Showcasing Your Hard Work
Achieving low body fat levels contributes to high levels of self esteem and pride for individuals accustomed to a lifestyle of fitness.
The general population will always garner much admiration and attention for the level of dedication it takes to obtain a phenomenal physique.
This is even more valid for those working in the industry, as professional models or bodybuilders have higher incentives to keep their bodies looking chiseled throughout the year.
Dialing down to single digit body fat levels showcases the hard work that went into the process of dieting and training. In addition, shredded physiques have a competitive advantage for influencers looking to establish/build their careers or gain mass appeal on social media platforms.
Physiques with low body fat levels are marketed so heavily that it’s become today’s standard for males and females to achieve as their personal goals.
While this image has become the ideal, many fitness enthusiasts are not familiar with the health consequences of maintaining low fat levels for a period of time.
Hazards of Staying Shredded Year Round
In the fitness community it’s common to hear descriptions of a person’s athletic build as ‘lean’, ‘diced’, or ‘shredded’. It’s another way of interpreting an individual’s lower than average body fat percentage (the average body fat level for males are ranges roughly from 18-24%; 25-30% for females).
While someone can be ‘lean’ under these percentages, males who have body fat levels under 10% and females under 20% would be described as being ‘shredded’.
At a certain point you can differentiate being shredded with visible veins protruding throughout the body and muscle separation in stubborn fat areas.
As the body reduces it’s subcutaneous fat from a caloric deficit or expenditure through exercise, the body’s homeostasis has to adjust to keep functioning properly. This effects the hormones needed to handle flight or fight response, metabolism, and androgen production.
The first hormone, cortisol, is released from the adrenal glands located on the kidneys. The stressor of a caloric deficit causes the adrenals to secrete additional amounts of cortisol.
Since cortisol is a catabolic hormone, it breaks down protein from muscle tissue for conversion to glucose. This is why it’s often difficult for natural bodybuilders to maintain higher levels of lean muscle while keeping body fat low.
The thyroid hormone, T3, regulates your metabolism and helps you keep weight off.
When you undergo metabolic adaptation to get a ‘shredded’, your T3 levels are dramatically reduced, which affects other hormones in the body as well. One of these hormones, ghrelin, regulates your hunger levels and increases with prolonged caloric reduction.*
For males, testosterone levels take a plunge as the diet is modified to burn fat from the body. Stored cholesterol levels take a nose dive and the cholesterol is what’s necessary to maintain healthy testosterone production in the testes and the adrenal glands.
Low testosterone causes feelings of low energy, low libido, depressed mood, poor concentration, and/or poor quality sleep. Men that experience symptoms of low testosterone sometimes consult with endocrinologists for TRT (testosterone replacement therapy) for treatment.
TRT can make lower body levels more attainable to maintain for long periods of time without losing too much lean body mass acquired from resistance training.
Optimal Timing for Getting Shredded
Very low body fat levels are not complimentary with good health, but timing these fat percentages may be beneficial for individuals with specific goals.
Getting into the best shape possible seems optimal when it comes to showcase work, which is logical for something like photo/video shoots or stage competition.
By cutting body fat down to highlight your best physique possible in a peak week, you can realistically maintain this a short period of time (see How to Get Photo Shoot Ready ).
Bodybuilding competitions or photo shoot sessions are usually booked within a time frame of a few months, which won’t put too much stress on a natural athlete or lifter’s body.
After peak week and a period of maintenance, another stage of growth can slowly reintroduced with a reverse dieting, where calories are slowly added week by week to maintenance level.
In addition, calorie expenditure from high intensity or steady state cardio can slowly be reduced each week. Doing so would not tax the central nervous system and allow an appropriate time for rest and recover properly.
The Wrap Up
It’s noble to achieve ideal levels of body fat seen marketed in the industry everywhere you look, but doing so for an extended period of time comes with consequences to your health. The ‘shredded look’ is attainable but should be coordinated with real personal goals that can be attained for a small period of time. Overall you be should be aiming to maintain a size-able amount of strength and size while being healthy for the duration of your life.
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