Took a Dexa Scan before resuming gym [M35 / 96 Kgs / 6'1 ft - 30% body fat, overweight]

[dreamharp]

@jake99901 Either way, it still requires the same principals of nutrition. The only real difference for the most part between Cutting, maintaining or bulking will be your daily/weekly calorie targets. Easiest way to bounce between the three is by modifying your carbohydrate intake, in my opinion.

Step 1: Forget the Dexa

Step 2: Dial in nutrition, and be consistent

Step 3: Find a decent resistance training program, and once again, be consistent. Add in some cardio if you like. But keep resistance training the primary focus.

This is not a fast process. So patience and good habits will be necessary to make it to the other end. Best of luck.

 

[rosersmk]

@jake99901 You sound like you’ve already made excuses not to put in the work. And your responses sound like you’re looking for shortcuts.

E.g: “As I am human, I will miss diet sometimes and exercise regimes but I want to constantly course correct”

“Exercising in the dark is very demotivating, which generally leads to me missing gym at times.”

“Its depressing to restrict myself in social settings”

“My biggest motivation would be to quickly reduce lower body fat and gain upper body muscle”

“I am not disciplined and break routines on a whim”

Sorry, but making excuses before you even start is never going to get you Brad Fucking Pitt’s body from Fight Club. That dude got paid millions to have that body for that movie & he was at like 5-6% bf for filming - something you don’t seem to understand is not healthy nor feasible to maintain long term. I’m not sure you even have the basic understanding of how fat loss and hypertrophy work.

There’s nothing wrong with that, but it does tell me you are in desperate need of a coach. You have a ton to learn. Not just about the how, but gaining and understanding of what works for you and why - and the amount of dedication you’re willing to put in - will take years.

BTW, a coach is not the same as a personal trainer. No specific lift or routine is going to help you atm, it’s going to be 99% lifestyle and mindset change.

 

[jake99901]

@rosersmk Yes. I got a lot to learn

Open to put in the work if I know I am going in the right direction. I am working out for a year but have seen some changes but not a lot.

Mindset change through CBT and eating better is the first key for me - discussing with another friend too who is working on such an app for cbt and fitness for mindset change.

But i want actionable tools, and not just rely on will.power.

FC body was just a reference - ok with 12-15% bf too.

 

[rosersmk]

@jake99901 Not having a realistic goal or understanding of the process will result in your progress always feeling like it’s small or slow. I mean, staying at 96kg like you say you want, at 12% bodyfat, will probably take you 5-7 years of consistent hard work. At a minimum.

Are you prepared to make training your #1 priority and hobby in your life? Because that’s what it will take. Or, steroids.

 

[jake99901]

@rosersmk Not want to maintain 96kg ... ok to reduce weight. I meant motivation was shape, not the number on the weight scale

 

[robertharbour]

@jake99901 It's true that it's easier to act on something measurable.
However you're measuring the wrong metrics.

If you've been overweight for a while and have been hitting the gym for over a year, the obvious metric is your calories.

Take monthly photos, keep building muscle, build a habitual healthier diet, and you'll be good.

 

[jerom]

@jake99901 From a risk/benefit perspective. Biweekly DEXA scans will mount up to a considerable radiation dose over time.

Does the (imo limited) benefit from having the DEXA scans outweigh the increased cancer risk from radiation? (Probably not)

It’s also a lot of money that could be better spent on other things.

You’ve also got to consider the inherent precision error/noise in the measurements. At two weeks there’s no way any change in body comp will exceed the random variation in the scanner.

If you feel you will benefit from the dexa, at least spread it out a bit.

 

[jake99901]

@jerom Yes i am convinced that this frequency is not required or needed