This causes them to lose motivation and fall off track as a result, ultimately getting stuck in the all-too-common “yo’yo’ing” approach between back and forth bulking and cutting, never making any real progress in either direction. What often happens is that a trainee will start bulking from, say, 17% body fat, and very quickly they’ll begin feeling bloated and unhappy with how they look as they see those additional fat gains accumulating. You’re never going to lose fat in a calorie surplus it’s a one-way street, and whatever fat you gain during that bulking phase is going to be stuck with you until you consciously decide to change up your plan and move into a calorie deficit. It’s because any time you eat in a calorie surplus in order to maximize hypertrophy, you’ll always gain a certain amount of body fat along the way.
Why is it so important to achieve a sufficient level of leanness first before adjusting your plan and putting the focus on muscle growth? Why Bulking From A High Body Fat Percentage Is Usually A Bad Idea The specific time frame required for this is highly individual, as it depends on several different factors including how high your starting body fat percentage is, how aggressively your cutting program is structured (whether it’s a larger calorie deficit over a shorter period of time or a smaller calorie deficit over a longer period of time), as well as how closely you adhere to your plan from week to week.Ī standard rate of fat loss would land somewhere between 1-2 pounds per week, so if you factor this in with your current body weight/body fat percentage you can get a rough idea of how long this might take to achieve. If you’re a female, then about 18-20% body fat will be the appropriate level.
If you prefer to get a bit leaner at around the 10-11% mark that would be fine, and bulking from a slightly higher percentage of about 13-14% will usually be okay as long as you structure things properly.Īll in all though, somewhere around that 12% mark will be the right level for most trainees, which would be the point where your abs are pretty clearly visible under good lighting. Your cutting phase should last for whatever length of time is required in order to lean down to approximately 12% body fat. So, how long should your cutting phase last? The question of proper cutting phase length is actually pretty straightforward, and here’s the answer… Proper Cutting Cycle Length: The Simple Answer In order to produce the proper balance between the two, achieving a sufficient level of overall leanness before committing to a focused bulking phase is a must.Īttempting to make significant muscle gains from too high a body fat percentage will usually set you up for failure in the long run, and this is a very common error that many beginning lifters make.īut exactly how long should you cut before bulking, and just how lean do you need to be before switching gears into “muscle building mode”?
You need a combination of both: a solid level of muscular development along with a relatively lean body fat percentage to match. If your ultimate goal is to achieve an impressive, well-rounded and “aesthetic” looking physique, simply being “big” or “cut” isn’t enough.
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