Help me with my cut =)

[ninjaa]

Hey all,

I did a BB program and then switched over to Rippetoe's for some better strength gains. After busting up my fingers and contemplating for a couple of weeks when to cut, I've decided to just use the 10ish days my fingers need to heal to begin a cut and start cardio'ing seriously. I plan to cut for at least a month, if not more. Whatever I need to get rid of this fat, and I'll take a picture so maybe you guys have a better idea.

My background:

20 year old male
sitting ~225lbs
I'd estimate bodyfat to be 20-24%, but I'm really no good at it, could be less.

My maintenance calories are around 3000-3400 calories. Last year, I reached a peak weight of about 232lbs with not much muscle, and got sick of it. I played basketball every single day, cut out stupid carbs like bread and just made an overall effort, and it paid off. I dropped down to (at one point) 185lbs but I had no muscle and I was still a bit flabby.

Not that I'm a muscular beast now, but sitting at 225, I don't look nearly as fat as when I was 232, and thats only a 7lb difference.

I'm not big on counting calories and being really anal. I know that the people who are anal end up doing much better on cuts, but my focus is going to be on keeping a 3x/week weight lifting regime and consistently getting the cardio in. I'm usually going to be playing basketball for about 2 hours a day in the sun, which I think at least 3 times a week (sometimes will be more) will be enough to induce a deficit, but I'm going to be throwing in some interval training for 20-25 minutes on random days whenever I'm not playing ball.

My question to you guys is, what are your general tips and advice regarding a cut? I'll be continuing with creatine and whey to supplement, and doing lots of bodyweight stuff like pushups and chinups. I'm currently doing a modified rippetoe's without squats. My knees can't handle squats and especially with basketball, they have no chance. I'm currently just benching, pressing, deadlifting and rowing. Since i need 1-2 weeks to heal my sprained fingers (cant grip a barbell), I got some time to map out my workout plan.

What is the ideal set of exercises to be on during a cut? Do I go back to something with a bit more volume to induce hypertrophy? Or is that a bad idea when you have a deficit of calories to work with? I'll be trying to keep the protein as high as possible with the calories staying low, but I know muscles and strength decline with a cut, the key is to minimizing it. Should I stay on this modified Rippetoe's program throughout the cut and then bulk up after with something else?

Any input is appreciated. I also heard good things about Animal Cuts, but I'm not sure what it can exactly do. Thanks!

[th3pwn3r]

The ideal set for exercises to preserve muscle is how many you need to preserve muscle, easy right? It's not a number that matters, it's what works that does. If you preserve muscle without working out at all that's wonderful and unless you enjoy working out you don't NEED to. Just do whatever form of training that allows you to spare your muscle while losing fat.

[ejthomp]

.....I'm not big on counting calories and being really anal.....

Given this....good luck! A couple guidelines that can take you a long way...

Eat some clean protein at every meal...(eggs, chicken, beef, pork, fish, whey, etc)

Remember that natural food has all the nutrition you need and is more filling...(fruit, veggies, meat)

Don't eat empty calories!!! (NO crap....candy, chips, fast food, white bread, pasta, etc)

Don't drink empty calories!!! (soda, fruit juice, etc) Drink lots of water.

[ninjaa]

Given this....good luck! A couple guidelines that can take you a long way...

Eat some clean protein at every meal...(eggs, chicken, beef, pork, fish, whey, etc)

Remember that natural food has all the nutrition you need and is more filling...(fruit, veggies, meat)

Don't eat empty calories!!! (NO crap....candy, chips, fast food, white bread, pasta, etc)

Don't drink empty calories!!! (soda, fruit juice, etc) Drink lots of water.

That's what a friend of mine told me last summer before i dropped 40lbs. I don't eat junk like coca cola or chips. I had fast food here and there when I was working out and bulking, so I didn't take it too seriously, but obviously McDonalds, etc... is out of the question during a cut.

I live at home, so eating natural foods is pretty easy. I eat eggs at least 4 times a week because its just the easiest and cleanest breakfast food. I usually have chicken, beef or pork at least once a day with a meal. I'm not big on fruits, mostly because their pretty sugary, although I will have them from time to time during the day if I'm craving something sweet and want some vitamins. I've almost entirely cut out bread, and only have whole wheat bread in the house anyway. I don't really eat that much pasta, and again, when I do, it'll be whole wheat.

I try to drink lots of water with my creatine supplement but they say like 2 gallons a day, its hard for me to drink that much unless I'm playing sports. I just drink water whenever I'm thirsty or whenever I can.

[ejthomp]

So....everything sounds great.... Is it all smoke and mirrors?

Why did you get up to 232...then down to 185...then up to 225? All within about a year...right?

What were you eating to do this?