People with high bf shouldn't attempt recomp?

halimaiqbal00
halimaiqbal00 Posts: 288 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
Any truth to this? I'm confused. It was recommended on this forum that I recomp but Ive read online a few times now that people with high bf shouldn't recomp. I'm confused. For the record, 32 year old female, 5' 7, 143 pounds. Estimated body fat is 28-29%

Replies

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Recomp is slow, and I guess the more fat you have, the slower it is, maybe that's why?
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
    edited October 2016
    Your body fat% was not mentioned on that thread you created. If memory serves me right only your weight was and you were ready to stop counting calories i.e. dieting as you were struggling with hunger, the scale/numbers were how you achieved sucess and failure and you and you were ready for what it appeared to be a diet break. Hense to answer your question, "do I need to focus on recomp".

    There is an impact of initial body fat and how it impacts on changes in body composition. But are you still wanting to cut further?

    eta: you can still do this with a really small deficit.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    You should always train of course and it's training that initiates recomposition but by far the easiest and fastest way to lose fat is from losing weight.

    But be careful about:
    1/ Believing BIA scales estimate of bodyfat. I've used some that were surprisingly reasonable but also tried some that currently say I'm over 33%. Your appearance is a far better guide than BIA scales.

    2/ Comparing yourself to people who may have very different goals to yourself. There's a world of difference if people have very advanced body composition/physique goals compared to "ordinary" people.

    If you are happy at your current weight (which certainly doesn't sound terribly high when you are 5'7) then there is absolutely no reason you can't recomp at maintenance.
    Maybe it would be the fastest or optimal way to get to your desired physique but all methods have pros and cons - there isn't one method that is right for everyone.

    If you think your bodyfat estimate is realistic then you could still keep a tiny deficit to work on losing a few pounds of fat.
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
    in my opinion? NO. Absolutely not.

    You have three options:
    1.) You can retain muscle and lose fat
    2.) You can gain muscle and gain some fat
    3.) You can try and do both over a very very long period of time

    In my opinion, especially when you have a lot of body fat to lose you should go ahead and focus on the first option. There's no reason to try and do both as inefficiently as possible when you still have too much body fat.


    I never recommend recomping unless someone is less than 23% body fat for women and 15% for men. This is especially true if the risks of staying one's current size outweigh any benefits of physical activity.
  • halimaiqbal00
    halimaiqbal00 Posts: 288 Member
    I didn't consider that the body fat reading in the scale could be inaccurate' come to think of it, when I was around 15 pounds heavier 10 years ago, and was the cardio Queen, I never once lifted weights and the body fat scales at the gym told me I was 24% body fat so something is definitely off!
  • halimaiqbal00
    halimaiqbal00 Posts: 288 Member
    I'm not sure what my maintenance calories are so I may have to just eat a little under what I think maintenance is and tweak it from there. Sorry, my head is spinning with information and researching online is making me more confused, hence all the questions for clarity purposes
  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    I never recommend recomping

    Edited for accuracy!
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
    trigden1991 wrote: »
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    I never recommend recomping

    Edited for accuracy!

    In general, yeah, i don't. Although i've done a recomp myself (about 4 years ago) and had success, it just took four months and a LOT of hard work. If i had focused my priorities sooner i wouldn't have wasted so much time.


    Here's my "recomp" results OP.

    These photos are around 4 years old, when i was actively trying to lose. So sorry for the bad quality.

    Around month 1 of recomp


    Around month 2 of recomp


    Around month 3 of recomp


    Around month 4 of recomp


    My waist went from 26 to 24 inches in this time and i got down to 23 inches and 18% body fat eventually before purposefully going on a bulk. I MAYBE lost 1 pound during this time. I nearly maintained my weight perfectly.
  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    trigden1991 wrote: »
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    I never recommend recomping

    Edited for accuracy!

    In general, yeah, i don't. Although i've done a recomp myself (about 4 years ago) and had success, it just took four months and a LOT of hard work. If i had focused my priorities sooner i wouldn't have wasted so much time.


    Here's my "recomp" results OP.

