Can you look good and "aesthetic" from natty lifting?

[resilient]

Solid work @SeymourCake. I'm 5'8" as well and aspiring to that body weight. My bf% is <10%, 155 lbs.

 

[SeymourCake]

Solid work @SeymourCake. I'm 5'8" as well and aspiring to that body weight. My bf% is <10%, 155 lbs.

Clean bulk your way up.

 

[SuckItUp]

I'm a natty lifter. This is a picture of me from last year:


5'8, ~174lbs. Not sure what bodyfat percentage was. Whether or not you think I'm aesthetic is up to your perspective.

This is the point of working out. There is no point to getting on gear because anything beyond this tends to turn off women, not to mention the severe health risks of which you are exposing your body.

I would guess you are low teens (12-13%) for body fat.

A key to lifting is that weight amounts are not important, but technique is of the utmost importance.

I can't begin to tell you how many guys are obsessed with how much they lift rather than technique and a large portion of men lift incorrectly and either don't achieve what they want or shape their muscles incorrectly.

 

[EmotionalGeek]

I'm a natty lifter. This is a picture of me from last year:

5'8, ~174lbs. Not sure what bodyfat percentage was. Whether or not you think I'm aesthetic is up to your perspective.

How much weight did you gain in what time span?

 

[SeymourCake]

How much weight did you gain in what time span?

Not sure if I can answer this question correctly, but I was a bit out of shape and the heaviest weight I started off before getting a gym membership was 200-220lbs. After high school, I lived a sedentary life; play videogames, browse the internet all day. I did not engage in physical activity and I was getting on the chubby side. After getting down with a routine, I would cut down to the 170s, and then I would bulk over 195lbs. I did this repeatedly three times in the course of 4-5 years. In my bulking phase (usually during Fall-Winter season), I would eat whatever. Carbs would be the key for bulking for my body. As I gained the extra weight, I would do a strength-based full body routine to get my strength up, going to the gym three times a week. More strength means more muscle growth. In my cutting phase (during Spring-Summer season), I would switch over to a split routine where I would focus on a specific body part(s), going to the gym five times a week. For cutting, I do the keto diet. I decrease my carb intake to less than 30 grams a day, and increase my fat and protein intake. I would also brisk walk in my neighborhood for 20 minutes when I wake up early in the morning (just before the sun rises). Brisk walking on an empty stomach is a great way to burn fat. In the evening, I would have a cup of green tea. Green tea is a natural fat burner and it contains lots of antioxidants. I started my gym membership around 2012. However, this time around, I'm thinking about not bulking and just staying lean as much as I can throughout the year. Hope this helps.

 

[FuzzyLives]

Questions like this are actually insulting

Avi = 100% natty

And i dont get perfect nutrition and nor was that photoshopped.

It takes a couple of years of HARD WORK and a proper understanding of how to work out properly

You can look better than.... 85% of men within 3 months of proper training.

I've been told I'm an ectomorph. Some have told me it's a good thing and others have said it's bad. What do you think bro. You definitely look solid in your avi. I'm willing to work hard and dedicate myself for sure.

 

[FuzzyLives]

Uhhh crappy arm genetics??? When I started college I could barely curl 25's. Now I can curl 60's for 12-15 reps and go straight to drop sets after. You gotta put in the work. Sets and sets and sets and more sets...... my arms went from 12 inches to just under 18. Hard work will always outdo bad genetics with years of training.

This isn't gonna be something where you can workout 6 months hard, disappear for 6, thrn comeback again

I could curl 25 my first day in the gym I have no ****ing idea if that means anything just saying lol. Is that good man idk tbh.i just signed up today was my first day.

 

[FuzzyLives]

High IQ post. I should just work harder. 2 1/2 years wasn't enough. And gaining literally 10x faster on PEDs is just something I shouldn't do, because why do what works when I can "try harder" and still get no results?
I can't curl 25s NOW after 2 1/2 years. You were stronger on the day you stepped foot in the gym than I am after 2 1/2 years.

You're like the handsome tall white guy telling the short ugly Indian guy he "Just needs confidence".

I curled 25 today on my first day in the gym bro. Is that good or impressive?

 

[GetSwifty]

I curled 25 today on my first day in the gym bro. Is that good or impressive?

It's honestly fairly average. Which is a potentially good sign. If you're average with no training, you have good odds of things working just fine on a natty routine.

