Hey everybody. My name is Brian and I'm a new member here. Here's why:

I'm 21 years old, 6'3", 200 pounds. Tall, broad frame; carrying about 20 pounds extra. From ages 15-17--the first 2/3 of high school--I became a fiercely determined gym rat. I dropped from 240 to 185 (at my lowest point), and packed on a respectable bit of muscle. I transformed myself, and people noticed. My confidence increased, and I was in many ways a new person.

Then in grade 12 and in the following university years, amid a few moves, relationships, work, and just a long but fairly ordinary shakeup of my life (typical for an 18-19 year old), my passion for the gym simply deflated. I still had some fire, but I couldn't attack my goals the same, struggling to balance university, girlfriends, jobs, etc.....

Anyway I managed to maintain a steady weight. I lost muscle gradually over the last three years, but maintained a respectably fit, strong, healthy frame. But I never really achieved my original goals.

So, after all this, after dropping the initial 60-odd pounds in that initial self-transformation, I'm hungry to finally finish the job. I want to rid myself of the jiggly extra weight on my chest, arms, and the modest tire on my waist. I want abs, and bigger arms, etc...

I've come here to get a community of likeminded guys to help me out. I work out alone so I need encouragement, criticism, advice, someone(s) to keep me accountable. I need a push. I'm looking to do basically what John did. I have a good frame for muscle growth--I have broad shoulders, long limbs, and being basically a mesomorph I can gain muscle and lose fat rapidly. It's all just a motivation thing.

I've attached three photos of me, taken minutes ago. You can see I've had some muscle growth in the past, but I still have another 20 or more pounds to lose. I welcome all criticism and advice.

http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/6490/brian15kr.th.jpg (http://img228.imageshack.us/my.php?image=brian15kr.jpg)http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/3186/brian28hh.th.jpg (http://img228.imageshack.us/my.php?image=brian28hh.jpg)http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/9171/brian31of.th.jpg (http://img228.imageshack.us/my.php?image=brian31of.jpg)
Do I bulk or cut first? How much cardio? What kind of weight training? How fast can I drop that 20 pounds?

I have a good working knowledge of weight training, nutrition, how cardio works, etc. I know how the car works, I just need instruction on where to take it.

So thanks to everyone in advance, and I hope to become a good part of this community!

Hello and welcome.

1) Definitely cut first. You have a great frame and plenty of muscle under there.
2) Definitely do cardio. It is an awesome help for cutting, and no, you won't lose all your muscle doing it. You can do it the days you're not lifting, or every day in the morning, however your schedule allows. Read about doing HIIT style cardio if your endurance allows.
3) Hard to say how fast you could drop those extra pounds, but to be on the safe side I'd say about 2-4 months.