Going under BMI? *PICS*

First, big time congrats on your progress so far. It's tremendous work that you've done to get to this point and you should be proud. Damn proud. And don't be discouraged, because you're about to get to the good part! Eating more food and throwing heavy *kitten* around!

Okay, I know people think men's and women's bodies are different but my story is very similar to yours. I started at the beginning of this year with strength training on a big deficit (1000-1300 under maintenance) and light cardio as that's about all I could do without risking a trip to the ortho. As I started rounding into shape and building endurance, I upped the cardio intensity while keeping the heavy lifting and calorie deficit the same.

Then we get to June and I've lost 35 pounds or so, but I look in the mirror and I'm soft as a baby's bottom. Losing lbs was nice, but I wanted to look better than I was looking. So I changed things up. I lowered my deficit to 300-500 under (there's a spread because if you follow my diary you know I really don't give a *kitten*; a "little under" is precise enough). I cut the cardio almost to nothing. Some relatively light stuff once or twice per week. With less cardio and a smaller deficit, I was able to lift a lot heavier. I did this for about 2 months.

That 2 months was the defining point of my weight loss this year. Actually, we shouldn't call it weight loss. Because I only lost about 3 pounds total over those 8 weeks. But man oh man, did I see some results. Lost about 6 inches off my waist. Lost a ton of fat off my stomach, chest, neck. Some on my face. Even tho I barely lost any weight at all, the compliments about my progress started pouring in, because I was actually looking thinner. Not just thinner, but I was actually beginning to look like a person that was in shape. My BF% went down drastically (how much? Don't know, don't care!). All in all, it was a success. A monster success.

Your worry right now seems to be that "lifting heavy" means "bulking phase" to you, and I'm telling you that's not the case. This will work out the exact same for you. Well, your bodyfat% will go down substantially, but you won't end up with as much muscle as I did because women don't get big like men can. Make sure you're eating a slight caloric deficit (200-300) and lift as heavy as you safely can. There are many good programs for lifting but I won't recommend one because you seem smart enough to figure out which one of the heavily mentioned programs you'll like the best. Truthfully, they're all good so it really doesn't matter.

Remember, don't get frustrated at first. You won't be losing weight at the same pace as you have been. Hell, you may not lose weight at all. But don't worry about it. Stop using the scale and start using a tape measure around your waist, stomach, arms and thighs. And every two weeks put on the same outfit you're wearing in your photo here and compare the shots. You will see the difference. You will feel the difference when you put on your clothes. You will go broke buying smaller clothes because none of your current stuff fits.

Good luck and congrats again for making it this far. (And by "this far", I mean thru this long *kitten*, rambly *kitten* post.)

I'm 24.
Yeah compound lifts. I do bench press, overhead press, bent over rows, squat, deadlift. I also do leg extensions and hamstring curls, cuz my bench has a little thing for them lol And I do negative pull ups (or try), assisted pull ups & push ups, cuz the only way u get good at those is doing them.

Sounds like Stronglifts. Is that right?

Thank you. I dont see it. But I been trying to eat closer to my TDEE. And I have a bench & barbell. Starting monday I've started lifting heavy (for me), doing the main lifts, like I was told to do. I been eating over 100g or protein every day for a while
You look amazing. I wish I looked good like that.

But... your body is very, very similar to mine. Our measurements are almost identical. The only difference is that I've been lifting longer, so I have a little more muscle. You're on that road, and it's not a very long road to get there.

Another thing, which is something I've struggled with my whole life... posture. Strength training will help with that, too, but it doesn't hurt to make a conscious effort to sit and stand straighter. I'm willing to bet if you took those same photos but with your back straighter and shoulders back, you'd see a big difference.