Skinny fat

JSJR83
JSJR83 Posts: 10 Member
in Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
Has any one here had any success gaining lean mass without gaining gut fat? Or is it best / easier to do the bulking then cutting process?

Replies

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    You can't gain muscle without some fat.

    Or do recomp
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    What are your goals exactly?

    You can recomp.. eat at maintenance - lose fat and build muscle slowly over time (but it can be slow and best if you aren't too lean and want to make more minor physique adjustments)
    You can bulk.. eat in a surplus - if you want to gain muscle/size/mass (but you will also gain some fat too)
  • JSJR83
    JSJR83 Posts: 10 Member
    Im at 18 % BF, 160lbs, 5'9". Ive been at 175 lbs before and I liked the way I looked but not the way i felt. When I cut down to 160 I lost lot of muscle mainly in my lower body and kept some gut still. Now I just look skinny fat and fear that I am too lean to even eat at maintenance. I am a hard gainer and loose muscle quickly if am not careful with how I eat.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    sejifit wrote: »
    Im at 18 % BF, 160lbs, 5'9". Ive been at 175 lbs before and I liked the way I looked but not the way i felt. When I cut down to 160 I lost lot of muscle mainly in my lower body and kept some gut still. Now I just look skinny fat and fear that I am too lean to even eat at maintenance. I am a hard gainer and loose muscle quickly if am not careful with how I eat.

    Did you cut too quickly?

    If you think you're skinny fat then bulking isn't necessarily a good idea.
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    edited August 2017
    When you cut down to 160, were you doing any weight training/following a program? Were you getting enough protein, did you cut down too aggressively? You may have lost more muscle than necessary.

    I would say your options are to cut down more and lower your bodyfat % - continue to lift (which I am assuming you are doing now?), keep protein adequate (0.8-1g per lb bodyweight), and don't cut too aggressively. Then you can run a bulk.

    or

    You can eat at maintenance and recomp.. so lose fat and gain muscle over time (again still continuing to lift and get adequate protein) this route however can be slow but it is good if you really don't want to run bulk/cut cycles and don't have a time frame in mind
  • misnomer1
    misnomer1 Posts: 646 Member
    cut to 13-15% while doing progressive overload lifting. then bulk and add muscle. or do a slow recomp at maintenance. either way, start a progressive overload lifting programme.
  • JSJR83
    JSJR83 Posts: 10 Member
    It happened within a month time frame tops. I wasn't lifting due to bell's Palsy. So I can eat on a calorie deficit as long as I'm getting 160 g of protein plus other macros accordingly and still lift 5 time a week without loosing muscle? or eat at maintenance?
  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
    At 18%, you are fat in gym terms for a male. Calorie deficit, adequate protein and lift weights until you are 10-13%.
  • PokernuttAR
    PokernuttAR Posts: 74 Member
    sejifit wrote: »
    Now I just look skinny fat and fear that I am too lean to even eat at maintenance.

    I'm not sure what you mean by "skinny fat" if you think you're too lean. Skinny fat to me means that you're not truly fat, but you have a high BF% and very little muscle. Without more pics, its hard to tell which one you are. From your comments, it sounds like you cut too fast, did not do progressive resistance training, nor eat enough protein. Fixing those things should help you to start moving in the right direction.

Categories