Cut & Bulk Cycles....How do i start?

Ladsel

The Lady in this Blog is an inspiration to me. http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/progress-photos/moogs
I'd like to look similar to how she looks in her 115lbs photo, but i'm a novice when it comes to bulking & cutting.
I'm around 130lbs now, 5'3 and have approx. 27% Body Fat (going by comparison photo's online) - but would like to get down to 18% body fat.
How do i go about doing a cut & bulk and how long will it take to see results?
I do Stronglifts 5x5 3 times a week and do cardio 2 times a week.....TDEE is around 1900 cals.

Kimo159

There's numerous ways to do it but here's a simplified method. Eat at a deficit until you reach your goal for weight loss, then add 100 calories per week until you hit maintenance (most people like to stay there for a month or so to minimize fat gains in the bulk), up calories by 100 calories per week until you're gaining roughly .5 lb per week and stay at that calorie goal. You'll want to do that for at least 3 months and then cut again to show off the new muscle you've built. Keep in mind women will bulk at a ratio of 25% muscle gain and 75% fat gain. You want to aim for .8g of protein per lb of body weight on a cut and bulk.

Results and timing are dependent on the person, the effort put in, genetics, how much of a deficit you're in on the cut, how much of a surplus you're in for the bulk, etc. I wouldn't worry about a timeline so much as just try to enjoy the process. Every day you'll get closer to your goal!

_Bropollo_

Body fat % dictates bulking/cutting efficiency via your body's calorie partitioning ratio (and genetics also, but you that is something you don't have control over).

In general, higher bodyfat makes it harder to gain muscle and easier to lose fat. Low bodyfat makes it easier to gain muscle and harder to lose fat.

So you will find yourself "cycling" between the two peak efficiency bodyfat ranges as you bulk and cut, in an attempt to gain muscle and lose fat at optimum rates.

For men, fat loss is optimal until 10% bodyfat. Any lower, and the body is fighting real hard to hold on to that last bit, and you will generally lose some hard earned muscle mass doing this.

Muscle gain is optimal until about 20% bodyfat. Any higher, and the body is taking the vast majority of surplus calories and putting them directly into fat storage.

For ladies, I think you essentially add 5% to the ranges for guys; so your low end is 15% and your high end is 25%. This is not exact, it is just the rough range of peak efficiency, everybody is slightly different.

Since you are at 27% right now, ideally, you would want to cut first, and try to get down near the bottom of the "bracket", then start a bulk once you get there. You essentially rinse and repeat this process until you achieve your goals.

For cutting: Make sure you are getting adequate protein during your cut, that your deficit is no more than 20% of your maintenance cals, and that you are getting frequent lifting sessions in to preserve muscle mass (generally you want to hit the same muscles at least twice per week). Cuts are generally a lot faster than bulks. You can safely drop about a pound of fat per week without putting your gainz at risk. For ladies, when bulking, you can add about 1lbs of muscle a month. It's painfully slow.

Ladsel

Thank you both for explaining!
Looking forward to doing it.

BenjaminMFP88

Well generally, if you're fat you cut if you're not you don't. Fat being defined solely by your preference as to what you should look like.