Ah, the never-ending cycle of bulking and cutting. It is a practice not unique to bodybuilders or weightlifters by any means says Alex Gierbolini. Many people are guilty of this lifestyle choice more so than they would like to admit. The term “bulking” refers to an increase in calorie intake with the purpose being to build muscle mass over several weeks or months whereas the term “cutting” refers to a decrease in calorie intake for the goal of reducing fat over several weeks or months. If you’ve ever participated in either of these activities then chances are that your “bulk” wasn’t very pleasurable nor was your “cut” successful if you were able to keep it off for any length of time. What is it about this process that makes it such a difficult lifestyle choice?
Body Image and Personal Confidence:
It isn’t by accident that people refer to this process as “bulking” and “cutting”, each step of the cycle has its own identity. For many people the idea of bulking is very appealing. During this phase individuals tend to relax their personal appearance standards due to the fact that they aren’t attempting to reach any specific physique goal, instead, they are just trying to increase muscle mass. This phase tends to be very pleasurable because during these months you get more leeway with your dietary choices since you aren’t purposefully trying to reduce body fat levels for a certain amount of time. Plus during the period of bulking, strength levels skyrocket and work capacity improve dramatically. An individual who has never participated in a strength training program might find themselves working harder during workouts, and feeling better about their efforts than they ever have before. It is common for someone to participate in this phase for longer than they should and by the time cutting begins they feel like Samson after losing his hair (i.e. like something precious has been lost). No one likes losing body fat levels but some people have a harder time coping with it than others do which makes bulking more pleasurable from a personal appearance standpoint but also spells disaster once someone decides that it is time to cut again several months later as the process of losing those fat stores can steal away some of that newfound confidence.
Body Image and Personal Confidence:
People rarely struggle with this concept on a general level, most people are acutely aware of how their body image fluctuates depending upon what they are doing with their bodies. But there is another part to this equation that isn’t generally recognized by most people which revolves around the fact that it can be quite difficult for some individuals to stay motivated during periods of personal weight loss because of changes in their body composition. Alex Gierbolini explains the reasons vary greatly but generally, it is very common for men who lose weight over time to develop a decreased amount of muscle mass and an increased amount of fat tissue. As someone begins training hard for the purpose of becoming stronger or more muscular you can imagine how frustrating it might be for them to watch as the opposite happens after months have passed which brings me to the next section.
A Solid Strength Training Program:
Let’s consider bodybuilders and other strength athletes for a moment. These individuals understand how difficult it can be to maintain personal confidence levels while dieting but if you’ve ever talked with someone who has undergone a long term period of training then you might get an idea as to why that happens. Think about what we discussed above; if someone trains often and their workouts produce positive changes in their physique along with significant increases in strength levels over time, this makes them confident in themselves and their capabilities because they know that hard work will produce results (I realize not everyone believes this but I’m making a general statement here). When it comes time to cut these people might experience frustration because the methodologies they are forced to use might result in strength losses while fat loss is occurring simultaneously says Alex Gierbolini. This presents itself as a conundrum because, on one hand individuals don’t want to experience the cognitive dissonance that comes with losing their confidence levels but on the other hand fat loss can present an equally negative body image because of significant reductions in lean tissue. The latter point leads right into our next topic.
What Is Body Recomposition?
Put simply, this term refers to changes that take place within one’s body which result in decreases or increases in both muscle mass and fat stores at the same time. For example, let’s say someone currently weighs 180 pounds and has 18% body fat (24 pounds of fat/180 lbs).
Conclusion:
Body recomposition is a term that seems to divide people (especially those who compete in bodybuilding or fitness competitions) with some loving the idea and others hating everything about it. While I was certainly critical of both sides during my last article on this topic, I feel like it might be constructive to try and help clarify what most people misunderstand about this process. So let’s get into that (and trust me; this will be brief).
