After seeing /@amydoodles post here
I decided to share my DEXA ASAP while the topic is still relevant.
my DEXA from 11-22-2014:
no pics but a video from 2 days later:
I've been thin my entire life, I never even weighed myself because I didn't really care what I weighed. I started bulking up to that DEXA, then kept bulking and was probably 3 lbs heavier on 12-31-2014 (I'm on the right). I'm probably like 27% here. This is probably the most terrible picture of me to exist, bad angle, after dinner, and I was at the end of my bulk and hated my body, life, etc. So I didn't really look like this, but this is all I got. I would describe myself as definitely skinny fat here. Before I was not skinny fat, I was just skinny.
some really old pictures for reference:
June 2013 (pilates and yoga and no idea what I weighed)
and July 2014 (tons of cardio, Group Power classes, maybe 103ish before I left on a month long vacation and this is at the end of the vacation where I ate everything and didn't work out)
Since January, I've been losing fat and I'm 107lbs now. I first touched a barbell March 2014, went on a 2 month vacation that summer (that's the pic I linked above), but then started seriously lifting in Sept 2015. I don't really take selfies...but I have tons of squat videos...that's all I really have to try to show body composition and weight gain by.
I started around 103-105lbs in June
Started bulking from 106ish in September
https://instagram.com/p/tbdUlcIR0F/?taken-by=alice.hwang
Maybe 110 in Oct
https://instagram.com/p/uMCrMhIR16/?taken-by=alice.hwang
Hit 115lbs in December
https://instagram.com/p/wS-rJ3IR-p/?taken-by=alice.hwang
Got up to like 117lbs in Jan
https://instagram.com/p/xF3xM9oRx8/?taken-by=alice.hwang
Yesterday night I was back down to 107lbs, and I should be at 19.6% BF assuming I didn't lose any lean mass on this cut.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPJYLnD1kEg
This is all I got in terms of non videos:
115lbs
https://instagram.com/p/wXPtrcIR6-/?taken-by=alice.hwang
112lbs
https://instagram.com/p/yVfp0OIRwE/?taken-by=alice.hwang
110lbs
https://instagram.com/p/zQkUU4oRzn/?taken-by=alice.hwang
109lbs
https://instagram.com/p/0RhAPIoR2B/?taken-by=alice.hwang
I didn't take the time to calculate every BF% but everything here is should be between 25.8% and 19.6%
I wasn't really sure how to write this post because I don't have any good body pics to share, but I wanted everyone to know that you don't have to be super meaty to hit 27% BF.
I made this post because do want to share these things though:
Do whatever you want to do!! I didn't follow a beginner strength program. My lifting form is not that great. I never aim to eat above 0.7 grams of protein per BW. I don't think "the number on the scale is just a number". I don't take progress photos. I'm dieting harder than I probably should be right now (500kcal deficit per day), and lifting probably heavier than I should be. Be your own expert because you're the one who has to live with the consequences of your actions. Y O L OOOO
pls share your life advice with me in the comments
I decided to share my DEXA ASAP while the topic is still relevant.
my DEXA from 11-22-2014:
no pics but a video from 2 days later:
I've been thin my entire life, I never even weighed myself because I didn't really care what I weighed. I started bulking up to that DEXA, then kept bulking and was probably 3 lbs heavier on 12-31-2014 (I'm on the right). I'm probably like 27% here. This is probably the most terrible picture of me to exist, bad angle, after dinner, and I was at the end of my bulk and hated my body, life, etc. So I didn't really look like this, but this is all I got. I would describe myself as definitely skinny fat here. Before I was not skinny fat, I was just skinny.
some really old pictures for reference:
June 2013 (pilates and yoga and no idea what I weighed)
and July 2014 (tons of cardio, Group Power classes, maybe 103ish before I left on a month long vacation and this is at the end of the vacation where I ate everything and didn't work out)
Since January, I've been losing fat and I'm 107lbs now. I first touched a barbell March 2014, went on a 2 month vacation that summer (that's the pic I linked above), but then started seriously lifting in Sept 2015. I don't really take selfies...but I have tons of squat videos...that's all I really have to try to show body composition and weight gain by.
I started around 103-105lbs in June
Started bulking from 106ish in September
https://instagram.com/p/tbdUlcIR0F/?taken-by=alice.hwang
Maybe 110 in Oct
https://instagram.com/p/uMCrMhIR16/?taken-by=alice.hwang
Hit 115lbs in December
https://instagram.com/p/wS-rJ3IR-p/?taken-by=alice.hwang
Got up to like 117lbs in Jan
https://instagram.com/p/xF3xM9oRx8/?taken-by=alice.hwang
Yesterday night I was back down to 107lbs, and I should be at 19.6% BF assuming I didn't lose any lean mass on this cut.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPJYLnD1kEg
This is all I got in terms of non videos:
115lbs
https://instagram.com/p/wXPtrcIR6-/?taken-by=alice.hwang
112lbs
https://instagram.com/p/yVfp0OIRwE/?taken-by=alice.hwang
110lbs
https://instagram.com/p/zQkUU4oRzn/?taken-by=alice.hwang
109lbs
https://instagram.com/p/0RhAPIoR2B/?taken-by=alice.hwang
I didn't take the time to calculate every BF% but everything here is should be between 25.8% and 19.6%
I wasn't really sure how to write this post because I don't have any good body pics to share, but I wanted everyone to know that you don't have to be super meaty to hit 27% BF.
I made this post because do want to share these things though:
- The DEXA is nice for knowing how to adjust protein intake to your body specifically. Because now I know that I have 86lbs of LBM and I can just eat around 86 g protein/day.
- Because of this DEXA scan, I know that me losing fat isn't an insane thing to do. I think if I had asked Reddit if I should cut or continue bulking, they'd tell me to kept bulking, or recomp. But my body fat levels were already getting kind of out of control in terms of health (see peachykaren's post on the top) ; just because you don't look meaty doesn't mean you don't have excess body fat to lose.
- Are you really gonna try to think you're at 14% BF when there are fitness competitors that look way better than you at 14% BF?
- You don't have to lift, I don't know why it seems like everyone here does, but you really don't have to.
- Can't decide if I want to get jacked, or want to look like I don't even lift.
- DO NOT BULK AT 500 CAL/DAY IF YOU WEIGH 105LBS. LMAOOO this was my biggest mistake and I still regret it every day. Or do it if you want.
Do whatever you want to do!! I didn't follow a beginner strength program. My lifting form is not that great. I never aim to eat above 0.7 grams of protein per BW. I don't think "the number on the scale is just a number". I don't take progress photos. I'm dieting harder than I probably should be right now (500kcal deficit per day), and lifting probably heavier than I should be. Be your own expert because you're the one who has to live with the consequences of your actions. Y O L OOOO
pls share your life advice with me in the comments
Anyway it's been suggested that