Should I bulk or cut?

filbo132 wrote: »

californiagirl2012 wrote: »

lifting builds muscle. Bulking is gaining fat. Cutting is losing fat. I never want to bulk.

That's contradictory. For one, to build muscles, you need to be in one way or another in a caloric surplus. There is no way around it unless you take steroids/ You're a new lifter/ You're obese or have exceptional genes. The best scenario for someone not to gain excessive amount of fat is to be in a small caloric surplus...especially for women since they don't grow potentially more muscles than men.

Other than those 4 scenario's that I mentionned, you cannot build muscles when losing weight.

Sorry but the bold isn't true. Remember people recomp too.

BTW, fun fact - people recomping are actually in a tiny energy deficit.
Eric Helms explains it better than I can - https://muscleandstrengthpyramids.com/calorie-deficit-gain-weight/

Chey Gal - first congratulations on loosing the 80 lbs -It's not easy to do & you look great. as a FFG (former fat girl) you should not use the term "bulk" - bulking implies eating big & gaining weight which will be fat along with the muscle , that is risky for you ( and me) - instead think more like a re comp - keeping your cals at maintenance + a little, maybe 2-300 a day and pick a program like Starting Strength/ Grey Skull / or Strong Lifts and follow it for a few months. You don't know enough now to write your own program - pick a proven one and stick with it. You can adjust your cal intake up or down as needed - it you are putting on fat or getting too lean. lift 3X a week- get enough protein & eat your veggies - they will help keep you healthy. Do that for a few months and you will be amazed - Eastcoast Jim

@CheyGal18 - generally, bulking for a female starts around 20% body fat. However, how do you feel that you look? From that one picture, I would not guess 26% but I am not really any good with that (yet). So, if you were to decide to bulk then you might want to consider getting to around 20% body fat first.....depending on how you feel about how you are right now.

As others have stated, in very simplified terms, a bulk is where you are trying to gain muscle. You will also be in a caloric surplus , which will generally create some additional body fat (thus, the suggestion to be around 20%....). You train heavy and follow a progressive overload (generally).

Then there is the recomp, which is eating at maintenance and lifting heavy and in a progressive overload. This is the best of both worlds but is SUPER slow.

Finally, there is a cut. This is where you are trying to loose body fat. You are in a caloric deficit and you - if you do not do this properly - will potentially loose some muscle. One thing that typically is suggested in a cut is to increase your protein intake a little bit. You train heavy and follow a progressive overload here, too.

See the pattern? Train heavy and follow a progressive overload!

Does this help?

CWShultz27105 wrote: »

@CheyGal18 - generally, bulking for a female starts around 20% body fat. However, how do you feel that you look? From that one picture, I would not guess 26% but I am not really any good with that (yet). So, if you were to decide to bulk then you might want to consider getting to around 20% body fat first.....depending on how you feel about how you are right now.

As others have stated, in very simplified terms, a bulk is where you are trying to gain muscle. You will also be in a caloric surplus , which will generally create some additional body fat (thus, the suggestion to be around 20%....). You train heavy and follow a progressive overload (generally).

Then there is the recomp, which is eating at maintenance and lifting heavy and in a progressive overload. This is the best of both worlds but is SUPER slow.

Finally, there is a cut. This is where you are trying to loose body fat. You are in a caloric deficit and you - if you do not do this properly - will potentially loose some muscle. One thing that typically is suggested in a cut is to increase your protein intake a little bit. You train heavy and follow a progressive overload here, too.

See the pattern? Train heavy and follow a progressive overload!

Does this help?

Older, but interesting article from T-Nation. Base idea, a recomp will provide as much or more muscle growth over time vs bulk/cut cycles.

https://www.t-nation.com/training/truth-about-bulking

You look fantastic. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Maybe adjust your macros? More protein and less carbs can help you do a recomp.

sardelsa wrote: »

Packerjohn wrote: »

CWShultz27105 wrote: »

@CheyGal18 - generally, bulking for a female starts around 20% body fat. However, how do you feel that you look? From that one picture, I would not guess 26% but I am not really any good with that (yet). So, if you were to decide to bulk then you might want to consider getting to around 20% body fat first.....depending on how you feel about how you are right now.

As others have stated, in very simplified terms, a bulk is where you are trying to gain muscle. You will also be in a caloric surplus , which will generally create some additional body fat (thus, the suggestion to be around 20%....). You train heavy and follow a progressive overload (generally).

Then there is the recomp, which is eating at maintenance and lifting heavy and in a progressive overload. This is the best of both worlds but is SUPER slow.

Finally, there is a cut. This is where you are trying to loose body fat. You are in a caloric deficit and you - if you do not do this properly - will potentially loose some muscle. One thing that typically is suggested in a cut is to increase your protein intake a little bit. You train heavy and follow a progressive overload here, too.

See the pattern? Train heavy and follow a progressive overload!

Does this help?

Older, but interesting article from T-Nation. Base idea, a recomp will provide as much or more muscle growth over time vs bulk/cut cycles.

https://www.t-nation.com/training/truth-about-bulking

I kind of skimmed the article, but the author seems to be against dirty bulking, which he considers to be "traditional bulking". I wouldn't say lean bulking is recomping (which is maintaining your weight and changing your body composition over time). Otherwise it doesn't make sense, if I want to be 10lbs heavier with more muscle but the same bodyfat% over time, there is no real way I would be able to do that by recomping (if we are sticking to the traditional definition).

@sardelsa
I'm not sure there is a "traditional" definition of recomping as the word is a fairly recent creation.
To me it just describes doing both aspects simultaneously in a small range around, but not necessarily precisely at, maintenance - the size of that range will be different from person to person. As a slightly broken old fart my range is pretty small as is your's as a well trained female.

But that you and I maybe couldn't add 10lbs without changing body composition doesn't apply to everyone though. Take a young male near the start of their training lifetime and adding 10lbs in a reasonably short timescale without changing body composition isn't at all unreasonable. That 10lbs would be a combination of muscle, fat and other LBM.

At least the article recognised that the overall rate of muscle gain in recomp should be compared to a complete bulk/cut cycle and not just the bulk part.

californiagirl2012 wrote: »

lifting builds muscle. Bulking is gaining fat. Cutting is losing fat. I never want to bulk.

So much misinformation here