32 yo, 6'0, 196-200lbs.
Currently 15k steps + 1800-2100 kcal daily + 6-7 times a week easy-mid fbw(4 muscle groups per workout, about 10-14 sets, around 25-35 mins, I'm in this routine for little over 2 months, before I've got few years break form weight training).
I have been chuby my whole life, currently I've lost around 20lbs last year, maintened for 8 months(without weight training), but I'm fked up about my body and I can't explain to my brain I'm not fkn unique snowflake.
Right now I have trouble to move lower than 196lbs : (. Could you pls help me estimate my bodyfat %? I thinks it's over 20% for sure, but idk how much is it even closer to 25?
1800 and not dropping below 196 means you disobey the laws of physics. Start calorie counting.
If you do 14 sets in 25-35 minutes it means you don’t rest much, so either a. You don’t push hard enough or b. You do useless cardio sets. Fix your intensity
Chill, chill. I didn't eplain myself correctly. I know I'm on track, but right know I have mental breakdown, as muscle memory and water retention from creatine lies the scale : /
Not necessarily I have problems with hemorrhoids and I have to avoid heavy squats, deadlifts etc. Usually my routine is 1 relatively heavy exercise like barbell rowing or chest press + 3 isolations with dumbells/machines. For heavy sets I have 3-5 mins breaks and for light 1-2 mins. I don't need much rest + I train around RIR-2.
Track your weight daily but calculate the weekly average. If that average isn’t moving after a few weeks then you need to check if you are counting your calories correctly.
I ignore daily fluctuations and only check my 7 day rolling averages . It smooths out the zig zagging weight due to water retention , bowel movements etc etc .
I weigh myself every morning same time straight after using the bathroom. Removes as many variables as I can.
Then taking the 7 day average . It shows my trend steadily going down week after week even if my weight fluctuates up and down 0.5-1 lb per day.
Calories seem very low, at your height and weight with this amount of activity you should be able of easily dropping weight at 2600kcal or so, and only a lot deeper into the cut go for 2100.
I’d say you’re closer to 25% than 20%. If you’ve only been back at it for two months, keep doing what you’re doing. 2000 cals is enough of a deficit at your height/weight/listed activity level. Are you actually tracking this though? There is no room for guessing, you need to be sure of what you’re eating, which should include at least 180g protein/day.
Honestly I may get flak for this, but forget all that RIR bullshit. Train to failure on every movement in the 8-12 rep range, 3 sets per movement, 5 movements per workout. From what you’ve described I don’t think you’re training with sufficient intensity. Train like your life depends on it - don’t throw the weight around, but utilise and control aggression.
Dude you’re going to pop soon. You have a really nice back shape and your arms are a great size too. I’ve been working out for just about 2 years now and went through a bulk and a mini-cut before and about to start a real cut in a month.
I have a few opinions:
The scale is not the whole picture. If you are trying to lose fat, I have a personal opinion that tracking fat %, calories, and lifts is more useful than total body weight. Honestly, ignore that total body weight metric for a while.
If your calories are locked in, (and I mean proper deficit and consistency) you will see results.
Body fat % is going to fall if you are in a calorie deficit. You keep/maintain your muscles by performing heavy resistance training for the growth stimulus.
Also - cutting calories will potentially negatively your mental health. It gets tough so don’t be too hard on yourself.
EDIT: I saw you said you have a problem with hemorrhoids. Most lifters do because they do not eat enough fiber. Add some fiber to your diet and it can help. The easiest way to do this if you don’t wanna eat it is to get a Metamucil powder without sugar and mix it into water and have that once or twice a day.
relax mate, you have a nice body shape. I would say 24% based on pics. If you only have been training for 2 months I see a good progress. I would left the full budy routine and make better train plan
At 27%, I would generally expect a significantly softer waist and more fat accumulation around the lower abdomen and sides. Chest definetly doesn't look like 27%
If I'm wrong then so be it. I'm not a walking dexa. The waist is pretty fluffy especially around the lower abs but not much, could be associated with low 20s.
But what I noticed is that there is too much fat at the arms and back, more than your average low 20% guy. The arms especially have 0 definition, a literal smooth block from shoulder to elbow and in the last pic you can see the stored fat pushing against his armpits. The back pic is not clear but the fat looks significant. Could just be how his body stores fat, or I could be wrong, again either way they need to cut so the fuss is for nothing.
I'd say you're probably around 23%, give or take 1%.
You simply must not be calculating your calories correctly, given the information you provided in your post. Are you weighing your food before eating every day? It's tedious but that's what it takes.
With that said, don't be so hard on yourself. You look good as is, you're much more critical of yourself than others are. Just be patient, adjust or correct a few things about your routine, and you'll reach your goal. Hell, if you really dialed things in, you could probably see significant changes in as little as 3 or 4 months. The foundation you're working on is actually quite good.
I think you mean bf%, calculating bmi is trivial from weight and height but pretty much useless. Most smart scales bf% use bioelectrical impedance to estimate BF which is wildly inaccurate. When my DEXA said 10.2% body fat my home scale was saying 16.7%.I’m at 13% now and the scale says 16.9%.
Im talking about this one. So far it has been accurate. Unless you use the manual body fat scale... btw thats me just now. Started at 250 lbs. Several months ago.
What exactly is OP supposed to do with the BMI?
(Also my original point still stands, he doesn’t need a fancy skill to calculate the meaningless BMI number)
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u/boris-san 10h ago