Are my goals realistic?

I'm 19..127 lbs..5 ft 7ish ..body fat around 20%..basically skinny fat

1) My long term goal is to cut and shed of the excess fat (especially on my belly) before bulking so I have a good frame.

2) my short term goal is to reach 15 - 16 % bf by May

My current bf is 20% which according to my weight is 25lbs of fat I want to bring it down to 15% I.e 19.5lbs
Therefore I wanna shed around 5 lbs of fat until May. Since 1lb can be shed in a week by deficit and workouts..I'm assuming il reach my goal in 5 to 6 weeks. But contrary to that I heard it takes months to to reduce just 1% of bf

So are my goals realistic and achievable..or do they need mending?
Any advice and/or criticism is appreciated.

Replies

  • wilsoje74
    wilsoje74 Posts: 1,720 Member
    You are a male and weigh 127 lb??? Lift and put on some weight!!!
  • ElliottTN
    ElliottTN Posts: 1,614 Member
    You are a male and weigh 127 lb??? Lift and put on some weight!!!

    You are a female and you weigh how much more than 115? Go get on a treadmill and lose some weight!!!!

    ^^^^Doesn't feel good when someone puts it like that to you now does it?

    I hate to admit it though OP but she is kinda right with her suggestion. When people say it takes months to drop a percentage body fat then they are usually talking in the much lower numbers. Think 13% or lower for males. If you really are at 20% it will be much easier.

    The thing really is you have something really going for you right now. You are 19. Your hormones right now are at a natural peak for a male. If you really are 127 lbs of skinny fat and drop 5-10lbs you are not going to really look that much terribly different in the end. At the other end of the spectrum, since you are 19 with hormones a blasting then it is a perfect time to hit the gym to really work on your base with a bulk first. I would say go up 15-20 lbs first with 500-700 over your caloric maintenance then cut the weight back down. You will look much much much better at the end of that then what you would in the reverse. You may even look pretty good after the initial gain before you cut it down. Either way if you have hopes of having something to show off this summer I would say you came way to late to the game.
  • addydaddy94
    addydaddy94 Posts: 18 Member
    Yea well... :/
    I wanna reduce my bf% first though
  • addydaddy94
    addydaddy94 Posts: 18 Member
    Hahaha! Yea but there's always next summer!
    That's some advice..appreciate it!
  • Sarah4fitness
    Sarah4fitness Posts: 437 Member
    Bulk first. Then cut. The muscle you build will make the cut easier, and more maintainable once you've done it. Just my $.02
  • addydaddy94
    addydaddy94 Posts: 18 Member
    Appreciate it..it's just that when I look in the mirror I know I want to get rid of that belly more than I want muscles right now..and bulking would only make it look worse
  • Sarah4fitness
    Sarah4fitness Posts: 437 Member
    Hard to gage if you're being realistic without pics.
  • ElliottTN
    ElliottTN Posts: 1,614 Member
    Is your outlook going to be really that much different if you drop the weight and end up having the body of Michael Cera....minus the fame and comedic talent and so on....
  • jwdieter
    jwdieter Posts: 2,582 Member
    Having small shoulders, chest, and arms will make your stomach area look relatively larger. Lifting and eating will help.

    Much better off establishing decent muscle mass than chasing a belly down a rabbit hole with cardio.
  • navyrigger46
    navyrigger46 Posts: 1,301 Member
    I agree with the others OP, you should bulk first. What are you going to cut down to? 110 pounds? Bulk first and then cut.

    Rigger
  • addydaddy94
    addydaddy94 Posts: 18 Member
    I am at the same time trying to gain a little muscle by working out .. Although I know that you can't cut and bullk at the same time but being a beginner pardons me to some extent. I think I should get back to this post once I have pictures to upload of my current self. Would give everyone a better reference.