Anyone cutting after a bulk?

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Replies

  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,613 Member
    I just finished my bulk. I have the week off from lifting but need to plan how to go back. I'm thinking of maintenance through March (I have a birthday party planned) and then a very slow cut till June. I'm feeling a little too fluffy for my bikini right now.
  • Mr_Healthy_Habits
    Mr_Healthy_Habits Posts: 12,588 Member
    Well back on day shift... So here it goes, serious face on :grimace::lol:

    Scale says, as of this morning...
    185.2lbs (⬆️ 6lbs since Oct)
    16.1%

    Not bad for 6', but I would love to get back down to 175lbs and maintain the strength gains...

    Today... 187.4 /16.5% wtf 🤷🏽‍♂️🙈...

    Pretty much starved myself all week, 3 meals, 1 is just a shake... 5 days lifting, plus cardio, active job...

    Saturday, New job.. "Oh yeah Jesse, we all get burritos on Saturday"... Me "*kitten*, sounds great 🙄"... I split that thing in to 2 meals over the weekend...

    I still feel like I've got half of it in my stomach 😟...

    Not doing that again... I'll be that awkward guy who brought his own lunch for a few months 😂

    Well today...

    ≈ 184lbs (⬇️ ≈ 1.5lbs in almost 3 weeks)
    About 0.5lbs/week

    Nice and slow, so I'm feeling pretty good today I guess 😂...

    Also, waist is back to ≈ 32" (⬇️ ≈ 0.75")
    Not bad for only losing ≈ 1.5lbs 🤷🏽‍♂️

    183lbs this morning...

    About 2lbs in 4 weeks... Not too quick but I'm good with it...

    Determined to not blow it over the weekend 😬
  • dozenmonkeyz
    dozenmonkeyz Posts: 150 Member
    Week 4 of RFL in the books and weight is down 9.3Lbs on the weekly average and 15.1Lbs from starting weight. Let off the gas Friday night and all day Saturday, letting myself have a couple drinks each night and killed some carbs throughout the day Saturday. But right back to it Sunday and I'm gonna be fairly strict for the next 2 weeks, maybe 3 if I can push it. Then 2 weeks off. Energy levels fluctuate but mostly tolerable and very little strength drop. Hunger isn't too bad but I've spaced my food out enough to combat it during the day. On a full EC stack but at this point I feel the effects have diminished to be hardly noticeable.
    Week 5 went pretty well. Skipped the free meal for the week. Had a couple drinks Friday evening but didn't indulge in any other extra calories. Sunday was my refeed and the carbs were as wonderful as I'd hoped. Weight is down another 2.2Lbs from last week on the weekly average. Overall, weekly average loss is 11.5Lbs, and, total weight loss is 16Lbs. Energy levels are still acceptable and hunger is always present but getting less noticeable. Lost a rep on a couple lifts yesterday but that's the first I've noticed any decrease in strength. Planning to grind out two more weeks then break for two weeks.

    Week 6 was a bit of a drag. Loss slowed and found myself really craving food. Managed to fight it off until Saturday night when I had a couple drinks that led me to snacking a few hundred calories. So, the planned refeed for Sunday had to be quite strict and ended up just being kinda miserable instead of relieving and satisfying. Going to grind out the rest of this week and then take my 2 week break. Weekly average loss is 13.1Lbs and overall loss from starting weight is 18.5. I'd really hoped to hit 200Lbs on the scale before my break but not looking likely.

    Started slowly back to maintenance calories throughout Friday & Saturday; so nice to have plenty of energy and eat carbs and all that good stuff. To close out my first phase of 7 weeks on RFL, I'm down 15Lbs on my weekly average and 21Lbs overall. Expecting around 5Lbs to come back on as water weight normalizes. My goal was to hit 200 this cycle but I ended up at 203.

    I'll take a two week break while running a normal lifting routine (and a hefty amount of adult beverages on the upcoming St Patty's Day :p ), followed by another 6 week RFL cycle to hopefully get and additional 10-15Lbs off. If I can get to 190Lbs I'll be ecstatic to start summer time.

    It's been really nice eating a regular diet and getting solid workouts in. St Paddy's was a successful day full of adult beverages and tasty treats without any guilt and my weight has stayed steady so far. Settled in at around 208Lbs so water weight checks out at about 5Lbs. Maintenance calories are around 2,500 with macro targets of 30%P/45%C/25%F; I'm lifting 4 days per week during the break. Gonna stick to the break the rest of this week and return to RFL next Monday.

    Seems a bit quiet in here given we're about 12 weeks from summer. Figured this thread would be busier :shrug:
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,443 Member
    All right. Back on track. Competition post-feed and birthday is over. 186.8 this morning. Trainer wants me to cut down to 180 rather quickly, so I can eat back up into the next competition, June 8.

    I suck at this. 188.0 this morning.
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    Sounds like you are all doing well and working on it.

