reaching a healthy Body Fat %

36charlotte
36charlotte Posts: 17 Member
edited October 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
I weigh 119 with only 84 lbs of lean mass. Puts me around 24% body fat. Would you advise me to drop the body fat first to feel better, then hit resistance hard to pick my mass back up? That is what I would love to do. It would put me at 108, which is the lowest for my height, before gaining lean mass back. MFP has me on a 1200 cal diet already on days I don't exercise, so I really don't know what my body can get down to on that.... MFP says I should be losing .6 lbs a week. I don't want to mess up my metabolism... So.... just in case my body remembers any of the starvation period of a past eating disorder, I don't want to even get close to that mode... OR should I just focus on lean mass to burn more calories in the future getting to a healthy body fat %?

Replies

  • taso42_DELETED
    taso42_DELETED Posts: 3,394 Member
    Start resistance/strength/weight training right away. As you burn fat, you will inevitably burn muscle as well, and then your metabolism will be a bit slower. But if you do strength training, you will minimize the muscle loss while you burn the fat. Some genetically gifted people can even gain some muscle during this time.
  • cathdrew2
    cathdrew2 Posts: 136 Member
    You and I are a similar weight and body fat and I have done both in the past (though with lesser losses). I recommend weight training to do both simultaneously (lean out and add muscle), otherwise you can barely eat a thing at 108 without gaining and it's hard to add muscle when you can't eat much. Good luck in your endeavors!!
  • ResilientWoman
    ResilientWoman Posts: 440 Member
    I agree about strength training and I'd add hanging out at Mark's Daily Apple, doing a search there for the women your size/sport. That's likely to get you some very specific results from people who achieve bodies that are among the healthiest I've seen in the fitness industry.
  • xraychick77
    xraychick77 Posts: 1,775 Member
    gain muscle mass first, then lose fat.

    i've found this out the hard way. no matter how much fat i lose i'm still skinny fat. i didnt have enough muscle to fill me out.

    so now i'm eating at 2000 cals and i lift 4 times a week and do cardio once a week for 30-40 mins.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    I weigh 119 with only 84 lbs of lean mass. Puts me around 24% body fat. Would you advise me to drop the body fat first to feel better, then hit resistance hard to pick my mass back up? That is what I would love to do. It would put me at 108, which is the lowest for my height, before gaining lean mass back. MFP has me on a 1200 cal diet already on days I don't exercise, so I really don't know what my body can get down to on that.... MFP says I should be losing .6 lbs a week. I don't want to mess up my metabolism... So.... just in case my body remembers any of the starvation period of a past eating disorder, I don't want to even get close to that mode... OR should I just focus on lean mass to burn more calories in the future getting to a healthy body fat %?

    Remember that a "% body fat" number is a relative one, not a fixed one. At 84 pounds of LBM, losing fat is not the real concern.

    I am not qualified to comment on eating disorder issues. From a physiological standpoint, I would recommend that you concentrate on a workout routine, especially resistance training. I am not even sure I would play around with a 1200 calorie per day eating plan.

    I have counseled dozens of women with low LBMs like yours--some with even higher body fat %--and I have never advised them to try to lose fat. The emphasis should be on health and resistance exercise.
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