visual bf% check please
misnomer1
Posts: 646 Member
Im 5'11. Lost weight from 84 to 78.5kg in 2 months while running stronglifts 5x5. I reckon im between 15-20%. what do you think? im hoping to stop at 74-75 and start a bulk.
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Replies
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Sorry but it looks more like 20 to 25%; closer to 25% than 20%.
See for example:
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yeah i do look more like that 20-24% guy or maybe 25-29%. but why does navy method put me at 16.5%? or is that something totally different?0
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Based on above chart, 25-29% is what I'd say tbh. You have no lower V lines like the guy in the picture above, but maybe that's just me.4
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I'm sorry! I think you look great just as you are!3 -
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That is true. I have been very skinny when I was younger, did nothing more than pull ups, push-ups and jump rope till I started barbell training 2 months back.
The thing is, if I drop too low, say 10 more kgs from here, I'm going to look pathetic. Like a sucked out mango. I definitely like where I am and am willing to lose 5kgs more, but not more.
I want muscle mass much more than aesthetics anyway.
I'm sorry! I think you look great just as you are!
No offense taken. It's good to keep getting reality checks. i did the same at 82kg as well to make people stop me from bulking too soon lol.0 -
If it's more the logging than the calorie restriction that bugs you remember you can lose weight without logging - it's what people used to do before the internet and food labelling.
You can also take maintenance breaks from cutting to refresh yourself mentally and physically.
You also don't need a calorie deficit every day - that just sucks all the joy out of food and social life for me. A weekly calorie allowance for example.
PS - unless you have very lean legs/lower body then I would guess over 20% at the moment.
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@misnomer1 - if you don't want to spend the money on a DEXA scan you could order a set of calipers online. They are cheap even for the good ones. If you use them properly you can get a fairly accurate idea of where you really are. It doesn't look like you are carrying a lot of visceral fat - which can throw calipers off. You are lucky in that you carry your fat pretty evenly over your upper torso and I'll assume your lower body as well. A lot of us just get a disconcerting chunk right around the middle. lol
I'd put you at around 20% as well.1 -
Hard to tell with a cropped pic with no side view.
First glance guess 25%0 -
I'd say you're definitely in the 20-24%. You could always take a diet break
http://leanmuscleproject.com/are-you-ready-for-a-diet-break/
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Get some calipers and test it out yourself. Everyone looks different at a specific BF% based on how trained they are. I would say 20% personally.1
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If you are tired of logging, what was your plan going into a bulk..? The see-food diet?
I think 10% is generally recommended for guys to start bulking.1 -
I would say take a diet break vs. jump into a bulk with too high bodyfat%. Will you have your dream physique when you cut down before you bulk? Probably not.. but that is normal. This is a process that can take many years.
Bulking is no picnic either. If you are tired of logging, bulking won't really help that...unless you want to dirty bulk (which I would not recommend) or you have great calorie awareness and control and want to intuitive bulk (this can be pretty tricky though).1 -
not_a_runner wrote: »If you are tired of logging, what was your plan going into a bulk..? The see-food diet?
I think 10% is generally recommended for guys to start bulking.
I would say take a diet break vs. jump into a bulk with too high bodyfat%. Will you have your dream physique when you cut down before you bulk? Probably not.. but that is normal. This is a process that can take many years.
Bulking is no picnic either. If you are tired of logging, bulking won't really help that...unless you want to dirty bulk (which I would not recommend) or you have great calorie awareness and control and want to intuitive bulk (this can be pretty tricky though).
the deficit doesnt bother me; its weighing & logging that just sucks. but im still doing it because i know it works and will make the cutting process quicker. ill figure out a way to wean off MFP over the next 6 months. i was very skinny till 6 years back, so im more anxious of being too skinny vs too fat.
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@sgt1372 why do these ranges look different?
Because they are not realistic, especially at the low end.
Anyone can crop together some pics, attach #'s to them and post them on the Net, but that doesn' t make them accurate.
I chose the set that I thought was most accurate and realistic. You can choose to believe it or not.
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Dont get to hung up on the number mate. If your not happy with how you look diet more. If you get to where your happy great. The number makes no difference.2
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ent3rsandman wrote: »Get some calipers and test it out yourself. Everyone looks different at a specific BF% based on how trained they are. I would say 20% personally.
ordered a set.0 -
Got the calipers delivered. 3 site and 4 site tests put me between 18% and 20%. Navy method puts me at 19.1%.1
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Follow up question. At 19% I'm 63kg lean mass and 15kg fat.
How much lean mass will I lose if I drop to 74kg from 78kg at 500kcal (20% of maintenance) deficit while lifting progressively and 140gm protein intake?
1kg muscle loss,less or more?0 -
Follow up question. At 19% I'm 63kg lean mass and 15kg fat.
How much lean mass will I lose if I drop to 74kg from 78kg at 500kcal (20% of maintenance) deficit while lifting progressively and 140gm protein intake?
1kg muscle loss,less or more?
