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🍳 Calorie cycling
Back in 2018 I hired my first virtual PT Menno Henselmans. He made a program for me that was way too sophisticated for me to adhere to back then, as an absolute beginner.
I think I've learned a lot ever since and feel ready to try out more of the program's principles now.
One of them is calorie cycling, which approaches calories and macros on meal level instead of day level.
This approach includes bulk and cut meals. You eat three meals a day, the first three meals after a workout are bulk meals and the rest of the meals are cut meals.
This is a way to have enough energy and protein available for muscle growth after training, and be in a small energy deficit the rest of the time to slowly cut body fat.
In theory, in the long term this should help you gain muscle without the unwanted fat gain, so you don't have to do cut phases that make your progress stagnate every time.
Example:
I think I've learned a lot ever since and feel ready to try out more of the program's principles now.
One of them is calorie cycling, which approaches calories and macros on meal level instead of day level.
This approach includes bulk and cut meals. You eat three meals a day, the first three meals after a workout are bulk meals and the rest of the meals are cut meals.
This is a way to have enough energy and protein available for muscle growth after training, and be in a small energy deficit the rest of the time to slowly cut body fat.
In theory, in the long term this should help you gain muscle without the unwanted fat gain, so you don't have to do cut phases that make your progress stagnate every time.
Example:
- Bulk meal: 1400 calories, 60 grams of protein
- Cut meal: 400 calories, 40 grams of protein
Obviously you unconsciously eat more after a training session by default, but I was wondering if anyone of you weight lifters here has tried this approach before?
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As someone who's been working out for a long time (although been a while since I aimed to look ripped), this sounds super complicated. But it makes sense, similar idea as intermittent fasting.
I workout in the evenings so what I've found works easiest for me is to eat lots after working out for recovery purposes, then not eat at all until lunch next day. My pre workout meals are usually what you'd call cut meals in your setup. The tricky part for me here is ensuring I have enough energy to have a good workout.
Actually ... I guess I'm doing the same thing as you described :D Just never realized it. Felt like it's easier to eat lots after working out because if you do it before and you then have a bad workout for whatever reason, it's easy to overeat.
Thanks for your answer!
I don't think it's complicated when you have sorted out the right cut foods and bulk foods after a while.
Cut foods include organ meats, steak, poultry, berries, quark, shrimps, fibrous vegetables, herbs.
Bulk foods: fish, meat, eggs, avocado, sourdough bread, honey, peanut butter, cheese, whole fruits.
I tend to workout around noon every other day, so I'm eating a cut meal before working out and two meal afterwards.
But steak and poultry are a type of meat 🤨
The lean parts ;)