Is it healthy to cut calories for a long time?

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momentai
momentai Posts: 42 Member
edited October 2015 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi guys,
I've been cutting calories for over a year now, and in the last 3 month my weight loss has slown down a lot. I want to continue to lower my body fat percentage, but I'm worried that cutting for to long is unhealthy. Is it??
Should I take a break? Any advice to help me lose the last 10-20 lbs? My goal is to gain muscle through a bulk later but everywhere it says I need to have a lower body fat. I'm At somewhere between 24-25%

Replies

  • juggernaut1974
    juggernaut1974 Posts: 6,212 Member
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    How drastically are you cutting right now? What's your current height/weight and activity level, and what's your daily caloric intake on average?
  • Artemiris
    Artemiris Posts: 189 Member
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    I don't know if it's unhealthy to be in a caloric deficit for a long time, but I do think that taking a break once in a while may have positive aspects.
    You could eat in maintenance for 2/3 weeks, but keep counting calories.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    momentai wrote: »
    Hi guys,
    I've been cutting calories for over a year now, and in the last 3 month my weight loss has slown down a lot. I want to continue to lower my body fat percentage, but I'm worried that cutting for to long is unhealthy. Is it??
    Should I take a break? Any advice to help me lose the last 10-20 lbs? My goal is to gain muscle through a bulk later but everywhere it says I need to have a lower body fat. I'm At somewhere between 24-25%

    How are you measuring bf

    How old are you

    You appreciate that for women 24 can be ideal (dependent on age)

    You should be lifting now as you drop by the way
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    body-fat-percentage-chart-women.gif
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    When was your last logging break? I take one twice a year, for two weeks.
  • momentai
    momentai Posts: 42 Member
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    juggernaut1974 wrote: »
    How drastically are you cutting right now? What's your current height/weight and activity level, and what's your daily caloric intake on average?

    I am 5'3 21 years old and weight 125lbs, most of which is located on my belly. I eat between 1200-1400 a day depending on activity level. I lift weights almost everyday, and do some form of cardio for 20ish min or more also almost every day.
  • momentai
    momentai Posts: 42 Member
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    rabbitjb wrote: »
    momentai wrote: »
    Hi guys,
    I've been cutting calories for over a year now, and in the last 3 month my weight loss has slown down a lot. I want to continue to lower my body fat percentage, but I'm worried that cutting for to long is unhealthy. Is it??
    Should I take a break? Any advice to help me lose the last 10-20 lbs? My goal is to gain muscle through a bulk later but everywhere it says I need to have a lower body fat. I'm At somewhere between 24-25%

    How are you measuring bf

    How old are you

    You appreciate that for women 24 can be ideal (dependent on age)

    You should be lifting now as you drop by the way

    I used a scale and an online calculator, I know I'm probably am wrong about the number but I don't look less then 24%. I'm 21, and I know I'm in a healthy weight range but I have way to much fat on mmy belly to be happy with it. I lift almost everyday been doing that since the start
  • momentai
    momentai Posts: 42 Member
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    Liftng4Lis wrote: »
    When was your last logging break? I take one twice a year, for two weeks.

    So far I have not taken one, I did not want to hinder progress
  • ShellyBell999
    ShellyBell999 Posts: 1,482 Member
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    momentai wrote: »
    juggernaut1974 wrote: »
    How drastically are you cutting right now? What's your current height/weight and activity level, and what's your daily caloric intake on average?

    I am 5'3 21 years old and weight 125lbs, most of which is located on my belly. I eat between 1200-1400 a day depending on activity level. I lift weights almost everyday, and do some form of cardio for 20ish min or more also almost every day.

    I think you should be eating more.
    Your body is now hanging on to everything because you are burning off all your taking in. Try upping your calorie intake by a couple hundred for a few weeks and see if your BF% changes.
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
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    You will not hinder any progress if you eat at maintenance. If anything, it can help you out more when you go back to the calorie deficit. Your ticker says that you want to loose 11 more pounds. When I got to 10 pounds to go, I made sure that MFP had my deficit very small so I could loose it slower (not much of a window to be off on calories with 10 or 5 pounds to go). I will add that I have been doing a recomp for 6 months so mine is a little more complicated.

    I also changed my workout and even switched days that I did certain exercising.. Sort of to trick the body. The body will become complacent, meaning it just sort gets used to the same way you eat, the same way you exercise.. No progress either way will happen...

    just my thoughts... and I also use, photos, scale, measurements and caliper to measure..

  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    momentai wrote: »
    Liftng4Lis wrote: »
    When was your last logging break? I take one twice a year, for two weeks.

    So far I have not taken one, I did not want to hinder progress
    You wouldn't be hindering any progress, as a logging break doesn't mean going wild and eating everything in sight, it means taking a break from a deficit. Eating at maintenance if that's what it means to you.
  • Maxematics
    Maxematics Posts: 2,287 Member
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    ShellyBell999 wrote: »
    momentai wrote: »
    juggernaut1974 wrote: »
    How drastically are you cutting right now? What's your current height/weight and activity level, and what's your daily caloric intake on average?

    I am 5'3 21 years old and weight 125lbs, most of which is located on my belly. I eat between 1200-1400 a day depending on activity level. I lift weights almost everyday, and do some form of cardio for 20ish min or more also almost every day.

    I think you should be eating more.
    Your body is now hanging on to everything because you are burning off all your taking in. Try upping your calorie intake by a couple hundred for a few weeks and see if your BF% changes.

    This is inaccurate. Your body doesn't hang onto calories in a deficit. OP can change her BF% doing recomp and eating more but eating the calorie amount she claims should also cause loss.

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