Newbiehollow_body·13 Sept

Skinny fat at 70kg. Cut, bulk, or recomp? Every answer online is different

M27, 177cm, 70kg. Thin arms, no chest, belly and love handles. Classic. About 8 months of inconsistent lifting, maybe 2x a week average, now committed to 3x.

Bench 50, squat 70, deadlift 90. So, weak.

Reddit says recomp. YouTube says bulk because I am a beginner. My mate says cut because of the belly. I have been going back and forth for 2 months and done nothing properly, which I realise is the actual problem.

5 comments

coachraf·13 Sept

You have already identified the problem in your last sentence, so let me just make the decision for you:

Eat at maintenance (calculator, then adjust by the scale over 3 weeks). Protein 140g. Lift 3x full body, add weight every session you can. Walk 8k steps. Do that for 6 months and do not post asking whether to switch at month 2.

At your lifts and training age, you will add muscle at maintenance. The belly will shrink as the muscle goes on. That is a recomp and it works for exactly your situation: beginner, lots of room to grow, not very overweight. It does not work for the 3 year lifter at 25%, which is why the internet argues about it.

hollow_bodyOP·13 Sept

"do not post asking whether to switch at month 2" ok I feel seen. Maintenance it is. Thank you for just deciding.

dkim·13 Sept

I asked basically the same question from 78kg in June and got told slow bulk. The common thread is: small change to food, big change to consistency, do not touch it for 6 months. The exact calorie number matters less than you think.

kate.lifts·13 Sept

Bench 50 to 70, squat 70 to 100, deadlift 90 to 130 is very doable in 6 months at 3x a week if you actually add weight. That alone will change how you look more than any diet decision.

vince_t·14 Sept

Same build as you at the start of the year. I ended up cutting slightly because I just wanted the belly gone faster, and strength still went up (see my thread). Either works. Doing one of them is the bit that matters.