My bodpod said i was 30% bodyfat, my doc said 24%. Anyone got a good idea?
The 24-30 range is probably an accurate-ish guesstimate, even based off a pic that’s semi-flexed and hiding your abs/waist, and it’s entirely irrelevant to setting up your training and nutrition plan.
As I like to say, bodyfat percentage is like IQ. The only reason to find out your number is to go around telling people your number.
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I probably could have taken a better picture lol. why is fat content irrelevant to nutritional plans?
Just my $0.02. I think the 24% is about where I would put the lower bound in my guess. Mid 30s is about where I would put the upper bound.
Don’t feel too bad about the number. I appears you have decent muscle, and would look pretty good in the upper teens for BF %.
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Knowing your bodyfat percentage is irrelevant first because it’s so tough to accurately assess so you’re typically guessing in the first place, but more importantly because the principles will be the same whether you’re 15%, 20% or 30%.
Simply acknowledging if if you’re currently “really fat”, “kinda sorta fat”, “kinda sorta lean”, or “already pretty lean” is enough detail needed to setup a plan.
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What would you suggest for a macro plan if i would assume that i am really fat lol. I cant seem to find a balance in my diet. I either lose fat and lots of strength and muscle or build lots of muscle and lots of fat. I appreciate the reply, I’m obviously a novice
Bodyweight x 14 = maintenance
40%p/30%c/30%f, plan for a 500 calorie daily deficit (under maintenance)
This will result in roughly a 1lb/wk weight loss. How fat or not fat you are would not change this plan
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Are you sure you are losing muscle? Loss of strength doesn’t necessarily mean loss of muscle. When you lose weight several factors can cause you to lose strength. Less glycogen in the muscle (less fuel for reps, and additionally will make your muscles less full looking), more ROM (on lifts like bench), worse leverages, fatigue, loss of muscle (probably some things I am missing). I have thought I have lost muscle while dieting due to strength loss, but a week or two in a surplus has me lifting the same weights again.
I would focus your efforts on a calorie deficit, both with diet and a bit of cardio if your goals are looking the best to the most amount of people. I have found just a bit of LISS (low intensity steady state) before lifting to be good for me. I don’t go hard enough for it to really impact my strength. I have been doing like 20-25 minutes walking at around 3 mph at a slight incline. If I get through the weights fast, I do it at the end too.
Many advise doing the cardio at the end. That is tough for me to be consistent with, as I’ll just lift more most of the time. Doing it up front means I actually do it.
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I want you to know that I mean no malice when I write this.
I checked out your training log. The numbers on lifts that you are putting up are numbers I put up as a 181lb powerlifter. You’re 305lbs. There is a very significant chance that much of what you consider to be “a lot of muscle” is honestly fat.
You are 8 inches taller than I am, so there’s an argument to be made about how things would scale weight wise, which is to say that I’m not saying you need to weigh 181lbs, but that the strength you have at a 6’5 305lber is the strength one could find in a 181lb powerlifter. If you had a “lot of muscle” at 6’5 and 305lbs, you’d be moving exceptionally more weight.
I’d let the numbers on lifts take a hit while you let the fat drop and figure out your baseline and go from there. It’s not at all an uncommon story for a big strongman-like dude to start out on a journey at 300+lbs, look to get bodybuilder stage ready shredded and end up at below 200lbs across the way. You most likely don’t need to lose THAT much fat UNLESS you want to get on stage, but you could probably drop quite a bit and rebuild from there and be in a VERY good place.
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I feel like the weight difference between you and I is irrelevant considering im a novice lifter and have basically been a runner for 4 out of the last 6 years (army ran about 10-15miles a week) and am now just starting to actually know how to lift and program. I totally agree that I have a way higher fat% than I would like or would make since for my strength. Plus I have been natural my whole life until 3 weeks ago.
fair point
If you’re introducing drugs into the equation I’d absolutely double down on the fat loss. I think you’ve got a good idea moving forward.
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see this is whats interesting, I have been eating 3600 cal for the last 4 weeks and have gained 4 lbs in that time. I dont have cheat days and I am strict to my diet. Like I said in another post, I lost 15 lbs during a 18week deficit and stopped as I had run it for too long. Long story short idk how 4200 calories is my maintenance.
However, I think that it is clear I need to go back into a deficit as my bf is too high and my strength is irrelevant according to the young homie below.
Edit: 18 week deficit of 500-700 calories. I was eating 3000 for 10 weeks and then 3200 for 8
This is sometimes a good maintenance calculator BMR Calculator
Most standard calculations lose accuracy when BF levels get too high or too low, but this worked well for me - I was 20-30% at the start of my cut and it worked like a charm.
You may need to cut more calories than BWx14 or the above calculator, but that is dependent on how active you are.
If you’re having trouble dialing in your maintenance calories - the best way to do it is to estimate them (using either equation above) and eat those calories daily, in combination with your regular weekly exercise. Weigh yourself first thing in the morning, like right after your AM piss, and compare your weekly averages. If your weight doesn’t change, then those are your maintenance calories with that level of weekly activity. Then you can adjust your intake/activity accordingly.
I agree with everything @T3hPwnisher said as well, he is in excellent shape pretty much year round and is an absolute unit. You can check out his training log as a reference
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If you REALLY want to know, find yourself a DEXA scan place. I have one near my town and its really inexpensive and is the most reliable next to water displacement.
Thank you guys for the responses. Im gonna start a deficit this Monday At 3200.
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Just a quick bit of maths here tells me that 20% bodyfat at 305lbs would imply that you’re carrying lean muscle mass similar to prime Lou Ferrigno.
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The bodpod told me i had 230lbs of FFM, im not sure if that means bone and blood or just lean mass but that was the reading
30% or greater easily. Since you asked, that’s my earnest guess.
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Your maintenance is based off your size and metabolism. People that give you a number are setting you up. As your metabolism changes, so does your maintenance.
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