Slynkz

Hi there- My name is Matt and Im both new to being a vegan (roughly 5 or 6 weeks now), and to body building/weight lifting/fitness (I was a swimmer in high school but that was 10 years ago...) I have one major question for right now I'm really hoping someone/s could help me with. Im am not crazy out of shape, but I'm not anywhere near shape right now either (6'2", 206lbs). A lot of my weight is in my stomach due to lack of sleep and stress - both those problems have been addressed so that should change some. I got into body building because I am interested in joining a martial arts gym near where I just moved and am also interested in getting into competition in said martial arts (and possibly down the road in some MMA style events). My big question is this - when it comes to training will it be better for my body to first lose all my excess fat by doing heavy cardio and light weight training mixed with a low cal diet (dropping to 190-195) and then work towards muscle mass or is it better to just start going straight for bulk from the beginning, letting the muscle and work I do take the weight off by itself? Any help with this would be greatly appreciated! ~Matthew