So close yet so far

[tven]

I went from 18% body fat to about 10% over 85 days. But i can not seem to lose the love handles. I tried as much as i can to build muscle , but within the 1600 to 1800 calories (clean calories) i eat, I am afraid muscle gain has been minimal.

They have certainly improved, but thought i'd lose them completely by getting close to 10% BF. And i am not seeing the same kind of benefit anymore with my current routine.

For the workouts, I was doing cardio/cross fit workouts 6 days a week for the past 90 days. Burning about 500 to 600 calories per workout. About 3 days a week i'd workout twice a day. Doing mostly pushups, pullups, arm dumbell workouts in the AM .

Diet has been a 8.5/10. Which is to say, i probably have one or two cheating days a month with the food. I am kicking myself now for not being mentally stronger.

After 3 months of grind, i am starting lose faith in the work outs i am doing.

Here are my Day 30 and Day 85 pictures.

What do i do now? Do i keep the cardio up? If so, how many days a week?

Do I start building muscle? If so, should i increase the calories to see gains? Kinda afraid increasing calories will take me back.

Please suggest what i can do to get rid of the love handles completely.

[SideSteal]

What are you using to determine you are at 10% bodyfat currently?

[tven]

Average of calipers and the handheld digital BF tester from amazon called omron.

I am not sure what the error % is on these kind of measurements.

[SideSteal]

What do i do now? Do i keep the cardio up? If so, how many days a week?

Do I start building muscle? If so, should i increase the calories to see gains? Kinda afraid increasing calories will take me back.

Please suggest what i can do to get rid of the love handles completely.

If it were me I would just bulk from where you are currently. It won't help you get abs, but you'll add on some lean mass. You're definitely lean enough to bulk.

I would increase calories but I would also take a look at your lifting program to make sure you have the following in place:

High enough intensity to stimulate muscle growth. (Lift heavy!!)
Lifting program centered around compound movements.
I would suggest at least 3/week, possibly 4 for training frequency.
Train all major muscle groups.

Since I've not done crossfit I can't comment with firsthand experience, but I speculate it's effectiveness for mass building.

EDIT: As far as diet goes, I would check the thread titled "calculating calorie needs and macronutrients". Start out on the low end of bulking (10% surplus) if you're overly cautious about any fat gain.

[SideSteal]

Average of calipers and the handheld digital BF tester from amazon called omron.

I am not sure what the error % is on these kind of measurements.

Just being honest here: When I look at the pictures I would estimate the 30day picture to be around the 19% (EDIT: Took another look, closer to 18% in the 30day) bodyfat mark and the current pic around 14-15%. This doesn't mean I am correct-- I am only mentioning this because it also explains why you can't see abs.

[tven]

Honesty is much appreciated. God knows if these measurements are ever truly accurate. I am just going by the readings i got. If i am currently at 14% , i'd take that as good news , as that would mean i have BF loss goals that are still reasonably attainable and within healthy limits.

Bad news would have been if i was 10% or lower and still have the handles.

Thank you for your time.

[SideSteal]

Honesty is much appreciated. God knows if these measurements are ever truly accurate. I am just going by the readings i got. If i am currently at 14% , i'd take that as good news , as that would mean i have BF loss goals that are still reasonably attainable and within healthy limits.

Bad news would have been if i was 10% or lower and still have the handles.

Thank you for your time.

No problem. I took another look, I think 13-14%. I would bet money that you aren't 10%. All that being said, I would still consider bulking. Get some lean mass going then cut down again after. Just my two cents on the matter and good luck with your goals.

[tven]

No problem. I took another look, I think 13-14%. I would bet money that you aren't 10%. All that being said, I would still consider bulking. Get some lean mass going then cut down again after. Just my two cents on the matter and good luck with your goals.

I am going to do a BF test with mybodyfattest dot com out here in Los Angeles on friday. Hopefully that will tell me exactly where I am at.

[TelusLob]

You aren't 10%. Likely 12-13 IMO

[SideSteal]

I am going to do a BF test with mybodyfattest dot com out here in Los Angeles on friday. Hopefully that will tell me exactly where I am at.

Awesome-- if you wouldn't mind, PM me when you get the results so I can compare results back to the pic-- only asking because I do a lot of pic estimates and it would help me.

[tven]

Awesome-- if you wouldn't mind, PM me when you get the results so I can compare results back to the pic-- only asking because I do a lot of pic estimates and it would help me.

Will do.

[becausewecan]

would be cool if you could post the actual results here too, I`ve been measured at my gym and with a hand held bodyfat machine (both using bioimpedance) and they both say 13.5% but ive had comments on here saying im quite higher than that!

I would really be interested in seeing your actual reading too.

cheers

[tven]

90 day pictures

[boomshard]

First off, great work. You've definitely made a lot of progress in the past few months.

It sounds like your diet is on track, but as far as routine goes I'd recommend what SideSteal said and go with heavy compound lifts 3-4x per week and just supplement that with cardio to achieve the weight loss you want. I think proportionally our bodies are pretty close to the same atm, and I'm still seeing good progress towards getting my abs to show completely by doing heavy compounds 3x/week and cardio on off days.

