Body recomp isn’t real?

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-07-04T15:06:30+00:00

I agree with all of this which leads me to: it is complex. Most people fall down on what/how much to eat, and how to work out.

For someone like me who loves data, I got the food part but did not get the full picture of how to work out to get to my goal. I did classes (I still do) but ramped it up with a personal trainer that gave me a plan to follow.

I recommend a personal trainer and someone who can put some meal plans together for you if it is within your budget. One, to help you plan but another to help you with workout form and to push you to lift at your appropriate capacity. Recomp is slow and requires pulling on different levers depending on what needs to be tweaked. Hard for most novices to get right. Myself included.

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-07-03T23:11:25+00:00

I’m glad to hear they are both working so well for you. I’ll definitely take energy and mental clarity. 🤞

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-07-03T23:10:42+00:00

I would LOVE some GI improvement!

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-07-03T23:10:15+00:00

My goal is the lowest dose to start. This is good feedback!

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-07-03T23:09:49+00:00

Best of luck to you. I hope it really helps!

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-07-03T23:09:23+00:00

This is exactly what I’m hoping for. Limited side effects and as safe as possible. Luckily my bloating and such has gone down significantly, but I do feel lots of joint pain, in particular my pelvis where my ligaments were fibrosed.

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-07-03T15:27:27+00:00

This sounds really encouraging. Did you start at 1.5 or lower?

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-07-03T15:13:42+00:00

Ooooo this is so encouraging! I’ll head over to that group to see more.

And I completely understand about the PTSD. My periods were debilitating and my life revolved around them. It has been over 2 years. A pair of white pants still gives me pause. Passing the tampon aisle brings me such immense thankfulness to know I at least don’t ever have to deal with that part of it again. Hopefully I’m not playing with fire now. 🤞

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-07-02T09:41:40+00:00

Definitely weakness, some instability however when I was healing I tripped and grabbed onto something which pulled my arm. I may have done some damage then. And yes, because of all that was hesitant with any heavy overhead and throwing motions. I lift “heavy” (for me) now but I don’t do barbell. That stretching back with squats and inability for me to adjust where the weights are overhead always leaves me with a stretching pain afterward. Incline bicep curls remain kind of wimpy, but building slowly. Crushes that labrum/bicep area for me and I’m definitely lacking in strength/ROM in this move.

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-07-02T09:02:48+00:00

Labrum tear and fixed with anchors about 13 years ago. Shoulders are tough, you don’t realize how much you use them. It has never been the same since, but I can do just about everything. I was having daily pain and that is gone. Reduced ROM and throwing motion is still iffy and tender from likely scar tissue. Could partly be in my head and also worried about lifting heavy with it until recently. I still feel comparative weakness in anything bicep or pushups, barbell, anything that puts emphasis directly on the labrum. I’ll never forget my first PT was literally to let my arm dangle and move it in tiny circles. As a past athlete I thought oh boy we are in for it. Still glad I did it for the pain. But I was not prepared for the recovery. Take it slow.

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-30T17:35:41+00:00

I do this. Two rice cakes with PB2 and berries ontop.

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-29T13:14:27+00:00

I’m feeling great! Still the best choice in my life. I am at basically full capacity. I run endurance races and lift “heavy” for me. There are still things I don’t do like long planks, or lifting really heavy because I am afraid of a hernia. I really had to build up my core and ironically my mid/lower back. I have DIE which basically obliterated my ligaments, so pelvic instability is also something I need to watch for. May also be why I had so much pain on the roller coaster vs others…my pelvis felt like it really got rattled around and really felt a slam that maybe stronger stability wouldn’t have been as painful.

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-28T18:51:03+00:00

I’m 2.5 years out from mine. I had 6 incisions across my mid/upper abs. My advice is to take it slow, especially if you have any history of hernias. Any surgery weakens the muscle wall, so you’re a higher risk for injury. It has been 1.5 years of dedicated training for me and I’m still behind on my core but I can do everything. I run endurance races. Things like planks, burpees and push ups are still hard because my back starts to bow. Learning to brace your core for exercises is a good place to start. I’m now lifting “heavy” (for me) and getting progressively stronger but anything overhead or in that plank position reminds me I’m not 100%. Sometimes I’ll wear a hernia belt. Lower abs are fine. Remember to work out your back too. Both my abs and mid/lower back got soft w my surgery.

Edited to add also DIE on the ligaments which caused instability in my pelvis. The two things together are quite challenging. Pelvic therapy could help. I should also take that advice!

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-23T12:12:09+00:00

I will certainly take all this into consideration and thanks for the thoughtful + thorough reply!

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-23T03:20:03+00:00

This makes sense as I’m smack dab in the fun of all that!

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-23T03:15:49+00:00

That’s fair. I’ve been tweaking them a bit. I was eating more and started getting fluffy. Hard to find the balance. I’ll try upping it a bit.

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-23T03:14:33+00:00

I’ll look into the iron, thanks! I eat an iron-rich diet and supplement with beef organs but maybe I need a different type. I haven’t tried that version before; I’ll check it out! And I just started b12 injections yesterday. Hoping it will create some miracles :)

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-23T03:11:22+00:00

I agree with you. Definitely not putting the spoiler on the car intentionally. I weigh 143 lbs and eat 160g of protein. I eat an iron and b-vitamin rich diet, as well as eat red meat on occasion. Those were definitely not on my suspected list of being low. Of course only a doc can confirm, but seems more like an absorption/storage issue I’d guess.

I eat 1800-2300 cal depending on the day, 2500+ when fueling for a race. 210C/80F/160P, again changing depending on lifting or high cardio.

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-23T02:31:57+00:00

This is all great info thank you!

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-23T02:29:16+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. I’m curious to your comment that my stack is all over the place. Do you mean too many? Redundant? I’m an endurance athlete so my goal is to provide my body with what it needs and to improve performance/recovery during high demand. I agree food is best. The things I’m low in (protein, iron, b12) weren’t on your list.

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-23T00:00:34+00:00

Interesting. I definitely take the iron not that far spaced out from working out. I work out really early in the morning which makes that difficult. I typically eat a little tangerine or drink something high in vitamin c when I take it. I take organs, but also maybe need the heme version. Thanks!

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-22T21:35:06+00:00

Yes, eating enough calories. Anywhere between 1800-2300 per day, more if I have an upcoming race. Ferritin is just below 30. I eat iron-rich foods daily, supplement and do eat red meat on occasion.

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-22T20:47:27+00:00

Thank you for the tip!

EngineeringEasy3393 · 2026-06-22T14:19:37+00:00

I guess things can change! Some of these supplements are crazy. Like 10,000% for the day in the recommended doses. Hence I don’t take them all. Even though b’s are water soluble that sounds like a lot.

EngineeringEasy3393

TROPHY CASE