Keep eating at a deficit or switch to surplus

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saad9288
saad9288 Posts: 3 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey guys I just wanted to get some opinions on what I should do next.

I just got my body composition measured at a bod pod yesterday and i got my results as 162 lbs with 18% bodyfat.
I'm 25, male and my height is 5'11.

I still have a decent amount of flab/fat around my lower stomach (I used to be super fat, almost 260 at one point) and would like to lose it before I start a bulk to put on muscle.

After doing the math, to get to 10% I'd need to lose 12-13 lbs which would land me at around 150.

Is that safe, or should I just start bulking now and go on a cut after a while.

Any advice would help out thanks.

Replies

  • Escape_Artist
    Escape_Artist Posts: 1,155 Member
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    Depends on how you feel about yourself.

    You could also do a recomp

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
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    After doing the math, to get to 10% I'd need to lose 12-13 lbs which would land me at around 150.

    It often doesn't work like that. You might lose the 12-13 lbs and still have the paunch.

    From my experience, I'd focus on building muscle now and avoid the frustration I encountered last year which involved a loss of fat and muscle because I was purely focusing on weight loss. I'm actually eating 2500-3000 calories these days and have actually noticed a subtle trimming in the low abdominal area despite my focus being more on building LBM. :-D YMMV, of course.
  • cadaverousbones
    cadaverousbones Posts: 421 Member
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    I would say that you should do strength training to try to build muslce. It also could be loose skin from losing so much weight.
  • saad9288
    saad9288 Posts: 3 Member
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    i'm not just dieting and doing cardio, I maintain a consistent weight lifting schedule as well. so do you think that would help restrict muscle loss as I shed those last 12-13 pounds?
  • dalelarson
    dalelarson Posts: 3
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    It really all depends on your goals. What's going to make an awesome life for you? Are there activities you've been wanting to try, or enjoy more with your new body? Is there a certain look that you're really after (why? what will be different in your life because of it)?

    If you ask a bodybuilder (with their take on the world, right or wrong), they'd probably suggest that at 162 pounds and 5'11", you'd be well off to add some muscle. I don't know how quickly you took off the 25 pounds you lost on MyFitnessPal or anything about how you're training, but it sounds like you have plenty of room to add strength work and muscle.

    Eating at breakeven for a while and training hard while you do will make it easier to loose more fat later. You'll reset any slowdown of your metabolism, and if you have more muscle, you'll be burning more calories even at rest. You'll also get a chance to learn from eating "normally" -- what's it like to stay on track there and not go back to old habits.

    Or you might try eating differently on different days of the week -- eating at break-even or a slight gain on days that you strength train hard, and eating at a deficit on other days.
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
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    i'm not just dieting and doing cardio, I maintain a consistent weight lifting schedule as well. so do you think that would help restrict muscle loss as I shed those last 12-13 pounds?

    I lifted from the start. Perhaps it would have been even worse for muscle loss had I not lifted. My protein intake wasn't optimal. Was eating maybe about 60-100g a day. Now I eat above 150g.
  • lrmall01
    lrmall01 Posts: 377 Member
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    You are probably in an area where it really doesn't matter much. I believe it was Mike Matthews (MuscleforLife) that suggested you cut down to the 12%-18% range before bulking. Using that as a guide, you are right on the edge but it isn't necessary to get down to 10%.

    Bottom line - feel free to cut some more if you want but don't spend a lot of time chasing 10%.

    Good luck!
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    Personally I would prioritise on gaining some muscle rather than cutting further - you already seem quite light for your height.
    Whether at maintenance (recomp) or slow bulk is your choice.

    At your age you should be able to gain muscle pretty quickly so a bulk might be best.

    Having lost 100lbs (well done on that!) some of your apparent flab is bound to be loose skin which should improve over time.
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
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    Just relooking at your stats. You may be interested to hear that I'm 5'8 and weigh the same as you but no fat around my abdominal area (well, obviously there's fat but nothing I'm bothered about). I definitely think you should focus on building muscle now. :-)

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