Skinny fat & confused

[Nicktd9k]

Hey guys, I'm new here so this will be my first post, hopefully you can help!

So here's my problem, I'm a 5'9, 158lbs, type 1 Diabetic, who is on a ketogenic-paleo way of eating. I'm also skinny-fat (i estimate about 18% bf?). As you can see by the attached photo, I have no upper body muscle, skinny wrists etc, and though they're not visible, my legs seem to be the only decently muscled area.

I've been training at a crossfit gym for about a year, doing prescribed WOD's & randomised strength work, but have recently started stronglifts, cutting back on cardio etc. I typically train 3-4x per week. I favour compound movements over isolation.

In the past, I've tried to bulk, and I got stronger, but gained more fat & no noticeable muscle after about half a year.
I've also been eating at a deficit recently, and have only achieved skinnier arms, legs, and more hip/lower abdominal fat.
Eating at maintanence doesn't seem to work either.

DIET -

As I've said, my diet is strict paleo, with under 40 grams of carbs per day. It gives me optimal blood glucose control, so I get my carbs from veggies (no potatoes, pasta, bread, sweets/starches). During or after a tough workout I'll add 15-20 grams of carbs from fruits, but that's it.
So a high fat, moderate protein, low carb diet.
Meat, fish, veg, healthy fats. This cant change, for obvious reasons.
I eat 3-4 meals a day.
Macronutrient-wise, I'm usually 30g carbs, 150g protein, 170-200g fat.

I'm not interested in looking like a fitness model, as that wouldn't be a realistic goal, but it's disheartening to have love handles, and look like i sit and eat junk all day, when I train hard and eat properly. Should I give up on ever looking like I exercise? I don't know what to do really.

If I can give more detail, let me know.

Cheers!
Nick

[EmperorRyker]

You don't look skinny fat to me, really.

[imhungry4444]

I was skinny fat at one point, you're not skinny fat. Have you lost a dramatic amount of weight in the past?

[Nicktd9k]

I was skinny fat at one point, you're not skinny fat. Have you lost a dramatic amount of weight in the past?

No dramatic weight loss..
I do seem to carry some stomach/hip fat, maybe the photo isn't the best.

[EmperorRyker]

I do seem to carry some stomach/hip fat, maybe the photo isn't the best.

Yeah, you do, but not out of proportion with the rest of the body. You don't even have noticeable love handles. Again, there's nothing skinny fat about your physique.

[Nicktd9k]

Maybe I'm too critical of myself.. Haha
So in that case, what would be the best idea to help toward developing some sort of aesthetics?

[EjnarKolinkar]

How has your training progressed over the last year, good progress on your compounds? It takes time to add muscle, sometimes it feels like watching grass grow. Don't let that get you down if your program and nutrition are in line.

Stronglifts seems like a good idea. Good luck with it.

[EmperorRyker]

Maybe I'm too critical of myself.. Haha
So in that case, what would be the best idea to help toward developing some sort of aesthetics?

Nothing specific to you, really. Just look at the stickies here and in the workout program section, pick a program, learn the lifts if you don't know them yet, and decide on whether you want to cut some fat first, bulk, or try to recompose.

[Mrpb]

Maybe I'm too critical of myself.. Haha
So in that case, what would be the best idea to help toward developing some sort of aesthetics?

Start eating a slight surplus so you gain 1-2 pounds per month.

Stronglifts is good. I would add chin ups on dead lift day and dips on bench day. 3 x amrap.

[gbullock32]

Start with nutrition- learning the basics about calorie and macro/micro nutrients and how they will help you reach your goals, read-

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=156380183
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=136691851
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=129523333
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=123915821

Once you have done that select a proven beginner routine, these are made to give the best results, some good routines would be-

Starting Strength - http://startingstrength.com/

BabyLover's Starting Strength - http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=135564721

AllPro's Beginner Routine - http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=4195843

StrongLifts 5x5 - http://stronglifts.com/5x5/

IceCream Fitness 5x5 - http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=148036063

Fierce 5 - http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=159678631

Coolcicada's Push/Pull/Legs - http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=149807833

Read into those and pick the one you like best.

SUPPLEMENTS

Are just that and nothing more, you do not need them, and most are either useless or a waste of money. If you really want to take them there are a few that can be beneficial though.

Recommended-

Multivitamin- Useful for helping to fill in any holes in your diet- remember, it is there to compliment what you get from food, not replace it.

Fish Oil- Great for getting in essential fats that most do not from whole food unless eating fish fairly often.

Creatine Monohydrate- Cheapest form of creatine and the most proven/studied. 3-5 grams a day, taken at any time with any liquid is all it takes and you do not need to load or cycle nor do you need to take it with sugar. Many types of creatine exist but just go with a plain mono- do not expect miracles though, creatine will barely have any noticeable effect, it may give you an extra rep or 2 but that is about it.

