What is the cut in bodybuilding?
In bodybuilding, cutting results in a specific, low-calorie diet, aimed at shedding as much fat as possible while preserving as many muscle as possible. It is widely used by bodybuilders who are preparing for competition, a period in which the athlete has to follow a strict diet.
What is desiccant?
This step is also one of the most challenging as fatigue can be felt quickly over the course of the days. This period of the diet can be rather long and difficult depending on the desired goal and starting point, but in all cases, the diet must be controlled throughout the dry period.
The word "dry" is often used incorrectly, it is for competition and has nothing to do with simple degreasing or food balancing that can be done before summer for example. To lose weight and fat, it is necessary to consume fewer calories than your daily calories. But beware, this is not a simple weight loss diet but something more complex to maintain muscle size while losing unwanted fat.
In order to start cutting my muscle, it is important to have a certain muscle volume to avoid being really flat. There is no need to prepare the wound if you are a beginner or if you do not have enough muscle. You risk losing everything you won and thus start from scratch. It is pointless to start cutting if you start with a fairly skinny body.
To allow for the cutting process, it is necessary to have a calorie deficit to take advantage of your fat reserves. Cutting also translates to a hard workout where you'll get less power and therefore lower performance and loads.
How do you eat while dehydrated?
Food plays a major role during the dry period. In the case of calorie restriction, it is necessary to prefer high-quality nutrients so that you do not lose all your muscle gained during the rest of the year. Thus, maintaining a good amount of protein, or even increasing amounts, is essential to ensure that muscle mass is maintained (1). This is why it is recommended to take whey isolate or low in calories, carbs, sugars and fats to meet your protein needs which can help while cutting, like ISO Whey Zero from BioTech USA for example. Protein powders like whey are generally low in carbs but have a fast absorption rate.
Other supplements such as leucine-enriched BCAAs can help you maintain a certain level of performance despite calorie restriction while eliminating visceral adipose tissue (2).
As for carbohydrates, it is these macronutrients that will be mainly reduced and will reduce your energy reserves. So it's normal to be constantly tired and to reduce the burden of weight training exercises.
As far as fats are concerned, it is important to maintain adequate amounts of them for the overall good health of the organism. It is also advised to keep unsaturated fats, such as those found in fish and vegetable oils, and to reduce saturated fats.
A good nutritional program aims to reduce muscle loss and increase fat loss. It is also necessary to get rid of all the subcutaneous water remaining between the muscle and the skin. Cutting doesn't last for months, it's a temporary physical condition for competition. In fact, the body reaches a very low level of fat, which affects the hormonal balance and metabolism in the body. Often times, people who follow a real diet are followed by a professional trainer. There are also fat burners that can speed up the cutting process if the training and food plan is respected.
How do you train during a dry period?
During the dry period, your muscles have much less strength and energy and it is very difficult to maintain the same program with the same regular weights with the risk of injury. It is recommended to reduce loads and increase the number of repetitions and / or series. The goal is to pick up engorgement
and muscle burn for better definition. To help, the majority of practitioners use training methods such as super sets or pairs. Cardio exercises allow you to increase your calorie expenditure to help achieve a leaner physique and complexion more quickly, but its use will depend on your physique and metabolism. Cardio exercises can be put in place at the end of a dry period, for example.