Tired of being skinny fat.

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Replies

  • luceegj
    luceegj Posts: 246 Member
    I'm the same I have such stuborn fat and wont shift! The back of my thighs! GOOOOOO AWAY!!!!!
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    Personnally, I think you look nicer in the first picture..(wondering if THIS simple observation in fringes mfp's draconian rules)

    Mfp's draconian rules? No, more like just common decency.

    so saying someone looks attractive in a before picture is rude?? Why??

    Because not only was she not asking how attractive anyone found her progress, you basically told her "wow, all that work you did was a big waste of time because now you look worse."

    That's pretty GD rude. It's doubly rude because it's completely offtopic.
  • momzeeee
    momzeeee Posts: 475 Member

    personnally...I think you look much nicer in the first pic...if that is "skinny fat"....bring it on!!!!

    Thanks. While I am not offended, I am curious as to why you are posting this. This is not the purpose of the thread, nor are your other comments against women who are looking to recomp their bf%.

    I went from 24% bf to approximately 18%, which should satisfy the OPs query.

    ETA, of and OP- I ate at maintenance which was about 2k per day. I am 140 and 5'8". Same weight in both pics.

    I think you look awesome! Right now I'm in between your two pictures-my back has some definition, but my arms and thighs still need to catch up! I've been doing strength training since end of March, so I know it will come eventually :) I haven't started weights yet-that's the next step, going to finish Mark Lauren's strength training program and then go from there!
  • ZoeLifts
    ZoeLifts Posts: 10,347 Member
    Granted, I see what you're saying. Mainly, Sara's need to express her irritability of other people's rudeness with rudeness compelled me to intervene. And while I don't go out insulting other people or their progress, some things are better left unsaid. Meaning I could have afforded not to express my dislike for her progress. Really, because that woman obviously worked hard for all that!

    Oh and sara you are quite welcome to have your opinion regardless if I like it or not but just remember I'm welcome to have mine.

    See that part in bold up there ^^? That is a flat out lie. Because you did insult vJohn's progress by saying that you agreed with the other ladies that thought the first pic (her BEFORE) pic, looked better. How is that not insulting someone's progress? This is your quote, in along the rest that, for some reason, felt like they needed to insult someone's hard work and fabulous progress:
    Who the frick asked yours? Since when was giving ones opinion bad? I happen to agree as well. :D Not hatin on the lady... very lovely figure either way.. would kill for that *kitten*... ;)

    How the frick is that not insulting someone's progress? How is that not rude in your little world? How would you feel if you worked your butt off to get your body a certain way and people were saying they liked it better before?
  • ZoeLifts
    ZoeLifts Posts: 10,347 Member
    so saying someone looks attractive in a before picture is rude?? Why??

    You didn't say that. You said this.
    personnally...I think you look much nicer in the first pic...if that is "skinny fat"....bring it on!!!!

    It's rude because no one was asking which picture you found more attractive. That wasn't the topic of conversation. It would be like if you reached your goal weight, posted a success story thread, and someone said: You looked better fat.

    If you want to rate people on their body type there are threads for that. This thread is simply about how to get to a lower body fat.

    Yep. Plus saying she looks much nicer before directly implies she looks much worse now (as in how she currently looks). How someone cannot see that this is not rude is baffling. And then repeating it verbatim (subsequently edited) and asking if that is better is even more baffling.

    VJ is a total hottie, both before and after, however, as you mention, that is not the point of this thread, something that seems to escape some people who still feel the need to comment. Makes me wonder why they feel the need to be so rude.

    ^QFT. All of this!
  • 6spdeg
    6spdeg Posts: 394 Member
    for what its worth.. skinny fat is just as bad as just being plain ole fat to me... health is much more important than either of those.. showing some athletic build is FANTASTIC in my book...
  • MrsBobaFett
    MrsBobaFett Posts: 802 Member
    so saying someone looks attractive in a before picture is rude?? Why??

    You didn't say that. You said this.
    personnally...I think you look much nicer in the first pic...if that is "skinny fat"....bring it on!!!!

    It's rude because no one was asking which picture you found more attractive. That wasn't the topic of conversation. It would be like if you reached your goal weight, posted a success story thread, and someone said: You looked better fat.

    If you want to rate people on their body type there are threads for that. This thread is simply about how to get to a lower body fat.

    This!!

