Recomposition: Maintaining weight while losing fat
Replies
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jseams1234 wrote: »I Recomp 'd from 25 percent bodyfat. Now I no longer have any gains. I've increased calories and protein to compensate.
Went from 204 lbs to 168lbs.Im not. posting public pics anymore. My results can be seen in Midlife Crisis Fitness Group.
At a certain point during my deficit eating I found I was losing size. I have had to adjust in order to recover that size and begin to build. No cut and bulk was used.
If you went from 204 to 168 that is NOT a recomp. You dieted down/cut. If you had STAYED at 204 and reduced your bodyfat percentage from 25% to a lower percentage - that is a recomp.
Context was missing. My bad... It took 4 years.
That's still not a recomp. You lost 36lbs in 4 years.... that's a slow cut.4 -
I had done a dexa scan 4 weeks back prior to joining MFP and had my body fat at 26%. I am 5.2' 30F, 107-110 lbs with a RMR of 1100 calories but I am maintaining around 2300 calories. I have logged everything I ate for the last four weeks and went to see a professional today. I was suggested recomp. My goal body fat range is 16-18%
Saving this thread to come back a year later.7 -
lucidchroma wrote: »I had done a dexa scan 4 weeks back prior to joining MFP and had my body fat at 26%. I am 5.2' 30F, 107-110 lbs with a RMR of 1100 calories but I am maintaining around 2300 calories. I have logged everything I ate for the last four weeks and went to see a professional today. I was suggested recomp. My goal body fat range is 16-18%
Saving this thread to come back a year later.
Keep going. I am the same exact as you in 2018. I year of just lifting and maintaining diet, I dropped 2% Bf. 2 years later, dropped another .5%. Keep grinding.4 -
Just jumping in to say hello. Made this new account but was previously here under FitGirl0123. My goals are just to maintain weight and recomp slowly. I do a lot of hiking and some running. I'm getting ready to start mountain biking. And hope to get back in the gym this fall. Anyways, I'm not a rookie to this whole concept. This account is new though and I wouldn't mind a few like minded friends.3
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Hi! I haven't done sports or worked out seriously in my life. I haven't stepped into a gym since about 13 years ago. I've been extremely sedentary to the point of getting overweight and having health problems. So for my 34th anniversary I've decided to change my life style. I've started working out at home consistently, cleaned my diet, ate with a deficit (25% I suppose, if I really have a TDEE of 2000 kcal... this is another issue 'cause the online calculators give me a range of 1700 to 2300 kcal), ate a higher intake of protein (2g/kg) and did 90% strength training. I've lost about 10 kg and I am at ideal weight (57 kg at 168cm) since the beginning of July.
The next step is to find my real TDEE. As in the last week of weight lose I had an intake of 1500 kcal, I've started to gradually increase my intake. I am currently at 1700 kcal but I need a longer period or time to evaluate my body's reaction. At 1600 kcal I got down to 56.4kg. After four days of eating 1700 kcal, I am at 57.2 kg.
I recall that during weight loss, when I've upped my intake to 1500 kcal that I was full ALL the time and now, eating more and nothing else changed but I am hungry very often. I wonder if it can be due to increased muscle mass and even though I've gained a bit, 1700 kcal is not my actual TDEE? I hope it's closer to 2000 cause I'm sooo hungry. I should mention that I have a desk job, so my life style is still sedentary if I take the workouts out of the discussion.
Ok... to get to the point. I want to remain around this weight and do a body recomp. I know it's years of work but as I am a first timer, I know I'll have results faster than others. I already achieved things that I've never thought I could like 33 push-ups/set (couldn't do one correct knee push-up in January), muscle definition on my arms and back, areas where I've always had lots of flabby fat.
I have no idea my BF% because I can't find a DEXA scan in this city but according to measurements I have 23.26% and according to the calipers 21%.
