Looking leaner with shirt on when cutting?

[AntonisMastro]

So the past 1.5~ months I have been cutting and lost around 4kgs/9lbs so far.

I feel like my body without shirt looks way better than it used to, since I dropped from around 17% body fat to 13%ish. Veins are starting to pop out, waist gets leaner and so on. However I feel like with shirt on I look smaller and smaller.

Some friends of mine yesterday saw me with shirt on and were like "Did you lose your gains?" and stuff like that which disheartened me to death lol. They even said my body became worse.

Are you also looking less muscular with shirt on when cutting? It's extremely frustrating putting so much work into it just to get negative comments..

[SuffolkPunch]

Glycogen is reduced in the muscles making them look flatter. This will come back pretty quickly when you stop cutting.

[faithbrah]

cutting = good definition, facial aesthetics, look better shirtless but smaller in shirts
bulking = not as defined, face might look chubbier, look worse shirtless but bigger in shirts

that's how i see it for most people

[Cautious1]

cutting = good definition, facial aesthetics, look better shirtless but smaller in shirts
bulking = not as defined, face might look chubbier, look worse shirtless but bigger in shirts

that's how i see it for most people

I look muscular/ average with a top on but flabby with a top off. Would you say thats skinny fat?

[faithbrah]

I look muscular/ average with a top on but flabby with a top off. Would you say thats skinny fat?

well i'm the same, that's what happens when your bodyfat is like 22-25%. i don't consider it skinnyfat as long as you have a somewhat athletic shape