Success in bodybuilding is about more than just growing impressive muscles. You also need to show them off. That’s where cutting comes in. You lean up, highlighting the muscle tone that you have gained.

There are many parts to a successful cutting process. You might want to change the type of exercises you do, emphasizing strength and cardio training more. The most crucial aspect, though, is watching what you eat. Here’s everything you need to know to craft the ultimate cutting diet.

What’s So Special About A Cutting Diet?

A cutting diet has two simple goals. Cut the number of calories you are taking in. Burning more calories than you are putting in causes weight loss. But you also need to retain enough nutrients to help you maintain your muscle mass.  In the end, you should be left with a slim, toned figure. As long as you have the discipline needed to stick to the diet.

This is intended to be a short-term diet. Often, you’ll eat this way for a few weeks. Just long enough to get into shape before a competition or holiday. Expect your first few cutting cycles to last for around four weeks. This should allow you to lose 20 pounds. Once you are more experienced, you might only need to spend three months on your cutting cycle. Then, you can jump back into a bulking phase, putting on more muscle mass.

Choosing The Right Food for Your Cutting Diet

Getting the right mix of foods is essential for your cutting diet. It’s a fine line to walk. You will still be hitting the gym, so you need to have the nutrients needed to maintain your muscles. But you don’t want too many calories, stopping you from losing weight. Here are some tips to help you walk this fine line.

The Basics

If you already have a bulking diet, you don’t need to radically change the foods you are eating. But you might need to change the proportions you are eating them in. You’ll still need plenty of protein and complex carbs, for muscle-building. Nutrients like Omega-3 and amino acids will be vital energy stores. Let’s get more specific on how you can implement this diet.

Foods To Include

Good news. You don’t need to go hungry when cutting. It’s not about starving yourself. Rather, making sure that you are eating the right types of food. Look for high-protein, low-calorie foods. Here are some examples of the types of foods you should be eating:

• Chicken
• Salmon
• Lean beef
• Eggs
• Low-fat dairy products, particularly yogurt
• Bread and cereals
• Wholegrain pasta
• Quinoa
• Fruits and vegetables
• Beans and legumes, though you need to check the calorie count.

With the right recipes, you should be able to turn this list of ingredients into a delightful series of meals. Search online and you’ll find plenty of inspiration.

Of course, it isn’t just about the type of food you eat. Water should be your drink of choice. You might also want some low-calorie protein shakes to help you boost your workout performance. Sugar-free coffee might also be worth considering. The caffeine boost can give you the energy you need to push yourself hard during your training session. More importantly, though, a dose of coffee can boost your metabolism, allowing you to burn more fat.

Foods To Avoid

There are definitely some food categories that you should avoid during your cutting diet. Here are some of the worst offenders to eliminate from your menu:

• Processed foods, especially fatty fast foods.
• Sugary food and drinks
• Alcoholic drinks
• Excess amounts of cooking oil

These foods are high in calories, so you’ll be packing on the fat. They are also low in nutrients. As a result, you won’t feel fulfilled at the end of your meal. Forcing you to spend more time snacking to feel full.

What Types of Diet Are Best For Cutting

Now that we know the types of foods you should be eating, it’s time to consider how you put it all together. In this area, there are a few options that you can explore:

Keto

The Keto diet is one of the most popular options for cutting. It’s high in protein-rich meats and low in processed fatty foods. The aim is to help your body enter a state of ketosis. Ketosis is when you start burning fats, rather than carbs. The highlight? You lose weight fast. There’s just one minor problem. It can be a bit complicated to get to grips with. This guide will walk you through the basic dos and don’ts. Don’t worry, after a few weeks, you’ll get the hang of the Keto diet.

Mediterranean

This diet puts the focus squarely on plant-based meals. Expect to see plenty of salads. Though you can still turn to lean meats for your protein intake. This diet also requires a change of mental attitude. It encourages people to slow down. Enjoy the food they are eating. This, combined with high-fiber foods, will reduce your desire to snack.

Intermittent Fasting

This is slightly riskier than the others. But it shouldn’t be dangerous if applied right. We’re not advocating that you starve yourself. Rather limiting the hours that you consume food. The most popular approach to this is the 18/6 fast. It means that you’ll be allowed food for a six-hour window each day. For the other 18 hours, you’ll be fasting. Though some drinks, like water and sugar-less coffee, are allowed. The goal is to eliminate mindless snacking, getting you to become more intentional about your food choices.

Which Diet Should You Choose?

There is no ‘right’ type of diet to choose. You can stick to one, or mix and match your favorite elements. Create something that works for you. Each of these diets has plenty of resources and recipes available online. For example, you might decide that you might want to use intermittent fasting while enjoying Keto food.