 

[CMNILS87]

It's honestly fairly average. Which is a potentially good sign. If you're average with no training, you have good odds of things working just fine on a natty routine.

The point is...... everyone is fricking average till you start lifting. No way would I ever have thought I could curls 60's or push press/overhead press 210 lbs multiple times one day. You just have to keep at it and keep lifting.

My approach is always sets to failure and lots of them. Come to think of it, I do every set to failure. Not sure if good or bad, but my endurance outdoes anyone else at the gym lifting the same weight. Drop sets, and I just started playing around with TUT, time under tension.

Most people say go for 8-12 reps, but if you do 8-12 and it takes you less than 45 secs, you're not stressing your muscle enough to grow and look bigger and get stronger.

 

[GetSwifty]

The point is...... everyone is fricking average till you start lifting.

Some people can bench over their body weight on day one. In my case, I've been lifting for 2 1/2 years and I'm still below average. Average means the median/mean.

My approach is always sets to failure and lots of them. Come to think of it, I do every set to failure. Not sure if good or bad, but my endurance outdoes anyone else at the gym lifting the same weight. Drop sets, and I just started playing around with TUT, time under tension.

And I've been doing drop sets since about six months in. I've been going to failure since the start. I literally tore a muscle in my arm and my back(different times) because I was pushing a little too much. I'd go past failure and force a crap rep in at the end.
And I still can't bench even 100 lbs.

Most people say go for 8-12 reps, but if you do 8-12 and it takes you less than 45 secs, you're not stressing your muscle enough to grow and look bigger and get stronger.

I do comprehensive rep ranges. I cycle between 3-4 for strength, 6-8 at slightly lower weight, and almost every workout at least some 10-14 as my final set for that lift and then down to about 50% of 1 RM for a burnout on the drop set. My TuT is usually about 6 seconds per rep(2 up and 4 down). It's usually a bit longer on the heavier lifts and a bit shorter on the lighter lifts.

I never sleep less than 6 hours a night and most nights I'm in the 7 1/2-8 range. I drink maybe 3-4 times per year. I am also well hydrated, drinking around a gallon of fluids a day(and most of it is water).

 

[CMNILS87]

Some people can bench over their body weight on day one. In my case, I've been lifting for 2 1/2 years and I'm still below average. Average means the median/mean.

And I've been doing drop sets since about six months in. I've been going to failure since the start. I literally tore a muscle in my arm and my back(different times) because I was pushing a little too much. I'd go past failure and force a crap rep in at the end.
And I still can't bench even 100 lbs.

I do comprehensive rep ranges. I cycle between 3-4 for strength, 6-8 at slightly lower weight, and almost every workout at least some 10-14 as my final set for that lift and then down to about 50% of 1 RM for a burnout on the drop set. My TuT is usually about 6 seconds per rep(2 up and 4 down). It's usually a bit longer on the heavier lifts and a bit shorter on the lighter lifts.

I never sleep less than 6 hours a night and most nights I'm in the 7 1/2-8 range. I drink maybe 3-4 times per year. I am also well hydrated, drinking around a gallon of fluids a day(and most of it is water).

If you've been lifting for over 2 years and you can't bench over 100 lbs then I would go in and get genetic testing because you have some sort of syndrome

 

[ImTheDoubleGreatest!]

Yeah but it take time. And you will definitely have to include a decent amount of *GASP* cardio if you want to look really good. It's hard to maintain but it's possible. Some of it does have to do with genetics, other parts has to do with how healthy you ate and how active you were as a toddler, child, and adolescent. Genes only play a role in how the muscle looks by itself really, and sometimes which muscle is stronger than which. How quickly you gain and lose weight and how much fat your body generates depends on the previously aforementioned times in the life. If you are an 'ectomorph' so to speak, then you can get that shredded build if you get muscle. You can still change what 'body type' you are though so t shouldn't be an excuse.

You likely won't look like fitness models (simply because no one really knows how to train to look like them really, plus a lot of them do take gear), but it still is possible to look like them. If you do everything right, you can look like Bobby Pandour or maybe even Steve Reeves.