    I hate being skinny fat! Gimme gains!!!!
  • DebbieLyn63
    DebbieLyn63 Posts: 2,654 Member
    I hope i'm not derailing this thread by saying this, but sometimes I dislike the term "skinny fat" because I think it can really feed into people's ED issues... they focus on "fat" and think "I need to eat less and run more!" when really it's not that their bf% is high because they have oh so much fat. Their bf% is high because they have oh so little LBM. The key is to build LBM.

    And the only way to build LBM is to eat enough to build LBM and do resistance training.

    Just a thought.

    THANK YOU! Every time I see the term skinny-fat on here it make my BP go up a few points. The medical term for this is Normal Weight Obesity. It is when someone has a BF% in the OBESE range, yet their BMI is normal. A 20% BF on a women is nowhere near OBESE, and is very much below the top of the healthy range for most women. So what does this say to those who are striving to get into a healthy BF%, when 20% is described as gross??

    A better title to this thread would have been "I want more muscles!"

    Please stop misusing this term!
  • spectralmoon
    spectralmoon Posts: 1,179 Member
    Awesome work and definition, OP! Your shoulders look absolutely amazing in the second shot!

    I'm sorry that your thread got derailed from your question about lifting and time and into a back-and-forth because of people that don't think before they post.
  • Achrya
    Achrya Posts: 16,913 Member
    You know my favorite part about threads dealing with women interested in strength gains/a more muscular frame?

    Let's me give that ignore user button a workout. Casual rudeness I just roll my eyes at, but the vehement defense of said unsolicited rudeness? Yeah no. Its bad enough to be an *kitten*, but to then defend your right to be an *kitten* by claiming someone was mean when they called out jerk behavior? The mind boggles.
  • kitka82
    kitka82 Posts: 350 Member

    personnally...I think you look much nicer in the first pic...if that is "skinny fat"....bring it on!!!!

    Thanks. While I am not offended, I am curious as to why you are posting this. This is not the purpose of the thread, nor are your other comments against women who are looking to recomp their bf%.

    I went from 24% bf to approximately 18%, which should satisfy the OPs query.

    ETA, of and OP- I ate at maintenance which was about 2k per day. I am 140 and 5'8". Same weight in both pics.

    I've heard that body recomp can take a long time. I'm impressed that you made this much progress eating at maintenance for only 6 months. Way to go.
  • vjohn04
    vjohn04 Posts: 2,276 Member
    I am actually pretty embarrassed that the OPs thread got completely derailed. I hope she comes back, and if she does- there are some great people on here that have contributed information to help her achieve her goal.

    Unfortunately, there are also some people that didn't have anything useful to say to the OP's question and felt the need to take this off topic and provide personal visual preferences. I'm sorry that there's a few pages of crap to wade through in order to get some useful guidance.

    Here's the bottom line.... the way my body looks is for ME, not you, not my husband(though he gets to enjoy it), not my coworkers, or friends, nobody but ME.
    My body was for ME when I was out of shape, and it is for ME now.

    The best way people show their true colors is how they project themselves on to other people...


    Thanks to all of my friends (some known, and others unknown (like new friends)) that had positive comments on this thread.
    OP, if you come back, please feel free to PM me if you have questions, if I can't help--- I can guide you to the people I know who can.


    Thanks!
  • Laces_0ut
    Laces_0ut Posts: 3,750 Member
    Who the frick asked yours? Since when was giving ones opinion bad? I happen to agree as well. :D Not hatin on the lady... very lovely figure either way.. would kill for that *kitten*... ;)

    When it was not asked for, is completely off topic and is downright rude...should be obvious really.


    Oh its totally ok for you to be rude telling people to go away and ****... I think we are allowed to give our personal opinion here. I'm also willing to bet that the woman has better things to worry about then people on the internet.

    You're certainly allowed to as we're allowed to tell you that we think your 'opinion' is uncalled for. It would be like if you started a thread on how to get to a low body fat and I broke in and said 'Hey. Just to let you know I don't find your face attractive.'

    Granted, I see what you're saying. Mainly, Sara's need to express her irritability of other people's rudeness with rudeness compelled me to intervene. And while I don't go out insulting other people or their progress, some things are better left unsaid. Meaning I could have afforded not to express my dislike for her progress. Really, because that woman obviously worked hard for all that!

    Oh and sara you are quite welcome to have your opinion regardless if I like it or not but just remember I'm welcome to have mine.

    what is wrong with you?
  • DebbieLyn63
    DebbieLyn63 Posts: 2,654 Member
    hey it's better than just being fat!

    yep. the term skinny fat is so damn offensive.

