Where to go from here

nettiklive

Just typed up a huge detailed post that got deleted on me so I'll just cut right to the chase. 5'4, 120 lb female, was 115 until this winter when weight jumped five lbs for some reason (maintained for over a decade previously through all sorts of eating so don't know if age is kicking on or what). Lifting on and off for a couple of years. Happy with my muscle tone and don't want to look any bigger or a lot more muscular, DO want to look narrower, slimmer and smaller, but also not lose muscle I've worked to build. Don't want to bulk and cut so attempting to do a recomp but not sure if I'm just spinning my wheels. Also the sudden weight gain is giving me panic that this is a slippery slope to my grandma's fate who was slim until her mid-thirties only to balloon up to morbid obesity by middle age which she said was hormonal (I don't remember her eating a lot ever). I have her body type so any unexplained weight gain triggers panic, I've been cutting intake and hitting the gym extra hard last two months with no changes. My maintenance is only around 1400 so not a lot to play with. I don't know where to go from here to cut some extra fat but not end up just losing muscle and slowing metabolism. Any advice welcome. Oh and please no comments about loving yourself and body positivity etc. I know I don't look bad and I know I'm nitpicking, so looking for opinions of like minded body composition nitpickers, no mental health crap. Thank you.
Pics of what I look like now:

nettiklive

My ideal body is something like this - obviously probably not entirely realistic, but just to show size and amount of muscle vs curves that's my preference

sardelsa

Recomp sounds like a good fit for you. I would definitely not recommend bulk/cut cycles for you at this time especially since you don't have any intention to put on weight or get bigger or more muscular. There is a lot of recomp success stories if you check out this thread

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10177803/recomposition-maintaining-weight-while-losing-fat/p1

Good luck!

sardelsa

Also that woman looks the way she does mostly due to genetics I'd imagine, maybe some muscle gain? But mostly genetics. It's not impossible but a lot of work to get close... I started from no curves and have built up to look like something similar. But again that combination of genes and bulk/cut cycles got me where I am.

middlehaitch

Recomps are slow, but worth it.

You won’t see results in 2month, you need at least 6 month of consistent progressive lifting to know if you are moving in the right direction. (JMHO) and then adjusting from there. What programme are you following and what results are you looking for?

Honestly, I wouldn’t cut any more weight, I would try upping my NEAT so I get extra cals, and eating back exercise cals.

Sometimes eating a little bit more than your TDEE can give you more energy in your work out and therefore improve your results. (This was my experience, an extra 70cals a day (an egg ) did wonders for my energy level when lifting, without any weight gain.)

Cheers, h.

cupcakesandproteinshakes

I think if weight gain really freaks you out then recomp is the better choice. That said I have been lifting for 2 years while recomping and I haven’t seen a massive difference just very small changes. To be honest I think I’d need to cut some fat to see my progress properly. From what I’ve read recomp gets harder the more advanced you get at lifting. For me I’ve accepted it’s gonna take years to get muscular and that I may need to do cuts and bulks eventually. But just not mentally ready at the moment. Cos I hate feeling hungry!
What programme are you following? Because a regular professionally designed programme that meets yr goals is obviously an important factor.

cupcakesandproteinshakes

Just reread the bit about your grandmother. Did she really go from slim to morbidly obese overnight? It doesn’t seem likely. It’s not gonna happen to you as long as you keep an eye on your weight and make adjustments accordingly. 5 pound gain is annoying but it’s still a small gain.

Noreenmarie1234

You pretty much look exactly like that girl in terms of amount of fat/muscle, but you have a slightly different body shape. You look incredible! I agree with others that maybe some cut and bulk cycles would help you achieve even more of the look you are going for.

Tedebearduff

Hire a coach.... you can't change the size of your hips, also not sure if you're doing a vacuum in the pics or not? doing one will falre out your lats making you look "bigger" top side. Anyways a coach is the way to go.