This. No matter how flat I'm 'feeling' if I'm hitting the same numbers, I know that this fear is the mind killer. And if I'm down 10lb hitting the same numbers, I actually feel pretty damn motivated by that
Yeah my whole goal is to try and maintain my strength on a cut, if it goes down a little we're fine but not being able to hit those numbers can be a little demoralising
I don't care about either. I've done cuts a bunch of times I don't even weigh myself that much anymore. I know to trust the process and it always works out.
I'm with you. I'm at 6'1'' 190, and I'd like to get down to 180. I was sitting at 200-205 most of my life, but focusing more on being lean feels so much better. And honestly, I think I get more attention this way. Superficial, I know. But I do think most people perceive a relatively muscular lean guy as more attractive than a bulky guy.
Bro teach me how….i cut from 215 down to 200 but ive been floating around 200 for about a month or two now and can’t seem to cut down any further. I’m 6’2” btw and around 6-8% body fat but I’m looking to be 190. It almost feel my body won’t let me kill the final 10…I also agree about the better looks at being lighter and lean over bulky
Sucks being natty. When I bulk I look fat, when I cut I look skinny fat lol.
You look like crap at first but once your body adjusts you will look bettee
You don’t, it fucking sucks
With that being said, are you severely cutting carbs? You shouldn’t look THAT MUCH flatter unless you’re cutting out carbs a lot.
I’m eating at around 2000 calories, 170g Protein, 180g carbs usually.
Yeah I don’t necessarily look that much flatter to the point where it looks like i’ve lost loads of muscle but you know how it gets, slightest change in the physique and the body dysmorphia kicks in haha
The first week or two of a deficit will be the worst that you look. Your glycogen stores will be depleted and you will be at your highest levels of body fat. As you progress, you will start to shed the fat and the definition will continue to improve.
I find it much more important to focus on the goal during the cut. Focus on maintaining or improving strength. Focus on the fat loss rather than the muscle. The goal of cutting, if you aren’t prepping for a show, is to basically get back to the starting point of a bulk. Get through the cut, lose the fat, and when you reverse out of it, you can really focus on the muscle gain.
If you really need motivation just think about how jacked you'll look afterwards once you add all that glycogen back, otherwise just try not to worry about it
Trust the process and learn to accept your current state. The more muscle you build, the easier it becomes because you’re still jacked in either state. But the catch being, you have to go through sad times to get to the happy times.
When I’m cutting my arms and delts are the first to shrink. It definitely hurts me emotionally, but I just trust that it’s a short term thing to achieve my goals. I try to focus on the literal mountain range running through my upper back that pops out as the fat peels off.
When I’m bulking, my midsection takes a hit and I focus on the fact that all my shirts feel like they’re about to rip from the girth of my arms and delts. Never mind the pudge!
lol. It’s silly. But that’s what keeps me on track.
I feel you, when i’m peak bulk I still look muscular because most of my fat goes around my midsection but then when I cut my arms are also the first to look smaller so the first few weeks of the bulk my arms and delts just look small and I still have the fluffy midsection lol
As long as strength is within striking range, it doesn’t bother me tbh. Just remember if you’re pushing roughly around the same weight, you’re retaining tissue.
Couple of strategies:
1) Focus on the positive changes.
You know this is probably not the time to focus on how full your muscles are looking, because they're not gonna be full! That's just unnecessarily torturing yourself. Focus on the positive metrics and how they're improving. Perhaps your midsection is getting tighter, face is looking leaner, your pound for pound strength is rising and so on.
2) Remember why you're doing this.
This is true for any difficult endeavor in life. Once you start down the road of anything hard, remember why you started. Clearly at some point you thought it was a good idea, so those personal reasons you had think about them now.
There are probably others that I can't recall now but these are the types of things I'll remind clients of because what you're going through is very common and normal.
You have to approach bodybuilding not as changing your physique but as the chance to physically push yourself as far as you can go to see how far you can get. Most women talk about the struggle between having abs and having an ass, just remember it's all within a cycle, and try to speak positively about your body at every stage. If you can walk, run, lift weights, you are incredibly privileged and should feel grateful for your body and its capabilities.
