bulking/cutting .. ?

I

imported_haydz

Guest
im not sure if im the only newbie that doesnt know this, but can someone give a basic outline on what exactely bulking phase is? and cutting phase?

for example, when bulking, are you putting on fat or muscle? or both? and with cutting what exactely is done?

I dunno if its just me or what but ive been looking all over the net about bodybuilding for a number of months now and still havent come accross anything to do with the very basics and outlines.

or can anyone point me to a resource so i can read about it?
 
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(haydz @ Aug. 02 2006,00:25)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">for example, when bulking, are you putting on fat or muscle? or both?</div>I know you're a newbie, but why would anyone want to gain JUST fat?  That doesn't even make sense.

<div></div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">I dunno if its just me or what but ive been looking all over the net about bodybuilding for a number of months now and still havent come accross anything to do with the very basics and outlines.</div>Be more specific - where have you been?  If you Google for &quot;fitness forums&quot; or &quot;bodybuilding forums&quot; you're sure to find dozens of sites, most of which should have info on bulking and cutting.
 
Hi Haydz,

Reading the articles on this site should give you a good grounding in the basics and you can search for pretty much anything on the forum.

Bulking and cutting it basically a process by which lean muscle can be added. Most people want to gain muscle and lose fat...or at least not gain more fat with the muscle. However, it's generally agreed that you cannot build muscle and lose fat at the same time (although if you're only just starting training you might be able to you luky g*t!). Basically your body is more interested in keeping fat than muscle (increased muscle mass is not necessary for survival) and is working against you!

Therefore most people look to bulk - which means put on weight. This weight will consist of muscle and fat, obviously for each pound you gain you want as much of it as possible to be muscle.

After bulking you then look to cut, which is where you look to lose weight. Here you are looking to lose as much fat as possible whilst holding onto as much muscle as possible.

The net effect of bulking and cutting should be an increase in lean body mass.

For example if I weight 200lbs and 20lbs is fat I might then bulk to 220lbs. Lets assume 10lbs of this weight gain was fat and 10lbs was muscle.

I might then look to get rid of that fat I've gained. Lets say I lose the 10lbs of fat and this costs me 5lbs of muscle.

I know weigh 205lbs with the same amount of fat as before so my lean body mass has increased by 5lbs.

Make sense?

Most people agree this a better way to gain muscle then trying to gain muscle without gaining fat...this tends to lead to gaining little if anything.



Make sense?
 
So, simply put:

Bulking: adding mass - preferably as much lean muscle mass as possible along with some unavoidable fat gain.

Cutting: removing excess fat through dieting and exercise whilst attempting to retain as much muscle tissue as possible.

In order to reduce the amount of fat gained during a bulking phase some folks do what they call a 'long slow bulk'. This requires a lot more attention to diet and calorie counting but will keep you in better shape most of the time.

Of couse, both cutting and bulking require a good diet plan for best results.

Read some of relevant articles under the link on the tab at the top of this page and also the FAQs on the forum.

Useful HST Articles
 
hey thanks, thats sorted out everything i needed to know, good to see so many helpful people on this forum! thanks
 
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