To bulk-up – or not to bulk-up – that’s the question

Whether one should cut down first and then bulk up, or whether one should bulk up first and then cut down is the topic of much debate in bodybuilding. Other bodybuilders like to keep their weight and body fat percentage stabile year round.

 Most articles you read in the magazines or on the net are written for the general individual guy, but the culprit is that everyone is different. We all have a different body-composition, body-shape, fat distribution and somatype. That also includes that everyone has a different ability to gain muscle or worse to gain fat.

A lot of it's down to genetics as well. Your genetics determine how many fat cells you start off with, everyone starts with a different amount, ectomorphs won't have as many fat cells as natural endomorphs.

 There's also the matter of distribution. If you're genetically disposed to have lots of fat in the stomach area, you'll have a harder time getting abs than somebody with their fat distributed evenly all over their body. The most obvious genetic difference is between the two sexes. Men are prone to bellies and love handles (apple shape), were as women are more prone to getting big thighs and butts (pear shape).

You can follow the general guidelines but once you notice they don’t work for you adapt your steroid cycle, your training scheme or calorie intake. We all need to experiment to find out what really works for US.

We all know guys that can eat and drink what ever they like but don’t gain any fat, they make me jealous. On the other hand these guys are mostly hardgainers and have also much trouble building muscle. Also read our articles about somatypes: //juicedmuscle.com/jmblog/content/whats-your-body-type