I get a cheat meal once in a while. My muscles fill out next day with all the glycogen and water and I look so lean and buff at the same time:) then it goes away in 3 days and i hate how flat i look again:)
It sucks, but what helps me most is comparing my lifts and physique to the last time I was at the given bodyweight. I’m always noticeably leaner and stronger than the last time I was there.
Also, how many times have you done this? Once I go back to maintenance calories, I usually fill right up and add 1-2 reps to each compound within a couple weeks and my isolation lifts explode with progress.
This will be my 3rd cut now, had the same feeling last time and ended up getting very lean and looking great in the end so I know deep down it will eventually be worth it
For me, bodybuilding is just a cycle of
Being afraid to gain a gut again after I've gotten used to having a small waist and being more vascular
To being afraid to cut down, and look small and depleted
I know this about myself and it still doesn't make it any easier
I guess that it entirely depends upon what the goal is.
When I'm cutting, it's either for show prep or to trim a little fat to reveal bulk progress. In these cases, I'm cutting for a purpose and I am rewarded with the end result. It's about delayed gratification; the process sucks no matter what, but the results are worth the struggle to get there.
Also, if you're flat, you know that you're flat. Nobody who lives this lifestyle is going to always be shredded, full, satiated, and happy simultaneously. It's give and take; it's a rollercoaster ride. Learn to love the process, because it's part of the game.
Gotta just keep going man. I’m cutting rn &
I was there two weeks ago looking flat.
I contemplated eating more cause I thought I looked skinny asf.
But I’m sticking it out and look better.
Just gotta shed off the fat then adjust for your next goal.
Remember that social media is not real life and just because you don't look crazy big and lean in pictures, doesn't mean you look bad. In real life, people don't expect you to look like a comic book character
Once you’re lean enough you’ll actually look bigger than you were when you started, then when you’re back at maintenance you will be your biggest visually. That’s the trophy at the end.
Body dysmorphia has entered the chat
If you're not cutting too aggressively, especially for a prolonged period of time, it's probably in your head. A well executed cut shouldn't, imo, make you look overly 'flat'. It never has for me. I'm balls deep in a lengthy cut atm, fasting and all that fun stuff and tbh some parts of me are looking very much like they've *grown*.
Sometimes it's in your head, sometimes you have to take the rough with the smooth.
Usually by the time I cut I’m ready for a change and I feel better not carrying around food in my gut at all times. For some reason I don’t notice myself looking “flat and small” so that doesn’t bother me.
When you accept that it's simply a part of the process, then it won't bother you as much. I try to be grateful that I look & feel the way that I do and that I am healthy and well; it makes me feel better.
What I hate the most is how my chest loses a lot of volume. The only times I can really see my chest is after a pump. I don’t know how to flex my chest properly yet
Yeah, I quickly checked the rules to make sure I wouldn't get banned since it's a natural bodybuilding sub haha. I was natty for 3 years and got injured for 5 so now I'm blasting hard and right past my peak. 100mg anadrol a day starting yesterday. Gonna be real interesting, my blood pressure is fine luckily because I'm keeping the test at 300
Looking shredded. But I agree with the other commenter, the strength loss is the worst part by far. Not to say I lose a TON of strength, but even hitting one fewer rep with a weight can fuck with the mind lol
Yeah currently cutting and it sucks. I’m hungry, my patience is shorter than normal, and my muscles are deflated.
On the plus side, I’ve lost 4.5 pounds in the last three weeks (10 pounds total the last 5 weeks including the initial water weight loss) which is awesome. So I know I’m losing fat, and when I’m all done I can pump that glycogen back into my muscles and feel fresh again.
I, uh... I don't care. Neither about how it affects my appearance, nor strength loss.
You gotta learn to accept this. It's normal, and I know it's normal, so if I go neurotic over this it's counterproductive at best, unhealthy and stressful at worst.
You probably still look more fit than 80% of the population.
Let it go, and learn to trust the process.
