Should I cut or bulk?

Cheyennea18
Cheyennea18 Posts: 11 Member
edited November 15 in Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
I went on my weight loss journey about 2 years ago going from 208 maybe a bit more to 127-128 lbs I'm 5'7 and I been confused on whether I should bulk or cut now I am pretty lean now but loosing so much weight I have some loose skin or stretch marks around my stomach along with a little pouch on just the bottom the top and rest is mostly flat but the stretch marks etc makes me feel like I wanna loose more but if I do my arms and legs will look sickly because they are pretty skinny now I have wide shoulders naturally and I can see a lot of bone and I want to be more muscular but I need others opinions who are more experienced. Thanks guys !

Replies

  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,989 Member
    Loose skin CANNOT be rectified by losing more. It's loose skin. You have a couple of options: hide it and live with it or get surgery to remove it. You can cause expansion under it to stretch it back out, but that requires adding mass to your abdomen area and that will likely mean adding fat and not muscle.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • Electric_Warfare
    Electric_Warfare Posts: 30 Member
    You should bulk.
  • Bradywho1
    Bradywho1 Posts: 22 Member
    You should start getting stronger! You will love the confidence that comes with it! As for the stretch marks I'd recommend trying oils, they really work and for the skin, over time and not a short time it will start to get better!:)
  • Electric_Warfare
    Electric_Warfare Posts: 30 Member
    Getting stronger means bulking and lifting heavy.
  • robdowns1300
    robdowns1300 Posts: 152 Member
    As above, Get on one of the beginner free weight programs. community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you Set MFP to gain 0.5 pounds per week. A slow bulk is good for your skin & you are young, you'll be fine. BTW, great job on losing the weight, your profile pic looks great.
  • MrHillman22
    MrHillman22 Posts: 401 Member
    Definitely would aim to get stronger. Along with that you'll build some mass and fill that loose skin, stretch marks are nothing to be worried about I think we've all got a few but it's nothing to hide it shows how far you've come in the past few years.
  • BabyLovesToRun
    BabyLovesToRun Posts: 120 Member
    Start lifting those weights girl and get some muscle! It wont rid of the loose skin, thats a surgery thing, I live with mine proudly. When lifting, go heavy, dont go light. Aim for a weight that lets you do 5 sets of 5, those last 2 reps of each set should be almost impossible to complete but get it done.
  • samhennings
    samhennings Posts: 441 Member
    Completely unrelated, so apologies for being of no use, but...

    ....for some reason I read this thread title to the tune of The Clash' "Should I stay or should I go"

    Should I cut or should I bulk now? do de do....


    Stuck in my head now.
  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
    samhennings wrote: »
    Completely unrelated, so apologies for being of no use, but...

    ....for some reason I read this thread title to the tune of The Clash' "Should I stay or should I go"

    Should I cut or should I bulk now? do de do....


    Stuck in my head now.

    Get. Out. Of. My. Head.
  • samhennings
    samhennings Posts: 441 Member
    Its a bit of an ear worm - 3 and a half hours later and Ive still got it going round...
  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    Loose skin CANNOT be rectified by losing more. It's loose skin. You have a couple of options: hide it and live with it or get surgery to remove it. You can cause expansion under it to stretch it back out, but that requires adding mass to your abdomen area and that will likely mean adding fat and not muscle.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

    With all due respect to @ninerbuff (big fan of his posts) I think that, because OP is young (18 on profile) there is a good chance that with time the stretch marks will fade and loose skin will firm up. The extent of the improvement is really dependant upon how bad it is now but I strongly agree that losing more will never improve the situation.

    For what it is worth, in your situation I would reverse diet up to maintenance and then embark on a very conservative calorie surplus focusing on increasing strength/muscle.
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