Why has my cutting come to a complete hault? 16 weeks in...

Hey guys. Ive seen excellent progress with my cut over the past 4 months, a very slow cut at that. During this ive seen strength gains looser pants but tighter shirts, guess im getting a bit bigger as a result. But here lies the problem, over the past 3 weeks I havent been able to drop a single pound and in fact im gaining a few back. This is normally what I eat and just cant understand it. If anyone can offer me some feedback of foods I can add, cut out or supplements I can introduce im all ears. (Ive done 2 cycles of an EC stack over this cut and am currently on Amp. My PWO protein is Onn Whey.


Stats - 5'10 1/2 weight 175 (fat to lose, annoying sides,lowerback,chest and below the bellbutton gut) Training for 1 and 1/2 year now religiosly and consider myself fit.

Flat Bench - 195x8
Squats - 245x8
Overhead Dumbell Press - 85x8
Bicep Dumbell Curls - 45x8
Lat Pulldown - 180x8
(Just giving you guys a better image of my strength and capabilites so you can help formulate some ideas for me)

Maybe its just time for me to stop caring about that tight lean swimmer body and start bulking. Becasue god knows I can put on 25 pounds in 4 months if asked.


Am cardio

Meal 1 - 6 egg whites, 1/2 cup of oats,splenda,cinnamon,calorie free maple syrup, tomatoes,mushrooms and onions

Cals - 350 Pro - 36 Carbs - 30

Meal 2 - 8 oz chicken breast, veggies, 4 flax caps,4 fish caps

Cals - 320 Pro - 40 Carbs - 8 Fat - 9

Meal 3 - PreWorkout 1/2 bowl of oats with 1 scoop of on whey mixed in.

Cals - 270 Pro - 25 Cabrs - 27

Meal 4 - Pwo shake - 2 scoops of On whey, 1 scoop of dex(40 grams) 1 banana, 4 strawberries blended with ice/water.

Cals - 450 Pro - 50 Carbs - 90

Meal 5 - 8 oz lean steak, veggies, 4 fish 4 flax

Cals - 320 Pro - 38 Carbs - 6 Fat - 16

Meal 6 (before bed) - 1 cup of 4% cottage cheese, 1 tbsp Natural PB, cinnamon, splenda, calorie free chocalte syrup mixed up.

Cals - 290 Pro - 30 Carbs - 8 Fat - 15

prolly time for a cheat meal man. BTW as your body changes so should your diet i beleive your diet could use some adjustmeants but im way to damn tierd to really get into right now.

You're consuming 2000 calories bro.. your metabolism has virtually stopped and is trying to hold on to the fat that you already have on your body IMO.

I'd try upping the calories a bit and frequency of meals.. try getting 8meals instead of 6 for a month or so and see if anything changes.
Evening cardio helps as well, 2-3hrs after last meal.

If I cut for 4 months shit would stall as well.

8-10 weeks max and it's done.

~SC~

So swole what your saying is I should jut sacrifice the little bit of lower belly fat left and just bulk. In this bulk would my stomach become enormous? I mean its not a consisten exact 2k a day. It ranges anwehere from 1800-2400, but thats what I try to stay between. I was also thinking about adding creatine into the mix maybe give my muscles a bit more of a full look.

**Note to mention - I mentioned in a post earlier I got complete bloodwork done and everything was fine except for my testosterone levels. They were very low and probally within the next month Im going to be startying hormone replacement therapy which will include me getting shots of testosterone or a cream monthly. Could this be attributed to that bit of bf% thats left. When reading about the therapy they mentioned a reduction of bodyfat while there will be an increase in LBM and muscle.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by CoreyTampa09

So swole what your saying is I should jut sacrifice the little bit of lower belly fat left and just bulk.

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No.. what you are being told is that you have suppressed your metabolism for too long and you should increase your calories. You will also need to increase your cardio as 16 weeks of very restricted dieting has you hypothyroidic. Increased kcals will increase thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) enventually.. normalising your metabolism.

When you resume 'cutting' make sure you utilise a re-feed day every 7 or 14 days. This will prevent TSH suppression.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by CoreyTampa09

In this bulk would my stomach become enormous?

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NO.

You're not 'bulking' per se. You'll be consuming a couple precentage above maintenance calories... and doing cardio to increase food utlisation.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by CoreyTampa09

I mean its not a consisten exact 2k a day. It ranges anwehere from 1800-2400, but thats what I try to stay between. I was also thinking about adding creatine into the mix maybe give my muscles a bit more of a full look.

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Creatine is not a bad addition.. but stay on topic. Your query is with regard to your stagnation.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by CoreyTampa09

**Note to mention - I mentioned in a post earlier I got complete bloodwork done and everything was fine except for my testosterone levels. They were very low and probally within the next month Im going to be startying hormone replacement therapy which will include me getting shots of testosterone or a cream monthly. Could this be attributed to that bit of bf% thats left.

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No... this is probably attributed to the low amount of dietary fat you are consuming. You need dietary fat to support healthy hormone levels.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by CoreyTampa09

When reading about the therapy they mentioned a reduction of bodyfat while there will be an increase in LBM and muscle.

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Higher bioavailable testosterone can increase LBm yes

Narkissos

That about covers it, thanks Nark. :)

~SC~

No prob C :)

Thank you both. So what would you suggest my target macros be to restart my body and from there I can formulate meals. It sucks becuase I head back to college august 23rd and basically the only clean foods available for me there are hardboiled eggs,salads,cottage cheese and veggies. I just supplement the rest with tuna, natural pb and whey or if Im going to need it weight gainer.

if you ask me, you were consuming too little calories from day 1. The best way to diet is to start off slow, and then as you make changes you make changes to the diet or further restrict calories. Starting off w/ too little food can strip off more muscle than actual fat.