Continue 'Recomp' or lose more weight?
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It might also be worth remembering that you can move out of maintenance back into a losing at any point in time. I find that recomp is much harder than losing because it can take so much longer to see results. Instead of losing a pound every week or two, I might lose half an inch on my hips in a month. I have found that when I eat a bit more, my workouts get better and I do see the results. I would give it another month before you make any changes.0
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PinkPixiexox wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »Stop comparing yourself to others.
Don't fixate on numbers.
Don't major in the minors.
Be patient.
I feel like I could post these four sentences in every one of your threads. You get great advice from lots of people about recomping and how long that takes. One person says they personally would want to lose more so now that's what you are focusing on...
I just wanted to add (in the nicest way possible) - I've been doing 'this' healthily for around 5 months. MFP became a community that I felt I could involve myself in and learn from. I came from an uneducated mind-set, knowing nothing of the process or the sensible way of doing things. I had a very disordered way of eating through plain ignorance and a life-time of insecurities. It is very, very difficult for me at times to simply 'not compare myself to others' or 'not to fixate on numbers' but thankfully, thanks to MFP - logic always kicks in and I breathe a little. You may suggest professional help to me - something I have sought and succeeded in getting previously. I use MFP for ongoing advice when I doubt myself and when I need re-affirmation.
I also use MFP to reach out to others and offer my kindness and my experiences too. My threads bother you and I understand the 'softly softly' approach isn't always what people need. But I can't apologise for reaching out either. There are some people, like me - that sometimes need a boost here and there. That sometimes need facts and a reminder. I do not have a support system around me in regards to weight loss and all involved with it so I do take advantage of the forum's. I have only ever offered kindness and understanding here. My aim isn't to 'annoy' or to have people repeat themselves. I appreciate every single bit of advice I am given. I may sound like a broken record and I'm hoping the community can overlook that and understand.
I'm sorry if you took my post the wrong way. I am never annoyed with people asking questions and I understand that different types of feedback resonate with different people. I have seen your advice to others in the forums and I think you have given very sound, logical advice and have been a helpful addition to this community. When you ask questions for yourself though, you tend to get very confused by any conflicting opinions and it clearly unsettles you. I just wish you could have the same confidence in your own approach to this as you do when advising others what to do.
That's all. My frustration isn't that you asked a question or aren't sure what to do. My frustration is that you tend to focus on one piece of advice that seems to muddy the waters from what most people largely agree on. Give the recomp time. Don't worry about the scale for a while. Approach recomp the same healthy way that you approached weight loss. You are doing great.
Also back to your original question I have same stats as you, started about 153 at 5'2 and am maintaining at 123. I'm very interested in your results with recomp as I have not started a formal strength program but definitely see myself heading that way.
Good luck!
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if you are skinny fat and are at about 22% body fat, then you may want to run a bulk/cut cycle. Aim for .5 pound per week gain and add some muscle to your frame, and you will be amazed at how you look/feel.
I agree with others as three weeks is not enough time to assess a recomp, that will take you at least six months to a year.0 -
if you are skinny fat and are at about 22% body fat, then you may want to run a bulk/cut cycle. Aim for .5 pound per week gain and add some muscle to your frame, and you will be amazed at how you look/feel.
I agree with others as three weeks is not enough time to assess a recomp, that will take you at least six months to a year.
I like this advice! I am going with recomp because at my age I suspect that I will not be able to grow muscle fast enough to use the extra calories and will gain too much fat. But that shouldn't be the case for you. You aren't confined to the slow route for age reasons at least. You may be happier with more noticeable changes (in both parts of the cycle).0 -
if you are skinny fat and are at about 22% body fat, then you may want to run a bulk/cut cycle. Aim for .5 pound per week gain and add some muscle to your frame, and you will be amazed at how you look/feel.
I agree with others as three weeks is not enough time to assess a recomp, that will take you at least six months to a year.
