Bulking versus cutting
Fitness has evolved so much over the past two years and thanks to the internet, we have so much more access to knowledge than ever before. Going from short informative tiktoks to an interesting Instagram post, to a full blog post.
Some of us want to gain muscle mass, while others want to lose weight. That’s how the fitness journey begins. There are three main phases in this journey you can go through: the bulking, cutting and maintenance phase. Today we will clarify the two opposite terms bulking and cutting.
Bulking
When you start bulking, you gradually increase the daily intake of calories, while lifting in the gym. For a period of approximately 4-6 months, you’re going to deliberately consume more calories than your body actually needs. Staying consistent during this period will lead to muscle growth and increased strength, which eventually leads to breaking your personal records.
During the bulking phase, experts recommend consuming 10-20% more than your daily maintenance calorie intake. Many people consider bulking unhealthy because it can lead to excess body fat, but that’s because your calorie surplus is basically too high. Some even tend to eat nutrient-poor foods just to hit the calorie surplus goal of that day but that can cause inflammation and promote insulin resistance. This can easily be avoided by consuming nutrient-dense foods.
Eating nutrient-dense foods isn’t that complicated. You can eat or even drink your fruits, vegetables while you consume your grains, seafood, meats, poultry, eggs and other foods. We just advise to limit the intake of alcohol, added sugars and fried foods.
Cutting
Cutting is a way to reduce body fat while maintaining muscle mass. Weightlifting is an important part of this phase as it promotes muscle growth. And it will reduce muscle loss when you cut calories.
By eating fewer calories than you burn, you will end up losing fat. The amount of calories you should eat per day depends on your weight, height, lifestyle, gender and level of exercise. Don’t incorporate a large calorie deficit because while it may help you lose weight faster, it also increases your risk of losing muscle.
Just like bulking, protein is a very important factor in maintaining muscle mass and all the hard work you’ve put into this journey is not wasted. During cutting, you need to eat more protein than during the bulking or maintenance phase. At this point, you’re consuming fewer calories but exercising regularly, so don’t neglect your protein intake. On top of that, you should also calculate your fat and carb needs based on your weight and lifestyle.
To optimize this cutting phase, we advise you to drink plenty of water. Eat fiber-rich foods, as they tend to contain more nutrients. In addition to weight training, start by doing cardio as this will ease this period when you are in a calorie deficit.
Conclusion
Bulking is a technique used by bodybuilders to increase muscle size and strength. This involves consuming 10-20% more than your daily caloric needs in addition to weight training. For mass gain to be healthy and effective, you need to make sure your calorie surplus isn’t too high and that you limit the intake of highly processed, nutrient-poor foods.
Unlike bulking, cutting is a technique for maximizing fat loss while maintaining muscle mass. This diet involves calculating your calorie, protein, fat and carb needs based on your weight and lifestyle. Don’t forget to incorporate weightlifting during this phase, it will prevent the loss of muscle mass.