    I don't understand. Please explain.

    nothing wrong with not being muscular. i'm not sure why we need to invent a derogatory term for it. back in the 70's women weren't muscular and that was fine. now it's like if you're not muscular there is something wrong with you and you're skinny fat. insulting. we can't just accept the beauty of all types of bodies instead of creating insults where there doesn't need to be one?

    Very well said. I personally like to have strong muscles with some definition, but I don't put down anyone who doesn't have that same goal. I have a body that is genetically built to have more muscles naturally. Some women have naturally lean bodies with less muscles and look beautiful. I could never have their bodies because of my genetics.
    We need to accept that we are built differently and find the beauty in our natural shape, and strive to make it the best it can be, to meet our own preference.

    A woman that is 5'9", 132, who describes herself 'fat' in any way, concerns me. And it concerns me that many young women reading this, that are her size, will further hate their own bodies because they still don't measure up. That is a vicious downward spiral.
  • 6spdeg
    6spdeg Posts: 394 Member
    well its sad to see a normal size weight looking person.. that finds out they have a 30% and sometimes higher body fat.. or to see someone again small in size has trouble sitting down essentially squat and has to grab on to something to pick themselves up..
  • hsnider29
    hsnider29 Posts: 394 Member
    hey it's better than just being fat!

    yep. the term skinny fat is so damn offensive.

    I don't understand. Please explain.

    nothing wrong with not being muscular. i'm not sure why we need to invent a derogatory term for it. back in the 70's women weren't muscular and that was fine. now it's like if you're not muscular there is something wrong with you and you're skinny fat. insulting. we can't just accept the beauty of all types of bodies instead of creating insults where there doesn't need to be one?

    Very well said. I personally like to have strong muscles with some definition, but I don't put down anyone who doesn't have that same goal. I have a body that is genetically built to have more muscles naturally. Some women have naturally lean bodies with less muscles and look beautiful. I could never have their bodies because of my genetics.
    We need to accept that we are built differently and find the beauty in our natural shape, and strive to make it the best it can be, to meet our own preference.

    A woman that is 5'9", 132, who describes herself 'fat' in any way, concerns me. And it concerns me that many young women reading this, that are her size, will further hate their own bodies because they still don't measure up. That is a vicious downward spiral.

    I don't think the OP stated what her body fat percentage is at right now. It is possible that she has a high BF and a normal weight, especially if she has had a moderate calorie deficit for an extended period of time without strength training. I understand that skinny fat can mean different things to different people but I don't think it is derogatory.
  • Carnivor0us
    Carnivor0us Posts: 1,752 Member

    so who says you look better now?

    If she thinks she looks better, that's what matters. Not random internet lady.

    I personally think she looks better now, because she just looks healthier and stronger, which to me is very beautiful.
  • Lmans77
    Lmans77 Posts: 58 Member
    I have seen no pics on this thread that are "skinny fat". Both picture posters looked great and slim before and great and more muscular after. But not skinny fat. Not to take away from their progress but they already had lower bf%.

    I am skinny fat. 5'2, 131 lbs and 30%+ bf but I wear a size 6/8. That is a skinny fat in my opinion.

    But on the other hand, I don't think I need to be sub-20% bf or shredded to not be considered "skinny fat".
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    hey it's better than just being fat!

    yep. the term skinny fat is so damn offensive.

    I don't understand. Please explain.

    nothing wrong with not being muscular. i'm not sure why we need to invent a derogatory term for it. back in the 70's women weren't muscular and that was fine. now it's like if you're not muscular there is something wrong with you and you're skinny fat. insulting. we can't just accept the beauty of all types of bodies instead of creating insults where there doesn't need to be one?

    Very well said. I personally like to have strong muscles with some definition, but I don't put down anyone who doesn't have that same goal. I have a body that is genetically built to have more muscles naturally. Some women have naturally lean bodies with less muscles and look beautiful. I could never have their bodies because of my genetics.
    We need to accept that we are built differently and find the beauty in our natural shape, and strive to make it the best it can be, to meet our own preference.

    A woman that is 5'9", 132, who describes herself 'fat' in any way, concerns me. And it concerns me that many young women reading this, that are her size, will further hate their own bodies because they still don't measure up. That is a vicious downward spiral.

    I don't think the OP stated what her body fat percentage is at right now. It is possible that she has a high BF and a normal weight, especially if she has had a moderate calorie deficit for an extended period of time without strength training. I understand that skinny fat can mean different things to different people but I don't think it is derogatory.

