P90X or something else for fat loss?

succubaeangel

Hello you guys! I'm a 22yrs old student who has been fighting to get her weight under control for 2 years. I'm currently on my second time doing P90X and I start month3 next week.
Thing is, while I gained a very good amount of muscle, I also gained fat. In november (after doing Insanity) I was 60kg and had 23% of bodyfat. I looked rather thin, bones were showing up everywhere and I had very little definition. I did P90X after that and now I'm 64 with 26% of fat. My calculations say that I gained about 2kg of fat.

After finishing my last month of P90X I'm not sure what to do next. Questions:
1. Is the amount of fat I gained normal for someone who is trying to bulk up? Or have I just done it wrong?
2. I want the fat gone to about 22%-do I do another program or go on with P90X? What do you recomend as I would like NOT to lose my current muscle tone.
3. If there are already general guidelines for people trying to bulk it up and keep the fat low, do point them to me. I have no idea where to look. ^^;;

jjski88

First things first, how are you measuring your body fat? Many of the techniques have a Standard Error of Estimate (SEE), that can fluctuate your body fat 3-7%. Does it look like you gained fat or is it just the calculations that are saying so? Lastly, what about your diet? This could also affect your end result.

Lyadeia

Hello you guys! I'm a 22yrs old student who has been fighting to get her weight under control for 2 years. I'm currently on my second time doing P90X and I start month3 next week.
Thing is, while I gained a very good amount of muscle, I also gained fat. In november (after doing Insanity) I was 60kg and had 23% of bodyfat. I looked rather thin, bones were showing up everywhere and I had very little definition. I did P90X after that and now I'm 64 with 26% of fat. My calculations say that I gained about 2kg of fat.

After finishing my last month of P90X I'm not sure what to do next. Questions:
1. Is the amount of fat I gained normal for someone who is trying to bulk up? Or have I just done it wrong?
2. I want the fat gone to about 22%-do I do another program or go on with P90X? What do you recomend as I would like NOT to lose my current muscle tone.
3. If there are already general guidelines for people trying to bulk it up and keep the fat low, do point them to me. I have no idea where to look. ^^;;

1. When you are on a bulk cycle, you will always gain fat along with muscle. When you eat at a surplus for bulking, it is near impossible to gain only muscle.

2. Cutting fat is about your diet. You can use P90X on a cutting cycle if you choose to do so, you just have to make sure you are eating at a calorie deficit.

3. Not sure where to point you to for this, but bulking requires a surplus of calories which will always add fat along with lean tissue. The smaller the amount you eat over TDEE, the less fat you will gain.

I'm just confused as to what your goal really is...are you wanting to add muscle or are you wanting to cut fat? They are done differently and painfully difficult to do at the same time.

succubaeangel

BTW: I opened my food diary (have no idea why I had it closed anyway).
@jjski88 :I look that I gained fat- hip/waist measurements and my mirror say so. Also, I've had both fat ratios calculated with the same calipers and with the same formulas so if there is an error I think it's not important as I'm comparing data with myself. I'm not imagining stuff lol-but I do understand why you are asking.

@Lyadeia I understand that I cannot bulk without gaining fat. And that to cut fat, I just need a deficit going on right? But the kind of exercising I do must count for something. I heard that one cannot sustain heavy lifting/cardio in deficit so maybe P90X (classic) isn't suitable. Grrr-I have no idea.

My goal back in November 2012 was to bulk up. Now, I'm not quite sure. I think there is room for improvement (aka I want to lift more) but I'm really hating the fat around my belly and hips. I see so many pictures of ladies in here that have gained a LOT of muscle yet so low in bodyfat. If they did it, there must be a way to do it.

Lyadeia

@Lyadeia I understand that I cannot bulk without gaining fat. And that to cut fat, I just need a deficit going on right? But the kind of exercising I do must count for something. I heard that one cannot sustain heavy lifting/cardio in deficit so maybe P90X (classic) isn't suitable. Grrr-I have no idea.

My goal back in November 2012 was to bulk up. Now, I'm not quite sure. I think there is room for improvement (aka I want to lift more) but I'm really hating the fat around my belly and hips. I see so many pictures of ladies in here that have gained a LOT of muscle yet so low in bodyfat. If they did it, there must be a way to do it.

I don't know where you heard that you couldn't sustain heavy lifting and cardio in a deficit...and actually you are the second person in 2 days to have said that to me...but it's crap. How else do you think people are losing body fat?

Back in late 2007 and early 2008, I did P90X while on a deficit and managed to lose 10 pounds ending up at 128 pounds. Between March-April of 2008, I did P90X eating a 150 calorie surplus and gained plenty of muscle mass. (unfortunately for me, though, I then went through a lot of life stress crap and went off my nutrition and workout plan gaining lots of weight back after seeing this success, but I digress)

First lose the body fat you want to lose by eating at a moderate deficit. Keep the muscle mass you have by lifting weights. P90X will do this for you. Second gain lean muscle mass by eating a small surplus and lifting weights. You can also use P90X for this. Most of all, have patience. Trying to do both goals at the same time will cause brain hemmorages. Not really, but it's emotionally and psychologically frustrating enough to make it seem so.

ramonafrincu

Thank you very much for this post, is really motivating for me! I am in my 3rd week of P90X and can't say I see an improvement in my body...I guess I have to keep pushing play...

succubaeangel

Thank you very much. I will do some more calculations and start a small deficit diet after I finish month3 in maintenance.

You were so freaking helpful-I thought I was going to go nuts with the amounts of contradicting information!

jjski88

So I looked at your food diary and noticed you have a large deficit in protein intake each day and an overabundance of sugar. Proteins are the number one factor to rebuilding muscle, while sugar is easily stored as fat in your body. The one food that is taking a toll on your diet is the bread you are eating. I would look into a bread that is low in sugar and not necessarily low in calories. I eat Brownberry Whole Grains - 12 Grain Bread. You can get more protein in your diet by incorporating more nuts, seeds, tofu, beans, and lentils into your diet. Meet, poultry, and seafood are high in protein and would be an easy way to increase your daily protein intake. Try different foods and see what helps you reach your daily goals.

succubaeangel

So I looked at your food diary and noticed you have a large deficit in protein intake each day and an overabundance of sugar. Proteins are the number one factor to rebuilding muscle, while sugar is easily stored as fat in your body. The one food that is taking a toll on your diet is the bread you are eating. I would look into a bread that is low in sugar and not necessarily low in calories. I eat Brownberry Whole Grains - 12 Grain Bread. You can get more protein in your diet by incorporating more nuts, seeds, tofu, beans, and lentils into your diet. Meet, poultry, and seafood are high in protein and would be an easy way to increase your daily protein intake. Try different foods and see what helps you reach your daily goals.

Yes, I know. I find it very hard to get more protein as I'm living with my parents (in Albania btw...) and I have to make compromises with them about food. Money is another issue: tofu and nuts are very expensive here, not to mention low fat milk and cheese. I've been taking whey in the past but now I can't afford that either.
I really don't know what to eat instead of bread (meat and beans in the morning or evening are not an option) I'll see if I can find some fat-free powder milk to replace the whey isolate and maybe cut down some of the bread.
I'll dig more into it.
Thank you!