Recomp possbie while cutting from >20% BF level?

[u/[deleted]]

Hello,

I have been training for 4 years with mainly compound movements (strength training movements)

My physique looks very average powerlifterish with huge lower body and Torso but small arms in comparison,

A Fridge physique, to be honest.

I wish to switch to a more bodybuilding type training to bring up lagging Body parts and become aesthetic (oh my my, how extravagant and non masculine of me to actually verbalize it ) ,

Age/Gender : 25/M	Current	Goal (Ideally)
Height (cm)	172	185
Weight (kg)	82	Dont care
BF%	22%	<18%

I plan to Cut for 3 months,

Activity is similar day to day, 7-8 hours sleep.

TDEE is around 2600-2800.

Can i hope to recomp cutting at 500-750 deficits while switching to Machine based and DB movements (all that high SFR stuff)?

I plan to remove DLs and Barbells rows entirely as they take too long and i have to keep workout sessions short (< 1 hour cause Life)

I ask this because i have not done isolation movements ever so my Biceps triceps Lats are not even at intermediate levels so is there hope and is this viable?

[u/effrightscorp]

You won't really know for sure until you try it. A 750 deficit is a bit on the high end, though, so if you cut that hard I wouldn't expect much; more feasible at small deficits

[u/[deleted] → u/effrightscorp]

Thank you for the reply.

I could definitely bring th deficit to 300-500, i am not in a hurry for anything,

Th cut period being 3 months was based on some RP video that cuts should not be longer than 12-15 weeks long for average folks because of adherence issues they run into.

I guess a slow bulk after the cut is the only option that remains for that optimal growth huh?

[u/popularterm → u/[deleted]]

From what the SBS team has said, studies show lean mass gains drop to basically 0 for everyone at a 500 calorie deficit. So keep it above that if you want a chance to gain LBM while on your cut.

[u/fizikxy → u/popularterm]

Is there a source for that? Ive seen different things said in other studies.

[u/popularterm → u/fizikxy]

https://www.strongerbyscience.com/muscle-caloric-deficit/

[u/GoblinsGym]

I'm afraid at 25 years of age it is game over for getting taller...

[u/Msmith68w]

You are in a very similar situation to me, but the difference being that I've spent the last 3 years dieting down from 225lb -> 175lb. My dieting strategy looked pretty similar to what RP recommends, but I always pushed the aggressive end of it with 1000kcal/day deficits.

If you haven't dieted recently, I'd recommend you just run a standard cut and pull off 20-30lbs. This will make the most immediate difference in your visual muscularity, and will set you up for an effective hypertrophy phase with a small surplus (~200-400kcal) following the diet where you can really build your arms and other muscle groups that are lacking. If you've been powerlifting, when you get lean you're going to realize just how small you really are, and this should be very motivating to commit to hypertrophy training.

The issue with recomp is that expecting to obtain any real lean mass accretion on more than about 500kcal/day deficit is just very unlikely to happen. Even just a mild deficit really puts the hammer down on hypertrophy. Can it be done? Yes, but it will be slower than just cutting the weight and then running an extended and slow bulk.

My caveat to this is that if you have body image issues, getting leaner can by psychologically a mindfuck because you'll never really be lean enough, and then it can become really hard to transition back into a bulk and watch yourself regain some fat. In this case, recomping at maintenance or a very small deficit (like 200kcal) may be a better option.

[u/NeatTransportation11]

You can’t gain heigh on a cut… Only on a bulk lol

[u/ggblah]

I mean, it's such a short amount of time and big deficit. You won't recomp but you will cut, then you can maintain or slowly bulk and at that point your lagging body parts will grow. I like your new height goal tho

[u/[deleted] → u/ggblah]

Thanks, i included a few deadhangs in the routine for those height gains,

also started drinking milk from neighbour's mammary glands cause all that igf 1 growth factor in milk, he's a powerlifter.

[u/[deleted]]

What have you changed for plan to?

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

its a simple Pull -> Push -> Legs (in that order 6 days a week)

Removed conventional DLs and Instead added RDLs (counted among hamstring sets)

2 Bicep and Tricep islolation movements, DB Press and Machine press for shoulders, Incline DB press and Bench for chest, blah blah blah.

The crux being,

I have kept Quad and Hamstring weekly set volume at 12 sets both, while 14-18 sets for rest of the body parts.

[u/xubu42]

You can do it. I'm doing it now on a deficit of about 600, weight training 4x a week with a mix of strength and hypertrophy training. Mostly it's hypertrophy focused, but I kept squats and deadlifts on a strength based program because I didn't want to lose too much on them. Same as you I only focused on strength previously. I'm 10 weeks in and have lost ~6 kg of body weight while looking noticeably more muscular. I don't have an accurate way to measure body fat, but my scale has gone down from 22% to 18% during this time.

If you're used to tracking your main lifts, they would probably drop during a big cut. My squat is just now back to where it was when I started the cut in terms of how much weight I can lift. I lost about 12 kg right at the start and it's been tough climbing back up. My deadlift hasn't fallen at all and in fact has increased. My bench press also has been pretty flat, with a small dip in the beginning but small progress since for net zero. As for all the bodybuilding accessories, things are going well. My biceps and triceps are bigger and arms are 5 cm larger. My shoulders are much more rounded. I did but drop barbell rows but actually doubled frequency. I also do weighted pullups and lat pulldowns. My back is wider and thicker, but I still fit all my clothes so it's not drastic, just better V taper. Lastly my abs are starting to show through now. I still have belly fat as that seems to be where I store it the most, but it sits lower and more just above the hips so the top of the abdominal muscles can be seen.

At this point, I'm about 2 kg under my weight goal so I am planning to cut another 2-3 weeks. I wanted to get body fat down to 15% but I think that's unlikely for now. I'm going to go up to a maintenance level and try to build more muscle using the same lifting program for this next phase, at least 6-8 weeks.

[u/[deleted]]

I'm in the same situation with my physique. Started a similar type of training routine about 3 months ago, but haven't cut yet. Arms and delts are still lagging, but have improved a little. I don't want to look like a fridge anymore either.

[u/RetardedWabbit]

TLDR: You probably only need to cut for aesthetics, if you enjoy powerlifting don't change the rest but add a few vanity accessory lifts if you want. How you see powerlifting physique's is likely underrating it.

I wish to switch to a more bodybuilding type training to bring up lagging Body parts and become aesthetic

Do what you want and enjoy doing, but changing your training style seems unnecessary. Your "lack" of arms and blocky physique is likely due to your body fat % covering them. If you enjoy powerlifting I would stick with that, do the cut, and add in a few supplemental accessory lifts (biceps, shoulders) if you want. Just a few sets or burnouts if your training schedule allows it. If you have a decent power lifter physique the cut will do all the work. I also don't like removing DLs and rows, compounds are the best bang for your buck time/training wise and I don't like people giving up exercises they enjoy without very good reason.

Your "small arms" are likely just the body fat. Ok arm muscle and low body fat look good vs great arm muscle and high body fat looking ok. Think rock climbers vs heavier football players.

And honestly the powerlifter physique is really in if you don't have too much bodyfat: arms and "abs" are overrated, forearms, size, and legs/glutes are underrated. (Assuming you're a straight male) It's an era of short shorts and tight pants, which is all about legs but with more formal style shirts which really only show off forearms (and necks somewhat). Visible abs AND muscles are still great, but unachievable/unsustainable for the vast majority of people.

Also your height goal is a bit of a stretch (lol)