As summer is quickly approaching people are desperately trying to perfect their “Beach Bodies” so they can confidently show off their physiques. As we all know cutting is not an easy thing and requires a lot of mental power and patience, but just what else does it require?
In this article I am going to go in depth on some key features that everyone should consider by trying to cut weight and maintain muscle mass, while getting ready for those months of showing off your body. People that think they are going to get toned in only a month of exercising with a high rep program are misguided. What about starving yourself for a few weeks? Not going to work either. The saying “Rome was not built in a day” will be important to remember in this article, because losing weight should not be a drastic process, unless you want to suffer some serious side effects . Let us get into the context of the article and discuss some tips to have you looking your best in the summer months.
Set Realistic Goals
The key to cutting is giving yourself adequate time. Most often the number one mistake people make regarding cutting or keeping in shape is setting unrealistic goals and too short of a time frame. People think it only takes a few weeks or even a month, and that just simply isn’t enough time. The amount of time necessary will depend on where you start out and where you want to be at the end of your cut. Realistically, if you are not already lean to start off with you will have to give yourself some extra time to diet down the right way.
Most people do not realize that just starving yourself, or doing some crash diet they saw in a magazine will not do the trick. The human body is not a textbook–people respond to different things, so its going to be a matter of trial and error to find what suits your body! My general outlook on the dieting phase is the more time you allow yourself to diet down will yield better results. There are too many obstacles that can get in the way during a dieting phase, so you need to allow time to adjust and work through these “speed bumps”. Think about an injury and the backseat it can put you in, getting sick, falling off of your diet for a few weeks, life circumstances regarding family or problems that keep you out of the gym or not on point with your diet. All of these things can get in the way, and giving yourself those few extra weeks or a month may be what you need to ensure that these issues don’t completely derail your goals . For those looking to be in shape for the summer months I would have a game plan set up, if not by the fall, then definitely by the winter to guarantee your success.
Caloric Deficit and Macronutrient Manipulation
Next up is calories, and every calorie does count and has been the overall standard to fat /weight loss. If you ask a random stranger on the street how many calories they eat, they most likely would have no idea. To the majority looking to lose weight it’s difficult to give advice on what to eat or how much/little to eat when their diet is so diverse and they don’t have a single clue what they are consuming on a daily basis. Most individuals also do not have a grasp on macronutrients such as protein, carbohydrates, and fat intake that make up these calories needed for their weight loss or weight gain (regarding their overall goal).
In the end we know that different macronutrient profiles (depending how you divide your calories) have different effects on hormones and whether we will lose fat, muscle, or weight! The bottom line here is if you are not taking in less than your body is burning you are not going to lose weight, nor will you cut the fat to have you in shape for the summer. If you do not burn off more than you consume via weight training or utilizing cardiovascular activity (such as running, walking, biking, jogging etc..) you will not get to your desired goal. The bottom line here is that macronutrient and caloric total are a big factor in your weight loss goal. Your total energy intake will vary depending on many factors including how active you are, what you do in and out of the gym, Non Exercise Activity (NEAT), and how many calories you are eating. There has to be a negative balance regarding calories in vs calories out!
Diet Breaks / Re-Feeds
Two more factors left and this next one comes off of the last two regarding don’t get yourself in a rut. Over a prolonged period of time and dieting your body will start to slow down metabolically. There is a law of diminishing returns on how long an individual can diet before their body slows down and starts to go against them. You cannot keep adding cardio and dropping calories and expect to keep making results. You may start to notice that you will feel cold all the time, you get sick very easy, sluggish feelings, workouts become harder, and your mental lethargy is at an all-time high from cortisol levels being stressed to the max. These are all signs that the diet phase needs something and that is change.
For many they will need to schedule periodic breaks in their diet or implement reefed days to help boost those hormones, t3, and leptin levels to keep the cutting diet going and to keep the fat coming off so they can get into the best shape of their life. Revving up the metabolism and kicking your body in overdrive from time to time will have its benefits regarding fat/weight loss when dieting gets longer and the body is starting to slow down.
I would recommend doing a reefed or even a free meal once a week after 6-8 weeks dieting. If you are pretty lean to begin with you may be able to implement refeeds sooner. Refilling glycogen storages and raising leptin levels have a drastic effect on the body. Another key factor is these meals can help individuals fit foods into their macros that they may have missed on their diet depending on how they diet and what their macronutrient split is made of. Those who diet on a lower fat diet and higher carb diet may want to get themselves a huge steak, while those on a low carb diet will want to devour a plate of pasta to keep their body and mind going in the right direction.
Others may want to take a complete diet break for a week or even up to 10 days depending on how long they have dieted. I would suggest this for those coming off a contest prep diet (16+ weeks long) or a very rigorous diet such as Lyle McDonalds Ultimate Diet 2.0 or Rapid Fat Loss Diet (RFL). This will help get rid of the metabolic slowdown and the mental lethargy of the caloric deficit they have been placed in for so long.
Conclusion
In the end dieting comes down to one major factor “diet smarter and not harder.” Taking a step back (as in implementing refeeds when needed) can help take you two steps forward (increased weight loss, and satisfying your cravings) when done properly. You will have to read your body, read the scale, and look in the mirror to see how you react to those things and then based off of what your progress is, keep fine tuning the details to see what suits your body best.
