Objects in The Mirror Are Fatter Than They Appear
It’s common to assume that your body fat levels are much lower than you expect, particularly if you’re new to fitness. Body fat percentages are usually thrown around the community with images of shirtless torsos from online profiles or clients that have been working with online personal trainers.
Viewing these images can give you an inaccurate perception of which body fat level ranges match your current physique.
If you’re trying to make your physique appear more lean and toned, you may be experiencing difficulty getting certain muscles to look more defined. Generally, these targeted muscles are the abdominals and the lower back area as they’re the most stubborn to lose fat.
On a fat loss program, this may require you to spend more weeks dieting and exercising than you first anticipated. If there wasn’t a specific fitness goal targeted this could likely result in frustration since you’ll be much further from having the physique you desired (see How to Successfully Lose Fat On A Cut).
The body fat percentage is supposed to give you a rough estimate for the lean body mass ratio to subcutaneous or fat tissue held within the folds of your skin. It’s likely for this percentage to be inaccurate because very few body fat measurement devices are accurate, with the exception of the DEXA scan (see What’s The Most Accurate Way To Measure Body Fat?)
Body fat percentages could sometimes be insignificant because the muscles aren’t properly developed to see impressive results from a fat loss diet. Rather than focusing on losing body fat, it may be more productive to work on other aspects of your fitness regimen to see noticeable body composition changes.
Why Fat Distribution Matters With Low Body Fat Levels
When you have less body fat on your frame, the best aspects of your physique tend to stand out and give you a more athletic appearance. Stripping fat away from your muscle exposes defined shape and allows the muscles to protrude from your skin.
This is a reason why many fitness models and stage competitors do their best to get down to extreme low body fat levels (<10%) for their upcoming photo shoots or shows (see How to Get Photo Shoot Ready). This look is great for meeting personal objectives within the fitness community but can be counterproductive for long term health (see Hazards of Staying Shredded Year Round).
For most men looking to see the outline of their abdominals, a body fat range of less than 15% is required. For more definition this percentage may have to be as low as 12%, which is still quite low considering the acceptable male body fat percentage is around 18-24%.
Dieting down to body fat levels in the lower double digits is a challenge in itself for many people, but sometimes this isn’t enough to see great results. One of the main reasons for this is your body’s predisposition to gaining fat.
Gender is the main one, as females tend to store fat in their hips, butt, thigh, and breast region. Males mainly store fat in the abdominal region, which becomes problematic for getting down to lean body fat levels.
Age is also a factor, as body fat tends to be stored away from the lower body and more towards the upper torso. As you age, your body is inclined to gain more visceral fat, which is the fat that surrounds your vital organs.
To make the transition from a blurry 4-pack to a six or eight pack, would require the extent of a fat loss program consisting of frequent cardio, weekly dieting adjustments, and a mild caloric deficit for a period of time. Regardless of the type of diet, this consistent fat loss training is usually not sustainable and comes with a price.
The first noticeable trade off is the loss of muscle fullness that you’ll experience as you continue to lose body fat. Fat loss requires a reduction of carbohydrate intake, which depletes water in the body and gives the muscles a flat appearance. In addition to looking smaller in clothes, the fullness of your facial features can be drastically reduced and give your cheeks a sunken/lean appearance.
Energy levels are also due to suffer, as the body will produce lower amounts of testosterone and higher amounts of cortisol. When testosterone levels are low, this will eventually affect your performance in the gym and your overall quality of life.
What Fat Distribution Really Means
Fat distribution can vary widely depending on factors that are not completely in your control. If you have the assumed range of body fat for defined muscles, you may have much further to progress to see the results that you’re seeking.
This is why progressive strength is more important than body fat percentages, as low body fat is not indicative of fitness levels or strength. When strength is the focus of a training program, eventually enough muscular development will occur which will make up for high body fat levels.
This will also shorten the time needed to diet since larger muscles will give your physique the sought after contour and shape that’s most impressive. Focusing on muscle hypertrophy will also build a physique that is more sustainable at a healthy weight without the risk of a hormonal imbalance at a lower weight.
The Wrap Up
Body fat percentages don’t have much value when you’re comparing one physique to another since many factors affect how fat is distributed for each person. Dieting and training to reach a low body fat won’t necessarily get you the results that you’re after and will probably result in frustration. Considering the importance of long term health, strength and conditioning is much more valuable to building an impressive physique and is more sustainable.
What else do you want to know?
How to Successful Lose Fat On a Cut
How to Get Photo Shoot Ready
Hazards or Staying Shredded Year Round
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