What You Should Focus on During the Early Years of Bodybuilding | Q&A With Matt Jansen

In this episode Matt Answers your questions on the beginning stages of bodybuilding. Be sure to drop your questions in the comment section!
Matt | / mattjansen8
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produced by @mooksvisual

[@C-Bofit]

This series is golden Matt!

[@colbycrawley2264]

- How lean should one be at the beginning and end of a massing phase? - How lean should one be at the beginning of a first prep/20wk prep as you mentioned? - Is there a certain "cap" of bodyweight one should aim to meet in the offseason in relation to one's stage weight (i.e. stage weight of 150 lbs, so I mass until around 170lbs?) - Is there a recommended ratio of massing time compared to fat loss time in a year, such as 70% spent in massing and 30% spent in cutting for example? - Thoughts on cardio in the off-season? Does it change as weeks progress when massing? - Would you recommend beginners (

[@antonhallergren588]

Ideally single didgit bf for most ppl. It's not bodyfat but insulin sensitivity that matters IE do you get a visible responsen from carbs as in vascularity and fullness. Ride it till insulin sensitivity takes a hit then hold the weight allowing for homeostasis and proceed to either do a mini cut and rhen keep bulking if you are relatively lean or diet down. Depends on how fast you get in shape. No no cap only when you start to lose insulin sensitivity IE you gain predominantly fat and you're too fat to just do a small mini cut for a reset. That's when you stop the gaining of weight. No no specific percentages You can do cardio but ideally it is good to drop it before you start a prep as it will be a tool you can easily put back in again with greater effect than just having it constantly there and you trying to increase it. You want to start a prep as fresh and rested up work load wise as possible aka from a holding phase even if it means you'll get a bit softer by taking out cardio for example. Yes everyone should carb cycle in some way. Yes you should carb cycle in the offseason too. Only say exception would maybe be a holding phase where you kind of want the body to stay still to better hold on to new tissue or leanness where a holding phase too can be used (aka letting the body adjust to a lower bf percantage) A plateu usually means something is about to happen. That being going backwards which means that you've either slipped up too much or your body needs a break. Depends on how you look. I may be competetive 10 lbs under my cap and someone else may need to right at theirs. A general cue is when ppl start to wonder if you compete while just wearing regular clothes, basically when it is no longer possible to hide.

[@movestattoo4561]

@@antonhallergren588bodyfat is different on every person. If you’re natural and you are not a genetic outlier, more than likely you should have more than single digit bodyfat in the offseason. The biggest factor is how your performance in the gym goes and even for people on gear they get a pretty big hit on the performance if they stay at single digits year round. And you should do cardio year round for heart health and blood pressure especially if you’re on gear.

[@antonhallergren588]

@@movestattoo4561 yes true but you cant really rebound from anything above single didgit bodyfat nearly as well. It not something that is sustainable to maintain for a long time while natty but I do recommend ppl to drop down to 7-8% or so. Just to the point where you start almost losing a bit of muscle because then you will supercompensate when you reverse the diet. Say you lose 1 kg of muscle getting to 8% then you will gain 3 kg in tge next rebound and offseason instead of if you stopped at say 12% and started bulking in which case you gain maybe 1 kg of muscle total in that offseason. It's one of those 1 step backwards 3 step forward things. And for cardio yes most of the year but the last 2-4 weeks before starting a cut it is good to kinda let your cardio capacity drop and your body to be without it for those few weeks as that will be way more beneficial to fat loss when you add it back in. You're also probably off cycle before you start a prep so it's not like your heart is being ruined in that time frame under those circumstances

[@movestattoo4561]

@@antonhallergren588 you are having really bad offseason if you put on 1kg at 12%. I just watched another one of these videos where even Matt said that anything from 12-18% is good for offseason. You don’t gain muscle just on the rebound and you should be putting on quality tissue your whole offseason. Well yeah king of, but everyone should do cardio for heart health no matter if you are a bodybuilder or just a normal dude who doesn’t even work out. 20min daily is enough and it’s quite easy to just bump that up when you go into prep.