22% body fat for a female is in the fitness range, and is not "skinny fat".
http://www.oxygenmag.com/article/the-fit-womans-guide-to-body-fat-92350 -
You asked the exact question that has been plaguing me, and I have almost the EXACT stats as you...0
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if you are skinny fat and are at about 22% body fat, then you may want to run a bulk/cut cycle. Aim for .5 pound per week gain and add some muscle to your frame, and you will be amazed at how you look/feel.
I agree with others as three weeks is not enough time to assess a recomp, that will take you at least six months to a year.
22% body fat for a female is in the fitness range, and is not "skinny fat".
http://www.oxygenmag.com/article/the-fit-womans-guide-to-body-fat-9235
I am going by what OP said in her opening statement which is that she is 22% body fat and is what people would call "skinny fat" her words, not mine.
that is why I started my statement with "if"...
how can you determine she is or is not skinny fat without seeing pictures???? If she is 22% body fat and has no mass then she may meet the qualification for skinny fat...0 -
if you are skinny fat and are at about 22% body fat, then you may want to run a bulk/cut cycle. Aim for .5 pound per week gain and add some muscle to your frame, and you will be amazed at how you look/feel.
I agree with others as three weeks is not enough time to assess a recomp, that will take you at least six months to a year.
22% body fat for a female is in the fitness range, and is not "skinny fat".
http://www.oxygenmag.com/article/the-fit-womans-guide-to-body-fat-9235
I am going by what OP said in her opening statement which is that she is 22% body fat and is what people would call "skinny fat" her words, not mine.
that is why I started my statement with "if"...
how can you determine she is or is not skinny fat without seeing pictures???? If she is 22% body fat and has no mass then she may meet the qualification for skinny fat...
The OP has pics in her profile, and my post was intended for her benefit, to realise she is not "skinny fat". 22% body fat means 78% LBM.0 -
I am definitely 'skinny fat' :]
I think gaining at this point just isn't something I can really get my ahead around - maybe in the future when I'm a little more comfortable with the idea but right now, I definitely want to remain at the weight I am. I guess I just want to see the definition and lose this 'wobble'! I will give it time, as advised. Thank you so much.0 -
I agree with what the majority of people have said -- recomp, give yourself time, ignore what other people's weights are, etc. One thing I would like to recommend is to set a fitness-related goal, or a few. If you've been losing weight for awhile, you've had a goal and have seen regular progress toward that goal. That's fun, and rewarding, and it's easy to motivate yourself once you start seeing success. Maintenance can be tricky because you're not seeing that regular progress toward something, and progress during a recomp is slow and isn't measured on a week-to-week basis (like you can measure weight loss). Setting some lifting goals, where you can watch yourself make progress from week to week, might help get you into a different mindset.
FWIW, if your goal is to gain muscle and strength, and if you really are skinny fat (in the sense of having low LBM), losing more weight isn't going to help. I feel like you already know that, but might need to hear other people say it.0 -
FWIW , if it were me I'd get myself out of the losing / gaining mindset and keep lifting at maintenance and see where it takes you. Then further down the road re-evalute whether a long recomp or bursts of losing and gaining are what you want.
If you're looking for a better idea of your bf% , there is a thread somewhere with helpful people on it who make informed guesses based on decent photos. Maybe somebody else posting knows which thread ... I can't recall0 -
PinkPixiexox wrote: »I am definitely 'skinny fat' :]
I think gaining at this point just isn't something I can really get my ahead around - maybe in the future when I'm a little more comfortable with the idea but right now, I definitely want to remain at the weight I am. I guess I just want to see the definition and lose this 'wobble'! I will give it time, as advised. Thank you so much.
you have two choices then continue with the recomp and re-assess where you are in about six months. I would suggest taking measurements every four weeks to track your progress.
OR
you can eat in a slight deficit of say 250 calories, or less, and lose some body fat and try to retain what mass you have...
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Look into HIIT cardio, I recently started this and it already seems to be helping (sorry if it has already been recommended).0
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if you are skinny fat and are at about 22% body fat, then you may want to run a bulk/cut cycle. Aim for .5 pound per week gain and add some muscle to your frame, and you will be amazed at how you look/feel.
