How should you feel during the cut?

fitwithwhit88

Just curious whether there's a way to know whether your cut is effective or not, besides checking scale weight over time.

I ask because I'm wrapping up week 3 of my cut. The first week, I felt fairly normal, eating around 2200 calories and losing about 0.5lb. I was extremely hungry this week and had from some pretty significant headaches which was abnormal. The second week, suffered from some major anxiety that eliminated my hunger, made me nauseous, and seemingly amped up my metabolism somehow because I could feel myself burning through energy. I lost about 2lb that week (realizing most probably water weight) while eating around 1800-1900 calories on average, but doing little to no exercise. This week, eating around 2000 calories daily and feel as though the hunger pains I used to get eating at TDEE of 2400 are gone. I'm just forcing myself to eat at designated time periods and feeling bloated and fluffy.

That said, is there any way you can know if you're really eating at the right level or forcing your metabolism back downward by eating too little other than tracking weight longterm by scale? Also, thoughts on my situation and any recommendations in terms of caloric intake?

heybales

Usually a reasonable deficit won't have any effects over short time, perhaps a bit of hunger, but that usually means blood sugar has dropped too low. But that shouldn't happen if macro's is about the same is at maintenance.

Usually the same reason for hunger pains eating more - more spiking of insulin, blood sugar drops too low - feel hungrier than you should for amount eaten. Unless your activity level went up also because more food made you move more, workout harder.

Over long term if you were weight lifting and already maxed out - you may discover the max weight drops on same routine because you just aren't recovering like before - so you have to spread out the sessions to keep the weight on the bar, or reduce duration.
Or if doing endurance cardio sessions - you can't make it as long at as high an intensity.

So really only the extremes should be effected by reasonable deficit. Average daily stuff and workouts likely won't notice either.

I'd examine the food choices and order eaten first - just in case you are insulin sensitive, meaning body produces more than is really needed, or keeps it elevated longer than it should be - both of which could cause low blood sugar.
Could easily be within "healthy" limits - just not desired effects in real life.

Feeling bloated and fluffy - is taping measure validating those feelings, or tighter pants?

Nothing besides weight would give indication.
If wearing step tracker and not actively trying to reach step goals, a natural slowdown of daily activity would be bad sign of body doing what it does to compensate for threat it doesn't like.
If forcing steps because you do have goals - then slowing of hair/nail growth would be next easily visible sign.
Finally if really threatened, RMR test to compare before and after - but you'd be way below reasonable by that point.

So just watch your workouts, and if any were really difficult already, confirm you are reaching same level of intensity (weight on bar for same reps, same pace, ect) with the same level of feeling, even if recovery is tad slower. Like maybe sore for an extra half day.