[@antonhallergren588]

@movestattoo4561 Nr1 it was an example. And most ppl unless it is their first couple of years of training or your first couple of cycles won't put on more than 2 maybe 3 or 4 kgs of actual tissue in a year. So getting the little extra from a supercompensation/rebound phase is gonna make a big difference in ppl who aren't either brand new to training or gear. Nr2 no you gain wayyyyy more muscle early on when youre very insulin sensitive. The rest of the offseason is kind of a maturation and holding phase to let the body go into homeostatis and get used to the new tissue. Nr3 absolutely 12-18% is fine for offseason but you don't ideally want to start the offseason at 12% cus you won't have any supercompensation at all compared to if you were essentially a little too lean for what your body likes to be. Say 8%. The proportion of fat gained vs muscle gained becomes disproportionally worse the fatter you are so. The longer it takes to hit that say 18% the longer you will grow efficently. And yes but from a competitive bodybuilding standpoint it is better if you rest your body up as much as possible and drop even cardio for a few weeks before a prep. You're in that case doing it for fat loss. Competitive bodybuilding is not healthy and besides that it's not gonna kill you to drop your tolerance to cardio or whatever you wanna call it as it is literally only 2-4 weeks aka just enough to let your cardiovascular capacity drop so you get optimal fat loss and minimal fatigue from reintroducing it.

[@Brody_Doolin_]

Best advice around !!!

[@Mike_WestAK]

These videos are fantastic. Keep them up!

[@graciannablevins]

These educational videos are SO SO important, bring on more!

[@nazaketismaeel7299]

Good Information keep it up

[@Ditt33]

This educational series is a game changer!

[@DBunchRAW]

Team RAW holds the crown of knowledge when it comes to this stuff! 🔥 gotta love it!

[@Buffdaddycam]

This is good!! Really loving this series 🙌🏼

[@Orville-Tootenbacher]

Great insight. Keep this going

[@drewcornett734]

Obviously there are many factors when it comes to prepping, but when you’re scheduling things like refeeds, about how often do you do them? Weekly? Monthly?

[@Blakebunn882]

We need more of this! This is awesome!

[@ribosome6301]

These vids are the best, would love tips on going from like the intermediate to advanced stage (200lbs to 225+lbs)

[@garic_storm]

Great advice! Loving the education.

[@dyamondthompson4521]

I recently had a conversation with a friend who said the same thing about the job and i think that’s super important

[@gunnarlykins5000]

Raw and real content at its finest

[@elijahwang]

needed this. can't wait to compete as a RAW athlete!

[@lucassoaresfitness]

Proving so much knowledge that people need to hear🔥

[@Sticktofitness15]

Great info 💪🏼💯

[@agarcia-eu9zb]

I’m loving this!!!🤘🏽

[@alexvillagomez1199]

Love the realness of this series

[@aidenmayberry1]

love these

[@sebastian.fitness.13]

Downloading this podcast rn!!

[@arisdelsy]

Thank you so much for this series! Your knowledge is powerful! 🤓

[@phillipgentry1574]

These series have been truly helpful!

[@tracyavery6640]

Love this information and podcast keep putting them out there

[@tedflores40]

Best series yet

[@JoeyStampke]

More nutrition tips to optimize digestion, please!

[@SweFitness]

Thanks for this!

[@jjtheprbarber]

Taking notes!!!!!!!!

[@ScottMWolf]

Matt out here dropping knowledge 🔥🔥

[@colehennen2605]

Best advice in the business

[@Raw_aesthetics]

Focus on mind muscle connection, nutrition and a great split is the way I would work with beginners

[@MarioMuniz1118]

love this series

[@Jason-bb3jt]

I am grateful for these videos coming from the top coach , appreciate you Matt. Question … 39 with a 8yr old and a year old baby , I’m in the best shape I’ve been in ,with that said my recovery and sleep are not the best but I would love to hear a good 4 or 5 day split , that would focus on brining up the upper chest and arms , frequency and how would you structure and on what days . Thank you again .. hope to have you answer my question .

[@ty-nt8fz]

Glutamine has been amazing for me and since i added it i am way less sore, I'm 40 years old, train 2-3 hours a day and work construction, roofing, concrete and such for 10 plus hours a day and it made a huge difference even on top of using testosterone. Add in an extra day or even 2 for ur lagging parts a week if u can handle it, obviously read ur body if ur still tender then skip it, I don't no ur diet but maby u could eat more or even better, maby more protein, maby magnesium bisgylcinate at night may help with sleep, take ur fishoils, but there are too many variables at play to just guess why u feel that way.....I'm obviously not matt but figured I'd throw in my 2 cents

[@Jason-bb3jt]

@@ty-nt8fzthank you , my diet is pretty spot on , I’ll get some glutamine and add that in as well . Thank you for the reply , appreciate it

[@joaoamstalden6321]

Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

[@MichaelSzwydky]

Love this team

[@kimberleyzammit8377]

💯💯So Good🙏

[@fabiantorres8768]

Thank you for the information

[@alexaf7544]

Awesome video!!

[@jimmy7458]

King info ☝️

[@andrewisonfire9]

Great episode!

[@cs046]

🙌 the younger generation is skipping the crucial TIME it takes to learn their body so they can incorporate anabolic in a healthy and responsible way!

