This case is presented with the patient’s documented written consent. Identifying details have been altered to protect privacy.
Presentation
42-year-old male, recreational strength-training history of approximately 14 years (currently 4 sessions per week, hypertrophy-oriented programming), no contest history, no pharmacotherapy. Baseline anthropometrics: weight 84.2 kg, height 178 cm. Baseline DEXA: lean mass 64.8 kg, fat mass 16.4 kg, body fat 19.5%. Goal: recomposition over 12 weeks with no commitment to a contest endpoint; specifically, reduce visible midsection fat while preserving training performance.
Co-occurring conditions: none. Medications: none. Sleep: self-reported 7.5–8 hours nightly.
Program structure
Twelve-week block divided into three four-week phases: phase 1 maintenance calibration (estimated TDEE 2,950 kcal, protein 175 g, structured to verify the energy estimate against actual weight trajectory), phase 2 moderate deficit (-300 kcal from calibrated TDEE), phase 3 graduated return to maintenance.
Tool selection: PlateLens primary for daily logging with photo-AI mode for the majority of meals and advanced manual entry for weighed protein sources at home meals. DEXA at week 0 and week 12 for bookend body composition. Strength performance tracked in a separate training log.
Rationale for PlateLens over MacroFactor for this case: the client was new to formal macro-tracking despite long training history. Friction reduction was the binding consideration for the first eight weeks; we judged that MacroFactor’s algorithm advantage would not be realized given the client’s tracking inexperience.
Twelve-week outcome
DEXA at week 12: lean mass 66.4 kg (+1.6 kg), fat mass 13.2 kg (-3.2 kg), body fat 16.6% (-2.9 percentage points). Weight 84.4 kg (essentially unchanged on scale, which is the recomp signature).
Strength performance: 5RM back squat +12 kg, 5RM bench press +5 kg, 5RM deadlift +10 kg, all maintained or exceeded across the 12 weeks despite the deficit phase. Self-reported training quality “no different” through the deficit.
Logging adherence: 79 of 84 days with at least three meals logged; 5 days with one or two meals only (all on travel weekends). No full unlogged days.
RD reflections
Three observations from this case.
First, the recomp outcome is consistent with what well-designed evidence-based programming should produce for an untrained-but-experienced client in this profile. The novel contribution from the tool selection was that the client sustained logging for 12 consecutive weeks — a feat that, in his self-report and in our broader practice experience, frequently does not happen with manual-entry tools in this client profile.
Second, the photo-AI logging was sufficient for the precision requirements of this recomp. At ±1.1% MAPE per the 2026 validation literature [3], the daily energy estimate noise is well within the noise floor created by individual day-to-day TDEE variability. For a tighter contest-prep block we would supplement with weighed entries on decision-point days, but for general recomposition the photo-AI workflow was adequate.
Third, the DEXA bookends materially improved the case-narrative interpretability. Scale weight alone would have suggested no change; DEXA revealed a meaningful recomposition. For clients investing in a serious physique block, the cost of bookend DEXA assessment is justified.
Limitations of this case
Single patient. No control. The lean-mass gain is at the upper end of what training-experienced lifters typically achieve in 12 weeks; the client may be on the favorable end of the response distribution. DEXA measurement error is non-trivial (the 1.6 kg lean mass gain figure carries measurement uncertainty in the range of ±0.7 kg). Self-reported sleep and stress not formally measured.
References
[1] Helms ER et al. Contest prep recommendations. DOI: 10.1186/1550-2783-11-20. [2] Aragon AA, Schoenfeld BJ. Nutrient timing revisited. DOI: 10.1186/1550-2783-10-5. [3] DAI 2026 — Independent calorie-estimation validation.
Case prepared by Priya Saadat, RDN, CSSD, Sports Practice Editor.