Is Bulking and Cutting Effective?

Many people working out desire to be as big and lean as possible and they find it hard to do both at the same time, so they try to bulk and then cut to get their desired look. However, does it actually work and is it healthy for you?

What is Bulking?

Bulking is when you are in a strategic caloric surplus (eat more calories than you burn) combined with a resistance training program. The goal here is to optimize muscle growth by adding weight and supplying your body and muscles with extra calories. This can lead to muscle growth and improved resistance training performance but also often leads to excess fat gain.

What is Cutting?

Cutting is when you are taking in fewer calories than you are expending, combined with a resistance training program. This leads to a decrease in weight and the goal is that most of that weight that is lost is fat. Cutting like bulking has several pros and cons, first it can promote fat loss if done properly and improve muscle appearance, however it is also easy to lose muscle during this phase.

Bulking and cutting can be beneficial if you are consuming nutrient rich foods and “clean bulking” rather than “dirty bulking” which is just consuming a lot of calories that aren’t good for you in order to hit your calorie surplus. Also slowly bulking and cutting can limit the downsides of gaining too much fat during the bulk and losing all of your gained strength during the cutting phase. It is important to remember that either way the best way to improve physical appearance is a proper exercise program combined with good nutrition. If your goal is to gain muscle and put on size the best approach is to do so with a small calorie surplus, gradually gaining weight until you get to your desired weight, and then the same would apply if you wanted to cut. Start by slowly eliminating 100-250 calories and go from there. This way will take longer but the final result will be much better and you will be happier with how you feel during the process and at the end