    The problem is that when people who are already at a healthy weight (or even underweight) find something small on their body to worry about, it gives them a new term to fixate on and obsess about. A woman who is 5'9" and 132 may not have as much lean muscle mass as she would like to have, but terms like "skinny fat" when they are misused like this can lead to body dysmorphia, if not for her personally, for others reading this thread.

    Now, OTH, I have actually BEEN skinny fat, lost a great deal of weight because I was sick and so killed all my LBM and I was skin and sag. It doesn't feel good and it didn't look good. It wasn't "oh, I still have a little bit of tummy pooch." But if we keep throwing around the term willy nilly (including to describe those who are at healthy body weight percentages) that's how it's going to get trivialized.

    I don't think so. The term skinnyfat puts emphasis on body composition as opposed to just size or weight. That's a significant difference.

    I don't think we should use the term to describe people who are at healthy body fat percentages, but the term is useful to describe people who are (or have gotten) to a low weight but still have poor body composition.
  • hsnider29
    hsnider29 Posts: 394 Member
    hey it's better than just being fat!

    yep. the term skinny fat is so damn offensive.

    I don't understand. Please explain.

    nothing wrong with not being muscular. i'm not sure why we need to invent a derogatory term for it. back in the 70's women weren't muscular and that was fine. now it's like if you're not muscular there is something wrong with you and you're skinny fat. insulting. we can't just accept the beauty of all types of bodies instead of creating insults where there doesn't need to be one?

    Very well said. I personally like to have strong muscles with some definition, but I don't put down anyone who doesn't have that same goal. I have a body that is genetically built to have more muscles naturally. Some women have naturally lean bodies with less muscles and look beautiful. I could never have their bodies because of my genetics.
    We need to accept that we are built differently and find the beauty in our natural shape, and strive to make it the best it can be, to meet our own preference.

    A woman that is 5'9", 132, who describes herself 'fat' in any way, concerns me. And it concerns me that many young women reading this, that are her size, will further hate their own bodies because they still don't measure up. That is a vicious downward spiral.

    I don't think the OP stated what her body fat percentage is at right now. It is possible that she has a high BF and a normal weight, especially if she has had a moderate calorie deficit for an extended period of time without strength training. I understand that skinny fat can mean different things to different people but I don't think it is derogatory.

    The problem is that when people who are already at a healthy weight (or even underweight) find something small on their body to worry about, it gives them a new term to fixate on and obsess about. A woman who is 5'9" and 132 may not have as much lean muscle mass as she would like to have, but terms like "skinny fat" when they are misused like this can lead to body dysmorphia, if not for her personally, for others reading this thread.

    Now, OTH, I have actually BEEN skinny fat, lost a great deal of weight because I was sick and so killed all my LBM and I was skin and sag. It doesn't feel good and it didn't look good. It wasn't "oh, I still have a little bit of tummy pooch." But if we keep throwing around the term willy nilly (including to describe those who are at healthy body weight percentages) that's how it's going to get trivialized.

    People are going to find things to obsess about and worry about no matter what term we use. If you let words have power over you then they will.

    Neither of the pictures showed "skinny fat" but I don't think either woman claimed that they were skinny fat. I believe they posted to show that body recomposition is possible.
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,371 Member
    I hope i'm not derailing this thread by saying this, but sometimes I dislike the term "skinny fat" because I think it can really feed into people's ED issues... they focus on "fat" and think "I need to eat less and run more!" when really it's not that their bf% is high because they have oh so much fat. Their bf% is high because they have oh so little LBM. The key is to build LBM.

    And the only way to build LBM is to eat enough to build LBM and do resistance training.

    Just a thought.

    THANK YOU! Every time I see the term skinny-fat on here it make my BP go up a few points. The medical term for this is Normal Weight Obesity. It is when someone has a BF% in the OBESE range, yet their BMI is normal. A 20% BF on a women is nowhere near OBESE, and is very much below the top of the healthy range for most women. So what does this say to those who are striving to get into a healthy BF%, when 20% is described as gross??

    A better title to this thread would have been "I want more muscles!"

    Please stop misusing this term!

    I sooo hear you on this.

    Somehow I've tagged myself with the "skinny fat" label because it's the simplest, most readily-understandable way to describe the work I want to do on my body. I'm underweight, have a BMI of 16, and a BF% (measured yesterday) of 18.6%, yet I have mushy bits that sure weren't there 5 years ago that I want to firm up. I'm not fat by any stretch of the imagination.

