So, should you cut or bulk first if you are skinny fat? You should bulk first if you are skinny fat. A 10% caloric surplus is optimal to build muscle while ensuring you don't put on a lot of excess body fat. Stay in a surplus for a minimum of 4 months and then begin a slow, gradual cut.
Getting rid of skinny fat is essentially synonymous with making your muscles more visible. That's why gaining muscle should be your priority. The best way to gain muscle is to focus on resistance training with compound movements. Think of classic lifts like squats, chest press, and deadlift.
That said, most people can go from skinny fat to fit in about three to six months of diligently following a proper diet and training program.
Bulk vs Cut (or Recomp) FAQ. Should you bulk or cut first? If you are underweight, you should bulk. If you are overweight, you need to cut; however, the less training experience you have, the more likely it is that you will gain muscle simultaneously as you lean out (though you'll lose weight overall).
Once you reach a body fat percent of 15% for men or 25% for women, that's when you'll want to start the cut. With a calorie deficit and ensuing weight loss, you'll start losing that fat gain you've put on over the winter months.
If you want to gain muscle and strength as quickly as possible and you're at or below 10% (men) or 20% (women) body fat, then you should bulk. And if you want to lose fat as quickly as possible and you're at or above 15% (men) or 25% (women) body fat, then you should cut.
The cut off should be around 15-20% body fat for men and around 25-30% for females, wherein anyone who is above these body fat percentages should most likely start with a cut.
10 to 14 percent
This range of body fat is still lean, which means your abs will be visible.
Always bulk if you are close to or below 8% or 17% body fat for men or women, respectively. Always cut if you are close to or above 18% or 28% body fat for men or women, respectively. If between 8-18% (men) or 17-28% (women), you can choose either, depending on how lean you want to be in 2-3 months' time.
A cutting diet lasts 2–4 months, depending on how lean you are before dieting, and is normally timed around bodybuilding competitions, athletic events, or occasions like holidays ( 4 ).
Skinny fat women are those who look skinny in clothes, but underneath the clothes look soft and flabby. The skinny fat body is caused by doing cardio only, eating a poor diet and genetic factors. Skinny fat workout should include a mix of resistance training (HIIT and lifting weights) plus cardio.
The quickest way for any skinny fat person to make some visible changes, he says, is to follow two simple steps: start following a consistent training plan, and get into a hypo-caloric state (or caloric deficit) where you are consuming fewer calories than your maintenance level.
You will always lose size on cutting. The trick is to lose very little over a long period that way your muscle size will remain similar, but your fat depots will be reduced.
What Does Being “Skinny Fat” Mean? If you're a little unclear on what exactly skinny fat means, it a phrase that refers to someone who has a weight and BMI that is normal for that person's height, but has much more body fat and not enough muscle mass recommended for optimal health.
Muscle is denser than fat, and as it is more compact within your body, as you gain muscle mass, you end up looking thinner, no matter your physical weight. So, if you've been doing a lot of strength training lately, it's likely this is the reason that you're looking fantastic but not dropping those numbers.
The body fat percentage needed to see your pack of abdominal muscles falls somewhere around 14 to 20% for women and 6 to 13% for men. However, the ideal body fat percentage for abs can look slightly different per person, depending on how you carry weight, where you typically store fat and your fitness routine.
There's nothing wrong with being, say, 17% body fat. That's a healthy body-fat percentage and it's a perfectly good place to bulk from.
As your bulking starting point is within 9-12% in men or 20-24% in women, you will probably gain more muscle and less fat over the course of the bulk. And you can keep on 'lean' bulking like this, but only up to a point, which is about 13-17% for men and 25-27% for women.
Decrease Body fat percentage.
For a visible jawline to humans, 12 to 14% of body fat is required. If you're determined to improve your jawline, you'll need to reduce your body fat.
Can Everyone Get an Ab Crack? No, not everyone can get an ab crack. This is just one of those areas in which our genetics decide our fate. Some people can do ab workouts religiously and never develop an ab crack, while others can have an ab crack without working out.
If you're starting with 20 percent body fat, it would take somewhere between 3 to 6 months to start seeing your abs. For men, up to 20 percent body fat is considered healthy, but the fat to muscle ratio is still skewed toward the former.
According to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, there are healthy body fat percentages based on your age. For people aged 20 to 39, women should aim for 21% to 32% of body fat. Men should have 8% to 19%. For people 40 to 59, women should fall between 23% to 33% and men should fall around 11% to 21%.
It all depends on your goals. Cutting is the way to go if you want to lose fat. If you want to build muscles, a recomp is the best option.
Get Big and Strong First, Lean Out Later
Because getting bigger and stronger is harder to do and takes more time than it does to lose body fat. What's more, having more muscle mass and strength provides a much bigger return on investment than just losing body fat.