I don't know if I should increase my calories to 1800 next week or not but given how I generally feel, I think my body needs fuel. I already drink 2-3L of water per day, so it's not thirst, I eat 3 main meals and two snacks, exercise an average of 1hx5days a week and my macros are 40% carbs, 28% proteins, 32% fat (used to be 40/30/30 until two days ago).
I don't want to bulk (and eat with a lot of surplus) but I do want to gain some muscle mass and I don't care if that means the scale going up. I've measured today and even though the scale is the same as 10 days ago, I've lost 1cm off the belly and booty, so I suppose that I've put on a bit of muscle.
Honestly, I'm a bit lost, so any constructive advice will be appreciated. Thanks!
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Hi! I haven't done sports or worked out seriously in my life. I haven't stepped into a gym since about 13 years ago. I've been extremely sedentary to the point of getting overweight and having health problems. So for my 34th anniversary I've decided to change my life style. I've started working out at home consistently, cleaned my diet, ate with a deficit (25% I suppose, if I really have a TDEE of 2000 kcal... this is another issue 'cause the online calculators give me a range of 1700 to 2300 kcal), ate a higher intake of protein (2g/kg) and did 90% strength training. I've lost about 10 kg and I am at ideal weight (57 kg at 168cm) since the beginning of July.
The next step is to find my real TDEE. As in the last week of weight lose I had an intake of 1500 kcal, I've started to gradually increase my intake. I am currently at 1700 kcal but I need a longer period or time to evaluate my body's reaction. At 1600 kcal I got down to 56.4kg. After four days of eating 1700 kcal, I am at 57.2 kg.
I recall that during weight loss, when I've upped my intake to 1500 kcal that I was full ALL the time and now, eating more and nothing else changed but I am hungry very often. I wonder if it can be due to increased muscle mass and even though I've gained a bit, 1700 kcal is not my actual TDEE? I hope it's closer to 2000 cause I'm sooo hungry. I should mention that I have a desk job, so my life style is still sedentary if I take the workouts out of the discussion.
Ok... to get to the point. I want to remain around this weight and do a body recomp. I know it's years of work but as I am a first timer, I know I'll have results faster than others. I already achieved things that I've never thought I could like 33 push-ups/set (couldn't do one correct knee push-up in January), muscle definition on my arms and back, areas where I've always had lots of flabby fat.
I have no idea my BF% because I can't find a DEXA scan in this city but according to measurements I have 23.26% and according to the calipers 21%.
I don't know if I should increase my calories to 1800 next week or not but given how I generally feel, I think my body needs fuel. I already drink 2-3L of water per day, so it's not thirst, I eat 3 main meals and two snacks, exercise an average of 1hx5days a week and my macros are 40% carbs, 28% proteins, 32% fat (used to be 40/30/30 until two days ago).
I don't want to bulk (and eat with a lot of surplus) but I do want to gain some muscle mass and I don't care if that means the scale going up. I've measured today and even though the scale is the same as 10 days ago, I've lost 1cm off the belly and booty, so I suppose that I've put on a bit of muscle.
Honestly, I'm a bit lost, so any constructive advice will be appreciated. Thanks!
Are you following any particular lifting program? It sounds like you are just doing your own thing at home, so I would suggest finding a good, established, progressive lifting program to start with. And I think you are on the right track with your calories, you appear to be at a great starting point for a recomp. Up your calories a bit, and see how you go - adjust as needed. If you find you are losing weight and not gaining much in terms of strength, up your calories a bit. If you are starting to gain weight, lower them a bit. Determining calories burned isn't an exact science unfortunately, and your exact burn will in fact change from day to day, so pick a number (1800-2000 sounds reasonable for your current weight), give it 4-6 weeks to judge how you are actually tracking on that amount, and adjust as needed.
