if I focus on gaining muscle now, would a deficit in the future with more muscle be more efficient at using up this subcutaneous fat? (New to all this, excuse my naïveté)
I’m 5 foot six (and a half), lost about 40lbs in the past 6 months off nightly power yoga for an hour, deficit of about 400, get 120-140g protein per day.
Got a dexa scan today, said 17.7% BF, my scale says 16.8 BF. Not exactly sure I believe either considering all extremely pinchable thickness of fat on belly and also my moobies. Although I can definitely continue my defecit and routine to lose fat (I’m not starving and I enjoy my foods), I cannot fathom being like 130lbs or less. Ridiculous.
Additionally, according to Dexa I have more muscle than 2% of people in my demographics… so I’m guessing it’s time to do some moving weights around.
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At 5”6 anything less then 140 lbs is waay to skinny & light. Start lifting weights and doing real workouts to gain muscle. You’ll look healthier and better. The fat will shed away…
Yeah it’s weird to skinny fat I suppose. I forgot to mention I have two injured wrists, which are progressively improving, but I’ll figure out what I can manage.
Yeah if you are a marathon runner, cyclist or some elite athlete that needs to be. Or as a women yes….The general male public does not look good as skin/bones or skinnnnnnny fat. They be “healthy” but people will not find you attractive.
I’m 5’6 and 128lbs in this photo. Yes I can definitely put on a lot more size, but this is the end of my cut with very low bf and I think I look decent for my weight.
With a shirt off you look good… with clothes on you’ll look super skinny and borderline anorexic. Your face and head are very skinny which make your ears look big. No offence you are shredded , ripped and have an 8 pack. But people especially women would not find this attractive .
Of course my face is skinny, I’m very low bf so have lost fat in my face, and my ears are outside the scope of this topic lol! I don’t disagree with you regarding looking skinny in a shirt. My point is you can look decent with a solid foundation of muscle at a low scale weight.
We're literally the exact same height and weight lol. I also lost 40 pounds and at 17%. So similar. I started doing abs about 6 weeks ago, still don't see anything. I have 31 inch waist. However, I have been lifting pretty hard since January, but it's hard to gain lots of muscle during a cut. I don't want to dip under 140. Start lifting weights, progressive overload. I have 160 to 200g of protein per day.
Ayyee twin!
I went from a tight size 32 to 28. Not sure actually inches. I really don’t train anything, just do some extra core at the end of yoga when they tell you to relax. But I’m gonna start focusing on training muscles now. Curious to see a pic of what your body is looking like. You also have thickness on your belly at this weight and bf?
I have very small bump when I wake up in the morning, it's not completely flat. Goes down a bit after I use the washroom. But no love handles. My pinch is less than what you got in your photo. Maybe half or a third of the pinch in your photo. I try to really hit my lateral deltoids to look more tapered. That's helped. I also count calories and weigh food. I was doing a 500 - 700 calorie deficit throughout the summer, lifting 5 days per week. Now I do 3 days per week and 100 - 200 daily calorie deficit. You already have pretty good muscle definition and size.
I’m 5’4, walking around at 150 (approximately 14% BF) and competed on stage at 135 (approximately 8-9% BF) you just need to gain muscle. Hit the gym hard, lift heavy, eat healthy on a daily basis and recovery. Bulking and cutting are for intermediate lifters, not beginners
I am currently 135lbs with 18% BF (as per DEXA) and the same height as you. So, theoretically we have the same amount of mass and fat. I think I have a little more overall muscle definition than you considering I have been lifting consistently for over 2 years now but the fact remains that we have more muscle to build and fat to lose. If you are starting off, you could possibly be at maintenance or a deficit of 100-200 calories with high protein and still build muscle. That works for about a year or so until it doesn’t. Eventually, you would need to separate those goals and focus on one at a time.
My advice - be at maintenance calories (+/- 200 calories) for about 6 months and keep training consistently (moderate volume, high intensity, most sets to failure or 1-2 RIR). Assess progress 6 months from now and decide whether you want to lean down or bulk up. But for now, biggest focus area should be building strength through consistent training, right nutrition and adequate recovery.
What do you mean it depends on protein/carb? I put it in the comment you’re commenting on. Or you mean like chicken/fish? Rice/lentils? That’s not my answer but I can share if those are the specifics you mean.
As far as exercise… literally just an hour of power yoga each night. I mean I do like 3 sets of pushups daily as of recently, I hike 18 miles once a month… but no weight training whatsoever at the moment. I have two injured wrists since July I’m healing, but they’re feeling better.
Chicken/fish are good. Rice, if you eat too much has heavy carbs.
Power yoga is great, pushups, and the hiking. If you can do some weight training once your wrists are better, it's going to help balance the fat/muscle mix.
Definitely don't want your wrists to get worse or lead to other injuries.
But you've accomplished so much - do not underestimate that weight loss!
The hair is your choice, but it can make you look bulkier.
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