Recomposition: Maintaining weight while losing fat

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  • Sumiblue
    Sumiblue Posts: 1,597 Member
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    ^^^i agree! Amazing work!
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,160 Member
    edited September 2016
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    @sunflowerhippi clearly gaining two pounds was a positive thing in your case. The new muscle that has formed over your lower ribs is easy to see in your last photo. Great job.
  • _piaffe
    _piaffe Posts: 163 Member
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    Insanely impressive, sunflowerhippi!
  • sunflowerhippi
    sunflowerhippi Posts: 1,086 Member
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    Yeah now if only i can get my thighs to lean out. I really don't want to cut more as my upper is lean already for my body fat being 21%
  • DebSozo
    DebSozo Posts: 2,578 Member
    edited September 2016
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    usmcmp wrote: »
    There's a lot of talk about recomposition through the boards, so I wanted to have a place where we can compile research on it and experiences with it.

    When is recomp appropriate? When you are at a decent weight for your height, but your body fat is still at a level that is undesirable to you recomposition is probably a good option. It's a way to maintain your weight, eat well and still lose fat. This is a slow process and can feel like spinning your wheels, but it can be less mentally stressful than bulk and cut cycles.

    The keys to recomposition are:

    1. At the end of the week you have eaten at about your TDEE. You may choose to cycle calories or eat at a flat rate every day, this should fit your personal preference. If you have a consistent workout schedule using a TDEE calculator should place your goal fairly close to your actual maintenance. The only way to know for sure is to monitor your weight and calories over time while adjusting calories when you have an up or down trend.

    2. Getting adequate protein. Protein is a building block of muscle. The goal of recomposition is to build muscle and lose fat at the same time. Protein, carbohydrates and fats play different roles in the muscle building process, so make sure that you keep to a macronutrient set up that works for you. This may need to be adjusted over time.

    3. Lift! Following a good lifting program is the key to the entire process. It's where the magic happens. Pick a program that you will enjoy and that is going to challenge you. Continue to focus on improving.

    4. Take pictures and measure. It's a slow process and you may feel you are making no progress. Your measurements will help you see that you are making progress.

    Feel free to share stories of recomposition and any research you have seen on it. Ask questions if you have any.

    Thank you for starting this thread. Until MFP I was not familiar with recomp. I started tentatively trying it out a couple months ago and have slowly seen changes in body composition. I've noticed my arms and legs feel "harder", meaning the fat layer has gone down. Also my muscles in my legs are starting to show through more than before as I walk up stairs, etc., and my stomach is flatter. Also the slight back fat under the bra line has smoothed down. My body shape looks better, and the waist is nipped in more also. Thank you so much.
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
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    @sunflowerhippi you look fantastic.. great recomp progress right there!
  • griffinca2
    griffinca2 Posts: 672 Member
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    OK, need some answers! I'm trying to figure out calories; per the calculator on Bodybuilding.com I have 89-90% lean body mass. What does that mean and how can I use that # to figure out my calories. I'm 60+, do full-body workouts 3 X a week (no pink dumbbells) and eat close to 1500 cals a day (usually more on the days I workout) and am having trouble staying at 116/117 (have gone down to 113--which in my books is too skinny for a 60+ female). Some sites have me eating close to 2000 and some calculate me at 1350--nuts. I don't eat "sparkling clean," but do my best to eat whole (real) food. Any advice would be appreciated. B)
  • griffinca2
    griffinca2 Posts: 672 Member
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    Oops; I meant activity level; there are so many definitions out there not sure if I should be "sedentary," lightly active." or somewhere in between.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    10% BF?

    Not impossible - but rather low for female.

    Try this to get estimate using workout and daily activity levels based on what you actually do.
    Just TDEE Please spreadsheet - better than rough 5 level TDEE charts.
    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1G7FgNzPq3v5WMjDtH0n93LXSMRY_hjmzNTMJb3aZSxM/edit?usp=sharing

    Just follow the instructions in upper right to make your own copy, log measurements down below.

    Because the rough 5 level charts only speak to exercise - not your daily activity.
    Because a mailman and and desk jockey doing 4 hrs of lifting per week all other stats being equal - obviously don't have the same TDEE.
  • Sumiblue
    Sumiblue Posts: 1,597 Member
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    I'm guessing that was lbs and not %. I'm in the 90-92lbs of lean mass, according to hydro fat test & Bodpod.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    griffinca2 wrote: »
    OK, need some answers! I'm trying to figure out calories; per the calculator on Bodybuilding.com I have 89-90% lean body mass. What does that mean and how can I use that # to figure out my calories. I'm 60+, do full-body workouts 3 X a week (no pink dumbbells) and eat close to 1500 cals a day (usually more on the days I workout) and am having trouble staying at 116/117 (have gone down to 113--which in my books is too skinny for a 60+ female). Some sites have me eating close to 2000 and some calculate me at 1350--nuts. I don't eat "sparkling clean," but do my best to eat whole (real) food. Any advice would be appreciated. B)
    @griffinca2
    My advice would be stop looking at calculators and messing about with activity settings!
    They simply give you a start point - a little bit of logging inaccuracy would throw out the numbers from a perfect calculator anyway, even if there was such a thing!

