Maintaining vs cut/bulk

allother94
allother94 Posts: 588 Member
in Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
I just read bigger, leaner, stronger by mike Mathews. He said that you can gain about 2lbs of muscle per week on a bulk and 0.5lbs per week on a maintenance diet. If you need to cut after a bulk, would a bulk/cut cycle produce 1lb per week? If so, I'm thinking the extra 0.5lbs per week may not be worth the extra effort for me.

Do I understand what he is saying and is he right?

Thanks!

Replies

  • watts6151
    watts6151 Posts: 905 Member
    I think you mean month not week,
    As a complete new lifer 2 lb of muscle may be possible for the first 6 -12 months maximum.
    Yes would most likely gain some fat, that all depends on genetics and how well your diet and training are structured.

    At maintenance as a new lifter and potentially some extra body fat, then 0.5lb should be realistic but that’s only 6 lb for a year of lifting.

    It all comes down to your starting point and if you have any previous training history and what your end goal is
  • allother94
    allother94 Posts: 588 Member
    edited January 2022
    watts6151 wrote: »
    I think you mean month not week,
    As a complete new lifer 2 lb of muscle may be possible for the first 6 -12 months maximum.
    Yes would most likely gain some fat, that all depends on genetics and how well your diet and training are structured.

    At maintenance as a new lifter and potentially some extra body fat, then 0.5lb should be realistic but that’s only 6 lb for a year of lifting.

    It all comes down to your starting point and if you have any previous training history and what your end goal is

    Yes only 6lbs, but if you bulk, you need to cut. So the 2lbs per month will average to 1lb per month after the cut.

    He may have been talking about beginner lifters, what do you think a per month muscle gain would be for an intermediate lifter during a bulk vs. maintenance?
  • watts6151
    watts6151 Posts: 905 Member
    edited January 2022
    allother94 wrote: »
    watts6151 wrote: »
    I think you mean month not week,
    As a complete new lifer 2 lb of muscle may be possible for the first 6 -12 months maximum.
    Yes would most likely gain some fat, that all depends on genetics and how well your diet and training are structured.

    At maintenance as a new lifter and potentially some extra body fat, then 0.5lb should be realistic but that’s only 6 lb for a year of lifting.

    It all comes down to your starting point and if you have any previous training history and what your end goal is

    Yes only 6lbs, but if you bulk, you need to cut. So the 2lbs per month will average to 1lb per month after the cut.

    He may have been talking about beginner lifters, what do you think a per month muscle gain would be for an intermediate lifter during a bulk vs. maintenance?

    2lb of muscle per month would be 3-4lb of weight gain so a potential 12 lb in the first 6 months.
    Muscle gain is hard and slow, a mini cut is relatively quick and painless.

    Depends on your intermediate, are we talking 2 years training or 7+ years of training and also bf levels. In general I’d aim for 1.5-2lb of weight gain per month, diet, recovery and training becomes more important. How many people do you know lift for a year then quit because they think they aren’t making any gains anymore.

  • allother94
    allother94 Posts: 588 Member
    edited January 2022
    watts6151 wrote: »
    allother94 wrote: »
    watts6151 wrote: »
    I think you mean month not week,
    As a complete new lifer 2 lb of muscle may be possible for the first 6 -12 months maximum.
    Yes would most likely gain some fat, that all depends on genetics and how well your diet and training are structured.

    At maintenance as a new lifter and potentially some extra body fat, then 0.5lb should be realistic but that’s only 6 lb for a year of lifting.

    It all comes down to your starting point and if you have any previous training history and what your end goal is

    Yes only 6lbs, but if you bulk, you need to cut. So the 2lbs per month will average to 1lb per month after the cut.

    He may have been talking about beginner lifters, what do you think a per month muscle gain would be for an intermediate lifter during a bulk vs. maintenance?

    2lb of muscle per month would be 3-4lb of weight gain so a potential 12 lb in the first 6 months.
    Muscle gain is hard and slow, a mini cut is relatively quick and painless.

    Depends on your intermediate, are we talking 2 years training or 7+ years of training and also bf levels. In general I’d aim for 1.5-2lb of weight gain per month, diet, recovery and training becomes more important. How many people do you know lift for a year then quit because they think they aren’t making any gains anymore.

    What if I did a mini bulk and mini cut every 2 months? What about every 3 months? Do I need to do a longer bulk cut? What is the minimum about of time and weight gain I need to get the bulk benefits?

    I’m 45 and have been lifting 3 years. 6’3 200 at 15% body fat currently.
  • watts6151
    watts6151 Posts: 905 Member
    Personally I don’t like small bulks and cuts, but that’s just me.

    I’d probably cut down to 10-12% and go on a long slow bulk maybe 6-12 months with maybe 1 small mini cut if body fat does get out of hand.

    It all comes down your own personal preference.
    I prefer slow and steady, I’ll go from 10% bf up to maybe 16-17% over 6 about months, it takes time to build actual muscle

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