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lemongirlbc wrote: »
Are you following any particular lifting program? It sounds like you are just doing your own thing at home, so I would suggest finding a good, established, progressive lifting program to start with. And I think you are on the right track with your calories, you appear to be at a great starting point for a recomp. Up your calories a bit, and see how you go - adjust as needed. If you find you are losing weight and not gaining much in terms of strength, up your calories a bit. If you are starting to gain weight, lower them a bit. Determining calories burned isn't an exact science unfortunately, and your exact burn will in fact change from day to day, so pick a number (1800-2000 sounds reasonable for your current weight), give it 4-6 weeks to judge how you are actually tracking on that amount, and adjust as needed.
Hi!
At the moment I am doing Heather Robertson's 12 weeks program and I want to finish it.
The 12 weeks program has this structure (I'm just starting the 2nd phase):
✔️PHASE 1: WEEKS 1-4
We will kick things off with full body workouts and HIIT Cardio + Ab days designed to increase mobility, flexibility and endurance.
✔️PHASE 2: WEEKS 5 - 8
In this phase we will focus on increasing lean muscle, isolating muscle groups, and counting reps. We will alternate these strength days with some intense HIIT and Tabata sessions.
✔️PHASE 3: WEEKS 9 - 12
This final phase combines all the best parts of the previous phases - full body workouts, HIIT + Abs, Tabata + Booty for improved athletic performance and killer results.
Beside this I'm training for chin-ups and for push-ups too (currently doing 33/set). I'm also doing various YouTube workouts depending on the targeted area and what I want to do. I mainly focus on strength and resistance. I want to get into calisthenics too.
I've paid attention for the very beginning to progressively overload and to change the intensity by upping the weight/doing more reps or my changing the exercise style (I change it monthly).
I would love to find a good progressive lifting program. Any recommendations (if possible, free)?
Thank you in advance!
Best regards,
Cristina
1 -
lemongirlbc wrote: »
Are you following any particular lifting program? It sounds like you are just doing your own thing at home, so I would suggest finding a good, established, progressive lifting program to start with. And I think you are on the right track with your calories, you appear to be at a great starting point for a recomp. Up your calories a bit, and see how you go - adjust as needed. If you find you are losing weight and not gaining much in terms of strength, up your calories a bit. If you are starting to gain weight, lower them a bit. Determining calories burned isn't an exact science unfortunately, and your exact burn will in fact change from day to day, so pick a number (1800-2000 sounds reasonable for your current weight), give it 4-6 weeks to judge how you are actually tracking on that amount, and adjust as needed.
Hi!
At the moment I am doing Heather Robertson's 12 weeks program and I want to finish it.
The 12 weeks program has this structure (I'm just starting the 2nd phase):
✔️PHASE 1: WEEKS 1-4
We will kick things off with full body workouts and HIIT Cardio + Ab days designed to increase mobility, flexibility and endurance.
✔️PHASE 2: WEEKS 5 - 8
In this phase we will focus on increasing lean muscle, isolating muscle groups, and counting reps. We will alternate these strength days with some intense HIIT and Tabata sessions.
✔️PHASE 3: WEEKS 9 - 12
This final phase combines all the best parts of the previous phases - full body workouts, HIIT + Abs, Tabata + Booty for improved athletic performance and killer results.
Beside this I'm training for chin-ups and for push-ups too (currently doing 33/set). I'm also doing various YouTube workouts depending on the targeted area and what I want to do. I mainly focus on strength and resistance. I want to get into calisthenics too.
I've paid attention for the very beginning to progressively overload and to change the intensity by upping the weight/doing more reps or my changing the exercise style (I change it monthly).
I would love to find a good progressive lifting program. Any recommendations (if possible, free)?
Thank you in advance!
Best regards,
Cristina
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you
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Recomp progress - 9 months in with 1.5 months off at the start of the year due to illness and injury
22 -
I was doing some digging at my recent data and thought it was a good fit to share here.