I agree with others as three weeks is not enough time to assess a recomp, that will take you at least six months to a year.
22% body fat for a female is in the fitness range, and is not "skinny fat".
http://www.oxygenmag.com/article/the-fit-womans-guide-to-body-fat-9235
I am going by what OP said in her opening statement which is that she is 22% body fat and is what people would call "skinny fat" her words, not mine.
that is why I started my statement with "if"...
how can you determine she is or is not skinny fat without seeing pictures???? If she is 22% body fat and has no mass then she may meet the qualification for skinny fat...
The OP has pics in her profile, and my post was intended for her benefit, to realise she is not "skinny fat". 22% body fat means 78% LBM.
looking at those profile pics there is no way to assess if she is skinny fat or not. She would need to post front and back pictures in a flexed and unflexed position to give her an accurate assessment.0 -
I'm going to eat at maintenance - or a very, very tiny deficit and just re-assess in a few months time :]
I have my entire life to get this 'spot on' and I will never be that airbrushed 'perfection' I seem to assume I'll be. I need to be a little more realistic in my goals, I think. I expect too much of myself and not only is it unfair on ME, it's tiring and makes it all miserable. Let's see how the maintenance goes
Thank you everyone.0 -
PinkPixiexox wrote: »I know I personally wouldn't be satisfied around at that weight even recomped, but I am one of "those" people on the low end on my bmi. If you haven't given it a serious try I'd stick it out a bit longer. I will say the last 5-8 lbs I lost with cardio and weight lifting I lost a bunch of inches. I used to have 26 inch waist at 105 at 5'3" but I usually measure between 22.5"-23" these days so losing even a few more lbs in my experience I can make a huge difference. So if you find you aren't getting the results you want try losing a few more lbs while keeping up the lifting and cardio and it might whoosh off like it did for me.
For me, it's not so much about 'weight'. And this picture is why:
What I'm saying is - The 'heavier' weight looks the best in this photograph, in my opinion. I need to build muscle to get a look like that. I can't build muscle in a deficit..
You literally asked if you should lose more weight and I gave you my experience. Losing a few more lbs made a huge difference with lifting for my measurements. Not every skinny person is skinny fat plenty of us are muscular and strong. If you want to gain muscle you are correct you need a surplus. However that's certainly not what you seemed to originally be asking. If you don't care about the number why would it matter if you lost a few more lbs?
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I am a lighter short person. I am 5 foot tall and around 100 lbs. I am 41.
When I was much younger I looked OK around 120 pounds. As I got older and begin to lose muscle mass I started to look chubby. I dropped down to 115 and looked OK again. A few more years and I started to look chubby again and dropped to 110.
Now that I am 41 and 100 pounds I wish I had started lifting weights much earlier. I have been working on recomp since last January and I have never looked this good before. Once I lean out a little more I intend on putting on a little weight. I would love to eat like a heavier person
You started a lifting program at 24. I would bet within 3 months you will seem noticeable changes in your body. In a year you will look fantastic. And when you hit my age the young men will be drooling when you walk past.0 -
PinkPixiexox wrote: »I'm going to eat at maintenance - or a very, very tiny deficit and just re-assess in a few months time :]
I have my entire life to get this 'spot on' and I will never be that airbrushed 'perfection' I seem to assume I'll be. I need to be a little more realistic in my goals, I think. I expect too much of myself and not only is it unfair on ME, it's tiring and makes it all miserable. Let's see how the maintenance goes
Thank you everyone.
Good girl! I think you may have this...0 -
I'm also 5'2, and am 124. Seriously considering moving to recomp. ... nice to see more of us happy in the middle bmi. I completely understand why you're agonizing over this decision. ..I am too. A crystal ball would help, right? So we could see if the path we're on leads where we want to be going! No advice for you, just wanted to let you know you're not alone!0
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Can I ask, just out of curiosity, in that photo you shared — is that the same girl? Or the same girl, for all intents and purposes, like the same height statistics and such? Just curious!0
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