It seems no one is ever afraid to enter a cut, but there is usually hesitance when considering a bulk or maintenance phase. Why? Well, most people aren't afraid to lose weight, right? It's usually the increase in weight that makes us nervous. This can be due to perhaps not having enough knowledge on how to run a bulk or maintenance phase, not wanting to see some fat cover the hard earned muscle, wanting to feel ripped 24/7, etc.
In this blog post, we will discuss what each phase entails and learn how to determine which phase we should go into next.
WHAT IS A CUT, BULK, AND MAINTENANCE PHASE?
Maintenance Phase
This is a phase where we eat a certain amount of food that does not make us gain nor lose weight, hence the name "maintenance." We are maintaining our weight. This is where we should spend most of our time. Our bodies are getting adequate nutrition that will keep us feeling satisfied long term.
NOTE: It is possible for maintenance calories to change over time. Perhaps you maintained at 2000 calories a year ago but since you started working out more, 2300 has become your new maintenance number.
Cutting Phase
This is an on average 6-12 week phase where we lower our calories BELOW maintenance in order to lose weight. We put our bodies into a caloric deficit where we eat less than the amount we spend throughout the day. For example, my maintenance calories may be 2300 and my cutting calories may be 2100.
We really don't want to spend more than 12 weeks cutting since we are depriving our bodies of food and nutrients that can have negative effects long term. In addition, after a certain amount of time the body might enter "metabolic adaptation" which means it has adapted to this new set of calories. In order to continue losing weight, we would have to lower our calories even more which is not something we want to do.
Bulking Phase
This is an on average 6-12 week phase where we increase our calories ABOVE maintenance in order to gain weight. We are now in a caloric surplus where we eat more than the amount we spend throughout the day. For example, my maintenance calories may be 2300 and my bulking calories may be 2500.
This is a great phase for building muscle, putting on weight, giving our body some extra food it may need, increasing performance in the gym, etc.
You may have heard of a "dirty bulk" and a "clean bulk." We always want to strive for a clean bulk. This just means we continue to eat high quality foods in order to minimize the amount of fat we gain during the bulk (because it is inevitable to put on some fat while in this phase). A dirty bulk is the opposite where we adhere to our bulk calories/macros but fill it with low quality foods most of the time.
WHICH PHASE IS RIGHT FOR ME?
Let's start here. Before anything, you should hands down know your current maintenance calories before entering a cutting or bulking phase.
We have to know the amount of calories our bodies will neither lose nor gain weight at in order to calculate the other two. It makes sense no? But here's the tough part. Many people want to jump right into a cut phase because they want to start losing weight immediately and/or are afraid to gain any weight while figuring out their maintenance calories. Can you technically do this? Yes. Would I recommend it? No.
Let's go through a checklist for each phase to help determine which one you should enter next.
SHOULD I CUT?
Ask yourself these questions below in order to determine if you're ready for a cutting phase:
Dieting History: Have I been eating to maintenance or in a caloric surplus for several months?
Stress Levels: Do I have low stress, and do I know how to effectively deal with my stress?
Physical Health: Do I have no major injuries and illnesses? Am I recovering well from workouts?
Relationship With Food: Do I view food as fuel and something to be enjoyed, especially in social situations?
Personal Stability: Do I have steady income, minimal travel, healthy relationships? Is there minimal change currently going on in my life?
Goals: Do I want to lean out?
Because a cutting phase puts stress on the body and mind, you want to make sure everything else is in place in order to minimize any additional stressors.
If you answered yes to the questions above, a cut could be the right move for you!
SHOULD I BULK?
Ask yourself these questions below in order to determine if you're ready for a bulking phase:
Dieting History: Have I been eating to maintenance for several months?
Stress Levels: Do I have low stress, and do I know how to effectively deal with my stress?
Physical Health: Do I have no major injuries and illnesses? Am I recovering well from workouts?
Relationship With Food: Do I view food as fuel and something to be enjoyed, especially in social situations?
Goals: Do I want to put on muscle? Do I want to put on mass (weight)? Do I want to improve my performance in the gym?
Bulking is usually more mentally taxing than physically since it can be hard seeing our bodies put on extra weight. We want to make sure our relationship with food and stressors are in check before entering this phase as well.
If you answered yes to the questions above, a bulk could be the right move for you!
SHOULD I MAINTAIN?
Ask yourself these questions below in order to determine if you should enter a maintenance phase:
Dieting History: Have I been in a cutting or bulking phase for the past few months? Am I unaware of what my current maintenance calories are?
Stress Levels: Do I have moderate to high stress?
Physical Health: Am I dealing with an injury or illness? Am I not recovering well from workouts anymore?
Relationship With Food: Do I have an unhealthy relationship with food? Do I feel anxious anytime I am out in social situations where food is involved?
Goals: Do I want to properly nourish my body? Do I want to figure out my maintenance calories? Do I want to see improved performance in the gym?
Everything can also be going right for you and you may just want to hang out in maintenance for some time and feel good! Like I mentioned before, this is where we should be spending the majority of our time/the year (6+ total months/year).
If you answered yes to the questions above, maintaining could be the right move for you!
IN SUMMARY
All three phases come with both physical and internal benefits. There is a fourth "phase" called a Reverse Diet but we'll save that for another blog post.
Putting our bodies through any type of change can be scary, especially when it comes to nutrition and body composition. The best way to minimize that fear is to work with a nutrition coach (Hi, I'm Coach Dani!). Work with someone who knows what they're doing and will properly guide you both physically and mentally to help you achieve the results you want while keeping stress and anxiety low.
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