How long to cut?

[jeanice]

how long should one cut? is cutting for a long period of time bad?

 

[plouffe]

I average about 12 weeks.

 

[Rocco32]

Ditto the 12 weeks.

 

[jeanice]

after you cut do you bulk again? ive done mini cycles and they were pretty good, but i wanna go longer...bulk for 4 and then cut for 6 or vice versa..i was thinking if i cut for a certain amount of time and i still was not happy, should i still cut or take a break? is there such a thing as cutting too long? and can it be detrimental?

 

[Rocco32]

IMO if you cut too long you may risk cutting more muscle. My plan is to cut from Feb to May. Maintain through summer. Bulk Aug- Feb. But that's just me. How long you been bulking for?

 

[jeanice]

i bulked for about 2mnths and gained a few lbs, so i want to cut prepare for a mini comp at my gym im a small girl 5'2 114lbs i want to get leaner...most of my weight is in my lower part...im pretty lean up top, i wanna get tighter in my stomach and lower back region....dont wanna bulk too long, im pretty tiny...lol

 

[Leslie]

When is the competition?
I would say cutting longer than 14-16 weeks would have a serious effect on LBM.

 

[jeanice]

The competition is mid feburary, i have about 10 weeks to condition myself, i started a little early though..

 

[Arnold]

How long to cut depends on your current condition...

If you need to lose around 15lbs to get ripped, then a 12 week cut should work great, in other words around 1lb per week is a good estimate IMO.

 

[jeanice]

Thanks! I see what you mean, 15lbs is to much, i was thinking more like 5-10lbs, but then again 5 seems more reasonable...

 

[Arnold]

You are currently 5lbs from competition weight?

 

[BabyArnold]

I've found that the best thing to do is to put yourself through a cutting cycle and see how long it takes to get you where you want to be. Then you can look at your competition schedule and decide from there which competition would be best for you to enter based on how long it took you to cut up. I believe that you must spend at least a year working your body in different ways, bulking for certain periods of time, and cutting for certain periods to see what your body style is. I know guys that spend 6 weeks cutting and I know guys that have to have almost 4 months to get where they need to be. It's all up to you and your body type.

 

[Arnold]

It also depends on how much fat you gain off season.

 

[BabyArnold]

True..