    Summer is coming. I am not going to be cutting or nowhere near lean this year so I won't be able to participate. I am sure there are a few more who will be joining in soon :)
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,613 Member
    I was just thinking about how much I could cut before summer. My doctor wants me at 117 or above, hubby likes 120. I'm just over 118. So, it looks like I can cut almost 2lbs lol. I feel better in my bikini at 115. Recomp?
  • Tic78
    Tic78 Posts: 232 Member
    gac633bpf9am.png

    So I’m 0.6lb lower than my last cut, that counts right? Apparently bodyfat is 5% lower as well.

    Week 11 and getting very hard. I think another 4lbs would see me where I want to be but considering a last minute vacation. A refeed is well and truly due so if I go away I think I will go to 0.5lb week loss when I return
  • dozenmonkeyz
    dozenmonkeyz Posts: 150 Member
    edited March 2019
    Tic78 wrote: »

    So I’m 0.6lb lower than my last cut, that counts right? Apparently bodyfat is 5% lower as well.

    Week 11 and getting very hard. I think another 4lbs would see me where I want to be but considering a last minute vacation. A refeed is well and truly due so if I go away I think I will go to 0.5lb week loss when I return

    11 weeks is a long time! Nice work! Takes serious patience to work that duration.
  • Tic78
    Tic78 Posts: 232 Member

    11 weeks is a long time! Nice work! Takes serious patience to work that duration.

    Thanks! I seem to be better at bulk/cutting than I am at maintaining.
  • maverick4x4
    maverick4x4 Posts: 80 Member
    edited March 2019
    Checking in. Hit my initial weight target last Saturday but had already adjusted it lower because fat removal goals not met. Doing 25/50/25 c/p/f since mid-December. 1g/lb protein. So far so good. The daily up and down makes me crazy, but I like the trans. Does anyone know why the weight goes up and down so much? My daily intake is pretty consistent, as are the things I eat and when I eat them.

    zkt230az66m8.jpg
  • Tic78
    Tic78 Posts: 232 Member
    Checking in. Hit my initial weight target last Saturday but had already adjusted it lower because fat removal goals not met. Doing 25/50/25 c/p/f since mid-December. 1g/lb protein. So far so good. The daily up and down makes me crazy, but I like the trans. Does anyone know why the weight goes up and down so much? My daily intake is pretty consistent, as are the things I eat and when I eat them.

    Well done on reaching your initial goal 💪

    Weight fluctuations are normal. Generally they’re caused by water weight. Maybe you have ate something with a higher salt content or maybe your body retains more water to repair muscles after a hard workout. Just the way it is I’m afraid.

    Better to use a weight trending app for daily weigh ins. These show your moving average so even when the scale has moved up slightly they report a downward trend with a lower moving average.

    Fluctuations can totally derail a cut. My first cut was for many months, maybe 6. I didn’t know about trending apps and at the end one little increase was enough for me to go *kitten* it! Straight into a bulk when another few lbs would have had me at my goal. It’s easy to over react and get fed up after a long cut. Well least is was for me.

    The trend apps are free for iPhone it’s called happy scale and for Android it’s libra.

    Keep up the good work 💪
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,443 Member
    Checking in. Hit my initial weight target last Saturday but had already adjusted it lower because fat removal goals not met. Doing 25/50/25 c/p/f since mid-December. 1g/lb protein. So far so good. The daily up and down makes me crazy, but I like the trans. Does anyone know why the weight goes up and down so much? My daily intake is pretty consistent, as are the things I eat and when I eat them.

    This article explains weight fluctuations pretty clearly and simply.

    http://physiqonomics.com/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-weight-and-fluctuations/
  • dozenmonkeyz
    dozenmonkeyz Posts: 150 Member
    Checking in. Hit my initial weight target last Saturday but had already adjusted it lower because fat removal goals not met. Doing 25/50/25 c/p/f since mid-December. 1g/lb protein. So far so good. The daily up and down makes me crazy, but I like the trans. Does anyone know why the weight goes up and down so much? My daily intake is pretty consistent, as are the things I eat and when I eat them.

    That's pretty awesome work! Agree the fluctuations are maddening but that's nature of things. What is your transition plan once you finish your cut?
  • steveko89
    steveko89 Posts: 2,216 Member
    All right. Back on track. Competition post-feed and birthday is over. 186.8 this morning. Trainer wants me to cut down to 180 rather quickly, so I can eat back up into the next competition, June 8.

    I suck at this. 188.0 this morning.

