For the last 5 months I started a cutting program because I wanted to achieve my life-long dream of getting a six pack. I happened to lose a lot of weight (20 pounds) the first 3 and half months but noticed that I was loosing a lot of body mass so i started doing research over the internet that led me to this website.

After signing up here and making questions here and thereI found out that both my work out routine and my diet were off so I readjusted accordingly....I now have 6 meals, reintroduced carbs, veggies and other meals into my diets (before it was somethink like atkins) and do weight work outs 4 times a week while I run twice a week (before i was working out 5 times a week and running 5 times a week).

In the last month I have lost 2 pounds while regainning some of my lost muscle (this has the effect of me looking more cut-up) consequently i now have a Four-pack which to me is half way to the goal of getting my six pack but now i am experiencing the following problem:

EVERYBODY is telling me i look too skinny.

because I am usually 180 pounds (which is not fat when you consider than I am 6'1) and now i weight 160-165 it looks as if i lost a lot of weight....however when I look in the mirror (without clothes) I feel and look much better.....a few women i have dated during this period this period of time and have noticed the change actually say i look better with the clothes off...However...

I have kept the clothes that i used to use when i was 20 pounds heavier and I think people are confusing that with saying I am too skinny...my parents tell me they are worried, co-workers say i am too skinny and now i am confused. I dont quite want to stop cutting (and even less so now that i am slowly putting on muscle at the same time) until i get the six pack......I dont want to buy a whole new wardrobe because as soon as I stop cutting I intend to put on the weight back in a healthy manner (I just signed up with Swolecat actually and after one or two months max of SGX, regardless of where i am at I will be going into SUP2)...

What do you guys do to deal with this issue? I know usually the issue is that people are slightly overweight and then feel happy to be at lower weight....in my case I am NOT happy to be at this weight but I do looooove the way my body is recomping and refuse to stop now when i am so close to my goal...has anybody ever had this issue? Should i just buy clothes for now and just try to deal with it until I get on my SUP program?

When I was 6'2" and 158 :o I was TOO SKINNY and you're in that range. I'm guessing you're an ectomorph... you may have a hard time getting that six pack without adding some significant good muscle.

You said something important: you're still wearing your "fat clothes". Change out your wardrobe for jeans that fit, etc and you'll have some of those people saying you look great.

Also- the people around you are used to seeing you heavier- they'll get used to the new you.

Here's my take on it;

Your doing this to make yourself feel good. I've been down that road (still have ways to go), and one of the great things about it is getting compliments from people because of it. It would not surprise me if your old clothes, used to a 20 lbs larger you, looks really baggy on you now. I'd suggest getting some more fitting threads as a intermediary. Obviously, keep your old clothes for when you get bigger and buffer.

So get some more fitting clothes, but keep the old stuff around. I'm sure that not all of it needs replacement. I guess I should not that as an european male I tend to wear clothes more fitted than the norm over in USA - or at least so has been the collective experience from my own and friends travels there.

I'm 6'1" with a smaller frame, and I can't imagine how skinny I would look at 160 :confused:

I know Brad Pitt was near that range at 6'1" for the infamous Fight Club, but most people would have trouble getting to that level of leanness with no more muscle than that.

IMO, at your measurements, at a minimum I'd quit cutting and hold to maintenance and work toward a recomposition over time. You probably are skinny. That's fine if that's your goal, but I'd bet you'd like your look at a lean 170 better than a lean 150.

In the end, it's about what you want, but you need to decide if that's a very slight but lean 6'1", or a bit more musclular 6'1".

You're going down a road I have already travelled. I was 6' and 178#, got down to 153" but was too skinny. I have since bulked up to 190# and cut back to 180# and pretty much stay there.

By all means get new pants. Chances are, even after you muscle up to 180# again, your waist may stay where it is now. That's what happened to me. I went from a 36" waist to a 32" at my low point, but I'm still wearing 32" pants at my higher weight (that's because the weight is in my arms, chest, shoulders, etc) and my body fat is lower.

You'll like both SGX and SUP2 but it sounds like what you really need is SUP2. Chris is great. :gl:

I was getting alot of the same comments when I got to me leanest state. But I did SUP2 and I must say; SUP2 is the way to go!

I started on JSF.com @ 200+ pounds, after a couple months I started SGX and got down to 163 lbs at 6% BF. I started SUP2 a couple months ago and got up to 185 lbs with still (barely) visible abs. I figure my BF is around 11% now. So SUP2 worked for me. 22 pounds of weight gained with a 5% increase in BF% is great! The hardest part of SUP2 for me is starting to see my abdominal section smooth out. But overall I figure 12 of the 22 pound of weight I gained is muscle. Not too shabby if you ask me. =) I am now starting to cut down again, this time I am hopeing to cut to 175 @ about 7-8 % BF.

Good Luck. Contact Swole and get started on SUP2

I think the best idea is to post a picture to assess the 'skinnyness'

I got down to 172 lb (at just under 6 ft) and friends asked me whether I had cancer or AIDS.

At the time, I just kept reminding myself that this was just a stepping stone and was a necessary, though temporary, state that I had to endure in preparation for later muscle gains. First priority had been to abolish my obesity and diabetes, and prioritising those metabolic goals at the expense of physique is not something I regret having done. At the time, I tried explaining this occasionally to people if they were openly critical of me, but almost none of them came even close to understanding the concept.

Looking back now, a couple of years on, I think it was the right mental approach.

LOL, when I was skinny fat, I only ever got 1 comment regarding my size.

"Hey, what's that hanging from your sleeves? Noodles? Oh! Those are your arms!"

My eloquent reply, "huh?"

"You're SKINNY!"

I was still under the impression I was fat, so I said, "thanks!"


Your body is your body. If your health seems good, and you know you're eating right and doing the right things for yourself, then forget other peoples opinions. You'll be buff soon enough :nod: