I'm very confused and distraught. I weighed myself today and found out I was 125 (I'm 5'6). A year ago I was 135 and I know I lost muscle due to poor eating habits. Do you think I should keep cutting slowly (now starting week 3) and then head into a bulk. I don't want to hurt my body anymore! I need some advice! Here's a set of pictures, taken 2 days ago:

Perhaps dont worry about choosing 'cutting' or bulking. Focus on your diet first. I would start by making sure you are eating clean. Make up a weekly/daily menu plan high in protien, low in fats & sugars. I'm not sure what your excercise routine is, but perhaps step it up a bit, with more weightlifting and cardio. Once you have those things going, I think you will lose your BF quick. Its not easy, but you can do it! (I just saw your pictures in another post.. you are making good progress. Keep doing what you are doing!)

Yeah, I would agree with that. What is your current diet like on an average day.

Here's what my diet is on a typical day:

Meal 1
Oatmeal
Banana
Whey Protein Shake

Meal 2
Fruit
Tofurkey/Veggie Sausage/Tofu

Meal 3
Black Beans
brown rice
Broccoli/Spinach/Other veggie

Meal 4
Hummus
Dried Soy Beans

Meal 5
Tofu/Soy beans
Fruit


This usually adds up between 1300 and 1600 calories. I get about 120 grams of protein daily with about 30 grams of fat and about 200 grams of carbs. I also have another protein shake in there, depending on if I do my weight training closer to meal 3 or 4. I do an hour of cardio in the morning and lift between 6 and 8 hours later.

I think I was just discourage last night and realized the scale is not your friend, but the mirror helps. Thanks for everyone's advice! I really appreciate it! :)

You need more monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fats in your diet. 30 g is wayyy too low. Keep the other amounts the same for now. Get it up to about 90 g of fat. (Hint: Add olive oil and peanut butter) This will help increase testosterone production in your body. You should be eating about 2000 calories a day.

Are you a vegetarian? My friend is, and he has a real hard time keeping nutrionally balanced.

But I would break your body down as this:
Weight: 125 lbs

Maintenence calories: (Weight * 11) + (Weight * 11) * 0.5 = 1375 + 688 = 2,063 per day

Protein: 125 grams (1 g per lb) = 500 calories = 125 grams
Carbs: (2063 - 500) / 2 = 782 calories = 196 grams
Fat: (2063 - 500) / 2 = 782 calories = 87 grams

P/F/C Ratio: 24%/38%/38%
P/F/C Grams: 125/196/87

So, 120 and 200 are pretty good, but your fat is too low. You simply need to eat more calories. Note that this math is all for your maintenance level. I'd try it for a while. If you want to bulk, add 500 calories and redo the P/F/C math. If you want to cut, subtract 500, but never go below right around 2000/day. I think you should just work on eating at maintenance while working out for a while. Once that becomes second nature, then worry about bulking and cutting. Every time your weight goes up or down 10 lbs, redo your math. You will probably gain a few lbs simply from adding more calories, but it will be muscle..

You need more monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fats in your diet. 30 g is wayyy too low. Keep the other amounts the same for now. Get it up to about 90 g of fat. (Hint: Add olive oil and peanut butter) This will help increase testosterone production in your body. You should be eating about 2000 calories a day.

Are you a vegetarian? My friend is, and he has a real hard time keeping nutrionally balanced.

But I would break your body down as this:
Weight: 125 lbs

Maintenence calories: (Weight * 11) + (Weight * 11) * 0.5 = 1375 + 688 = 2,063 per day

Protein: 125 grams (1 g per lb) = 500 calories = 125 grams
Carbs: (2063 - 500) / 2 = 782 calories = 196 grams
Fat: (2063 - 500) / 2 = 782 calories = 87 grams

P/F/C Ratio: 24%/38%/38%
P/F/C Grams: 125/196/87

So, 120 and 200 are pretty good, but your fat is too low. You simply need to eat more calories. Note that this math is all for your maintenance level. I'd try it for a while. If you want to bulk, add 500 calories and redo the P/F/C math. If you want to cut, subtract 500, but never go below right around 2000/day. I think you should just work on eating at maintenance while working out for a while. Once that becomes second nature, then worry about bulking and cutting. Every time your weight goes up or down 10 lbs, redo your math. You will probably gain a few lbs simply from adding more calories, but it will be muscle..
This helps a lot. I think I will increase my calories to about 2000 and see how it goes! Thanks! :tucool: