Current cutting progress would like some advice.

[griffinator]

I'm currently cutting down to 14%~12% with a future goal of open bodybuilding, My last bulk went to shit partly a bad influence of a friend who "fattened me up" and partly because I wasn't sure on how to bulk properly

I've been cutting since Jun 9 starting at 238lbs~235lbs with a few hiccups on the way, As of today I'm 222lbs and I have either maintained or increased on the majority of my lifts.

So my questions are

1.) Should I speed up the cutting process or should I continue at my snail's pace cut
2.) Any physique criticisms/areas of improvement (ignoring the whole lose more bf)?
3.) bf% estimates

Related Pictures:

 

[lessreck]

You've clearly lost some fat, good job. There’s nothing wrong with cutting slowly if you have the patience for it.

Losing 13-16lbs in 14 weeks equals a daily deficit of roughly 450-550 calories (assuming 1lbs fat provides 3500 calories and disregarding water weight).

What's your current PED regiment? In my opinion you could increase the deficit to 1000 calories or more as your bodyfat percentage is still a bit high. My guess is 25-26% before and slightly above 20% now, +/- 1-2% depending on how your back and legs look.

 

[griffinator]

You've clearly lost some fat, good job. There’s nothing wrong with cutting slowly if you have the patience for it.

Losing 13-16lbs in 14 weeks equals a daily deficit of roughly 450-550 calories (assuming 1lbs fat provides 3500 calories and disregarding water weight).

What's your current PED regiment? In my opinion you could increase the deficit to 1000 calories or more as your bodyfat percentage is still a bit high. My guess is 25-26% before and slightly above 20% now, +/- 1-2% depending on how your back and legs lo

Thank you,

Ill pick up the pace on the cut some.

Currently I'm running some eq and test and tren got some T3 coming in the mail to experiment with it

Back pic given different lighting environments

 

[malfeasance]

You progress has been minimal given the time.

You have been cutting for 14 weeks and have lost only 12 or 13 pounds. You have barely touched your fat stores. Get serious and stop pretending you are on a cut while not cutting.

You posted nothing about your diet or cardio.

Up your protein to 250-300 grams daily. Eggs and meat.

Cut your fats below 50 grams daily.

Then use carbs to adjust your rate of fat loss.

Start some cardio if you are not doing it. That will make the cut much easier as it gives you another variable to control.

Then make small changes to your carbohydrates and cardio based on your weekly weigh ins, tape measure around the waist (at the level of the belly button, not down on the hips" and photographs front and back in your undies so you can see your legs and lower back. Since you want to compete in bodybuilding, learn the mandatories and do them for your photos.

Then you can look and have a no BS view of your results and progress.

Two pounds a week. You would weigh around 207 right now had you done this properly, probably less since most drop off 10 pounds of water weight pretty quickly at the start. You lost 13 pounds, so you are barely past the water weight.

Stop dicking around.

You want to be a competitor, then you need to learn how to cut.

And 12-14% is bullshit. Pull it down to 8-10%. See what you look like. Then do not go over 12% or so on your next bulk so that you can see what improvements need to be made and whether you are actually making those improvements.

Two pounds a week. If you lose less than that, adjust your carbs down a little or increase your cardio a little, and see whether you hit two pounds the next week. If you exceed that, then maybe increase your carbs a little.

Never lower protein. Keep it consistently high every day.

It will require several days for you to figure out how to get your fats below 50mg a day, but you will be rewarded with a better cut if you do.

You do not need fats higher than that since you are injecting hormones.

Weigh or measure everything you put in your mouth. All of it. Consistently.

Get serious.

Get on it.

You will thank me when you see 8-10%.

And your next bulk will go so much better starting at a much lower body fat level, too.

 

[Fattyone]

Hell of ann no post @malfeasance !

Also op, no need for harsh drugs right now. Save those for waaaay down the road

 

[buck]

Your weight has dropped 15# and your strength has gone up and you are on AS. So i would bet you have lost maybe 20# of fat. so that is about 1.5 pounds a week. Not fast but not real slow either.
As you seem to be having issues with the discipline to loose weight staying on your path while slowly tightening things up more is not a terrible idea,. I see this lifestyle as a marathon not a sprint. Learning to make changes and making them a part of your daily life takes time for most.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

I'm currently cutting down to 14%~12% with a future goal of open bodybuilding, My last bulk went to shit partly a bad influence of a friend who "fattened me up" and partly because I wasn't sure on how to bulk properly

I've been cutting since Jun 9 starting at 238lbs~235lbs with a few hiccups on the way, As of today I'm 222lbs and I have either maintained or increased on the majority of my lifts.