*body fat percentage from Skulpt scanner, average weight taken from HappyScale on date of full body scan
So in 145 days I've been able to gain over 3 lbs of muscle and lose 6 lbs of fat while averaging intake of +26.8 calories over calculated TDEE. I've been lifting for over 5 years and didn't really change a ton to my lifestyle or eating strategy; this was not a case of beginner gains or someone coming off a long layoff. I have a home gym that I use exclusively, pandemic notwithstanding, so workouts were pretty unaffected (if anything I had more time to lift). From mid-March through June 1 I was working from home so I sat a slight amount less and once the weather warmed up I spent a little more-than-usual time outside taking walks in our neighborhood but it wasn't like my TDEE spiked.12 -
I just started doing my recomposition plan today and just started week 4 of Liift4. I spent last week with a slight increase in calories from my deficit and went from 117.4 to 119.4 lbs, and I took measuremeants.
I wonder if I should have chosen a program that has longer lifts, but I think I'll still build a good base. I think I'll do 6 Weeks of Work after.
I worked really hard for the past 3 years to get back into the 110s, but I am looking forward to seeing an increase in strength with this new plan [and hopefully a deacrease in hip/midsection measurements].3 -
COVID pandemic has been interesting as regards recomp - I'm an incidental recomper in line with exercise rather than exercising to change my body comp.
Start of lockdown and my gym closed, quickly realised home training with bodyweight and dumbbells simply bored me to death so decided to become a more serious cyclist and neglect my strength training.
Extra volume and intensity of cycling resulted in noticable growth in quad circumference (I've always responded well to high volume) but I also lost some upper body muscle and quite a bit of strength.
With gym reopening in July I managed to keep up the cycling but resumed weight training. Initially bench press was down from 100kg on my 60th birthday in February to just 60kg but that rapidly increased as my CNS woke up plus simply getting used to the feeling of heavy lifting again.
Two months on I'm back to 95kg bench press with noticable growth in arms and shoulders plus more definition - I've got my "shoulder dimples" back!
Upper body now almost back to where I was, legs bigger and less stomach fat so although it's been a bumpy road I'm in an OK place.
9 -
lemongirlbc wrote: »Hi! I haven't done sports or worked out seriously in my life. I haven't stepped into a gym since about 13 years ago. I've been extremely sedentary to the point of getting overweight and having health problems. So for my 34th anniversary I've decided to change my life style. I've started working out at home consistently, cleaned my diet, ate with a deficit (25% I suppose, if I really have a TDEE of 2000 kcal... this is another issue 'cause the online calculators give me a range of 1700 to 2300 kcal), ate a higher intake of protein (2g/kg) and did 90% strength training. I've lost about 10 kg and I am at ideal weight (57 kg at 168cm) since the beginning of July.
The next step is to find my real TDEE. As in the last week of weight lose I had an intake of 1500 kcal, I've started to gradually increase my intake. I am currently at 1700 kcal but I need a longer period or time to evaluate my body's reaction. At 1600 kcal I got down to 56.4kg. After four days of eating 1700 kcal, I am at 57.2 kg.
I recall that during weight loss, when I've upped my intake to 1500 kcal that I was full ALL the time and now, eating more and nothing else changed but I am hungry very often. I wonder if it can be due to increased muscle mass and even though I've gained a bit, 1700 kcal is not my actual TDEE? I hope it's closer to 2000 cause I'm sooo hungry. I should mention that I have a desk job, so my life style is still sedentary if I take the workouts out of the discussion.
Ok... to get to the point. I want to remain around this weight and do a body recomp. I know it's years of work but as I am a first timer, I know I'll have results faster than others. I already achieved things that I've never thought I could like 33 push-ups/set (couldn't do one correct knee push-up in January), muscle definition on my arms and back, areas where I've always had lots of flabby fat.
I have no idea my BF% because I can't find a DEXA scan in this city but according to measurements I have 23.26% and according to the calipers 21%.
I don't know if I should increase my calories to 1800 next week or not but given how I generally feel, I think my body needs fuel. I already drink 2-3L of water per day, so it's not thirst, I eat 3 main meals and two snacks, exercise an average of 1hx5days a week and my macros are 40% carbs, 28% proteins, 32% fat (used to be 40/30/30 until two days ago).
