First-time poster...skinny guy! Body fat?

[phoomer]

Hello all you buffsters. I would like to provide you with some info: I'm 18, between 6'1" and 6'2", about 160 pounds, and have been working out religiously for about 2 years now (hard to believe from my pic, but it's true). The first year and a half consisted almost entirely of cardio since I ran track and cross-country. The past half year, I have focused mostly on muscle-building though. I used to weigh 125 pounds before I started lifting! I was hoping you could all take a look at my picture and give me some honest evaluation as to what you think my goals *should* be and what my body fat percentage is. I kind of fear that I fit the "skinny-fat" category.

I would like to eventually weigh about 180-190 with a very lean physique and maintain the cardiovascular strength that I have built up from cross-country.

My current bests:
Bench: 175 /forum/images/graemlins/blush.gif
Squat (just started two months ago): 225
Chin-ups: 13
Pull-ups: 3 (Yikes!) /forum/images/graemlins/crazy.gif /forum/images/graemlins/blush.gif
Dips: 25
5k run: 19:16

Since I'm still a relative newbie, I only focus on compound lifts as indicated by the program that I'm doing, "Iron Manual" from Men's Health.

Thank you for your time.

MY PICS: http://photos.yahoo.com/macleavesthepark

[GetPsycho]

your goal should be to gain weight. simple as that. i dont think your age, body type and level of activity will allow you to gain much fat. so just concetrate on eating your arse off and try to gain weight

[phoomer]

Oh my GOD....dude, that is one [*%#*%*#] amazing transformation that you made, judging from your pics! What the hell were you eating??

[GetPsycho]

[ QUOTE ]
phoomer said:
Oh my GOD....dude, that is one [*%#*%*#] amazing transformation that you made, judging from your pics! What the hell were you eating??

[/ QUOTE ]

anything and everything i could get my hands on. it takes calories to build muscle, now go eat!

[phoomer]

Thanks Psycho...

...anyone else?

[MansonOzz]

I agree w/GP. If you're wondering about bf%, I'd say around 14.

[phoomer]

14%? Really? Yikes...I can see my abs when I flex, I figured more like 11-12% <font color="red"> </font>

[Ironman_81]

Just reiterating what everyone has said: Eat!

[phoomer]

Actually, I plan to maintain my weight while cutting a little bit of fat for the summer. I'm going to wait until college commences to start bulking up. I don't want to be standing by the pool being a skinny guy with a gut.

[10forty2]

Lift heavy....eat heavier.....

[bam311food]

[ QUOTE ]
phoomer said:
Actually, I plan to maintain my weight while cutting a little bit of fat for the summer. I'm going to wait until college commences to start bulking up. I don't want to be standing by the pool being a skinny guy with a gut.

[/ QUOTE ]

6'2, 160?? If you cut you are nuts.

[jaredirl]

I'd go on a clean bulk. This way you won't gain that gut, and you'll still be able to gain some weight.

Your metabolism from running all those years and your naturally lean physique is going to make it harder for you to gain any muscle without increasing your calories dramatically. I'd put money on your diet being the reason you haven't gained that much mass in the 2 years you've been lifting...

By a clean diet, I mean keeping the fat and carbs out. Eat more chicken, tuna, eggs, or anything else that is protien, get yourself a tub of whey protien and take it at breakfast and before bed with your meals, and try to design a meal plan that allows you to space out your meals while still eating much more than you are now.

By doing that you will gain muscle, not fat, and you won't have to worry about the gut. Hell, when you gain muscle, your metabolism will take another jump, and you'll start to lose the fat you have.

G'luck!