Curious what everyone's approach is to cutting cycles
Couple of serious questions:
This is for someone bodybuilding for themselves, not competition. Just trying to maintain as much lean mass as possible and look good at the end of the cut, and get back into a lean growth phase asap. This assumes a cruise and blast mindset (and stay as healthy as possible doing so... doing it the right way)
Do you guys pull all the way back to a low test dosage and use the cut as a cruise? Example: 150-200mg test + HGH
Do you take dosages back to a more moderate amount from the bulk but still in the few hundred mg range? Example: 200mg test, 100mg mast, low dose tren + HGH
Do you keep dosages high from the bulk and just maybe change compounds a bit, and wait until the very end to cruise.
I've read competing analogies: Why lower chemicals when youre already lowering calories, energy, etc. VS You don't need much to sustain the majority of your gains, so lower doseages or even cruise through the cut.
After the cut, do you guys cruise at maintenance calories for a couple of months before the next bulk, or do you go straight into your bulk?
Can't really think of anything else. Any insight from more experienced guys would be much appreciated. Thank you.
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For lifestyle guys I think it’s more about what your acceptable exposure is and then backtracking how to lay it out from there. So if you’re going to run gear 6 months out of the year maybe do a 4 month bulk over winter, holding phase, 2 month cutter at the beginning of summer, holding phase.
I really like saving the gh for when off anabolics for non-competitors. Gives you something to look forward to in your off period and you can keep working toward your goal.
In the world of competition it’s basically blast as high as you can on bulking, blast almost as high on cutting, and run as much gh as you can for as long as you can with 1-2 months off a year where you drop down to 300-400mgs of total anabolics a week. This is going to come with worse health outcomes though.
Amen --
You bring up some sound principals here. I appreciate the reply.
Cruise after any real phase completion, get everything in order to begin the next phase.
You can "bulk" or "cut" on most compounds, lean phase most will stay away from the heavy water retention stuff. It's more of a food deal, macro surplus or deficit.
SeeohShow is diced so he is much better at staying/getting lean then I.
HGH is definitely a game changer for fat burning for me.
I agree Anvil. I'm letting the Calorie Deficit, GH, and dry compounds do most of the "heavy lifting". I love Deca on a bulk, but I hold a lot of water on it, and obviously that is counter productive to the current phase. I appreciate the reply.
I cut back to my TRT dose and cruise at that for a cut with HGH in there. Getting all my health metrics back in line while cutting body fat is a win/win. Plus the caloric deficit (mostly from cutting carbs) really helps with the insulin sensitivity. Fasting blood glucose even on 6IU/day of HGH never increased 1 point. Stayed in the 80s the whole cut.
Maybe I’ll try a cutting cycle one day, but only if I want to get stage level shredded for shits and giggles. My most recent pic is of me at 212lbs post cut using just 150mg test and 6IU/day HGH. Like you said, you can hold on to muscle easily even on low dose test. As long as you don’t crash diet, get sufficient protein in, and still train hard to keep the stimulus there for your body to not dump muscle.
I also wanted to ask you, how long was your current cut, and what was your starting weight before cutting? Thank you.
230lb. Lasted 12 weeks. Dropped 5-6lb instantly from the glycogen and water coming off. Felt like I peed an entire gallon lol. Then it was roughly 1lb/week. Any more than that and I can’t maintain my active lifestyle. The caloric deficit would be too extreme.
Hey man. I actually had you in mind when posting the question. I remembered you saying you lowered to TRT and GH, and your results speak for themselves. I'll be looking at around 208 at the end of this cut around the middle to end of July, hopefully in the 8 to 10% BF range. I'm having a similar experience with my blood glucose not going above 80 even on 3IU GH daily. I believe just cutting all those carbs and eating all whole foods has brought it down from my bulk, where it sat more in the low to mid 100s. Of course I was eating pretty dirty. I'm 8 weeks in, and finding it hard to keep the weight as heavy as it was during bulk, which is obviously something we all experience, along with general energy being lower. I've definitely lost some strength... How long will you keep your maintenance phase before going into your next growth phase?