 

[Carpathian]

To look like a cover model on MH you are going to be addicted to the training/dieting lifestyle. It is not possible to maintain that level of muscularity and body fat percentage without that level of commitment and dedication. Addtionaly, the photos are airbrushed, the guys are probably seriously dehydrated and they dieted especially for that photoshoot. It is not realistic to look like that all the time.
No ask yourself; do you want to live your life as well?
There is a balance...

 

[TheMonkeyKing]

Number one for getting swole and building size without drugs = Time Under Tension

 

[Milano]

Depends on your natural frame. If you have small bone structure, you're going to struggle to put on size. If you have a larger bone structure, you should put on muscle a lot easier. I wasted 2 1/2 years working out natural and gained about 15lbs of muscle. I was working out 3x a week, lifting heavy and doing legs too. My legs grew some, my back grew a lot. My shoulders, chest, and arms barely changed at all. I added like 1 1/2" to my arms in 2 1/2 years. And at 6' tall and 2 1/2 years training, I still have 13.4" arms. Yes, I can squat 230lbs for 5 reps, but arm genetics are literal trash. My traps are actually pretty solid. They grew well along with my back.

I was probably bottom 1% of strength when I started, I know. Most of the women in my gym were stronger than I was. But training for over 2 years to still be below average? No, I should have jumped on PEDs after the first year when it was clear that my training had produced almost no results. I just kept believing people who said stuff like "Get your body fat lower first!" "You really need 1.5g of protein per lb of body weight to grow!" "You just need to lift till failure every set!" "You just need to do splits" "You should only do compounds!". None of that stuff made an appreciable difference. Meanwhile, I saw fat guys stumble into the gym for the first time, eat like trash, lift twice a week, and grow more in a few months than I did in two and half years.

I hopped on PEDs last month, and I've literally grown more in the last 4 weeks than I did in the first 1 1/2 years. Natural bodybuilding is a huge waste of time for a lot of people. My diet is identical to what it was before, so is my training. Results aren't even comparable.

My advice, go lift natural, eat enough protein. See what results you get working out 3+x a week. If you're happy with the progress, proceed. If you didn't add much size, decide if you're going to jump on gear or quit. No point spending 10 years busting your ass to get what you'd achieve on six months of test.

This. Genetics is everything. Some people with good genetics just assume everyone can eat and train like them and the muscle will pack easily. Its insane how different we are and how we respond.

My buddy needs to spend months dieting to lose bodyfat or weight overall, he can just sit at 96 kg easily not being fat at all. His dad is 100 kg and only runs and eats like a girl while being ripped, also natty. Genetics is everything. Im on the skinny side with high metabolism, give me a number and I can lose weight like nothing you have ever seen. Putting it on is hell, even at 29.

But like mentioned, try yourself for some months, and when I say try I mean weighing your food so you go into a caloroe surpluss of about 500 calories every day if you want to gain muscle.

 

[FuzzyLives]

To look like a cover model on MH you are going to be addicted to the training/dieting lifestyle. It is not possible to maintain that level of muscularity and body fat percentage without that level of commitment and dedication. Addtionaly, the photos are airbrushed, the guys are probably seriously dehydrated and they dieted especially for that photoshoot. It is not realistic to look like that all the time.
No ask yourself; do you want to live your life as well?
There is a balance...

I'd literally pass up damn near everything else for a great physique

 

[Dingo]

I'm getting tired just reading this... lol

Juice or natural.... Just don't get fat. Nobody likes fat people....

I'm a lean older guy.... compared to guys my age I look great. I may not be perfection but in my age group.... "In the country of the blind, the one-eyed man is king"...

 

[Carpathian]

I

Juice or natural.... Just don't get fat. Nobody likes fat people....

I'm a lean older guy.... compared to guys my age I look great. I may not be perfection but in my age group.... "In the country of the blind, the one-eyed man is king"...

Could not have put it better myself.

 

[playa99]

I'm getting tired just reading this... lol

Juice or natural.... Just don't get fat. Nobody likes fat people....

I'm a lean older guy.... compared to guys my age I look great. I may not be perfection but in my age group.... "In the country of the blind, the one-eyed man is king"...

Ive never been huge, but the one thing I have noticed is when my bf % gets toward the 20% mark, female attention drops off! I'm back down to 15% for now and the attention is coming back!

On a separate note, it is ludicrous to suggest you can't get in good shape naturally. It take consistency and discipline with both diet and working out, which is something most guys aren't willing to do!