So my questions are

1.) Should I speed up the cutting process or should I continue at my snail's pace cut
2.) Any physique criticisms/areas of improvement (ignoring the whole lose more bf)?
3.) bf% estimates

Related Pictures:

View attachment 295598View attachment 295599

Not trying to be a dick.

Cutting at your weight should be fairly basic.
How old are you?

 

[griffinator]

You progress has been minimal given the time.

You have been cutting for 14 weeks and have lost only 12 or 13 pounds. You have barely touched your fat stores. Get serious and stop pretending you are on a cut while not cutting.

You posted nothing about your diet or cardio.

Up your protein to 250-300 grams daily. Eggs and meat.

Cut your fats below 50 grams daily.

Then use carbs to adjust your rate of fat loss.

Start some cardio if you are not doing it. That will make the cut much easier as it gives you another variable to control.

Then make small changes to your carbohydrates and cardio based on your weekly weigh ins, tape measure around the waist (at the level of the belly button, not down on the hips" and photographs front and back in your undies so you can see your legs and lower back. Since you want to compete in bodybuilding, learn the mandatories and do them for your photos.

Then you can look and have a no BS view of your results and progress.

Two pounds a week. You would weigh around 207 right now had you done this properly, probably less since most drop off 10 pounds of water weight pretty quickly at the start. You lost 13 pounds, so you are barely past the water weight.

Stop dicking around.

You want to be a competitor, then you need to learn how to cut.

And 12-14% is bullshit. Pull it down to 8-10%. See what you look like. Then do not go over 12% or so on your next bulk so that you can see what improvements need to be made and whether you are actually making those improvements.

Two pounds a week. If you lose less than that, adjust your carbs down a little or increase your cardio a little, and see whether you hit two pounds the next week. If you exceed that, then maybe increase your carbs a little.

Never lower protein. Keep it consistently high every day.

It will require several days for you to figure out how to get your fats below 50mg a day, but you will be rewarded with a better cut if you do.

You do not need fats higher than that since you are injecting hormones.

Weigh or measure everything you put in your mouth. All of it. Consistently.

Get serious.

Get on it.

You will thank me when you see 8-10%.

And your next bulk will go so much better starting at a much lower body fat level, too.

thank you this is more or less what I was looking for.

 

[griffinator]

Your weight has dropped 15# and your strength has gone up and you are on AS. So i would bet you have lost maybe 20# of fat. so that is about 1.5 pounds a week. Not fast but not real slow either.
As you seem to be having issues with the discipline to loose weight staying on your path while slowly tightening things up more is not a terrible idea,. I see this lifestyle as a marathon not a sprint. Learning to make changes and making them a part of your daily life takes time for most.

I'll admit my self-control at the start of the cut was pretty bad but I have been cleaning things up as I go and I made this post just for more advice on it as its my first time in a while really cutting

 

[griffinator]

Not trying to be a dick.

Cutting at your weight should be fairly basic.
How old are you?

Appreciate the disclaimer

I'm in my early 20s but I do have some shit control over my food intake (I blame my girlfriends cooking) but I might get my thyroid tested as my little sisters came back with below-average values

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Appreciate the disclaimer

I'm in my early 20s but I do have some shit control over my food intake (I blame my girlfriends cooking) but I might get my thyroid tested as my little sisters came back with below-average values

You started off with partially blaming your friend, and now you are blaming your girlfriend.

It sounds like you need to take some accountability and be strict if you want to do open bodybuilding.

I wouldnt jump to think its thyroid if you arent getting your diet dialed in.

 

[griffinator]

You started off with partially blaming your friend, and now you are blaming your girlfriend.

It sounds like you need to take some accountability and be strict if you want to do open bodybuilding.

I wouldnt jump to think its thyroid if you arent getting your diet dialed in.

