Fitness Standards: How Fat is “Fat?”

[derringerG]

Yo guys. Beach season is coming up, it’s time to start getting ready for it. I’m smack dab in the middle of my cut. It’s going well. At this point last year, I estimate that I was in the high 20s to low 30s in BF%. Chubby af lol.

So, I’d love to know what you all think. What is the hard BF% number to be considered not “fat?”

http://imgur.com/a/RPxRSCa

Dude, you're falling for the hollywood propaganda of the 'roided out action hero meathead. These types of physiques cannot be achieved naturally (in the vast majority of cases). Generally, it requires stacking and cycling gear indefinitely on and off to acquire these types of results.

If you are genetically gifted so that you are BOTH extremely lean and extremely muscular, lucky you. If not perhaps you can devote an inordinate amount of time in the gym, 2, 4, 6+ hours a day if you are disciplined enough to stay clean.

If you are doing this to impress women, I'd say it's a waste of time. My weight and physique have been all over the map from very, very wiry lean to noticeably overweight, to moderately muscular and athletic. Currently, I'm overweight by 20 pounds above my "ideal" weight.

It hasn't made one iota of difference in terms of attracting women. I am just as attractive now as when I am at my "ideal" weight. In other words, my "ideal weight" is spread out over such a wide range it really doesn't matter.

You should be lifting weights and/or engaging in weight resistance training (pushups pullups dips etc) anyway because it's healthy and gratifying and improves your overall quality of life and life span. It will not miraculously turn you into a gigolo.

 

[nicksaiz65]

No. Honestly, cooking them up would make it seem like another meal that I probably wouldn't be able to put down. It's much easier just drinking the egg whites for the last meal. It's like drinking water that has the consistency of milk.

Different strokes I guess haha. I could never make myself drink egg whites straight even if they don't taste like anything. I'd feel too much like I'm in Rocky lol. At that point, I'd rather force feed another meal if I had to.

That being said, my appetite has always been huge. I could eat 4000-5000 calories in a day and be like "Ok, where's my next meal?" If I didn't practice calorie counting/dietary restraint.

That's why cutting has always been the hardest part of fitness for me, personally. I literally couldn't do it until I started implementing strategies like Intermittent Fasting and some Extended Fasting as well, to keep my appetite under control and let me eat bigger meals while still hitting my calories.

Speaking off egg whites though, once I want to switch it up from the high protein mac and cheese that I make, I've considered adding these to my diet. I've seen a lot of bodybuilders use them during prep:

Liquid Muscle - Liquid Muscle

liquidmuscle.ca

 

[nicksaiz65]

Dude, you're falling for the hollywood propaganda of the 'roided out action hero meathead. These types of physiques cannot be achieved naturally (in the vast majority of cases). Generally, it requires stacking and cycling gear indefinitely on and off to acquire these types of results.

If you are genetically gifted so that you are BOTH extremely lean and extremely muscular, lucky you. If not perhaps you can devote an inordinate amount of time in the gym, 2, 4, 6+ hours a day if you are disciplined enough to stay clean.

If you are doing this to impress women, I'd say it's a waste of time. My weight and physique have been all over the map from very, very wiry lean to noticeably overweight, to moderately muscular and athletic. Currently, I'm overweight by 20 pounds above my "ideal" weight.

It hasn't made one iota of difference in terms of attracting women. I am just as attractive now as when I am at my "ideal" weight. In other words, my "ideal weight" is spread out over such a wide range it really doesn't matter.

You should be lifting weights and/or engaging in weight resistance training (pushups pullups dips etc) anyway because it's healthy and gratifying and improves your overall quality of life and life span. It will not miraculously turn you into a gigolo.

Yeah, I would never try to maintain 5% bodyfat year round, ever. Cutting is already hard enough for me as it is. I can't imagine trying to maintain that physique lol. I'd have to do Alternate Day Fasting the whole year to even stand a chance, more than likely.

It's a mix of both for me. I have a genuine interest in lifting/cardio and stuff like Intermittent Fasting. I really do love it.

And lifting/having a nice body increases my inner game exponentially. So it's a two for one lol.