[@jairelys.fit5]

Gracias por esto! 🫵🏼❤️

[@TheMowpow]

Haha, I remember Mass Triple X! Great info this series is gold.

[@79_cav333]

What does Mat think about training splits with training age? I know it’s been said from guys like Jordan Peters that say for beginners to start at a Full Body Split for 1 year then upper lower split For 2-3 years. Then into a push pull legs for 2-3 years. After that you can start changing splits into a specialized split. Where do you start someone based on their age. For example a 18 year old novice vs let’s say someone who has experience training in Olympic lifting or powerlifting but never trained bodybuilding at 28 years old ? Two different scenarios. What split would both those situations do/ or training differences be ?

[@gabrielesquivias4682]

Be focus

[@TaylorSharp-o2s]

We need more helpful info in training & nutrition for putting on sized bodybuilding. Please

[@AustinHayes_]

🔥 as always

[@RenanFSfit]

Best content!!!

[@muhammadzaman-hd5dk]

Very informative ❤❤

[@Napalm_Man]

Perfect content boss 💪👌

[@nahueliperalta]

this is awesome

[@yurr6734]

Hey Matt I’ve lost 150LBS over the past 16-17 months (333-183LBS) I’ve been in my first slight surplus since the end of the cut but I’m curious what route/diet phase I should continue in after that.

[@jonathanortiz23]

yeah i got a question why do we want bodybuilding i get it for competition but what next it just me anyway loving this video.

[@briantompkins2339]

Hey Matt. I've heard you recommend about 6-8 hard sets per bodypart for more advanced bodybuilders. Do you recommend more sets for beginners/intermediates?

[@fuegs7526]

Question I want to eventually body-build is a 6 days split with 1hr half training time every session too much volume

[@cremedechano3667]

Great advice🫡

[@jordanreeves1494]

anyone can feel free to answer… what are your guys’ thoughts on someone who is very tattooed and wants to compete in bodybuilding? do you think it’ll be too damaging on the athletes potential?

[@alejandrorafael__]

Focus ❤❤❤❤❤

[@Ragamuffinswalk]

How do i figure out what my lean body mass is compared to my overall weight. So i can figure out protien intake. Thank you

[@jayandjas8560]

Speak facts ! 🔥

[@Joelg_fitness]

2011 GNC MASS XXX scoop was a measuring cup. lol

[@mayureshpawar9290]

low calories on rest days during offseason?

[@SteveSuperSaiyanMamba12]

🔥🔥🔥

[@Kiaraxfit3]

I can do become RAW Athletes own my goals in years!

[@angelobowden]

This is a great series! Something everyone getting into bodybuilding can take notes from! 🔥🔥

[@thegreydonbuhligshow4730]

Let’s go😊

[@jarielrijo8091]

💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻

[@matmelendres]

❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

[@iamfsl]

🤝🏽

[@jeremydelacruzz]

👏🏽

[@andreakleczli2359]

HY Chad☺️☺️☺️☺️🤭🤭🤭🤭🤭🥹🥹🥹🥹

[@clarky_kevin]

If you can't afford a coach you shouldn't compete. Never let the lack of cash prevent you from doing things the right way. That's where stupid mistakes normally happen. Plus competitions aren't cheap either.

[@kseriesdan9722]

Depends on the coach.not all are equal. I'm getting into but don't have a coach but as a chef and got my diet right .that's the hardest part.gym is easy

[@clarky_kevin]

@@kseriesdan9722 If you are just getting into it then you don't need a coach. I was referring to the people who want to start competing and potentially make a career out of it.

[@movestattoo4561]

@@clarky_kevinI would argue there is no need for coach if you start competing. You can simply do one or two shows to even see if you like that aspect of bodybuilding and if you do, then it would probably be advisable to hire a proper well-known coach. But even then it’s not a necessity. There are even pros who don’t have coaches.

[@xathletes8177]

Lmao such a load of bs!! Bottom line bs!!!

[@Reegansamlal2]

Wait so I shouldn't ego lift,blast gear and train using autoregulation with random exercise selection,eat chocolate milk and a box of cinnamon toast crunch, nah can't be your just a nerdy science based lifter, ( this is sarcasm and the mindset of every idiot in the gym )

[@Madchris8828]

The science based community has also led to a lot of people overanalyzing the details of lifts and using systems like RIR to cut their work short too. Being too much of bro works out more often than not putting in the work. The ideal is somewhere between scientist and bro scientist for the ideal understanding

[@ToneA206]

Love these

[@bryk_squuaadd]

🔥🔥

[@mileswitheve]

🔥🔥🔥