Building muscle and losing that last bit of fat

Whagwan83
Whagwan83 Posts: 81 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi guys,

First things first I'm pretty new to all this.

So I've successfully lost my gut, and my weight is pretty much where I am happy. I'm currently about 16.5% body fat but would still like to drop below 15%, preferably down to 12% or so.

I'm still running my calorie deficit at ~1700 calories currently, but trying to increase my protein intake to hit my macro target there.

Diary is open if anyone wants to look.

I've started strength training at the gym, as want to bulk out now.

Now I've heard it many times about how you (generally) can't build muscle whilst running a deficit. So my question is:

What should I be doing to make most gains from weight training 3-4 days/ week and yet still decreasing my body fat percentage? (I still do a lot of cardio for fun, commute and general fitness)

Replies

  • SweatLikeDog
    SweatLikeDog Posts: 319 Member
    Judging from your picture, you look around 10 percent body fat. How did you measure it?
  • CoachChris78
    CoachChris78 Posts: 30 Member
    Dude, good work.

    You now need to make a decision on what you want to achieve. Either drop bodyfat or build muscle. I would suggest buil the muscle first and then cut. The more muscle mass you have the easier the cut will be.

    You need to lift at least 4 days a week for about an hour and you need to eat BIG. Ideally eat clean and make sure you hit your macros. This will take a while but you will build your muscles up. (I assume you are using free weigths and building your lifting around big compound lifts squats/deads/pushpress/bench)

    Also cut out as much of the cardio as you can as it will work against your bulking. Do this until you are happy with your size and then start cuttig again.
  • ThePhoenixIsRising
    ThePhoenixIsRising Posts: 781 Member
    What you are wanting to do is called body recomp. This is a slow process and one that is achieved eating much closer to your tdee.
  • Whagwan83
    Whagwan83 Posts: 81 Member
    Judging from your picture, you look around 10 percent body fat. How did you measure it?

    Single calliper measurement above iliac crest. 14mm still translates as 15-17% according to my table.

    Even going by these pics here http://www.ruled.me/visually-estimate-body-fat-percentage/ I'd say I'm definitely not below 14% and nowhere near 10%
  • tomcornhole
    tomcornhole Posts: 1,084 Member
    Achieving a BF% is an ambiguous goal and is probably one of the most frustrating endeavors I have ever undertaken. I chased 10% BF (and abs) from 254 lbs to 178 lbs and ended up at 12% looking like a POW. The only thing that stopped me from going lower was my boss told me I looked like *kitten*.

    So I stopped losing weight and re-evaluated my goals. Decided I wanted to be supremely strong. Started powerlifting and got strong. Decided I needed more muscle to get stronger, so I started a bulk (ate a lot). Went up to 205 lbs and started to look fat. So I stopped gaining weight. Kept lifting. Competed. Got stronger.

    I'm now at 200 lbs. I look better at 200 than I did at 178. I am at 18% BF vs. 12% BF and still look better. Now I am going to cut down to 190, see what I look like and probably start another bulk back to 205.

    So, what do you want to do? I would recommend a bulk. Add 5 lbs of muscle by eating at a 300 cal / day surplus and strength training 3x a week. Cut the cardio down or if you really like it, eat a LOT (500 cal / day surplus) and lots of protein. Target a specific weight to achieve and then maintain that for a month and see what's what. Then decide where to go from there.

    Enjoy the ride.

    Tom
  • 212019156
    212019156 Posts: 341 Member
    First off I think you BF% is lower than you are stating.

    Second, If you are a noob to weight training you will probably gain some muscle regardless of what you do. Initial gains your first year for someone who has not lifted before can be up to around 20 lbs. This is dependent on genetics though so you may not gain than much. Additionally once you gain this initial spike of muscle weight the first year muscle gains slow down dramatically. The exception to this is if as Hulk Hogan would say you take your "vitamins".

    Either way good job on the weight loss.
  • Whagwan83
    Whagwan83 Posts: 81 Member
    Body fat calliper measurement ties in roughly to all the pictures I've seen and with my calliper readings.

    I'd say I'm definitely closest to the 15% picture here: http://www.bccorefitness.com/images/body-fat-percentage-men.jpg

    The picture in my profile is definitely the most flattering, as far as lighting goes. One of my other pics is only a few days ago and shows less definition.

    I'm currently training four mornings a week, for 45mins to an hr at a time. Weights on three days and a kettlebell class on the other.

    So basically now I have to go from 1700 net calories at a deficit to 2300 calories at a surplus?
  • 212019156
    212019156 Posts: 341 Member
    I used to work for one of the leading manufacturers of DEXA scanners. DEXA is the best method for determining body comp. After years of performing those scans I'm pretty good at eye-balling someone and making an educated guess. I would say you are around 12 to 13% based on your profile pic. Its funny because most people think they are leaner than they actually are (especially men).
  • ThePhoenixIsRising
    ThePhoenixIsRising Posts: 781 Member
    Body fat calliper measurement ties in roughly to all the pictures I've seen and with my calliper readings.

    I'd say I'm definitely closest to the 15% picture here: http://www.bccorefitness.com/images/body-fat-percentage-men.jpg

    The picture in my profile is definitely the most flattering, as far as lighting goes. One of my other pics is only a few days ago and shows less definition.

    I'm currently training four mornings a week, for 45mins to an hr at a time. Weights on three days and a kettlebell class on the other.

    So basically now I have to go from 1700 net calories at a deficit to 2300 calories at a surplus?
    I'm willing to bet you will have to go higher. I was on 2300 and started to lose .5 a week. Just upped it to 2700. I'm 5'10" 150# female training 4x a week
  • Whagwan83
    Whagwan83 Posts: 81 Member
    Well to be honest this is all great news:

    Body fat at target, and I get to eat more again!


    So basically I have to bulk up until I'm reasonably happy with the gains, and then have a period of running a calorie deficit again to cut the fat?
  • 212019156
    212019156 Posts: 341 Member
    The actual body fat percent number does not matter all that much if you appear as lean as you like. Different people carry body fat differently.
    Well to be honest this is all great news:

    Body fat at target, and I get to eat more again!


    So basically I have to bulk up until I'm reasonably happy with the gains, and then have a period of running a calorie deficit again to cut the fat?
  • Whagwan83
    Whagwan83 Posts: 81 Member
    Yeah, I realise that, it's just that one of my arbitrary goals when I started looking after myself was BF<15%.

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