Opinions Please.....

[ironwill]

I am sitting at around 255-260 each week lately and pretty hard , veins and see all abs and obliques pretty good....Now i couldnt get to do a show this summer as i have a crazy job....They couldnt get me a replacement for my extra overtime work at the time, but i have a commitment from them for next yr.....Im pretty stoked...
Now should i keep going with offseason as its going well, and im gaining consistently and have 1 full yr exactly now until next comp.....Or should i do a cutter and get down to 7-8 percent bf and be around 240 and get a rebound from that....So many believe it is necessary to cut once in awhile and build up again. BUT, im gaining consistently still and dont think i should stop right now 1.5 lbs a week average but dropped a little bit due to pneumonia etc,....My brain wont let me decide one way or the other....HELP!!!!
Opinions appreciated.....

[GYMBRAT]

fosho keep going with off season bro, especially if your still growing and are not far from lean anyways jmo

you big bitch

[Dragon1911]

Im in a similar situation where i will be competeing in my first comp next year about one year from now a little less actually. I decided to continue with the bulk through the summer to add as much lean mass as possible and then start the prep Jan-Feb to cuts it up.

IMO if everything is going good and your gaining and your bf% is at a reasonable level keep bulking.

[natenator]

if it ain't broke and you're feeling good then don't fix it?

[tiramisu]

How much bigger do you want to be?

Personally if I can get to about 220-230 @ ~10% @ 5' 10" you will me changing my focus pretty dramatically. (another 20 pounds of lean meat to go)

I'll almost certainly focus on maintenance, strength and conditioning at that point.

That's just me of course. To my mind strength training provides the biggest bang for the buck in terms of being functional. After a certain point though I think it's time to do sprints, drag sleds, martial arts and other fun stuff.

Yes I want to be big and strong but I also want to be fast and tough.

[Praetorian]

IMO do a cutter...doesnt have to be 16 weeks even 10-12 but youll get a nice rebound and it will keep some fat off as well. I did the Nationals in 2008...took a year off and am preparing for 2010 now...the extra year was very very difficult to complete. It was hard enough eating 8 meals daily for 12 months but the next 12 was crazy...i was so sick of food by May this year when i looked at anything i wanted to puke. The other issue is even though you may think you arent gaining much fat by the end of two years you will have...its inevitable if you are trying to gain muscle. Looking back now I wish I had done a short cutting diet just to change things up. Gains are not linear during the offseason so longer duration does not always lead to more gains.
P

[ironwill]

That is what im thinking as well Praetorian.......I was thinking a good 10 weeker, to get around 8 percent or so....Not that the percent is important....I also believe psychologically it will be good as well....I am honestly getting sick of eating and would welcome a diet right now......

Tiramisu, i am focusing on strength and cardio conditioning right now as i need to be in decent shape.....Prae had said focus on getting stronger on all the basic lifts last year and it stuck with me. It was my core of thought at one time, then last yr i strayed from it for while, good to be back to it......I hit a few hiccups with immunity fatigue and got pneumonia, then strep throat, but no injuries...knock on wood.....Maintained pretty good through it and going up again..
For my height and to be competitive i need to be over 230 on stage IMO to look good.So im close to being there but i have a year to go, and Now am arguing with myself on both sides.....Its going well, so i think go for a couple more months, then i think damn thats a long time to keep from getting bored.....And want to get more cut.....

[GYMBRAT]

Contradicting what I said, Prae makes perfect sense to me, plus prae knows his shiat!

[tiramisu]

Prae's generally spot on with his training advice. I far prefer a fully muscled look as well. Not IFBB Olympia muscled but more like NPC nationals caliber physique. Fully muscled without the gut or the bunchiness.

I'm not willing to go to 300 pound to get there though. Too old for that kind of self abuse.

[JonnyO]

Thats what Im doing myself since I wont be competing now, clean out my system and keep cutting, I was already into it for 4 weeks so its not too bad and I can play around with the diet too without worrying and stay fit for the Summer, Then in the Fall start adding calories back in.