Cut and bulk phases

[Funkybeats]

Hi,

Has anyone seen any information on mixing bulk and cutting days in the same week instead of doing one or the other for months at a time? I'm thinking there might be some efficiencies to add a slight calorie surplus on days after a strength training workout and then a deficit the other days.

Thanks.

 

[Nelson Vergel]

I think the concept of cycling between bulking and cutting is an outdated and unhealthy way to maintain health while optimizing body composition.

 

[Phil Goodman]

I haven’t done extensive research on it but that’s the approach I take and it works great for me. My thought is that the body changes demands based on activity, illnesses, and other factors that are going on so it makes sense to give it more macro an micro nutrients when it is deepest into repair functions after a workout. My workout schedule is Sat., Sun., Tues., and Thurs. And really the only changes I make are on weekends since I have two very heavy lifting sessions only 24 hours apart. And even then it’s usually just eating more calories and carbs on Sat. to make sure I’m good to go on Sunday. I guess I do just naturally eat more on Wed. And Fridays as well (Friday being a recovery day and preparing to go into the heavy lifting of the weekend).

This approach just sort of emerged naturally for me as someone who has difficulty gaining weight. I went through a bulking phase where I ate so much I started to damage my stomach (which highlights @Nelson Vergel ‘s point above). If you’re body is signaling that it’s full, then trying to cram calories into it is not going to accomplish why you intend, unless you intend to shit like crazy and still not really get all of the value out of what was eaten. Same with hunger… if your body is screaming that it’s hungry there is probably a reason. Now, I will say that a lot of aspects on this front get cloudy due to addictive substances in food and glucose swings in people. Once you figure out that aspect (assuming you’re eating pretty clean) you can get to a point where you can just eat as much as you want when you’re hungry and be perfectly fine eating light or missing entire meal if you aren’t hungry. To help with that, I heard a pretty good statement that can help tuning into your body - paraphrasing here… but it was along the lines of “people spend too much time counting calories and not enough time counting ingredients”. Or another one… “ideal food doesn’t have ingredients, ideal food IS ingredients”. In other words if I eat a piece of chicken the ingredient is chicken. Same with a banana. Or rice. Or a potato. Taking that approach makes it way easier to tune into your body because you don’t have all the other chemicals in there confusing the signals.


So long story short, yes I take that approach and it’s worked for me for years. Then again I’m already at my ideal weight of 175 at 6’1” with plenty of muscle. What are your goals, diets, and workout routines?

 

[Funkybeats]

I haven’t done extensive research on it but that’s the approach I take and it works great for me. My thought is that the body changes demands based on activity, illnesses, and other factors that are going on so it makes sense to give it more macro an micro nutrients when it is deepest into repair functions after a workout. My workout schedule is Sat., Sun., Tues., and Thurs. And really the only changes I make are on weekends since I have two very heavy lifting sessions only 24 hours apart. And even then it’s usually just eating more calories and carbs on Sat. to make sure I’m good to go on Sunday. I guess I do just naturally eat more on Wed. And Fridays as well (Friday being a recovery day and preparing to go into the heavy lifting of the weekend).

This approach just sort of emerged naturally for me as someone who has difficulty gaining weight. I went through a bulking phase where I ate so much I started to damage my stomach (which highlights @Nelson Vergel ‘s point above). If you’re body is signaling that it’s full, then trying to cram calories into it is not going to accomplish why you intend, unless you intend to shit like crazy and still not really get all of the value out of what was eaten. Same with hunger… if your body is screaming that it’s hungry there is probably a reason. Now, I will say that a lot of aspects on this front get cloudy due to addictive substances in food and glucose swings in people. Once you figure out that aspect (assuming you’re eating pretty clean) you can get to a point where you can just eat as much as you want when you’re hungry and be perfectly fine eating light or missing entire meal if you aren’t hungry. To help with that, I heard a pretty good statement that can help tuning into your body - paraphrasing here… but it was along the lines of “people spend too much time counting calories and not enough time counting ingredients”. Or another one… “ideal food doesn’t have ingredients, ideal food IS ingredients”. In other words if I eat a piece of chicken the ingredient is chicken. Same with a banana. Or rice. Or a potato. Taking that approach makes it way easier to tune into your body because you don’t have all the other chemicals in there confusing the signals.


So long story short, yes I take that approach and it’s worked for me for years. Then again I’m already at my ideal weight of 175 at 6’1” with plenty of muscle. What are your goals, diets, and workout routines?

I'm doing 4 zone two training days, two HIIT VO2 max workouts per week and weight training 3 times per week. I'm three pounds out from my target weight of 180lbs at 5'7" (I'm muscular) after cutting 35 pounds. Now I want to add more muscle but not gain a bunch of fat back.

 

[Seagal]

Imo the problem is overeating. Tracking macros and body fat is annoying but I believe that's the way to gain muscle mass while minimizing fat accumulation. How much more calories per day or week can one consume without getting fat.
How easy can you lose fat with minimal muscle lost? For me it's keto diet.
And being realistic how much muscle mass one could possibly gain as experienced sort of natty lifter, 3kg per year?

Totally different game if one is on AAS with HGH etc…

 

[Guided_by_Voices]

I agree that traditional bulking and cutting is a bad idea (it runs totally counter to the principle of consistency, which is the number one problem for most people) but varying diet within a weekly timeframe works well for me. I focus high protein in the 18 hours after a heavy workout and then more carbs the day before a workout, with lower calories one or two days per week. This is somewhat similar to the "leangains" approach which many people found success with.

 

[Phil Goodman]

I'm doing 4 zone two training days, two HIIT VO2 max workouts per week and weight training 3 times per week. I'm three pounds out from my target weight of 180lbs at 5'7" (I'm muscular) after cutting 35 pounds. Now I want to add more muscle but not gain a bunch of fat back.

As you get close to or hit the finish line, the main thing is to just keep plugging along. If you’re that close then hit your protein goals, don’t go crazy with calories, and track how you feel. Plus some of it comes down to personal preference, how quick do you want to lose it vs how sluggish are you willing feel vs how much are you willing to sacrifice for your workouts. And I’d say it’s a good idea to get a DXA scan to see where you are from a composition standpoint. That’ll paint a better picture than weight (or even measurements). Other than that, like I said it becomes a mindset shift towards maintaining/slight improvements instead of expecting huge strides each week or month.