I don't want to bulk (and eat with a lot of surplus) but I do want to gain some muscle mass and I don't care if that means the scale going up. I've measured today and even though the scale is the same as 10 days ago, I've lost 1cm off the belly and booty, so I suppose that I've put on a bit of muscle.
Honestly, I'm a bit lost, so any constructive advice will be appreciated. Thanks!
Are you following any particular lifting program? It sounds like you are just doing your own thing at home, so I would suggest finding a good, established, progressive lifting program to start with. And I think you are on the right track with your calories, you appear to be at a great starting point for a recomp. Up your calories a bit, and see how you go - adjust as needed. If you find you are losing weight and not gaining much in terms of strength, up your calories a bit. If you are starting to gain weight, lower them a bit. Determining calories burned isn't an exact science unfortunately, and your exact burn will in fact change from day to day, so pick a number (1800-2000 sounds reasonable for your current weight), give it 4-6 weeks to judge how you are actually tracking on that amount, and adjust as needed.
You made some great progress in these photos! Way to go!
0 -
COVID pandemic has been interesting as regards recomp - I'm an incidental recomper in line with exercise rather than exercising to change my body comp.
Start of lockdown and my gym closed, quickly realised home training with bodyweight and dumbbells simply bored me to death so decided to become a more serious cyclist and neglect my strength training.
Extra volume and intensity of cycling resulted in noticable growth in quad circumference (I've always responded well to high volume) but I also lost some upper body muscle and quite a bit of strength.
With gym reopening in July I managed to keep up the cycling but resumed weight training. Initially bench press was down from 100kg on my 60th birthday in February to just 60kg but that rapidly increased as my CNS woke up plus simply getting used to the feeling of heavy lifting again.
Two months on I'm back to 95kg bench press with noticable growth in arms and shoulders plus more definition - I've got my "shoulder dimples" back!
Upper body now almost back to where I was, legs bigger and less stomach fat so although it's been a bumpy road I'm in an OK place.
Same here. After COVID, my lifts dropped dramatically but in a few months I’ve recovered most of my strength back!
6 -
I don’t have up to date progress pics but according to the boditrax machine, I managed to gain 3.5 kg muscle and drop 5 per cent body fat in a year. And I know these machines are not the greatest. But still, some progress. Same weight.
7 -
@cupcakesandproteinshakes
Great results - well done.
My gym has a Boditrax unit too and I find it pretty reasonable for a trend over time if used same time of day / same fed or fasted state.1 -
FitForL1fe wrote: »Hadabetter wrote: »And when your body needs protein it looks first for amino acids circulating in the blood stream. Failing that, it will get the protein it needs to maintain/repair your vital organs from your existing muscle mass. This will kill any efforts at body recomp. So your protein intake should be spread throughout the day in 3-4 roughly equal doses to ensure that you always have those amino acids available to your body.
For this reason body recomposition is not compatible with intermittent fasting.
sigh now I need to stop being a *kitten* and buy some casein
Sucks for those of us who are allergic to casein
0 -
What is casein? Isn't that the stuff in like jalapenos that make them spicy? Hey do they sell that in pill form because I hear that hot stuff speeds up your metabolism and I can't really have much of that because of my ulcers.
Casein is the naturally occurring protein that is in dairy. Its not manufactured and only available in protein powder form. It already exists. The powder just isolates it. Casein is one reason someone might be allergic to milk, if it isnt lactose intolerance.1 -
FitForL1fe wrote: »Hadabetter wrote: »And when your body needs protein it looks first for amino acids circulating in the blood stream. Failing that, it will get the protein it needs to maintain/repair your vital organs from your existing muscle mass. This will kill any efforts at body recomp. So your protein intake should be spread throughout the day in 3-4 roughly equal doses to ensure that you always have those amino acids available to your body.
For this reason body recomposition is not compatible with intermittent fasting.
sigh now I need to stop being a *kitten* and buy some casein
Sucks for those of us who are allergic to casein
I think I may be. How. did you find out?0
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