Oh no you’re misunderstanding me the friend was from when i was bulking up and i wasnt sure what to do and he was my main advisor, and the girlfriend cooking thing is just a joke. That being said i am skeptical of my thyroid because i have for the past 4 weeks counted everything to the dot and

my daily intake is
2 cartons of egg whites (8 cups 1019 cals, 213g protein, 3g of fat, 14g carbs)

2 MRE bars (520 cals, 40g protein, 18g fat, 42g carbs)

0.75 cups of brown rice (509 cals, 10g protein, 100g carbs, 4g fat)

Comes out to 2048 cals, 264g protein, 156g carbs, 25g fat

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

girlfriend cooking thing is just a joke.

oh thank god lol.

I was a little concerned


I would not eat your daily intake(food, not macros). that looks like it sucks. but if it works for you

 

[griffinator]

oh thank god lol.

I was a little concerned


I would not eat your daily intake(food, not macros). that looks like it sucks. but if it works for you

Yeah haha i should have clarified that in the post.

Its working but not at the projected pace so thats why im concerned over my thyroid

Also i forgot to mention this earlier but i do around 200~300cals burnt in cardio a day on the seated bike

 

[egruberman]

Man I hate giving this advice to a young 20-something, but maybe try a GLP-1 RA.

If you're prepping for a show and have a fixed number of weeks to be show ready, then the type of discipline these guys are recommending is required. Until that point, you can likely just dial back your appetite with a GLP-1 RA to make the cut easier to get to a more reasonable body fat percentage from which you can start your next bulk.

 

[buck]

I'll admit my self-control at the start of the cut was pretty bad but I have been cleaning things up as I go and I made this post just for more advice on it as its my first time in a while really cutting

Getting in shape or getting bigger/better in general is a life long learning process i find.

 

[malfeasance]

my daily intake is
2 cartons of egg whites (8 cups 1019 cals, 213g protein, 3g of fat, 14g carbs)

2 MRE bars (520 cals, 40g protein, 18g fat, 42g carbs)

0.75 cups of brown rice (509 cals, 10g protein, 100g carbs, 4g fat)

Comes out to 2048 cals, 264g protein, 156g carbs, 25g fat

DIET:

So this is your diet for a day?

Do you notice anything? (serious question)

Let's work on this diet.

First, add some meat and definitely add some vegetables.

Are the egg whites causing you gas?

Ditch the crappy MRE processed chemistry experiments.

Then let's start changing the diet bit by bit. Others will chime in here, I am sure, but that is not a good or healthy diet.

CARDIO:

"I do around 200~300cals burnt in cardio a day on the seated bike"

Are you doing cardio daily, or x number of times a week?

Have you chosen the seated bike machine because that is all that is available to you? Or do you have other things available?

If you have other things available: Let's get you on your feet, if you are physically capable. Stairmaster, elliptical, something like that.

Start out at a level and time that is a little difficult but not too difficult. Track the settings and your calories burned. Then add 60 seconds next time, and 60 seconds the next time. Keep track of calories burned.

When you get to 45 mins, increase the intensity level just one increment and then cut the time back to 30 or 35 mins. Then the next time, add 60 seconds. The next time, add 60 more seconds. And so on.

If you are on a machine where you control the speed, then get your speed up to a level that you choose and keep it there, never falling below that speed (this is why I like the escalator stair type machine - if I don't keep up, then I fall off! LOL!). You can bump your speed up a little as an alternative to increasing an intensity setting or the extra 60 seconds. But try to progress forward on cardio, not backward. If you miss a bunch and need to start out after a long break a little lower, then so be it, but start working forward again with each session from there.

Use a heart rate monitor - they are cheap to buy the chest strap type if the machine does not have one. If you are not over 140 bpm for a long time during the cardio, then it is time to try harder.

 

[Cheburek1]

25% at least holy sh* you shouldn't touch no steroids homeboy...

 

[malfeasance]

Some hormones added will help him maintain muscle as he gets more serious about cutting the fat.

In a calorie deficit, three things will signal the body to hold on to muscle: (1) hormones (literally a signal to hold on to muscle), (2) protein, and (3) resistance training.

 

[egruberman]

If you are not over 140 bpm for a long time during the cardio, then it is time to try harder.

Eh, I'm gonna suggest staying in Zone 2, which for an early 20 something is going to be 120-140bpm. That intensity has the maximum lipolysis vs. glycolysis ratio. That's not to say that a greater intensity wouldn't yield more lipolysis, but the ratio is worse and the accompanying glycolysis will stimulate the appetite significantly more.