    And I can't say "tone", because that's a dirty word that results in a 7 pg thread hijack debating semantics. *rolls eyes*
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    I hope i'm not derailing this thread by saying this, but sometimes I dislike the term "skinny fat" because I think it can really feed into people's ED issues... they focus on "fat" and think "I need to eat less and run more!" when really it's not that their bf% is high because they have oh so much fat. Their bf% is high because they have oh so little LBM. The key is to build LBM.

    And the only way to build LBM is to eat enough to build LBM and do resistance training.

    Just a thought.

    THANK YOU! Every time I see the term skinny-fat on here it make my BP go up a few points. The medical term for this is Normal Weight Obesity. It is when someone has a BF% in the OBESE range, yet their BMI is normal. A 20% BF on a women is nowhere near OBESE, and is very much below the top of the healthy range for most women. So what does this say to those who are striving to get into a healthy BF%, when 20% is described as gross??

    A better title to this thread would have been "I want more muscles!"

    Please stop misusing this term!

    I sooo hear you on this.

    Somehow I've tagged myself with the "skinny fat" label because it's the simplest, most readily-understandable way to describe the work I want to do on my body. I'm underweight, have a BMI of 16, and a BF% (measured yesterday) of 18.6%, yet I have mushy bits that sure weren't there 5 years ago that I want to firm up. I'm not fat by any stretch of the imagination.

    And I can't say "tone", because that's a dirty word that results in a 7 pg thread hijack debating semantics. *rolls eyes*

    A woman with 18.6% body fat is, by no reasonable definition of the word, skinnyfat.
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,371 Member
    A woman with 18.6% body fat is, by no reasonable definition of the word, skinnyfat.

    Perhaps not, but apparently I'm not allowed to say I want to tone up the mushy bits! :noway:
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    A woman with 18.6% body fat is, by no reasonable definition of the word, skinnyfat.

    Perhaps not, but apparently I'm not allowed to say I want to tone up the mushy bits! :noway:

    This is pretty offtopic, but that doesn't really mean anything. The mushy bits are fat. You can't tone up fat. You can get rid of fat.

    What you really want to do is lose fat/decrease body fat percentage/etc. "Tone up the mushy bits" implies you want to replace the fat with muscle, which you can't really do. You can lose the fat and you can build muscle or vice versa. You really can't do both at the same time.

    The trouble with "tone up the mushy bits" is that it implies two incorrect things:

    1) That you can spot reduce at the mushy area, and
    2) That you can build some significant amount of muscle while losing fat.

    You can't do either of those. What you need to do is lose overall body fat, and hope that the fat you want comes off.
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,371 Member

    This is pretty offtopic, but that doesn't really mean anything. The mushy bits are fat. You can't tone up fat. You can get rid of fat.

    What you really want to do is lose fat/decrease body fat percentage/etc. "Tone up the mushy bits" implies you want to replace the fat with muscle, which you can't really do. You can lose the fat and you can build muscle or vice versa. You really can't do both at the same time.

    The trouble with "tone up the mushy bits" is that it implies two incorrect things:

    1) That you can spot reduce at the mushy area, and
    2) That you can build some significant amount of muscle while losing fat.

    You can't do either of those. What you need to do is lose overall body fat, and hope that the fat you want comes off.

    So I've been reading on here for weeks on end. (And, actually, your reply is probably more germane to the original topic than the lengthy derail about poster rudeness)

    As I understand it, fat loss requires a calorie deficit -- but I can't gain much muscle eating at a deficit. And I really shouldn't lose a lot of weight, I'm already underweight and my upper body looks pretty bony.

    Pretty much at a loss as to how to effectively tackle the problem.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member

    This is pretty offtopic, but that doesn't really mean anything. The mushy bits are fat. You can't tone up fat. You can get rid of fat.

    What you really want to do is lose fat/decrease body fat percentage/etc. "Tone up the mushy bits" implies you want to replace the fat with muscle, which you can't really do. You can lose the fat and you can build muscle or vice versa. You really can't do both at the same time.

    The trouble with "tone up the mushy bits" is that it implies two incorrect things:

    1) That you can spot reduce at the mushy area, and
    2) That you can build some significant amount of muscle while losing fat.

    You can't do either of those. What you need to do is lose overall body fat, and hope that the fat you want comes off.

    So I've been reading on here for weeks on end. (And, actually, your reply is probably more germane to the original topic than the lengthy derail about poster rudeness)

    As I understand it, fat loss requires a calorie deficit -- but I can't gain much muscle eating at a deficit. And I really shouldn't lose a lot of weight, I'm already underweight and my upper body looks pretty bony.

