAT. I may have small legs (yet strong as hell), but this lift does "THINGS" to the body and has many approximate benefits. If you do them right, they OUGHT to make you BREATH harder than normal.

Doing abs until the sun goes down, wont bring the area out anymore, its low body fat--acccompanying a clean diet and overall weight training, that will do the trick MORE than the ab exercises---and more importantly, IF you have the genetics to have them visually exposed. Not everyones torso is genetically made the same (logically), its close of course, but some seem to have flat and thin while others big and thick. THere are a few articles on whether the ABS grow the same as other muscles in response to progressive WEIGHT TRAINING them specifically---I wont debate that. What I will say though, is once my fat started to come off, my abs were already there, and I have and still do weighted ab exercises; however, they have NOT grown (especially if you look at the earliest pic of me). THey have gotten stronger, no doubt. But, grown they have not. Just food for thought. The torso and ab area has a different muscle fiber, and are high endurance muscles (obviously, they get worked nearly 24 hours a day if one were to think about this).

 

[Mattv]

DO some squatting and deadlifts, I suggest a very small caloric surplus to build muscle. You just may be surprised what these two lifts will do for you. I OWE ALOT to the SQUAT. I may have small legs (yet strong as hell), but this lift does "THINGS" to the body and has many approximate benefits. If you do them right, they OUGHT to make you BREATH harder than normal.

Doing abs until the sun goes down, wont bring the area out anymore, its low body fat--acccompanying a clean diet and overall weight training, that will do the trick MORE than the ab exercises---and more importantly, IF you have the genetics to have them visually exposed. Not everyones torso is genetically made the same (logically), its close of course, but some seem to have flat and thin while others big and thick. THere are a few articles on whether the ABS grow the same as other muscles in response to progressive WEIGHT TRAINING them specifically---I wont debate that. What I will say though, is once my fat started to come off, my abs were already there, and I have and still do weighted ab exercises; however, they have NOT grown (especially if you look at the earliest pic of me). THey have gotten stronger, no doubt. But, grown they have not. Just food for thought. The torso and ab area has a different muscle fiber, and are high endurance muscles (obviously, they get worked nearly 24 hours a day if one were to think about this).

Alright, thanks man.

 

[nickorette]

DO some squatting and deadlifts, I suggest a very small caloric surplus to build muscle. You just may be surprised what these two lifts will do for you. I OWE ALOT to the SQUAT. I may have small legs (yet strong as hell), but this lift does "THINGS" to the body and has many approximate benefits. If you do them right, they OUGHT to make you BREATH harder than normal.

Doing abs until the sun goes down, wont bring the area out anymore, its low body fat--acccompanying a clean diet and overall weight training, that will do the trick MORE than the ab exercises---and more importantly, IF you have the genetics to have them visually exposed. Not everyones torso is genetically made the same (logically), its close of course, but some seem to have flat and thin while others big and thick. THere are a few articles on whether the ABS grow the same as other muscles in response to progressive WEIGHT TRAINING them specifically---I wont debate that. What I will say though, is once my fat started to come off, my abs were already there, and I have and still do weighted ab exercises; however, they have NOT grown (especially if you look at the earliest pic of me). THey have gotten stronger, no doubt. But, grown they have not. Just food for thought. The torso and ab area has a different muscle fiber, and are high endurance muscles (obviously, they get worked nearly 24 hours a day if one were to think about this).

Wow your lucky. When that fat came off me I had deep ribs, and then a flat stomach!! Over the past few months I have been building up my abs. and I know they are growing, I can actually feel/see the muscle coming in and increasing in size.

 

[Streamline]

Deadlifts and squats are not beginner exercises, in fact even an experienced lifter should get someone who knows what they're doing to show them first.

 

[Chillen]

What is wrong with a beginner doing Squats?

Sure he should do them right (I shouldnt have to explicitely say that), and if need be, be shown how to perform them correctly (of course).

I guess one has to train for a while before doing squats? I disagree with that. Having it part of a "balanced" program from the beginning---with appropriate reps and sets--there is nothing wrong with that. Even if, for example, its decided just to do one set to get started.

Squats are a wonderful exercise, though they WILL kick dat @ss, LOL Personally of all the exercises (weight training wise), if I had to select one exercise, and could do (or had no time) to do no other, it would be the squat (as much as I dislike it). From the very beginning, I did the squat (I was only hampered by age, and more importantly, the caloric deficits smally applied), and this exercise took more out of me than all others (with a close second exercise), and there are reasons why they do for most persons. It does beneficial things for the ENTIRE body and not just legs, and I dont think anyone would disagee with me on that part.

Besides, having the diet as KING of course, of all the exercises I do in weight training (not inlcuding cardio stuff), I attribute a large percentage of progress to the squat, though I have legs that look like they couldnt kick a cat across the street--and that is my diet holding it back. When I first started, I did 2 sets, and remember my TORSO, LEGS, and BUTT (lol) being sore as hell (rep scheme was 8 to 12 then), I sure got a plain view idea what was at work here (lol), not to mention the other bodily mechinisms at work.

So, no, dont over do it of course, as you WILL WANT TO WALK LATER! But, yes, I believe a beginner can do them in the correct way, and in the correct rep/set amount to get started. Squat is a bad dude.

 

[Streamline]

What is wrong with a beginner doing Squats?

Sure he should do them right (I shouldnt have to explicitely say that), and if need be, be shown how to perform them correctly (of course).

Well it is a very hard exercise to perform properly and yeah alls i'm sayn is you need to shown first.

 

[Typhon]

if one more person uses the term 'myspace' as an adjective i'm gonna bang my head on my desk

What'ya gonna do? Neg rep me?

 

[Chillen]

MY Space, My space, MY SPACE MY Space, My space, MY SPACE MY Space, My space, MY SPACE MY Space, My space, MY SPACE MY Space, My space, MY SPACE

Thought for the day:

Thou shall NOT bang head on desk---as it will cause redness and pain.

 

[Chillen]

Hey, Der, I took your nacho that you took while the other wasnt looking!