They told me I couldn't build muscle and lose fat, they were fucking wrong, it's a slow process, but I'm at 10% body fat and have a very nice toned body.  Agreed. You can't do that if your plan is to be a competitive bodybuilder, then you need the most muscle possible right now, and when you have a nice amount you can try to hold on to it as best as you can to it and shed the fat. However, if you're in no hurry and plan to keep making your body better little by little, your work will still pay off. They're different strategies for different goals, you won't be maximizing your muscle gain, but so what? You don't really need to reach your maximum potential in the shortest time possible, you just need to reach your aesthetic goals.