 

[nicksaiz65]

Bodybuilders also don't maintain that year round. They get there during "contest prep". What you see on stage, is a combination of using insulin, gear, and diuretics under highly supervised timing from coaches. Think.... "Okay you're three hours from stage, you can drink another cup of water".

Sheeeeesh... I just wanna look sexy on the beach...

 

[Machine10033]

you need to find your sweet spot. I have been in the single digits with body fat...at one point my upper back and legs were at 5 percent. With my shirt off I looked diced.. veins everywhere, abs were popping.... but with a shirt on I looked like a skinny crack head. I got zero attention from females unless it was at a pool or beach. I then bulked back up and went from 185 lbs to 225.... I found for me around 15 percent looks good with a shirt on and also good enough with a shirt off. I also feel much better and can keep my strength.

 

[nicksaiz65]

you need to find your sweet spot. I have been in the single digits with body fat...at one point my upper back and legs were at 5 percent. With my shirt off I looked diced.. veins everywhere, abs were popping.... but with a shirt on I looked like a skinny crack head. I got zero attention from females unless it was at a pool or beach. I then bulked back up and went from 185 lbs to 225.... I found for me around 15 percent looks good with a shirt on and also good enough with a shirt off. I also feel much better and can keep my strength.

That’s the thing. You want to be lean enough to look good when you’re at the pool, and having sex. Just with your shirt off. But you also want to look like you lift in normal clothes. You don’t wanna look like a skinny DYEL

Also, I don’t believe in that maingaining/gaintaining bullsh*t at all. Not gonna work unless you’re on gear lol. So I’d need to find a range that I can bulk and cut in and still be happy with how I look. Once I get to my goal weight, of course.

Can you see your abs at 15%? How tall are you?

 

[nicksaiz65]

If you want a good recommendation to spice up things like chicken and seafood, I highly recommend this.

View attachment 8305

Picked up your seasoning just now man. It’ll be going in my High Protein Mac and Cheese.

It’ll also be going in my Canned Crab. I love that stuff, I can eat it from the can without adding any condiments. Though, I don’t eat it every day.

 

[nicksaiz65]

No. Honestly, cooking them up would make it seem like another meal that I probably wouldn't be able to put down. It's much easier just drinking the egg whites for the last meal. It's like drinking water that has the consistency of milk.

Bumping my own thread here…

I was thinking that I could never drink egg whites on their own, and that I’d end up throwing up if I were to do that lol. But I got linked to this short recipe on Youtube, and it looks pretty appetizing.

Having something like this would be great. Say I drank 4 cups of this chocolate milk a day, that’s already 100 G of protein. That would make hitting my macros damn easy.

I just had all of my wisdom teeth pulled, so this is the perfect time to try this out. I’ll give it a shot, and then report back. I’ll be doing Strawberry Milk tho:

 

[nicksaiz65]

Try it with the chocolate milk, then after a while you'll realize you're still drinking egg whites. Then re visit drinking them plain and see if it has a psychological effect still. I too thought it would be gag inducing, but it wasn't because I already rationalized that I have been drinking them anyways... Regardless if there was other ingredients added.

I made the strawberry milk. Pretty tasty!

Only thing is, I find the egg whites a bit harder to chug than protein shakes. I can just knock protein shakes back, but the egg whites I have to sip a bit more slowly.

 

[nicksaiz65]

I think this is just a psychological aversion to drinking egg whites. I took it slow the first few times also. It'll be like drinking water in no time.

Maybe I’ll be able to do it one day without the Splenda. But then again, I use Splenda in nearly everything lol, including the cottage cheese I’m going to have later today. It’s such a diet hack

 

[BackInTheGame78]

It's highly subjective...every person is going to look different and hold onto more fat in certain areas...

That picture is a guide but by no means can you 100% go by that to determine body fat levels.

 

[nicksaiz65]

It's highly subjective...every person is going to look different and hold onto more fat in certain areas...

That picture is a guide but by no means can you 100% go by that to determine body fat levels.

Yeah, I’m absolutely miserable at the “visual eye test” lol. Also terrible at calipers.