    These photos are around 4 years old, when i was actively trying to lose. So sorry for the bad quality.

    Around month 1 of recomp


    Around month 2 of recomp


    Around month 3 of recomp


    Around month 4 of recomp


    My waist went from 26 to 24 inches in this time and i got down to 23 inches and 18% body fat eventually before purposefully going on a bulk. I MAYBE lost 1 pound during this time. I nearly maintained my weight perfectly.

    Impressive results. How you worded that made it sound like you dieted down then bulked in that time period? Or am I misreading.

    In my opinion unless you are an experienced lifter in reasonable physical shape and have a good idea of what to expect (or on PED's) then recomp is not optimal. People want to see results fast and from what I see, a standard cut/bulk, for want of better words, would provide those results.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    trigden1991 wrote: »
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    I never recommend recomping

    Edited for accuracy!

    In general, yeah, i don't. Although i've done a recomp myself (about 4 years ago) and had success, it just took four months and a LOT of hard work. If i had focused my priorities sooner i wouldn't have wasted so much time.


    Here's my "recomp" results OP.

    These photos are around 4 years old, when i was actively trying to lose. So sorry for the bad quality.

    Around month 1 of recomp


    Around month 2 of recomp


    Around month 3 of recomp


    Around month 4 of recomp


    My waist went from 26 to 24 inches in this time and i got down to 23 inches and 18% body fat eventually before purposefully going on a bulk. I MAYBE lost 1 pound during this time. I nearly maintained my weight perfectly.

    A four month recomp is not a long time. That's a very short amount of time for a recomp. I'm not even sure I'd call four months a recomp. :/
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
    edited October 2016
    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    trigden1991 wrote: »
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    I never recommend recomping

    Edited for accuracy!

    In general, yeah, i don't. Although i've done a recomp myself (about 4 years ago) and had success, it just took four months and a LOT of hard work. If i had focused my priorities sooner i wouldn't have wasted so much time.


    Here's my "recomp" results OP.

    These photos are around 4 years old, when i was actively trying to lose. So sorry for the bad quality.

    Around month 1 of recomp


    Around month 2 of recomp


    Around month 3 of recomp


    Around month 4 of recomp


    My waist went from 26 to 24 inches in this time and i got down to 23 inches and 18% body fat eventually before purposefully going on a bulk. I MAYBE lost 1 pound during this time. I nearly maintained my weight perfectly.

    A four month recomp is not a long time. That's a very short amount of time for a recomp. I'm not even sure I'd call four months a recomp. :/

    well, it was a year in... the only thing that changed is calories (i ate just around maintenance) and lifting schedule.

    After this i continued for another 3 months before purposefully gaining.

    p.s. i'd say that this was a "cut" but to be fair i increased my calories significantly and there's less than a 1 pound difference during this time. This is after a year of lifting weights with a calorie deficit though. My point exactly was that had i not already put in the year of work to significantly reduce my body fat i don't think my results would have been so "spectacular".
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
    trigden1991 wrote: »
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    trigden1991 wrote: »
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    I never recommend recomping

    Edited for accuracy!

    In general, yeah, i don't. Although i've done a recomp myself (about 4 years ago) and had success, it just took four months and a LOT of hard work. If i had focused my priorities sooner i wouldn't have wasted so much time.


    Here's my "recomp" results OP.

    These photos are around 4 years old, when i was actively trying to lose. So sorry for the bad quality.

    Around month 1 of recomp


    Around month 2 of recomp


    Around month 3 of recomp


    Around month 4 of recomp


    My waist went from 26 to 24 inches in this time and i got down to 23 inches and 18% body fat eventually before purposefully going on a bulk. I MAYBE lost 1 pound during this time. I nearly maintained my weight perfectly.

    Impressive results. How you worded that made it sound like you dieted down then bulked in that time period? Or am I misreading.

    In my opinion unless you are an experienced lifter in reasonable physical shape and have a good idea of what to expect (or on PED's) then recomp is not optimal. People want to see results fast and from what I see, a standard cut/bulk, for want of better words, would provide those results.

    I agree and this was my point exactly.

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