Should I Bulk or Cut?

[Andrew11O2]

My fitness journey has taken a complete 180 in the past 2 months. So I’ll start fro maybe beginning. So I started actually lifting serious in my senior year of high school. I followed workouts, I stayed consistent, and I tried to eat clean meaning no fast food or junk food. Not like I was eating chicken breast everynight but I was conscious of what went into my body and I did exercise and make a lot of gains. Though I did feel as though my progress halted and I really was seeing no changes but I did see a huge difference than before I started.

So that was pretty much a whole year then as I went into college I stopped watching what I ate and I stopped doing cardio. I kept lifting though and obviously as I ate more food I gained weight and went from 170 to 190 in 5 months. Now I was definitely chubby but I was also a lot stronger. I was putting 195lb for my single rep bench press. I wasn’t trying to “dirty bulk” I just stopped watching what I ate while I kept lifting. Then in mid February I decided I was too big, now at around 192. So I devised a macro plan based on 40% carb, 40% protein, and 20% fat. I intensely watched my calories and worked out and l was able to lose 24lbs in 12 weeks, now weighing 168. I was looking no doubt best shape of my life. People said I looked good. I could tell I looked good, maybe I needed to gain some more muscle but def looking good, could almost see abs.

In May something bad happened personally and I lost it. I lost all my fitness motivation and progress. Now here I am mid July and I weigh 198lbs and I have been pretty much sedentary for the past 2 and a half months. I stopped tracking anything that I ate and would overindulge drastically almost everyday. So I’ve pretty much lost all the hard earned muscle it took months to build and preserve in my cut and I’ve added back on about 30lbs of fat. I know this because I am drastically weaker, I can’t lift nearly the amount I used to.

Now here’s the question, do I bulk up to build muscle or should I cut this added fat. If I cut I have no muscle to hold onto, before when I cut in February I knew I was strong and had muscle underneath. Now I know if I cut I’m on a road to skinny fat seeing as my arms are still in my cut physique but my gut is in full bulk. If I bulk I’ll be building muscle back that I need but I don’t want to put on anymore weight really. Personally I think I should slowly bulk up until February again just to build up my muscle and then cut again, but I would like to hear what everyone else has to say. Just to let you know though, the reason I fell off my cut wasn’t because I didn’t have the mental strength to stay away from junk food. I went through a very serious loss and it has been tough dealing with it but now I’m back and ready to grind again.

[Masssmonkey]

My fitness journey has taken a complete 180 in the past 2 months. So I’ll start fro maybe beginning. So I started actually lifting serious in my senior year of high school. I followed workouts, I stayed consistent, and I tried to eat clean meaning no fast food or junk food. Not like I was eating chicken breast everynight but I was conscious of what went into my body and I did exercise and make a lot of gains. Though I did feel as though my progress halted and I really was seeing no changes but I did see a huge difference than before I started.

So that was pretty much a whole year then as I went into college I stopped watching what I ate and I stopped doing cardio. I kept lifting though and obviously as I ate more food I gained weight and went from 170 to 190 in 5 months. Now I was definitely chubby but I was also a lot stronger. I was putting 195lb for my single rep bench press. I wasn’t trying to “dirty bulk” I just stopped watching what I ate while I kept lifting. Then in mid February I decided I was too big, now at around 192. So I devised a macro plan based on 40% carb, 40% protein, and 20% fat. I intensely watched my calories and worked out and l was able to lose 24lbs in 12 weeks, now weighing 168. I was looking no doubt best shape of my life. People said I looked good. I could tell I looked good, maybe I needed to gain some more muscle but def looking good, could almost see abs.

In May something bad happened personally and I lost it. I lost all my fitness motivation and progress. Now here I am mid July and I weigh 198lbs and I have been pretty much sedentary for the past 2 and a half months. I stopped tracking anything that I ate and would overindulge drastically almost everyday. So I’ve pretty much lost all the hard earned muscle it took months to build and preserve in my cut and I’ve added back on about 30lbs of fat. I know this because I am drastically weaker, I can’t lift nearly the amount I used to.

