How to know when I should stop cutting?

[Germanauto]

Hello all,

I started cutting back in early August of this year. I was 175 lbs and 15.5% BF. As of now, I have come down to 161 lbs and 12.5% BF. I have eaten very clean, kept my protein up, lifted 4-6 times per week, and did HIIT Cardio to help get from 170 lbs to my current weight. Aside from my bench press lowering ~10 lbs, my lifts have not changed.

My goal has been to get my BF % down and get more definition in my arms, chest, hollowed out cheeks, etc. Now while I do have more definition, it's not like I can walk around shirtless and feel good about my physique. At the same time, everybody is commenting on how I've become "much smaller" and I think it's hitting me mentally. I'm starting to wonder if I should continue cutting and try to lose another 10 lbs to get the definition I seek, or just say screw it and start bulking. Has anybody been in this position before? And even if you haven't, what are your thoughts?

A friend suggested that maybe I just don't have enough muscle for it to show, but I am not buying that. Aside from bench press, my lifts are in a pretty solid range for all muscle groups. I can list some out if anybody feels it would be relevant.

Thanks.

[antych]

I would keep cutting until I'm happy with how I look. But I told you before, you're exercising too much and follow the wrong diet. Instead of giving up and bulking up, making things even worse, just try some other ways to get lean.

[HyeWarrior]

Funny saying I've read:

Bulk until you hate yourself
Cut until you hate life
Repeat

[Grip Grip]

Looks like you're dropping as much muscle as fat, but I'm far from being an expert.

Starting at 175 lbs and 15.5% BF, a 3% fat loss should put you at 170 lbs, not 161. Right? I calculated you lost 7 lbs fat and 7 lbs muscle. That's not a trade-off I'd be willing to take. Muscle is just too hard for me to gain.

175 @ 15.5% BF = 27 lbs fat
161 @ 12.5% BF = 20 lbs fat

I need to cut some myself, but I don't want to lose any size. I'm 188 lbs with probably 20% BF (pathetic, I know).

[Germanauto]

Thanks for the feedback guys. One thing I've learned in this journey is that it's all about making adjustments and it looks like I'll be doing that again. I could start by doing less Cardio. I've been doing ~15 mins of HIIT, 4-5x per week, for like 10 weeks now. I find it quite remarkable (and disappointing) that I have lost muscle despite my lifts non changing anywhere except my chest.

[antych]

Where did you get 15.5% and 12.5% BF numbers from?

[Germanauto]

Originally Posted by antych

Where did you get 15.5% and 12.5% BF numbers from?

Got it measured at the gym. They used the thing you hold with both your hands. It's probably not the most accurate but I got it measured both times using the same method.

[csu87]

Originally Posted by Germanauto

Got it measured at the gym. They used the thing you hold with both your hands. It's probably not the most accurate but I got it measured both times using the same method.

Gives you a close enough estimate as to how much you are cutting.

As for when should you stop cutting, the answer is entirely dependent on you. If you like where you are at, stop now. If you want to get leaner, keep going. You wont see a huge difference from 15-12, but from 12-10 and lower you will definitely notice it. As your BF% drops, results are exponentially more noticeable.

As for bench, Ive found that is heavily dependent on size; at least for me. If I cut 10lbs, my bench drops quickly. If I gain 10lbs, bench goes up quickly. Eventually though, once you stop cutting and go from trying to lose to trying to maintain, those numbers will slowly creep back up.

Any cutting cycle where you are trying to drop BF quick is going to also lose muscle, although maybe not 1:1 as you are experiencing. The key is to have a real solid base and eat just enough/right to keep as much muscle as possible. Whats your diet look like? Also, you will need to change up workouts to keep as much muscle as possible. A high pump workout tends to keep the size there longer than anything else. Bodybuilder type workouts are what you want to follow. Whats your routine been?

[The Chaddening]

Originally Posted by Germanauto

Hello all,

I started cutting back in early August of this year. I was 175 lbs and 15.5% BF. As of now, I have come down to 161 lbs and 12.5% BF. I have eaten very clean, kept my protein up, lifted 4-6 times per week, and did HIIT Cardio to help get from 170 lbs to my current weight. Aside from my bench press lowering ~10 lbs, my lifts have not changed.

My goal has been to get my BF % down and get more definition in my arms, chest, hollowed out cheeks, etc. Now while I do have more definition, it's not like I can walk around shirtless and feel good about my physique. At the same time, everybody is commenting on how I've become "much smaller" and I think it's hitting me mentally. I'm starting to wonder if I should continue cutting and try to lose another 10 lbs to get the definition I seek, or just say screw it and start bulking. Has anybody been in this position before? And even if you haven't, what are your thoughts?

A friend suggested that maybe I just don't have enough muscle for it to show, but I am not buying that. Aside from bench press, my lifts are in a pretty solid range for all muscle groups. I can list some out if anybody feels it would be relevant.

Thanks.

You stop cutting when you are shredded as f*** BRO.

/ THREAD

[BSM n54iS]

No no no, you're satisfied when you find yourself dancing naked to "Goodbye Horses" in front of a mirror saying 'Would you fuck me? I'd fuck me....I'd fuck me hard'

[InternetFame]

Until you run out of blood, then put the knife down.

[JoeyBananas]

Im starting my cut again but have really gained a lot of weight since my leanest. I had a solid 6 pack at 160 and now im at 185 and its really hard. at my leanest I was eating only 1500 cals and doing 30 mins of treadmill and lifting everyday. I think I really F
d my metabolism.

fwiw im 5'7

[squartus]

Get your BF etc done with a dexa scan, only way to get the true numbers. Gives alot of other data as well as exact ammount of muscle. For me about 11.5% BF "dexa scan BF%" is as low as I like to go and be able to carry on normal life, decent lifting/strength and not be to crazy with food. Still need to be very strict, but do not need to count macros etc at that point.

Now how you look is going to depend on the muscle and symmetry you have, not just BF %. Getting lean is easy, carrying decent ammount of muscle while staying lean is the hard part.
So I would just off the top of my head say you just more time in the gym, more food etc before worrying about getting to lean. Need a foundation, now you can "bulk" just fine without getting fat. Can pack on lbs of muscle while keeping abs, you just need 300-500 calories over your baseline. Not freaking 3,000 over, thats why guys get all feaking fat and puffy. They then need to sped tons of time and effort to remove that when they lean down, besides wastefull and pointless its not exactly good for your health eating bad like that

[TheNus]

Here are my suggestions for you. Please read them as positive.

Most people greatly overestimate the amount of muscle that they have. Focus on building quality muscle. I am sure you don't have as much as you think.

Workout hard every time. Everyone thinks they workout hard but again, they probably don't. You shouldn't feel sore the next morning, you should feel like you were in a car wreck. It hurts to grow and you will love it.

Stop the bulk and cut. Eat 300 to 500 above maintenance on workout days and maintenance or slightly above on non workout days depending on what your body tells you. If you start to put on a little fat adjust your macros and training to take care of it. For big plateaus you might need to go a little shunky but once you break them you can take care of it.

Hide your scale and rely on the mirror and measuring tape. The scale messes with your mind just like people who tell you that you are getting small.

I have been through this whole thing and it is a journey. I took myself from 155 at 6' in my mid 20s to my current weight of 230 at age 36. I intend to slowly carve off about 10 lbs which should take me to a good place.

[PoorLurker]

Stop cutting at "sliced"

http://www.traindaly.com/train-daly/...fat-comparison