    If you know what happens when you eat at 1500 (i.e. you lose weight) - simply increase your calories a bit. Manually change your calorie goal until you find your balance point.


  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
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    Does anyone on here that is recomping utilize an EOD protocol? Either caloric or carbohydrate?
  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,977 Member
    edited September 2016
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    griffinca2 wrote: »
    --like I said earlier skinny does not look good on older folks and it's not healthy either

    Hmmm???

    Where'd you get this idea? Depends a lot on what you mean by "skinny" (anorexic definitely isn't attractive) but it's pretty well established that health/fitness is not positively correlated w/excess fat.

    So, as a 65 year old 168# man at less than 20% BF whose GF calls him skinny and who hasn't been more fit and healthy in years, I respectfully disagree.
  • DebSozo
    DebSozo Posts: 2,578 Member
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    arditarose wrote: »
    I remember first reading this thread over a year ago and wanting to try a recomp. I overthought it like crazy. Then I gave up and went the cut and bulk route.

    Now it seems so simple. Eat at maintenance. Train hard. Even better if you have fitness goals-and the physique will follow. Now recomp is all I do...it's called eating TDEE and picking things up/putting them down.

    I agree and am puzzled why so many people think it is "hard". I am so thankful to have found this thread. I love eating TDEE also. I don't "eat back" calories because I figure in exercise as simply part of my daily energy expenditure. My body shape was getting weird (for me), and I was beginning to think an expanding waistline was inevitable. Plus people think that this is some kind of long, drawn out process. I've seen appreciable changes in a few months. I've lost the emerging muffin top and tummy roll. I am ecstatic because I'm back in tank tops and body conscious dresses. Whoot!
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    DebSozo wrote: »
    arditarose wrote: »
    I remember first reading this thread over a year ago and wanting to try a recomp. I overthought it like crazy. Then I gave up and went the cut and bulk route.

    Now it seems so simple. Eat at maintenance. Train hard. Even better if you have fitness goals-and the physique will follow. Now recomp is all I do...it's called eating TDEE and picking things up/putting them down.

    I agree and am puzzled why so many people think it is "hard". I am so thankful to have found this thread. I love eating TDEE also. I don't "eat back" calories because I figure in exercise as simply part of my daily energy expenditure. My body shape was getting weird (for me), and I was beginning to think an expanding waistline was inevitable. Plus people think that this is some kind of long, drawn out process. I've seen appreciable changes in a few months. I've lost the emerging muffin top and tummy roll. I am ecstatic because I'm back in tank tops and body conscious dresses. Whoot!

    Well, as I said, I was one of those who thought it was hard. So I get it. I was just trying to be encouraging.
  • DebSozo
    DebSozo Posts: 2,578 Member
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    arditarose wrote: »
    DebSozo wrote: »
    arditarose wrote: »
    I remember first reading this thread over a year ago and wanting to try a recomp. I overthought it like crazy. Then I gave up and went the cut and bulk route.

    Now it seems so simple. Eat at maintenance. Train hard. Even better if you have fitness goals-and the physique will follow. Now recomp is all I do...it's called eating TDEE and picking things up/putting them down.

    I agree and am puzzled why so many people think it is "hard". I am so thankful to have found this thread. I love eating TDEE also. I don't "eat back" calories because I figure in exercise as simply part of my daily energy expenditure. My body shape was getting weird (for me), and I was beginning to think an expanding waistline was inevitable. Plus people think that this is some kind of long, drawn out process. I've seen appreciable changes in a few months. I've lost the emerging muffin top and tummy roll. I am ecstatic because I'm back in tank tops and body conscious dresses. Whoot!

    Well, as I said, I was one of those who thought it was hard. So I get it. I was just trying to be encouraging.

    I get that! <3
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
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    arditarose wrote: »
    I remember first reading this thread over a year ago and wanting to try a recomp. I overthought it like crazy. Then I gave up and went the cut and bulk route.

    Now it seems so simple. Eat at maintenance. Train hard. Even better if you have fitness goals-and the physique will follow. Now recomp is all I do...it's called eating TDEE and picking things up/putting them down.

    Yah I kept overthinking it too. Now I am bulking. Just because it is in line with my goals at the moment. Oh well maybe next year I will give recomp a real try.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,389 MFP Moderator
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    DebSozo wrote: »
    arditarose wrote: »
    I remember first reading this thread over a year ago and wanting to try a recomp. I overthought it like crazy. Then I gave up and went the cut and bulk route.

    Now it seems so simple. Eat at maintenance. Train hard. Even better if you have fitness goals-and the physique will follow. Now recomp is all I do...it's called eating TDEE and picking things up/putting them down.

    I agree and am puzzled why so many people think it is "hard". I am so thankful to have found this thread. I love eating TDEE also. I don't "eat back" calories because I figure in exercise as simply part of my daily energy expenditure. My body shape was getting weird (for me), and I was beginning to think an expanding waistline was inevitable. Plus people think that this is some kind of long, drawn out process. I've seen appreciable changes in a few months. I've lost the emerging muffin top and tummy roll. I am ecstatic because I'm back in tank tops and body conscious dresses. Whoot!

    It would depend on their goals and if there are associated time frames. Recomping for many just takes longer than they are willing to deal with. Others find it beneficial.

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