Now here’s the question, do I bulk up to build muscle or should I cut this added fat. If I cut I have no muscle to hold onto, before when I cut in February I knew I was strong and had muscle underneath. Now I know if I cut I’m on a road to skinny fat seeing as my arms are still in my cut physique but my gut is in full bulk. If I bulk I’ll be building muscle back that I need but I don’t want to put on anymore weight really. Personally I think I should slowly bulk up until February again just to build up my muscle and then cut again, but I would like to hear what everyone else has to say. Just to let you know though, the reason I fell off my cut wasn’t because I didn’t have the mental strength to stay away from junk food. I went through a very serious loss and it has been tough dealing with it but now I’m back and ready to grind again.

It's quite obvious you need to cut , however I would add photos to bodyspace so we could get a better look. Start with a caloric deficit in addition to your workouts. I would cut until you were 165-170, then slow bulk.

[spradish]

Now here’s the question, do I bulk up to build muscle or should I cut this added fat. If I cut I have no muscle to hold onto, before when I cut in February I knew I was strong and had muscle underneath. Now I know if I cut I’m on a road to skinny fat seeing as my arms are still in my cut physique but my gut is in full bulk. If I bulk I’ll be building muscle back that I need but I don’t want to put on anymore weight really. Personally I think I should slowly bulk up until February again just to build up my muscle and then cut again, but I would like to hear what everyone else has to say. Just to let you know though, the reason I fell off my cut wasn’t because I didn’t have the mental strength to stay away from junk food. I went through a very serious loss and it has been tough dealing with it but now I’m back and ready to grind again.

I'm sorry to read about your loss. Sometimes in life, fitness is going to take a backseat and that's okay. You just need to get back to it now and in the future you can use this experience to help you find ways to balance life stressors a bit better.

You definitely did not lose all of your muscle. That's just not how it works. Get back to lifting and get back to eating in a moderate deficit. Just like when you first started lifting, you'll find that you can add weight to the bar fairly quickly in the beginning because your skill is improving (or being regained in your situation.) I would definitely not suggest bulking at this point.

[Andrew11O2]

I was thinking of doing that. The problem is the amount of muscle I lost is pretty significant and I feel like I wouldn’t be able to sustain a cut for more than 3 week before I feel my arms are too skinny. That’s why I was thinking of maybe just cutting out all the junk food and fast food and just go for adding muscle and getting in shape. I feel that would be more sustainable and then cut when I have added significant gains.

[Andrew11O2]

Yeah I shouldn’t really use the word “bulk” because I don’t actually plan on eating such. I will say that I do have good proper form on all my exercises and I’m not a “noob” I’m just detrained.

[Tucane]

You'll rebuild it fast due to "muscle memory". Myonuclei produced when lifting are resistent to atrophy, so the numbers remain intact, hidden in cell stucture.

I have quit lifting a few times for many months for different reasons. Every time I returned to the gym I gained everything back quickly, even in a deficit.

[Andrew11O2]

You'll rebuild it fast due to "muscle memory". Myonuclei produced when lifting are resistent to atrophy, so the numbers remain intact, hidden in cell stucture.

I have quit lifting a few times for many months for different reasons. Every time I returned to the gym I gained everything back quickly, even in a deficit.

So do you think it would be good to lift at a deficit of around 500cal (1lb of fat a week). Also how much protein should I be consuming. I currently weigh around 198, I’ve heard 1g protein per lb of body weight. Will I also be able to build muscle while losing this fat.

[gomil]

So do you think it would be good to lift at a deficit of around 500cal (1lb of fat a week). Also how much protein should I be consuming. I currently weigh around 198, I’ve heard 1g protein per lb of body weight. Will I also be able to build muscle while losing this fat.

500-750 deficit depending on what you can handle; 160 g of protein should be more than enough.