Probably 6-8 more weeks. Will likely end up being 12ish weeks total of maintenance time. I get mentally exhausted force feeding myself. I need the break just to reset things and get myself prepared for the eating. The lifting/exercise is like my therapy, so I’m always ready for that.
If you've got time, take a peek at this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38sopdtwi7A - its the model I use to set up my cycles.
I like to grow the first half or 3/4 of a cycle and titrate doses to increase metabolism and growth - then once my metabolism is cranking, and I am getting sick of the food, start dropping the calories. Over a 20-24 week cycle I like to grow for the first bit then cut the last 4-8 weeks depending on the time of year. If you check my most recent cycle you can see an example of it for a 16ish week cycle. Once I am lean I will cruise for a bit then start next grow phase with a 4-6 week clean up.
I appreciate you taking the time to link the video. I took the time to watch it, and he is definitely a great resource I wasn't aware of. Your protocol is close to what I am currently doing. I'm towards the end of that "24 week total". I appreciate the additional frame of reference.
I’m trying a cut right now using Primo 300 mgs and test 250mg. I will throw in Anavar around week 8 which would be July 8th and run it for 7 weeks at 30 mgs. The total cycle will last about 20 weeks then will cruise at 125mgs slightly increasing calories in increments.
When I go onto my cut I will switch to faster esters and drop my testosterone down but I will also add mast p and tren ace . I run clenbuterol 2 weeks on 2 weeks off , I find running clean that way keeps giving you the thermogenesis effects that raises your metabolism I think after after 2 weeks your body compensates and nullifies the effects. I will also add winstrol for the last 5 weeks.
Then there’s diet , I will go into a slight calorie deficit and up my protein switching carbs out for protein.
Now I don’t compete so my aim is not to be stage ready but beach ready loose the food baby I carry while bulking and get my abbs back and some definition. I typically drop around 20-25lbs of water and fat … then it’s back to the bulk eat train shit sleep repeat
"Food baby" is an accurate description of where I was before starting this cut. Hilarious. You mention 25lbs on your cut. How long do you usually like to take to drop that weight? Are we talking 8 weeks or more like 12 perhaps?
I’ll drop it over 12-16 weeks depending how cycles going but I’ll put about 10lbs back in rapidly as soon as I stop dieting
What does the winstrol do for you? Drop water?
It’s also good for achy joints and injury lol
Lmao I’ll have to try it sometime then
Find the oil based Winny if you can. The water based is PIP torture in a vial for most. I have a few boxes of oil based amps.....
I have like 5 bottles of water based and it’s fucking hell. I’ll probably never use them. Unless I drink them
That's doable and effective too. Chase with some grapefruit juice, supposed to kick it up a notch.
I use it for the last 5 weeks just to finish that cut off. It drops the water off you and it helps you burn the remaining fat off your looking to drop a lot quicker and easier. Makes my wrists hurt but not unbearable
At 50 I didn’t notice joint pain but at 75 my elbows felt like sand. But I only tried a few times as like preworkout never really cycled it. Have you ever used a fat burner during a bulk to try and stay leaner, that actually worked without crushing appetite?
When I bulk I’m not arsed about fat tbh , I eat as much calorie dense food as I can and try to get as big as possible by any means possible , catch me around 5pm and I’m looking pregnant
Ya I usually never care, but now that I have like certain veins showing and little cuts in certain places and shit, now I don’t wanna lose em lol
You have to put the bulk in to grow massive bro
Such an underrated comment. Most people don’t want to dedicate or find it difficult to do a straight bulk for 3 or four years. It takes several years to establish a foundation to acquire true muscle mass and this should be done before anyone even thinks about a cut.
I agree with the long growth phase if not totally obese. The only reason I'm cutting now, is because I took years off regrettably. I hopped back on a while ago, into a growth phase, but had fat that I carried with me into the bulk. I got big and strong fairly quickly due to muscle memory and all, but I want to get lean so I can then grow (the right way) for a long time before worrying about another cut.
Sounds like a plan. Just be sure to stay healthy during that time. I went too heavy for too long and fucked my self up so now, I’m back to looking like an average Joe.
Ya id much rather have the size than the leaness, that’s why i wanted a fat burner lol cus I’m definitely not gunna sacrifice the food for it