- woman. Any less bodyfat than that and you may inhibit your muscle build-
ing. But going under and respectively is a necessary temporary
condition if you want to look your best for a contest, photography session or
other special occasion.. Some hard gainers, however, are naturally very lean, i.e., below (male)
and (female). is is their natural condition which they do not have to
discipline themselves to maintain. ese people do not necessarily need to
increase their bodyfat in order to gain muscle.. Bodyfat more than may mistake you for a fat man rather than a mus-
cleman, especially when you are dressed, unless you have huge muscles.. Before you apply yourself to getting a very low level of bodyfat, make sure
you have enough muscle. Never forget that if you want better muscle shape
you had better apply yourself to getting bigger muscles. Ideally, spend a few
years getting big and strong while keeping your bodyfat level at no more
than , for a man.. Once you are satisfied with your development, at least for the time being,
you can concentrate on detail, symmetry, definition and the full aesthetic
package—if you are so motivated. If so, you may need to spend the neces-
sary cycles on a sequence of specialization programs to correct apparent
symmetry deficiencies—see Framework in Chapter . en you will need
to follow this specialization period, which could last as long as a year, with a
fat-loss program in order to become very lean.Goal setting
. Accurately calculate how much fat you need to lose to get yourself to a given
bodyfat percentage, say . For example, if you are fat at pounds,
you have pounds of bodyfat. To reduce to fat you will have to lose
pounds of fat. You can then calculate how many months you need to get
to your target. Knowing so specifically where you stand, and the map of
progress to your goal, will help rivet your attention. If you are holding your
muscle mass while losing bodyfat, your gross bodyweight will decrease in
line with your fat loss. But if you are a beginner you may be able to maintain
your gross bodyweight, or perhaps even increase it if you gain more weight
of muscle than you lose of bodyfat.. Very importantly, lose bodyfat at no more than a pound a week, and pref-
erably more like a pound every two weeks, so as not to risk altering your