If I were you I'd keep the deficit going until you get the look you want, then just slowly bulk so that you can stay lean and get bigger at the same time. That way you won't stress about undoing all the hard work you just did cutting while you're in the middle of pool season.

[ejthomp]

90 day pictures

Impressive!!! That is a hell of a change in 90 days.

You might not be quite at 10%, but you are within spitting distance!

http://www.leighpeele.com/body-fat-p...nd-percentages

You look GREAT!

[tven]

Thank you for the encouraging words and that link for body fat reference. My goal is to be 7 and 10%. But obviously have to get to 10% first.

With my current deficit, there are very few carbs.

My maintenance is 2200 calories, currently eating around 1700. But my workouts were all cardio based with some body weight moves thrown in and very few dumbell workouts.

If i had to start lifting heavy, should i bump up the calories just a tad say to 1900 , just to have that extra bit of energy to lift heavy?

Definitely going to do 3 days of heavy lifting 2 days of cardio from here on out.
---
Edit: Just finished the Body Comp Analysis using Hydrostatic Testing (Underwater Density Test) .

Stats: Weight: 148, Height: 5' 9.5"
Here are the results: BF: 9.4% Weight of Weight of Body Fat : 13.95 lbs, Lean Body Mass: 134.05 lbs

Head scratcher compared to what people are telling me.

[ejthomp]

If i had to start lifting heavy, should i bump up the calories just a tad say to 1900 , just to have that extra bit of energy to lift heavy?

If you can manage on 1700 calories, I would stay there. It is only going to get harder from here and you are so close now.....Why not just push through and get it over with as soon as possible?

If you ever get the chance, watch a video called "I want to look like that guy."

http://www.iwanttolooklikethatguy.com/

[ejthomp]

Edit: Just finished the Body Comp Analysis using Hydrostatic Testing (Underwater Density Test) .

Stats: Weight: 148, Height: 5' 9.5"
Here are the results: BF: 9.4% Weight of Weight of Body Fat : 13.95 lbs, Lean Body Mass: 134.05 lbs

Head scratcher compared to what people are telling me.

Interesting.....

This is exactly what we talk about all the time here.

The test says "9.4%" What does the mirror say? Even the gold standard hydrostatic test has error of 2-3% that they readily admit.

Are you happy with where you are now? (You do look great) If you're happy....you're done!

If you're not satisfied....does the test result really mean anything? No!

At the end of the day, no test exists that will tell you exactly what your body fat percentage is and more importantly, whether you are happy or not.

You are done, when the mirror says you are done.

[tven]

Interesting.....

This is exactly what we talk about all the time here.

The test says "9.4%" What does the mirror say? Even the gold standard hydrostatic test has error of 2-3% that they readily admit.

Are you happy with where you are now? (You do look great) If you're happy....you're done!

If you're not satisfied....does the test result really mean anything? No!

At the end of the day, no test exists that will tell you exactly what your body fat percentage is and more importantly, whether you are happy or not.



You are done, when the mirror says you are done.

You are right the mirror does'nt lie, and i am not satisfied. I still want to show more defintion on the midsection. Plus put more muscle on overall. Its going to be a balancing act between the two goals.

[Giusbello]

I dont be want to be the negative one, but at 5'10 and ONLY a 150lbs, I would strongly suggest a bulk up to atleast 170lbs before cutting.

[tven]

I dont be want to be the negative one, but at 5'10 and ONLY a 150lbs, I would strongly suggest a bulk up to atleast 170lbs before cutting.

I would tend to agree with you. Ill post pictures as i seem gains. Thank you for all the input and support.

[tven]

Decided i am going to cheat today and eat some rice and tasty indian food. I promise i will keep it under manageable portions.

Friday starts my heavy lifting routine with carb cycling.

[HunterCML]

Damn, just have to say - kickass job man. Incredible 90 day transformation. Inspiring to be honest.

Yeah, you have two options, try to cut for abs right now and go into the 9-10%BF range; or bulk up, and then in a few months do a cut where your abs would be a lot more visible at the current BF% you're at now.

Bulk is the obvious choice since you're 150lbs. Good luck man, keep up the amazing progress. LIFT HEAVY.

[gourlay]

good cutting progress OP..looks better without the hairy chest aswell...when did u start seein vascularity on your biceps?they look 4 inches bigger from your 30 day pic

[tven]

good cutting progress OP..looks better without the hairy chest aswell...when did u start seein vascularity on your biceps?they look 4 inches bigger from your 30 day pic

Wish i really gained 4 inches on the biceps . Maybe an inch at best. All the cardio really kept the muscle gain to a minimum. Vascularity is because of EAS HMB caps.

I was on HMB, Natrol CLA, p90x vitamins, and Gold standard whey 3 times a day (about 30 grams per serving). Wanted to take creatine, but that would've kept the water wait up and kept what little ab definition i had from showing.