It might help to consult with a nutritionist. They’ll help you find the right number of calories to take in per day. Plus, they’ll help you plan your meals. After all, a cutting diet shouldn’t mean that you need to spend months eating bland food.

How Much to Eat When Cutting

Getting the right number of calories is key when dieting. Too many and you won’t lose weight. Even if you are eating the right mix of food. Too few calories and you’ll be starving yourself, losing muscle mass.

Determine The Number Of Calories You Need

We first need to find the number of calories your body needs, known as your Total Daily Expenditure. This figure will be unique to you. Variables like your age, weight, height, and the amount of physical fitness you do all affect this number. Your required caloric intake changes over time. Before the beginning of each cutting cycle, spend a few minutes to come up with the new number.

Put the calculator away. There isn’t any need to do complex equations. Just search for “total daily energy expenditure”. You’ll be greeted with a bunch of free calculations. Pick one from a trusted site and plug in your numbers. The computer will crunch the numbers for you and spit out your recommended caloric intake.

If you want to lose weight, you’ll need to consume 500 calories less than the Total Daily Expenditure recommended. This forces your body to burn your fat stores to get through the day.

Count The Calories

Caloric intake should be listed on the back of the packet. If using fresh fruit and meat, you might need to do some calculations to find the number of calories used. Again, there are handy free apps that help you do this. They’ll even keep count of the number of calories you consumed each day for you.

How To Do The Cutting Phase Safely

Getting the right diet is key to a successful cutting phase. But it isn’t the only thing you need to consider. Here are some other tips to help you cut weight effectively while staying safe.

Get Plenty Of Exercise

Getting the right number of calories is only part of the problem. You also need to stay fit. By doing this, you’ll be able to make sure that you are burning off the weight. In particular, you want to increase the amount of cardio you are doing. These exercises will burn calories.

You don’t need to leave your workout at the gym. Park your car a short distance away and walk to work. Or you can take the stairs instead of the elevator. These simple activities increase your caloric deficit, helping you burn fat faster.

It’s best to start the cardio slowly. For example, you might want to do two 25-minute sessions a week. At first, your diet will contribute to the weight loss. When that starts to become less effective, you can add a third weekly cardio session to further boost your weight loss.

Though this doesn’t mean that you should neglect strength training. The more lean muscle you have, the higher your metabolism rate will be. Allowing you to burn fat faster.

Tips On Sticking To Your Diet

Constructing the right diet is only part of the equation. Sticking to your meal plan can often prove to be a challenge. Here are some tips to help you stay on track:

• Drink plenty of water. It’s always important to stay hydrated. But it’s even more critical when you are dieting. The water helps you feel full. Limiting the chances that you will be tempted with an unplanned snack. Plus, water doesn’t contain any calories.
• Prepare your own food. By making your own food you’ll know exactly what is going into your meals.
• Get the right amount of sleep. Lack of sleep can lead to irrational decision-making. This can be the reason why you slip and break your diet. Also, you are still burning calories when you are sleeping.
• Focus on your expected results. There’s no point denying it. You will likely feel hungry during the cutting process. When going through these uncomfortable periods, it can help to focus on the reason why you are cutting in the first place. This will give you the motivation to keep going.

While you should try to stick to your meal plan you won’t always be successful. Sometimes, the odd snack or cheat meal will slip through the cracks. That’s fine. A few slip-ups are normal. Catastrophizing the situation can often cause you to start a downward spiral, leaving you more likely to cheat again.

Plan Your Bulking And Cutting Cycles

Bulking and cutting cycles are intertwined. It’s common to pack on a lot of mass during the bulking cycle. Adding those excess calories can help you gain muscle. But go too far and you’ll cause problems in your cutting cycle. What should take four months can take six, as you need to lose all those additional calories.

This is particularly common for beginner bodybuilders. As you grow more experienced, you’ll soon learn the right amount of weight to put on when bulking. Making it easier to lose when cutting. Get good at this, and you can spend more time in the gym building muscle.

Using Supplements When Cutting

The right mix of supplements will allow you to supercharge your cutting cycle. At Crazy Mass, we have a stack of cutting supplements to explore, offering plenty of benefits. Boosting your metabolism will help you burn through fat faster while preserving your lean muscle. Helping you improve your muscle hardness, for more impressive showings. Shifting that persistent water weight.

Even better, you don’t need to risk your health to get these benefits. Everything is created in our FDA-certified lab. We’ve tested extensively to ensure that our supplements are safe. Even better, they feature natural ingredients, so you won’t get into trouble at bodybuilding events.

Final Thoughts

Whether you want to be a bodybuilder or are looking for the ultimate sexy beach bod, you have to be able to cut weight. This sounds like an intimidating skill, but it isn’t that hard. You just need to craft the right diet. With the right meal plan, everything else will slot into place. By following this advice, you’ll be showing off your muscular gains in no time.