Bloating with creatine is actually very minimal, if it occurs at all, and usually only happens to those who load it (which is not needed). Creatine works by saturation, pulling water into the muscles and providing more endurance: think of it like putting an extra gallon of capacity on your car's gas tank, it doesn't directly improve performance, but allows for more distance to be covered. This is essentially (in very simplified terms) what creatine will do, it will let you go just a little further.

Optional-

Protein- Not needed really, it is just a powdered food (usually derived from either a milk, plant, beef, or egg protein) that can be used to reach your minimum protein needs if you cannot do so with whole foods. Do not get caught up with what type to get, a standard whey will be the cheapest and will be just fine. Only take as much as is needed to reach protein needs for the day.

BCAA Products- BCAA (Branch Chain Amino Acids) are said to prevent muscle breakdown and aid in recovery- this is true but you know what already has BCAAs in it? Food, any source of protein has and is comprised of branch chain amino acids. Assuming you reach protein sufficiency in your day a BCAA supplement would do nothing to aid you.

BCAA supplements may be beneficial if you take pre/intra workout only if you train in a fasted state, or taken between meals if you go 4-6 hours without food. If you do not fit either of those categories they are not needed at all, save the money.

Not needed-

Fat Burners- They do not burn fat and barely do anything in regards to losing fat. Most will only suppress appetite and provide energy. Save your money, work on diet and training first, skip fat burners entirely or save them as an option for the final part of a cut, when you need an energy boost.

CLA- Borderline useless unless you are obese, do not waste the money.

Pre-Workout- They provide energy and endurance boosts, which may be useful if you need it but hold off until you have training and nutrition experience before looking into these. Some people respond poorly to certain stimulants so if taking a pre-workout always follow the directions and dosing instructions.

Pretty much any other supplements are not worth going into, do research first, buy later or never; most will do so little in regards to actual results that your money is best saved for something useful, like a food scale.

[EmperorRyker]

Stronglifts is good. I would add chin ups on dead lift day and dips on bench day. 3 x amrap.

But 3 x AMRAP = AMRAP?

[Mrpb]

@ Gbullock, as helpful as your copy paste is, in this case it doesn't seem applicable. He has already set his macros correctly and he's already following SL 5x5.

But 3 x AMRAP = AMRAP?

What is your question?

[EmperorRyker]

What is your question?

I was just confused by what you meant with 3 x AMRAP.

[Mrpb]

I was just confused by what you meant with 3 x AMRAP.

3 sets of as many reps as possible.

Once he's comfortable with 8-10 reps I suggest adding weight on both dips and chin ups.

The recommendation for dips assumes good shoulder health.

[thinkgreen]

No offense but I find it hard to believe you've been working out consistently for a year and that's the result. Are you being honest with yourself on how consistent you really are with your workouts and your diet? Also, are you making gains on all your lifts? I think re-evaluation is in need.

[Nicktd9k]

No offense but I find it hard to believe you've been working out consistently for a year and that's the result. Are you being honest with yourself on how consistent you really are with your workouts and your diet? Also, are you making gains on all your lifts? I think re-evaluation is in need.

I have a hard time believing it too. As I said, my training was randomised met-con & strength work until finding stronglifts, but I would've hoped for a bit more progress. I've noticed very slight improvements, but not much. Not sure if its a lack of carbs or not.
I'll keep in mind what you've all said, cheers!

[thinkgreen]

Where are your lifts at # wise?

[Nicktd9k]

Where are your lifts at # wise?

Developed chronic tendonitis of scapula, took 6-7 weeks away from the gym, lost a bit of strength, however numbers still aren't great. 1RM? No idea, but after starting with empty bar on SL, I'm sitting at
165 squat, 240 deadlift, 77 overhead press (weakest movement), 150 bench & row.

Before any has a good laugh at those numbers - I'm aware they're awful, and I shouldn't expect any big change lifting that sort of weight!

[EmperorRyker]

Developed chronic tendonitis of scapula, took 6-7 weeks away from the gym, lost a bit of strength, however numbers still aren't great. 1RM? No idea, but after starting with empty bar on SL, I'm sitting at
165 squat, 240 deadlift, 77 overhead press (weakest movement), 150 bench & row.

Before any has a good laugh at those numbers - I'm aware they're awful, and I shouldn't expect any big change lifting that sort of weight!

They're not awful numbers if you're doing those lifts with good form. Don't sell yourself short, seriously. You might not be growing like a mushroom as some others do, but it seems you're on the right track, so just follow the advice you've been given here and keep plugging at it. But, yes, genetics will play a role in how you look.

[Hardgainer2000]

I used to be skinny fat and looked very similiar to you. What I did was cut all the fat and became skinny but ripped. Now i'm slowly bulking. I followed the leangains protocol and started with RPT and then started ICF routine which i'm still doing now. I'm gonna start a P/P/L soon.