At ≈20% bodyfat should I cut or bulk?
>things to consider
-if I bulked I don't care what I look like until after a cut, so bring on the bodyfat bitch
-as long as my excess bf% doesn't hinder gains I desperately prefer a bulk
-I might have the option of a ≈250cal surplus lean bulk, I think that'd slow down fat & gains though
Fuck cutting to absolutely nothing. Everyone on reddit is telling me that's what I need to do though
Honestly I'm told I look skinny by friends (which I know is bullshit). I'm not excusing being a fat slob but for the time being I'd rather look "bigger" with a shirt on than skimpy but have no gut (since 99% of the time im wearing a shirt). And then I can just
UNLESS excess fat hinders gains. What's the verdict on this?
Bulk if you don't want to cut.
Either way, your long term goal is being lean and big.
You look closer to 18%, btw.
Cut, but try not to go too far, learnt that the hard way. Have been in a 700- 1000 calorie deficit the past 5 months (according to my fitness pal diary) yet I've seen almost no results. Now I'm trying to cut a more moderate 500 kcal and reach my protein goals more consistently.
For the record: 17, 20% BF, lift 3 times a week and cardio another 3
>17
Underage b&
this.
>Have been in a 700- 1000 calorie deficit the past 5 months (according to my fitness pal diary) yet I've seen almost no results.
Probably because you're not using a fucking food scale or measuring cups to track your fucking macros in MFP.
>Probably because you're not using a fucking food scale or measuring cups to track your fucking macros in MFP.
Also if you are doing the above, and your fucking gaining or maintaining, that means you overestimated your fucking TDEE and you need to adjust it.
>check weight monday week 1 after wake and piss
>measure everything you eat to the gram
>check weight monday week 2 after wake and piss
if you were "cutting" by 500 calories a day but gained 1 lb that means your fucking TDEE is 500 calories higher than you think it is and you should lower your intake by 1000 calories.
If your goal is aesthetics then anything above 15%BF should be a cut.
Can't I bulk before a cut? Wouldn't it be the exact same thing, just reversed?
No, because if you had READ the supplementary READING in the STICKY, you'd know that the fatter you get, the more your body prioritizes storing energy as fat rather than muscle
Am I really that fat though for that to be an issue?
Eat at maintenance.
>as long as my excess bf% doesn't hinder gains I desperately prefer a bulk
Over 15% bf hinders gain
So you should cut
Will I still see strength gains?
This is stupid
If you have nothing to cut down to, there is no point in cutting. Having a lot of LBM will higher your metabolism and make cutting easier - thus you need to have a base to even think about going calorie deficit. If you are a beginner lifter you will lose fat while building muscle anyway when lifting, so eat slightly above your TDEE lift weights and build the muscle first.
Lift the weights, get the lean body mass, this will aid you in cutting fat off your body. Cutting first when you have very little lean body mass is going to be fucking hard because your BMR is already low as fuck, your metabolism will be slower, and you wont be providing your muscles with the nutrients required to grow.
The only time this becomes a bad idea is if you are obese (like 250+lbs) 30+% BF
shave your pits
also with very little lean body mass it's going to be become extremely hard to get to a low BF% unless you are genetically gifted or using drugs. You will be pounding out your untrained muscles in the gym, not providing nutrients to grow, which will cause muscle breakdown and make you go catabolic. Your body will prioritze holding on to the fat too because it will know it has very little LBM.
When you have a good amount of lean body mass this wont happen to on the same level it does when you do not.
20% and bulk for 3 months will net you less muscle than if you were to cut to 10% first and then bulk for 3 months. You will also be gaining more of your weight as fat, meaning you will only be making it take longer to cut to 10% when you finally do. CUT FIRST, THEN BULK, or bulk, get fat, and cut back down to skinnyfat and wind up asking this same question 3 months from now.
>700-1000 calorie deficit for 5 months
Yeah, that's fucking retarded. Your metabolism is 100% fucked, your BMR is probably really fucking low by now and I guarentee you your strength and energy are absolute garbage.
What you should probably do is at the very least do a mini bulk or eat at maintence for awhile and get your metabolism going again and lift some heavy fucking weight.
People for whatever reason dont understand the fact that when you have low levels of LBM and you're eating in high deficits over a long period of time your BMR is going to slow well under what any calculator will predict it to be.
Meanwhile if you actually have a high percentage of LBM on your body not only will your BF% be much easier to control, but cutting will come much more easier due to the higher metabolism (your body will need the higher calories to hold on to the muscle) by having more muscle your BMR will be higher than any calculator predicts.
There is really no reason (outside of obesity) that somebody should be cutting with low LBM. I dont care if their BF% is 25-30% it will go down if you start lifting and building muscle because you will increase your lean body mass relative to any extra fat you are putting on your body.
This is retarded
Yeah, it will net you less muscle overall if you are starting from a higher BF% because of natural hormone levels. However, if you have little LBM and a high BF% you aren't going to hit 10% BF without drugs, it just isn't going to happen. Your body isn't retarded enough unless you want to starve on 500 calories a day and lose every last bit of muscle you have on your body - then maybe, maybe you will hit 10%
You need LBM to cut successfuly. Simple fact. You might if you are lucky hit 15% BF with low LBM but it's going to be fucking difficult and take you months - months you could have spent building muscle and creating a solid base for yourself to cut. What you said is the totally opposite of what will happen - if you have high LBM your BMR will be naturally higher, this will make cutting easier so you can actually hit under 15% without starving yourself.
If you really think telling a new lifter with untrained muscles to go lift weights and not feed their body is a good idea you are a moron
How slightly above should I go? TDEE is 2700
I actually dont even recommend most of those calculators. You should get a feel for your own metabolism and know where your bulking and cutting points are going to be. If I personally ate at what TDEE calculators predict I would be putting on an extreme amount of weight. Even when I eat at my calculated maintenance levels I end up gaining weight - this is because my metabolism genetically is slower then what those calculators predict it.
if you are new to lifting eat at your TDEE first and start lifting weights. Check the scale after a week, if it's gone up you are eating enough, if its gone down, you aren't until you get a feel for your body.
If your weight stays the same at your TDEE calculator then its correct for you and you should probably increase your calories to +300 max and do as clean of a bulk as possible. Increase your LBM your BF% will go down, especially if you are a new lifter. This doesn't mean you are cutting fat and muscle at the same time per say (though it is possible if you are a new lifter) it just means your LBM is increasing in percentage compared to your fat thus BF% goes down rather then up.
This is why bulking at skinny-fat is the better option because not only should you shrink your BF% down, you will create a solid base for your cut. With higher LBM your metabolism will become higher, your body will be more willing to shed the fat off on a calorie deficit, your hormone levels will be in a much better place.
How should my macros look?
How the hell would I know I'm not meeting my protein goal if I'm not tracking my macros?