Logan Steele
Cutting is a term used to describe the process of losing body fat while maintaining muscle mass. It is often done by bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts to achieve a leaner, more muscular physique. The process involves eating at a caloric deficit, reducing weight training frequency, and increasing cardiovascular exercise. It is important to note that cutting should be done safely and that consulting a doctor or a registered dietitian before starting is recommended. This is because cutting can be stressful and may negatively impact health if not done properly.
How to Cut Muscle
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Diet | Consume fewer calories and eat a lower percentage of foods that are high in proteins and carbohydrates. |
| Weight Training | Use lighter weights and reduce weight training frequency to no more than 2 times per week to maintain tone. |
| Cardio | Focus workouts on long periods of cardiovascular exercise, known as marathon cardio, to burn calories. |
| Calorie Deficit | Lower the number of calories you eat in a day to below the number you burn. |
| Bulking | Eat a surplus of food and lift heavy weights to build muscle mass. |
| Cutting | Eat at a caloric deficit and modify your workout routine to burn fat while holding onto muscle and strength. |
| Protein | Maintain adequate protein intake to help with fat loss and build muscle. |
| Resistance Exercise | Resistance exercises help maintain muscle mass during a calorie deficit. |
| Fibre | Eating raw vegetables is a great way to snack without adding many calories. |
| Water | Up your water intake to succeed in cutting. |
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What You'll Learn
Reduce caloric intake
Reducing your caloric intake is a key part of cutting muscle, alongside modifying your workout routine. This means eating at a caloric deficit, or in other words, consuming fewer calories than you burn.
To cut muscle, you must first calculate how many calories you need to eat to maintain your current weight. You can do this by using a calorie-counter app or tool. Once you know this number, subtract 500 to 1,000 calories to get your daily target intake. It is important to note that reducing your calorie intake by this amount may be too extreme for some people, and it is recommended that you never reduce your calorie intake below 1,400 per day.
To successfully reduce your caloric intake, you can try a few simple strategies. Firstly, you can fill half your plate with vegetables, which will help you feel full while reducing your calorie intake. Drinking two cups of water before a meal can also help you feel more satisfied, leading to a reduction in calorie intake. Taking your time with meals and chewing slowly can also help you feel full more quickly.
You can also adapt the meals you have chosen to eat. For example, removing the bun from a burger or one slice of bread from a sandwich can help reduce your calorie intake. Swapping fries or potatoes for extra vegetables will also help boost your vegetable intake while cutting calories. In addition, choosing a low-calorie starter, such as a light soup or salad, can prevent you from overeating.
Finally, it is important to be mindful of hidden calories. For example, adding ketchup or mayonnaise to your food can add more calories than you may realize. Similarly, creamy sauces tend to have more calories and fewer vegetables than tomato-based sauces. Alcohol also contains calories and should not make up a significant portion of your diet.
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Lower protein and carb intake
To cut muscle, one must reduce body fat while maintaining muscle mass. This is achieved through a calorie-deficit diet and a training regimen.
While it is important to reduce your carb and protein intake, it is crucial to ensure you are still getting enough of these nutrients, as they are essential to muscle building and maintenance. For instance, you can cut your carb intake by half for five days, and then return to a more normal carb intake for two days. This prevents your body from entering a starvation response, which causes your metabolism to slow down, making it extremely difficult to get leaner.
Protein is the most thermogenic macronutrient, meaning that we burn calories while digesting and absorbing protein. Therefore, it is important to ensure you are getting enough protein to maintain muscle mass while cutting. During a cutting phase, it is recommended to increase your protein intake to somewhere in the range of 2.3g/kg-3.1g/kg.
It is also important to time your meals effectively. For example, after your workout, you should consume about 35% of your daily carb intake in the form of a rapid-digesting carbohydrate source, along with a fast-digesting protein. The rest of your carbohydrates should be consumed 1-2 hours after your workout in the form of slow-digesting sources.
It is worth noting that low-carb diets can lead to lower energy levels, which could result in reduced performance. Therefore, it is important to listen to your body and adjust your diet and training regimen accordingly.
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Increase cardio workouts
To cut muscle, you need to do the opposite of what you would do to build muscle. This means reducing your caloric intake, using lighter weights, reducing the number of reps and increasing your cardio workouts.