    Pretty much at a loss as to how to effectively tackle the problem.

    You can do a recomp where you eat at maintenance and slowly gain muscle/lose fat or you can go on bulk/cut cycles where you gain muscle and fat then cut the fat.

    The former is slow and not as efficient/effective but will not result in fat gains that you need to subsequently cut.

    Either way, you will need to start (if you do not do so already) an effective progressive loading strength routine.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    So I've been reading on here for weeks on end. (And, actually, your reply is probably more germane to the original topic than the lengthy derail about poster rudeness)

    As I understand it, fat loss requires a calorie deficit -- but I can't gain much muscle eating at a deficit. And I really shouldn't lose a lot of weight, I'm already underweight and my upper body looks pretty bony.

    Pretty much at a loss as to how to effectively tackle the problem.

    Depends on what your goal is and how comfortable you are with the level of fat on your body.

    Not that it's my business or my decision, but you look fine in your picture. I mean, you are under 19% body fat apparently (how did you measure that?). If you want more muscle, you'll need to eat a calorie surplus and gain some fat in the process. If you want to lose the fat you have left, you'll have to eat a calorie deficit and lose a little of the muscle you have. Either way, you're going to have to do strength training (what is your routine now?).

    People will get all up in arms about this, but women can get away with being skinny with a few bones showing way better than guys can. Plus, it's summer. So if I were you I'd probably be eating slightly under maintenance while lifting to chip away at the fat without touching lean mass. Then when it's time to wear more clothes start running a calorie surplus.

    That assumes you want to look good now. The more efficient thing to do, in terms of recomposition, would be to run a fairly aggressive bulk now.
  • mikejholmes
    mikejholmes Posts: 291 Member
    If you want more muscle, you'll need to eat a calorie surplus and gain some fat in the process. If you want to lose the fat you have left, you'll have to eat a calorie deficit and lose a little of the muscle you have.

    Disagree -- it IS possible to do a body recomp, IE: lose fat and build muscle, at maintenance calories. I know, because I've done it. It takes longer, and it'll take longer for girls than guys (we have more testosterone), but it can be done.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    So I've been reading on here for weeks on end. (And, actually, your reply is probably more germane to the original topic than the lengthy derail about poster rudeness)

    As I understand it, fat loss requires a calorie deficit -- but I can't gain much muscle eating at a deficit. And I really shouldn't lose a lot of weight, I'm already underweight and my upper body looks pretty bony.

    Pretty much at a loss as to how to effectively tackle the problem.

    Depends on what your goal is and how comfortable you are with the level of fat on your body.

    Not that it's my business or my decision, but you look fine in your picture. I mean, you are under 19% body fat apparently (how did you measure that?). If you want more muscle, you'll need to eat a calorie surplus and gain some fat in the process. [bold]If you want to lose the fat you have left, you'll have to eat a calorie deficit and lose a little of the muscle you have.[/bold] Either way, you're going to have to do strength training (what is your routine now?).

    People will get all up in arms about this, but women can get away with being skinny with a few bones showing way better than guys can. Plus, it's summer. So if I were you I'd probably be eating slightly under maintenance while lifting to chip away at the fat without touching lean mass. Then when it's time to wear more clothes start running a calorie surplus.

    That assumes you want to look good now. The more efficient thing to do, in terms of recomposition, would be to run a fairly aggressive bulk now.

    Disagree with bolded statement -- it IS possible to do a body recomp, IE: lose fat and build muscle, at maintenance calories. I know, because I've done it. It takes longer, and it'll take longer for girls than guys (we have more testosterone), but it can be done.

    It's almost impossibly slow for women, which is why I don't recommend it. Further, you still have zero control over where the fat comes off, which is why "tone up the mushy parts" is so meaningless. Even if you're doing successful recomp, the fat comes off where it wants to come off, not just from "the mushy parts."
  • vjohn04
    vjohn04 Posts: 2,276 Member
    It's almost impossibly slow for women, which is why I don't recommend it. Further, you still have zero control over where the fat comes off, which is why "tone up the mushy parts" is so meaningless. Even if you're doing successful recomp, the fat comes off where it wants to come off, not just from "the mushy parts."


    At first.... it wasn't so slow for me... BUT just like losing weight-- and losing in your toughest places last, I'm finding that recomping is similar in that aspect.

    My butt and hamstring area are two tough customers!