Should I bulk or cut?

Hello everyone

Here are my stats

Age: 21
Height: 6 feet
Weight: 165 lbs.

I have been bulking for 7 months. I was 140 lbs. at the beginning of the bulk to my now current 165 lbs.

My diet was relatively clean throughout the bulk, I had 1 cheat meal per week. Unfortunately I took an extra cheat meal on a couple of weeks, and a couple times I ate regular pasta/chicken gizzard. All in all my diet was not 100% clean, but around 90% I would say.

I am now 165 lbs. and miserable. When I was 140 lbs. I always figured that a 25 lb. increase for myself would be badass and I would look MUCH better than when I was 140 lbs....boy was I wrong.

When I was 140 lbs. I was obviously skinny with some fat, now I am 25 lbs. heavier with some muscle and I seem to have fat that makes me look just as horrible if I was 140 lbs.

I unfortunately did not have a camera back then, I recently went and bought a camera to take pictures and start asking people online what I should do about my body.

I also bought acu measure body fat calipers and tested it on the right side of my abdomen, according to the acu measure chart I have 11.6% body fat....WTF? 11%? Either the acu measure chart is wrong or I am losing my mind...

Sorry for the rant, now let me show you my current pictures at 165 lbs.

Back shot - http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t48/ThatIsRazonable/Picture011.jpg

Front shot - http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t48/ThatIsRazonable/Picture006.jpg

Relaxed Front shot - http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t48/ThatIsRazonable/Picture009.jpg

Relaxed Back shot - http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t48/ThatIsRazonable/Picture008.jpg

Side shot - http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t48/ThatIsRazonable/Picture005.jpg

Front sit down shot - http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t48/ThatIsRazonable/Picture010.jpg

Full shot - http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t48/ThatIsRazonable/Picture014.jpg

What should I do about this mess? The body fat caliper says 11% body fat, but these pictures are not that great on the eyes...

Should I cut? I would LOVE to cut but the only convenient cardio I can do is HIIT and people have told me it will destroy what muscle I have at the moment.

Should I bulk? I actually have a new diet I have been going strong with for a month now, I have not gone beyond my 1 cheat meal a week plan and I have stuck to this specific list while also ingesting other things that I didn't notice was on that list such as no fat milk and whole wheat bread - http://training.fitness.com/nutritio...ist-19098.html

Here is a typical example of my diet now.

Morning / 7 AM - 3 cups of cooked Brown Rice with Chicken Breast or 2 cups Kashi Flakes with 1 cup of non fat milk and a side serving of chicken breast

Mid Morning / 10-10:30 AM - 1 cup of non fat milk with 1 cup of quaker oatmeal dry uncooked made into a shake + 2 slices of whole wheat bread with turkey breast

Lunch / 1 - 1:30 PM - 3 cups of cooked brown rice with chicken breast

Mid Afternoon / 4 - 4:30 PM - Same as Mid Morning

Dinner / 7 - 7:30 PM - Same as Lunch

Full Body Workout @ 9 PM

PWO shake / 10 - 10:15 PM - 2 1/2 scoops of ON 100% Natural Whey Chocolate Flavored mixed with 1 cup of non fat milk. (I drink this shake even on non workout days at the same time)

My diet isn't always like this, for example instead of chicken breast I may eat turkey breast or lean beef. I don't eat beef more than 2 times a month, and I rarely eat lean pork.

I do not follow macronutrient plans such as 40/30/30 or whatever the amounts were, could this be the sole reason that my diet sucks....does my diet suck? If you notice I take in alot of brown rice/non fat milk/bread which equals a ton of carbs.. i estimated 400+ carbs daily. I actually need the brown rice as calorie filler, because I once tried downing 600 calories of meat and I almost hurled. A big reason I can't follow macro ratios is because 2 of my 5 meals are at work when I am NOT on a lunch break and I need to ingest something that I can eat and work at the same time and it has to be something that doesn't stand out as it would be awkward eating a whole meal with veggies, fruits, chicken, rice etc...That is where those shake/sandwich meals come into play, and they are chock full of carbs.

I adjust my diet so it ends up equaling 3000 calories from the meals and the shake then adds up another 300-400 calories.

I need some serious help determining if I should cut or bulk. What gets me even more upset is I fill out clothes quite nicely, but then it may end up backfiring on me like if I'm on a date and she expects me to be this lean weightlifting guy. I am sick and tired of my physique, I have never looked good naked, and what contributed greatly to my frustration was being 25 lbs. heavier on a clean bulk and not looking that much better than when I was 140 lbs. Will I be 185 lbs. with more fat making me look just as bad?

I have no idea what to do.

Please help me out here folks. I would really appreciate it.
 
Last edited:
You definetely should bulk up 10 or 20 pounds. I would suggest bulking up clean because you have a good base to work on. After you bulk, cutting back would be easier and better.
 
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