No one can answer that unfortunately. You will always lose some unless you take drugs but how much depends on diet, training and genetics.2 -
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Yes, agreed (with @filbo132). Generally speaking, a woman should be at or below 20% body fat before going on a bulk and a man should be at or below 12% body fat before going on a bulk. Roughly. Give or take. A lot of the "roughly" depends on your cutting | bulking history.
Going on a bulk at 20% or even 25% body fat for a man would likely not provide you the results that you seek. Sure, there would be some body recomposition (because of the weight training).....but there will still be additional body fat (that happens when you bulk....plain and simple - well, that *GENERALLY* happens....). And, I am quite clear that you would be disappointed. And that generally kills it for most people. So, let's set you up for success instead of failure, right?
Another thing to consider is to simply take a break.....not sure what your history is but maybe just take a break. Someone else suggested that already....just agreeing with that as an option. It will be good for you, mentally. As well as physically. Now, two or three days might suffice. Or, maybe a week. Depends on how long and how intensely you have been doing things.
Two months of Strong Lifts 5x5 is cool. What were you doing before that? And congrats on the 5.5kgs (roughly 12 pounds for those of us on this side of the pond). Losing another 3.5kgs to 4.5kgs (roughly 10 pounds) will not likely put you at 12% body fat......Hey, man! Just being honest. I am not close to 12% body fat, either!
Continue on the cut until you are close to 12% body fat. Takes things slowly....I know that this is the "time that everyone is cuting". Well, do it when your body is ready....not because the Calendar says September/October. Cool?0 -
Bro you’re probably around 17% body fat. At 15% body fat not everyone has even a 4 pack. What you need to do is hit the weights harder to build muscle. Dont worry about cardio but you do need to diet and weigh your food and track your calories. You want to keep that weight but realize that it is fat and fat does not turn to muscle so lose it and build muscle by lifting some iron. Besides if you lose that weight you will actually look bigger when you get cut.
Don’t forget your basic supplements:
Pre workout or just some caffeine
Low calorie whey protein around 130-150 calories
Glutamine 5g at least per serving
BCAAs 5g per serving
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Got the calipers delivered. 3 site and 4 site tests put me between 18% and 20%. Navy method puts me at 19.1%.
OP: Believe what you will but calipers are near impossible to self administer accurately and BF calculators based on body measurements are just gross estimates st best.
The most accurate methods of measuring BF are DXA scans and hydrostatic weighing but even these methods have some degree of error. However, it you REALLY want to know what your BF is, I suggest you get one or the other (preferably both) done.
I have gotten both DXA scan and hydro test done quarterly over the past year snd have no doubt that my BF dropped from over 20% and 196# at the start and between 10-13% at 158# now.
When I started I looked a lot like you in the 1st pics you posted and like the guy in the 25-29% range in the chart that I linked in. Now I've got visible abs and look like the 10-14% guy.
Pics (and DXA scans and hydro tests) don't lie.5 -
Got the calipers delivered. 3 site and 4 site tests put me between 18% and 20%. Navy method puts me at 19.1%.
OP: Believe what you will but calipers are near impossible to self administer accurately and BF calculators based on body measurements are just gross estimates st best.
The most accurate methods of measuring BF are DXA scans and hydrostatic weighing but even these methods have some degree of error. However, it you REALLY want to know what your BF is, I suggest you get one or the other (preferably both) done.
I have gotten both DXA scan and hydro test done quarterly over the past year snd have no doubt that my BF dropped from over 20% and 196# at the start and between 10-13% at 158# now.
When I started I looked a lot like you in the 1st pics you posted and like the guy in the 25-29% range in the chart that I linked in. Now I've got visible abs and look like the 10-14% guy.
Pics (and DXA scans and hydro tests) don't lie.
i was just trying to figure out how much i should cut to for 12% so that i can start bulking. I dont think i need those accurate tests anymore. ill work with 18-20%. With the calipers, i took the most skin (and whatever was underneath) i could hold to get the highest BF numbers. so im happy with my assessment.CWShultz27105 wrote: »Yes, agreed (with @filbo132).
Two months of Strong Lifts 5x5 is cool. What were you doing before that? And congrats on the 5.5kgs (roughly 12 pounds for those of us on this side of the pond). Losing another 3.5kgs to 4.5kgs (roughly 10 pounds) will not likely put you at 12% body fat......Hey, man! Just being honest. I am not close to 12% body fat, either!
Continue on the cut until you are close to 12% body fat. Takes things slowly....I know that this is the "time that everyone is cuting". Well, do it when your body is ready....not because the Calendar says September/October. Cool?
I bulked once 6 years back because i was skinny. nothing much other than pullups and pushups since then till i started stronglifts 2 months back with the bar. Now my 5x5s are squats 160, deadlifts 200, overhead press 80, benchpress 132, pendlay row 140. im pushing myself pretty hard, also have 500kcal deficit.
Im going to straight cut to 15-16% (4kg loss) and do a recomp. i cannot straight cut to 12% ( body weight 68kg) and see myself struggling with the weights as well as look like a squished mango.0 -
Cut until your happy, then bulk until
The mirror says your getting fat.
Don’t get hung up on exact body fat %7 -
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