    I'm right there with you Quiksylver; I just bounce between 176.5 and 178.5 seemingly on an infinite loop. To make matters worse I've had to take it a little easy in the gym due to some shoulder soreness. Going to try IF and see if the time window helps with my adherence issues.
  • dozenmonkeyz
    dozenmonkeyz Posts: 150 Member
    Week 4 of RFL in the books and weight is down 9.3Lbs on the weekly average and 15.1Lbs from starting weight. Let off the gas Friday night and all day Saturday, letting myself have a couple drinks each night and killed some carbs throughout the day Saturday. But right back to it Sunday and I'm gonna be fairly strict for the next 2 weeks, maybe 3 if I can push it. Then 2 weeks off. Energy levels fluctuate but mostly tolerable and very little strength drop. Hunger isn't too bad but I've spaced my food out enough to combat it during the day. On a full EC stack but at this point I feel the effects have diminished to be hardly noticeable.
    Week 5 went pretty well. Skipped the free meal for the week. Had a couple drinks Friday evening but didn't indulge in any other extra calories. Sunday was my refeed and the carbs were as wonderful as I'd hoped. Weight is down another 2.2Lbs from last week on the weekly average. Overall, weekly average loss is 11.5Lbs, and, total weight loss is 16Lbs. Energy levels are still acceptable and hunger is always present but getting less noticeable. Lost a rep on a couple lifts yesterday but that's the first I've noticed any decrease in strength. Planning to grind out two more weeks then break for two weeks.

    Week 6 was a bit of a drag. Loss slowed and found myself really craving food. Managed to fight it off until Saturday night when I had a couple drinks that led me to snacking a few hundred calories. So, the planned refeed for Sunday had to be quite strict and ended up just being kinda miserable instead of relieving and satisfying. Going to grind out the rest of this week and then take my 2 week break. Weekly average loss is 13.1Lbs and overall loss from starting weight is 18.5. I'd really hoped to hit 200Lbs on the scale before my break but not looking likely.
    Started slowly back to maintenance calories throughout Friday & Saturday; so nice to have plenty of energy and eat carbs and all that good stuff. To close out my first phase of 7 weeks on RFL, I'm down 15Lbs on my weekly average and 21Lbs overall. Expecting around 5Lbs to come back on as water weight normalizes. My goal was to hit 200 this cycle but I ended up at 203.

    I'll take a two week break while running a normal lifting routine (and a hefty amount of adult beverages on the upcoming St Patty's Day :p ), followed by another 6 week RFL cycle to hopefully get and additional 10-15Lbs off. If I can get to 190Lbs I'll be ecstatic to start summer time.

    It's been really nice eating a regular diet and getting solid workouts in. St Paddy's was a successful day full of adult beverages and tasty treats without any guilt and my weight has stayed steady so far. Settled in at around 208Lbs so water weight checks out at about 5Lbs. Maintenance calories are around 2,500 with macro targets of 30%P/45%C/25%F; I'm lifting 4 days per week during the break. Gonna stick to the break the rest of this week and return to RFL next Monday.

    Seems a bit quiet in here given we're about 12 weeks from summer. Figured this thread would be busier :shrug:

    Back on RFL protocols today. Calorie goal is 1200/day, P195/C30/F33; supplements are EC stack 3x/day, 9 fish oils, daily vitamin, Potassium, magnesium, vitamin D, and biotin.

    The 2 week break was fantastic, but, I crept back up to nearly 210 so it's important that I jump back in full force and make sure I don't fall off the cliff. Certainly less motivation this time around but there's goals to be met so I'll have to be diligent.

    Once I get through these next six weeks, I plan to post some progress photos; not that it's terribly impressive but hoping there's a noticeable enough difference to show off a bit.
  • dozenmonkeyz
    dozenmonkeyz Posts: 150 Member
    psuLemon wrote: »
    Been trying to get back into this (stuck around 178 as well) but the family has been real sick lately and work has been a bit stressful which has made this difficult. Have a work trip next week, so hope to recommit again when I get back.

    Sometimes life tosses things at us that have to be priority. No doubt you'll get through it and find time to get things back how you'd like them. Hope everyone feels better soon.
  • dozenmonkeyz
    dozenmonkeyz Posts: 150 Member
    jseams1234 wrote: »
    ... decided not to cut. Too much going on right now and just not in the mood so I've been maintaining - I guess you could call it a recomp of sorts. I'm not logging currently except to keep a running tally in my head for my protein totals. I lost a bit initially and I've been hovering around 210 for the past month. It's been refreshing not logging anything and just eating what I want when I want. It's sort of experiment to see if I could maintain without having to log. Progress with lifts are slow, however, and that does annoy me. I *have* made progress but mostly just adding reps here and there except for rows and overhead press. Those made good jumps for some reason.

    That's where I really struggle - putting limits on myself without the accountability of logging or following a strict program. Especially once I add some drinks to the mix. Nice work!
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,373 MFP Moderator
    psuLemon wrote: »
    Been trying to get back into this (stuck around 178 as well) but the family has been real sick lately and work has been a bit stressful which has made this difficult. Have a work trip next week, so hope to recommit again when I get back.

    Sometimes life tosses things at us that have to be priority. No doubt you'll get through it and find time to get things back how you'd like them. Hope everyone feels better soon.

    Thanks.. i am focusing on good lifting sessions and trying to make overall good choices. I haven't gained, so that is a plus for me. Ideally, i can cut another 7-10 lbs by summer.