Cardio, or cardiovascular exercise, is an important part of any workout program. It is necessary to include some form of cardio training in your routine, but the duration and intensity of the sessions should be tailored to your goals. For example, if you are a powerlifter, your cardio training will look very different from someone training for a marathon.
To cut muscle, you should focus on long periods of cardiovascular exercise, also known as marathon cardio, to burn calories. This can include low-intensity morning cardio or high-intensity interval training (HIIT) in the evenings. You can also incorporate sprint interval training into your cardio days, which includes 4-6 sprints of 20 seconds with 3 minutes of rest in between. It is important to pay attention to your recovery and make sure you are properly warmed up before starting any sprints.
You can also increase the intensity of your cardio workouts by incorporating weights. For example, you can hold a heavy weight, such as a kettlebell, while doing trunk rotations. This will work your abdominal muscles while testing your cardiovascular system.
Consistency is key when it comes to cardio workouts. Aim for a consistent home exercise routine 3-5 days per week to enhance your physical abilities and overall health. It is also important to track your progress and heart rate during cardio workouts. A heart rate monitor can help you understand how hard you are working and when to adjust the intensity.
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Use lighter weights
To cut muscle, you can consume fewer calories, use lighter weights, and reduce your weight training frequency. Lifting lighter weights can be an effective way to build muscle, as it has been proven to be as beneficial as lifting heavier loads for fewer reps. This method is safer and more accessible, especially for beginners.
Using lighter weights and increasing your number of reps can help you cut muscle effectively. Research from McMaster University suggests that lifting lighter weights can lead to similar gains in muscle mass, fiber size, and strength compared to lifting heavier weights. This method involves performing reps to exhaustion, which means lifting to failure or until you cannot perform another rep. It is important to note that even with lighter weights, caution should be exercised to maintain proper technique and avoid injury.
When using lighter weights to cut muscle, you can incorporate techniques such as "negatives" or "eccentric reps." This involves slowing down the lowering portion of an exercise to increase tension on the muscle, which promotes growth. Bodybuilders like Nick Walker and strength coaches like Dave Rienzi have endorsed this technique, as it allows for muscle growth without maxing out on heavy weights.
To effectively cut muscle, you should also consider your diet and overall calorie intake. Reducing your caloric intake and eating a lower percentage of high-protein and high-carbohydrate foods will help you cut down on muscle mass. Additionally, increasing your cardio workouts and focusing on long periods of cardiovascular exercise will contribute to burning more calories.
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Focus on muscle growth
To focus on muscle growth, you need to be in a ""bulking" phase. This involves eating a surplus of food and lifting heavy weights to build muscle mass. Eating a caloric surplus is essential to promote significant muscle growth. This means eating more calories than you burn each day.
During the bulking phase, it is important to focus on a high-calorie, high-protein diet. This provides your body with the energy and nutrients it needs to support muscle growth. Weightlifting and strength training are also crucial components of the bulking phase. Intensive anaerobic weightlifting workouts damage muscle fibres, which then repair and rebuild during rest periods, leading to muscle growth.
Compound lifts, such as squats and bench presses, are fundamental to building muscle mass. It is important to emphasise steady progress in your lifting and to avoid ""dirty bulking", which involves eating junk food to bulk up. This can lead to greater fat gain and make the subsequent ""cutting" phase more challenging.
While the bulking phase is primarily about muscle growth, some fat gain is inevitable. However, this should not be a cause for concern as it can have benefits. A moderate amount of body fat can improve your performance in certain sports and activities, and it can also provide your body with the energy it needs to support muscle growth.
If you are new to bulking and cutting, it is important to understand the benefits and risks before beginning any new exercise or diet program. Consulting with a doctor or a registered dietitian can help ensure that your goals and methods are appropriate for your age, sex, and physical condition.
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Frequently asked questions
Cutting is a term for losing body fat and improving your body composition to make your muscles more visible. It involves eating at a caloric deficit and modifying your workout routine to burn fat while maintaining muscle mass.
First, calculate your daily calorie, protein, fat, and carb requirements to determine a caloric deficit. Then, adjust your diet and workout routine to maximise fat loss while maintaining muscle mass.
Focus on a high-protein diet to preserve muscle mass and curb cravings. Increase your cardio workouts and focus on compound lifts like squats and bench presses.
