How long does everyone stay on a calorie deficit

@horation I lift heavy, probably like 85%. 5-8 reps. 5 sets total with a few warm up sets.

Clean diet but I think it’s maybe not enough calories, because I’m trying to lose fat so I eat in a deficit which is about 2K cals for me. Tdee calculator pegs me at 2.6K maintenance based on 3x weekly exercise.
I lift about 4 times a week.
5’6” M 180 lbs. 36 yrs. 24% body fat
Not a novice either, former lifter who is returning after long layoffs
 
@mistdodger Gotta say I don't think I can help you here.

You can try to do a deload every couple of weeks and especially before your cut, so fatigue doesn't accumulate too much. (Obviously at maintenance calories)

Otherwise I can say from personal experience and of what Dr. Mike has said once, that you get better at higher rep stuff during a cut.
I usually still get stronger on my 12-25 rep exercises and the heavy 6-8 stagnate or decrease.
 
@horation Thanks bro. I think from what I’m experiencing is that I’m under recovering based on calorie intake. So increase my cals, or reduce my training volume.
 
@taylor55 Not at all maybe at the end of the cut yes usually but not at the start you have the most Extra energy in your system and stored on your body as fat your hormones are at their peak
But I usually stop when I have 2-3 bad nights of sleep in a row but really until then I'm game
For gym performance I usually have most of my daily carbs right before gym (around an hour or 2 before)
And I up my protein intake on my cuts so on a bulk is eat maybe 140-150 protein daily on cuts I aim for 170-190 over is fine
I volume eat so low in calories but big meals and I space them out so I don't go too long without protein
I do this to slow down protein breakdown synthesis
And I haven't lost any strength on any of my cuts I've usually gotten stronger still progress is way slower than on bulks but shit If I get a rep more I'll take it
 
@taylor55 Side note I do not really recommend that aggressive of a cut if you aren't willing to be very specific about your diet and nutritional intake
And it will affect people differently
I know my body quite well and listen to it
Better than some people so body far the best way to go about is 500 calorie deficit or lower even would be better and less taxing for your body
And because this is so taxing on the body i only do 6 weeks Max but that's still 6 kgs I'm able to lose in that period after that I usually cruise around maintenance or maybe 100+ cal for around 2 weeks give my body some rest "hey body we ain't Gon starve to death chill" period and then on a more manageable cut at around 300-500 below to get the last bit away usually take around 2-4 weeks depending on how bad I fucked up my bulk
 
@zaphod1983 lol I don’t know why somebody downvoted my question. I’m a female who has a hormonal imbalance from PCOS so doing a massive cut like that I would probably end up on the news 😂 thanks for the breakdown with the 500 calorie example - I’m going to try that next time.
 
@taylor55 People be Downing anything tbh
But yes if it sounds good for you try it out
Try as many things you can ( that makes sense ) and find out what works best for you
Someone can say "yabadabadoo this is the best way to do x.thing" doesnt matter so what you enjoy most
Or else it will only be less enjoyable and there for harder to hold/do
I wish you the best of luck 🤓🙏
 
@awoods88 Until it becomes unmanageable mentally & restricts my life - I’m not and never will be a professional, so once I’m getting into 1500 and below a day, I have to back off personally
 
@dontreallyknow This is me aswell asking as it’s not all consuming I’m good to chug along, sub 1600 calorie I can probably hold for 4 week max before I run out of energy to parent and work effectively
 
@awoods88 I'm trying to get sub 15% for the first time atm. Aiming for about 12%. Goal is to have a better start off point for future bulks and to stay leaner in general, since I had to get up to like 25% bf during bulks in the past.

Did March+April at -750 kcal before having 3 weeks off due to an exam. Now I' back and aiming to keep going until mid to late July or until I hit about 12% bf.
 
@awoods88 My goal is to have a vissible sixpack which is around 12% bodyfat. I am at 15% right now, so I will continue until 12%. I am on a 500 cals deficit for 3 months now and it will probarly take me another 5 months or so.
 
@yana2 Yeah it’s a slow burn no pun intended but you will eventually notice change without even mentally noticing you’re cutting. Best of luck. I remember last year my absolute shredded look came in September right after the summer ended 😂 the difference between July and September I remember was a hugeee difference looking at photos. I looked fat in July compared to September.
 
@awoods88 I’ve been on a cut of -500 calories for 6 months now and haven’t lost any strength, have actually been still progressively overloading (albeit a bit slower). Trimmed 22 lbs so far. Feel good still, no lethargy, etc.

This is all after 8 years of lifting and just either bulking or maintaining.
 
@awoods88 On month 5.5 of the cut. 223–>188. Down 35 lbs, have still managed to progressive overload on -800 cal. Given I am relatively new to the gym, but I’ve noticed a good deal of hypertrophy. Make sure to get 8 hrs of sleep and shoot 200 g protein per day, but bare minimum 160 g. Refeed once a month of so for 3 days at 500 above maintenance. Going to keep going until 10% bf then lean bulk for eternity.
 
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