eat to reduce body fat.

jquintinjr

how should i eat to bring my bf down to 7%. its at 10 or 11 now

itsmenatalie

What's your motivation for wanting to drop to 7%? I've always been taught that anything under 8% for men is unhealthy.

ETA: for women it's a lot higher - more like 14%

samseed101

At 137lbs, I;m not sure you should be trying to drop down to such a low BF%. Unless you are REALLY short, then it probably means that you don't have a lot of muscle mass under what little fat you have. If you do drop down that low, it's probably going to look bad.

It's not easy to maintain a BF% that low. That's something I usually see people hold for a few days or weeks at most before falling back to a walking range of 9 - 10%. Out of curiosity, why are you trying to drop that low? If you're getting ready for a bb competition then it makes sense. But if you are trying to do it to get a 6 pack or to get some definition, then it's not going to help. If you have any muscle mass and a decent set of abs, then you should be able to easily see it at 10%> If you can't then that probably means they need to get bigger to begin with. Losing too much weight and then carrying 7% bf usually ends up making people look like a skinned rabbit.

jquintinjr

haha lol. the rabbit. um its cuz i want extreme definition in my abs. right now i have a clearly defined 6pack but i want more muahahahahahaa. so should i increase my food intake? im 5'8.5'' and weigh 137.

jquintinjr

bump

crazyjkgirl

Ok. You should at this point be eating to maintain your current weight. You're clearly not- as you have your diary set to a goal of 1200 calories. For a male this is EXTREME starvation unless you were to weigh 300+ pounds and you clearly do not. My advice is to immediately change your goals on this website to maintain your current weight.

I've seen some of your other posts and to be honest, I think you need to make an appointment with a nutritionist or a doctor. You seem to have a tendency to go about things in extreme measures. I don't want this to sound harsh but I'm fairly convinced that your body image is entirely distorted. You admitted yourself in another post that you have a "self diagnosed eating disorder."

mlove1307

haha lol. the rabbit. um its cuz i want extreme definition in my abs. right now i have a clearly defined 6pack but i want more muahahahahahaa. so should i increase my food intake? im 5'8.5'' and weigh 137.

How about just increasing muscle mass??? Like you know, hit the gym. Hard. :]

BigdaddyJ

haha lol. the rabbit. um its cuz i want extreme definition in my abs. right now i have a clearly defined 6pack but i want more muahahahahahaa. so should i increase my food intake? im 5'8.5'' and weigh 137.

professionnal body builders will take their BF% extremly low to achieve maximum definition.....but they only reich that point for a couple of days and it means even dehydrating thier bodies....It's realy not healty to want to be like that permanently. If you want more definition, train accordingly, theres no easy way to get it...

Alsom if your goal is to aquire muscle mass, 1200 calories is way not enough, seriously your probably not getting 1/2 of the proteins you need for building up + your starving yourself (even if you dont feel hungry...trust me you do!) wich causes you body to burn your muscle mass instead of what little fat you've got. Seriously,you're doing more wrong than good!

samseed101

How about just increasing muscle mass??? Like you know, hit the gym. Hard. :]

That's the answer right there. Dropping your body fat percentage won't help get more definition if the muscle mass isn't there to begin with I shoot for 10% bodyfat myself when I'm trying to cut down. But it usually hangs a bit higher like around 12 - 14%. I'm sitting at 14% in my recent pic I have posted here, but I'm in the process of dropping it a couple points again.

If you are already at 10 - 11, then you should be fine. But you should really look to add some lean muscle mass so you have something to actually show under there

jquintinjr

thanks guys. and i have my diary set for 1200 so i make sure i pass starvation mode cut off. i really dont eat that much during my day.

Jennplus2

Not trying to sound mean, but you look 2 thin to me. I would advise you to see a Dr who can set a healthy plan in place for you. Your young, only 18 right? Your body and mind need food to keep you growing healthy. It is scary to me that you have a 6 pack and want to lose more.

jquintinjr

im just like super afraid of being the fat kid again. i used to weigh 200lb i like where im at now i actually want to gain muscle. i look tone and stuff but i want to gain w/o gaining too much fat.....

would it be a good idea to add an aditional protein shake to my day?