I measure my progress using a BIA scale. I need to see the numbers so I know my program is actually doing something. You could argue that it’s inaccurate sure. But, I can use it to track changes, which is all I need. I like having that data on myself.

Plus, me using the mirror or calipers is impossible lol. I just like this chart so I have a rough idea of where to shoot for.

 

[BackInTheGame78]

Yeah, I’m absolutely miserable at the “visual eye test” lol. Also terrible at calipers.

I measure my progress using a BIA scale. I need to see the numbers so I know my program is actually doing something. You could argue that it’s inaccurate sure. But, I can use it to track changes, which is all I need. I like having that data on myself.

Plus, me using the mirror or calipers is impossible lol. I just like this chart so I have a rough idea of where to shoot for.

Try using the tape measure and track your measurements

 

[nicksaiz65]

Try using the tape measure and track your measurements

I’ll try that out starting on my stomach

 

[BackInTheGame78]

I’ll try that out starting on my stomach

I always pull it as tight as possible that way there is no way I could screw up the measurement.

 

[nicksaiz65]

Why is using calipers impossible?

I was always terrible at using a caliper on myself. Twisting my hand, pinching correctly, holding my hand steady, etc. Even when I was a teen getting into bodybuilding I could never get an accurate or consistent reading.

I always had better luck with the BIA scale because you just step on it and it gives you your BF lol.

 

[BackInTheGame78]

I was always terrible at using a caliper on myself. Twisting my hand, pinching correctly, holding my hand steady, etc. Even when I was a teen getting into bodybuilding I could never get an accurate or consistent reading.

I always had better luck with the BIA scale because you just step on it and it gives you your BF lol.

Those scales are highly inaccurate

 

[IKO69]

Yeah the issue with the pics is fat distribution can differ in people; for instance you can have people that are slender up top but on the bottom are huge. I knew a girl like this - she had an enormous ass, comically big, but from the waist up was very slender. It was almost like everything she ate went straight to her ass.

When you start to look like the person in 20%+ it is time to go on a diet for sure.

 

[Hamurabimbi]

Yo guys. Beach season is coming up, it’s time to start getting ready for it. I’m smack dab in the middle of my cut. It’s going well. At this point last year, I estimate that I was in the high 20s to low 30s in BF%. Chubby af lol.

Now, my estimated BF% is 23-24%. I’m going to continue this diet for a couple more months, and then take my pics before I do something of a maintenance phase.

When it comes to fitness, I’m absolutely a numbers guy. I love numbers. I think it’s the best way for you to measure your fitness and bodybuilding progress. I wanted to know, using BF%, what is the point where I can no longer consider myself “fat” or “chubby?”

I’m personally thinking it’s once you drop below 20%. That is also considered a “normal, healthy” range. But I’d like to hear a hard number from you all as well so that I can set a goal appropriately.

Once I hit the threshold of “not fat,” then I can really focus on aesthetics. And then I can take my time getting there, instead of having to be so aggressive with my cut.

I’ve also attached an Athlean-X Bodyfat chart.

So, I’d love to know what you all think. What is the hard BF% number to be considered not “fat?”

http://imgur.com/a/RPxRSCa

I look like 21%.
I’m literally on the stationary bike right now. Would be trying harder but only 5 1/2 hours of sleep last night.

 

[nicksaiz65]

Random thoughts I had but I guess this thread is an ok place to put it. I used to b*tch about having to hit a minimum protein requirement, but I never realized how bad I feel not eating protein lol.

I just had four wisdom teeth removed. There were a few days where I ate nothing but ice cream, and I had maybe, 20 G of protein a day? The ice cream was delicious but I have never felt worse in my life
Gotta have the protein.

I would love to have some chicken breast/thighs in sauce, or a bigass Ribeye to hit my protein but I think it’s gonna be like two weeks before I can do that. My teeth are killing me lol.

I’ve been getting all of my protein through cottage cheese and protein powder mixed together, or Egg Whites cooked in Ghee. It’s pretty cool to have the extra fat macros though since I can’t eat my carb sources like rice, popcorn etc. I actually enjoy having the higher fat macros, but I could never stick to a Keto diet long term. Dieting without rice cakes just seems like a miserable experience lol