Nutrition: Cutting Results

This is an update post w/ results of a four week "cutting" (weight loss) cycle in which I dropped down to my summer maintenance weight and also helped me test out a supplement called "Animal Cuts". I've used that product the past two summers to help add some extra definition right before a vacation. The above picture of that nerdy black dude (me) is a before and after. The left side "before" pic shows when I weighed-in between 196-198lbs during the week of May 21-25. That pic was taken May 23rd. I had more mass from "bulking" (gaining weight) through the winter/spring but looked "softer" overall, especially around my midsection. During the winter I upped my calorie intake and cut out cardio completely. I'm a hard-gainer so running 5k's three times a week made it too hard to stay in a calorie excess. I also hate doing cardio so that dropping that was easy. During this period I did gain mass and strength but it came along with extra fat. I think if I try to bulk again this winter, I will actually track my calories and try to not to bulk "blind" by just eating based on how I felt. The right side "after" pic displays me currently and I weighed-in between 190-191lbs during June 18-20. The pic was taken June 20th. I feel I was able to shred my midsection and still maintain some of my mass up top. There is no way to target a specific area (i.e. abs) and just lose weight there unfortunately. You have to try to drop your overall body fat pecentage and if the muscle is present underneath, it will shine through. So my cutting strategy is to still lift heavy and try to maintain muscle mass but intake less calories and incorporate cardio to drop weight.

NUTRITION CHANGES

Basic biology dictates that if you eat less and move more you will lose weight. I outline in a previous post how to calculate a rough estimate of your maintenance calories (Macros Post). I used that method to estimate my "cutting" (weight loss) calories at 195lbs was about 2975 on training days and 2700 on rest days. This is down 500 cals from my maintenance calorie calculation. It was hard at first since I had become accustomed to my "bulking" (weight gain) diet of never being hungry and eating anything that wasn't nailed down. My stomach was used to having any urge satisfied immediately. I would still eat clean but I ate all the time with my calorie and carb intake insanely high. The key for me to control my nutrition was to track it (also detailed in the previous macro post). It was really surprising to see how easily you can exceed 1k cals with only a few food items. I had to space my meals back out and have short times where I was slightly hungry. As you drop weight however, those urges tend to go away since you don't need as many calories at a lower weight. In my case, using the formula from the macro post, my maintenance calories are roughly 2964 at 190lbs. This is lower than my "cutting" calories at 195lbs (2975). So as I dropped weight, I was slowly sliding into the calorie range I needed to maintain a lower weight and my hunger adjusted with it. I would have never been able to gauge whether or not my hunger was legitimate if I wasn't tracking my calories. The last remaining challenge was to manage the timing of my meals and still hit my macros. I needed to start spacing out my meals again instead of just eating all the time. I also had to make sure I was still maintaining a good amount of protein with the lower calorie count. I needed to start eating high protein meals for breakfast and dinner since I was reaching my calorie cap much sooner than I was used to.

WORKOUT CHANGES

The primary change to my routine is that I incorporated cardio back into my routine. Cardio makes it easier to create a calorie deficit, which helps drop weight. I do cardio three times a week now. Another difference was to change one of my workouts to a high-intensity, high-rep workout. A group of my friends started doing circuit work at a park in town on Sundays, so I join in every week. My rest day is Saturday and I hit the gym Mon-Fri. The circuit work is a lot of body weight and high-rep work. It also is outside and helps generate a lot of sweat! It includes some sprints and agility work that helps me meet my weekly cardio requirement ( Example Workout Here). As far as gym work goes, I kept my routine pretty much the same as far as reps and muscle groups.

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ANIMAL CUT: Shred Supplement

This supplement is used to help create more definition in your physique. It combines a mixture of several different elements that promote fat loss. A serving is a packet of about eight pills. I placed some brief bullet points on the components of the supplement below. Some people optionally remove either the thermogenic (red pill) or the diuretic (blue pills) if it causes weird reactions for you. The instructions state to take two packs a day for three weeks in a row but I only took it Mon-Fri and skipped the weekend. Since I skip the weekends I wound up with enough servings for an entire month and change. The caffeine in the supplement (red pill) is extreme but my body got used to it after a few days. Due to the diuretic (blue pill), you want to make sure that you ingest a higher than normal amount of water a day. As with any supplement, this will not single-handedly bring you to your goal on its own. If I continued to eat and workout as I did while bulking, I wouldn't see any results from this. Since I already had a plan to cut calories and adjust my workout, the pills helped "supplement" my work toward weight loss. I do admit the appetite suppresors helped control urges when I first started cutting. Once I got closer to my goal weight, it wasn't needed however. Overall I like the supplement but wouldn't recommend it for sustained use. Even the manufacturer states that you should take a week off between cycles. I think it is best as either a jump-start or finishing touch to a cutting cycle. If your body fat percentage is already pretty low you will see results. More detail and purchase info here: Animal Cuts on Bodybuilding.com

Components

1 - Thermogenic *** Red capsule The ingredients in this complex help boost the bodys natural ability to burn stored body fat.

2 - Metabolic Helps raise your body's core metabolism which increases the rate at which your body converts food into energy. A quicker metabolism will ensure that less food is being stored as body fat.

3 - Thyroid Helps support healthy thyroid gland function and avoid a catabolic state

4 - Diuretic *** Two blue capsules Sheds excess water weight by promoting an increase in the excretion of sodium & water from the body. It also helps lower the blood pressure.

5 - Nootropic Provides increased oxygen supply to the brain to promote better focus and increased alertness.

6 - Cortisol Inhibiting Helps regulate the hormone cortisol (aka the "stress" hormone). This hormone is said to break down muscle mass and help cause weight gain if present in execessive levels. Inhibitors should decrease stress levels and help maintain muscle mass.

7 - CCK Inhibiting Appetite suppressors, such as hoodia, joboba seed and cha-de-bugre, which help curb sugar and carb cravings.

8 - Proprietary Bioavailability This is Universals proprietary blend of random stuff.

Submitted by Bars