BigdaddyJ

thanks guys. and i have my diary set for 1200 so i make sure i pass starvation mode cut off. i really dont eat that much during my day.

1200 is the cut off for women, men is 1600 I beleive...and looking too thin and unhealthy is just as bad as beeing the fat kid. You say you want to gain muscle, I'd eat at least 1800 calories a day + your exercise calories if I were you. Otherwise you wont be able to build muscle as fast as you wish....

jquintinjr

thats what i decided too. im going to shoot for 1800 a day. i usually am full for the day at 1400 or so. but to add extra im going to drink protein shakes instead of water at breakfast and mid day. and my diary is so low today because im going to a buffet later and planning on having my fill. including desserts. i know its bad to binge eat. but i really want to go to a buffet tonight and eat like a king

BigdaddyJ

here's a little bit of reading material for you...dont get scared by the title!!

http://www.getbig.com/articles/faq-dav2.htm

coronalime

Maybe you should look into a trainer. Then you can get the best of both worlds. Look for someone who specializes in building muscle not losing weight. Or you could look into a cross fit gym. crossfit.com You can find one in your area. The person who runs it may be able to help you.
As far as binging at the buffet. You should actually eat relatively normal today but work out a little more. Then tomorrow work out a bit more then usual and eat normal. You dont want to binge in calories after "starving all day" or your body will hold onto all those buffet calories for awhile thinking your not going to feed it later. However the workouts you add will help burn them off the next few days. Enjoy!

BigdaddyJ

another thin you can do is go and buy P90X, it comes with a nutritionnal plan, and i've seen the result on some of my friends it's pretty impressive!! If your looking for definition it's a great way to start!

jquintinjr

here's a little bit of reading material for you...dont get scared by the title!!

http://www.getbig.com/articles/faq-dav2.htm

thanks for the article. im supposed to eat about 2100 to maintain. so im considering doing 2200 a day to allow for weight training and growth on days i dont train.

mlove1307

thats what i decided too. im going to shoot for 1800 a day. i usually am full for the day at 1400 or so. but to add extra im going to drink protein shakes instead of water at breakfast and mid day. and my diary is so low today because im going to a buffet later and planning on having my fill. including desserts. i know its bad to binge eat. but i really want to go to a buffet tonight and eat like a king

If you get full at 1400 calories, think about adding some calorie dense foods into your diet. Think roasted nuts, starches.. etc.

Honestly, you treat your body like crap and therefore, you're going to be skinny (if you aren't eating enough) and you WILL NOT put on muscle mass. I am not a professional trainer, dietician, or anything of the sort but I'm just saying.. You've posted on the message boards before and many, many, MANY people have tried getting through to you on that one point = IF YOU TREAT YOUR BODY LIKE CRAP IT WILL REFLECT THAT TREATMENT!!!!!!!!

You need to eat MAINTENANCE calories AND SOME if you want to put on muscle mass. Look it up on Google! Your body is NOT going to put calories and effort into building up your six pack if it doesn't even have enough calories to survive. 1200 is too low for you. I know you are afraid of being fat, but you are not helping yourself. You are just going to spiral downward.. And I haven't even gotten started on this starve-binge-starve cycle you've got yourself on.

I am, however, not going to waste my time explaining just how horrible your diet seems to everyoooooooone but you, because you do not seem to take people's advice to heart. And I am sorry for sounding harsh, but seriously... you need to listen if you ask for help.

BigdaddyJ

here's a little bit of reading material for you...dont get scared by the title!!

http://www.getbig.com/articles/faq-dav2.htm

thanks for the article. im supposed to eat about 2100 to maintain. so im considering doing 2200 a day to allow for weight training and growth on days i dont train.

mlove, I think he got it this time :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

jquintinjr

yep. im going to try and eat more in the morning too. so i can more effectively use the nutrients. you guys have breakfast ideas that are high in protein? im gona try oatmeal with a scoop of chocolate protein