DEXA Results | 1Yr Update: Progression is not Linear (29F/5’0/24.5% > 19.8% > 20.7%)

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lapinot

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Progress Pictures

DEXA Results

Prior Post

Numbers:​


5’0 SW(Feb 2021): 110.9

Weight at last DEXA In Aug 2021: 97lbs

CW: 97lbs GW: To maintain around 95 - 98lbs
Starting bf % 24.5% (late April 2021)

Aug 2021 bf%: 19.8%

Aug 2022 bf%: 20.7%

Bf% numbers from DEXA scans.

About Me:​


Photos included starting from when I started my weight lifting journey in Feb 2021. You can find more background/history in my prior post.

Going into this DEXA, I was thinking I had at the vest least maintained my bf% and was hopeful to have gained more muscle but that is not what happened.

I got a tonal last Sept and switched from doing Caroline Girvan workouts to heavier lifting at a slower pace with tonal. It looks like this had an impact of my fat gain. I did gain some muscle in my arms and legs but I also lost muscle and gained fat mostly in my trunk area which is the muscle I’ve largely been trying to target.

I feel like I see progress in the mirror but its not necessarily reflected in the numbers. I’ve also been lifting heavier so I’m getting stronger, but I somehow still lost lean mass. This is a bit of a late post as I’ve been struggling with if I should even post this but I felt its important for us to see that progress may not be linear and the numbers don’t mean everything!

Current Diet:​


I’ve been maintaining around 96-98lbs successfully by tracking on mfp. I’ve recently (in the last 2 wks) recommitted myself to up my protein to at least 80-100g/day and started taking creatine. I’ll update if I notice any changes!

I eat what I want within confines of my calorie goal. Currently eating 1400-1700cals a day.

Current Routine:​


I’m active at least 6 days a week most weeks. I lift on my tonal at least 3 - 4days, one day of spin (could just be 15mins!), 2 days of dance classes, and I try to get 6k steps avg per week.

Currently deadlifting 1x my bodyweight, squatting .75x, and benching .5x.

Going Forward:​


I’m going to try to incorporate 1 day of CG a week to up my cardio. I also just enjoy her workouts! I’m trying to get more steps too, and to just generally move more. I’m trying to target my glutes and get stronger.

I’ve been considering a small lean gain but I haven’t tackled it yet. May up my calories in the winter and see what happens!

Take Aways​


I’m happy that I maintained my weight over the last year without much difficulty and didn’t feel like I was missing anything! I still ate ice cream every week!

I’m learning to focus less on the numbers and more on my aesthetic and strength goals as thats more reflective of my goals. It’s definitely a challenge to try to move past the numbers though.

Open to any thoughts, feedback, or questions! Would love to hear from anyone who has had success with a lean gain!
 
@lapinot It is scary adding in calories, but you can’t make muscle out of nothing and 20% bf is lean for a woman. Your biology doesn’t want to get any leaner (unlike men) just in case you have babies! So it’s not going to take energy from your fat stores to fuel muscle building.

Just add in 50 - 100 calories at first and see how it goes. At 100 cals you’ll add about 1lb a month. Do this for say 4 months, then slowly lose 4lbs. Once you’ve done this cycle once (especially the losing part) you’ll feel more confident about doing it again. Repeat it maybe going for slightly longer, and adding slightly more calories say 100 - 150.

You don’t have to go for a full on massive bulk, but I think your probably spinning your wheels at the moment.
You could also see if they are any sport nutrition professionals or coaches that might be able to emotionally support you through the process.

I also think you look absolutely gorgeous at 24%bf. Stronger maybe.
 
@lapinot You look cute and small, 21% is a great place to be. I would definitely focus on strength in deadlift, squat, hip thrust, bench, pullups, overhead, etc. I'd look into options for a gym with free weight barbells if you're not doing that already. You can look up standards for what qualifies as "intermediate", for example 1RM of squat would be 1.5x bw for the upper end of intermediate. If you gain some weight to get there, so be it. It will be muscle. If you're not going overboard on the caloric surplus, your %BF will probably maintain, if not get lower. Once you get the strength, you can decide if you want to lean out at all or do more glute hypertrophy, etc.
 
@lapinot I’m interested in doing a DEXA scan. I was actually looking up DEXAFit this morning. Curious if you went though then since they are nationwide and what your experience was like if so
 
@lapinot Totally agree that the margin of error with these machines is not the best for tracking tiny changes. I know that’s easier said than done—I get wrapped up in the little details with myself, too, but it helps to take a step back and a deep breath to remind yourself of what’s important.

Remember, gaining muscle without putting on any fat at all is nearly impossible. Even with the body recomping strategy instead of a true bulk & cut, there are still going to be those small fluctuations in muscle and fat and it really depends on what day you catch yourself on when doing these scans.

To gain muscle, you have to fuel your body. A little bit of fat is par for the course. But if you gain more muscle than fat, your body fat percentage actually goes down. Same for losing fat—you will almost always lose at least a little muscle in that process, too. You can choose nutrition & training strategies to minimize the muscle loss, but there’s always going to be a little muscle lost. If you lose more muscle than fat, your body fat % goes up, even though you also lost fat. If you lose fat and muscle in the same ratio, your body fat % is the same even though you lost weight.

All this to say, it’s just a number, and there is a margin of error so for the little differences you’re hoping to validate, it may not even be accurate. Take progress photos (as you have been) instead.
 
@simmondsjames Not really, their accuracy is spurious in general, but as another commenter mentioned OP’s change in results is within the margin of error. So, we cannot confidently say there was any change based on the results of the scan. But also, these numbers have no utility for most people. It’s just something for people to get really fixated on. Why is being able to visually estimate body fat % important?
 
@lapinot I JUST had this happen but I’m way taller. I went from 22 to 20% in six months and back to 22 and maintained my weight. I look most muscular and can do way harder things now so I sort of think it’s BS.
 
@lapinot So my gym is doing a competition for 6 weeks and one of the trainers has been going HARD this month to encourage other people and just did a 3 week check up where he apparently gained 3lbs of fat in his 3 weeks of working out like a beast. 🤨
 
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