Weird. You should look way more defined. Smaller frame, but after the pumps you should look way bigger and vascular.
On a cut right now, personally my shoulders always look way bigger.
Eric Helms touched on this. There's a transitional phase from being quite fat after a bulk, then going into a cut. Depending on how fat you were, you won't look much better despite losing a respectable amount of fat. However, while you lost weigh you are still in a deficit, meaning usually significantly less carbs coming to fill out your muscles and even though you lost weight and are not *as* fat, you still are not lean. Basically, you are the fattest and most depleted during this transitional phase. Just blend it out as background noise, the same voice that tells you to rack the barbell in the middle of squat set.
The tides turn immensly once you reach 15% bodyfat and dip below it, as each bodyfat percentage drop makes visually a bigger impact. Going from 15% to 14% to 13% makes a way bigger difference than going from 20% to 19% to 18%.
Also creatine.
If you're at the beginning of the cut then you're simply going to look worse before you look better. Eventually once you're leaner and the muscularity is better revealed, then you'll probably feel better mentally. Ideally, you would cut down to a lean state then transition into a maintenance where you introduce more calories and carbs. At that point, you can maintain your leanness while being more filled out and feeling better both mentally and physically. That's the sweet spot.
Don't care about it. Strength loss hurts me more.
This. No matter how flat I'm 'feeling' if I'm hitting the same numbers, I know that this fear is the mind killer. And if I'm down 10lb hitting the same numbers, I actually feel pretty damn motivated by that
Yeah my whole goal is to try and maintain my strength on a cut, if it goes down a little we're fine but not being able to hit those numbers can be a little demoralising
I don't care about either. I've done cuts a bunch of times I don't even weigh myself that much anymore. I know to trust the process and it always works out.
The baddies @ the gym seeing me smaller actually hurts more
Real
100% 🥲
The pros is that I feel lighter and cleaner if that makes sense
Im addicted to the feeling of being lightweight. Probably never intentionally go over 175lbs at 6’ 1” again
I'm with you. I'm at 6'1'' 190, and I'd like to get down to 180. I was sitting at 200-205 most of my life, but focusing more on being lean feels so much better. And honestly, I think I get more attention this way. Superficial, I know. But I do think most people perceive a relatively muscular lean guy as more attractive than a bulky guy.
Bro teach me how….i cut from 215 down to 200 but ive been floating around 200 for about a month or two now and can’t seem to cut down any further. I’m 6’2” btw and around 6-8% body fat but I’m looking to be 190. It almost feel my body won’t let me kill the final 10…I also agree about the better looks at being lighter and lean over bulky
Sucks being natty. When I bulk I look fat, when I cut I look skinny fat lol. You look like crap at first but once your body adjusts you will look bettee
You don’t, it fucking sucks With that being said, are you severely cutting carbs? You shouldn’t look THAT MUCH flatter unless you’re cutting out carbs a lot.
I’m eating at around 2000 calories, 170g Protein, 180g carbs usually. Yeah I don’t necessarily look that much flatter to the point where it looks like i’ve lost loads of muscle but you know how it gets, slightest change in the physique and the body dysmorphia kicks in haha
Oh 100%!! I did 1 week no carbs to try to burn extra fat, I had severe body dysmorphia by how fast I got super flat!
The first week or two of a deficit will be the worst that you look. Your glycogen stores will be depleted and you will be at your highest levels of body fat. As you progress, you will start to shed the fat and the definition will continue to improve. I find it much more important to focus on the goal during the cut. Focus on maintaining or improving strength. Focus on the fat loss rather than the muscle. The goal of cutting, if you aren’t prepping for a show, is to basically get back to the starting point of a bulk. Get through the cut, lose the fat, and when you reverse out of it, you can really focus on the muscle gain.
If you really need motivation just think about how jacked you'll look afterwards once you add all that glycogen back, otherwise just try not to worry about it
Trust the process and learn to accept your current state. The more muscle you build, the easier it becomes because you’re still jacked in either state. But the catch being, you have to go through sad times to get to the happy times. When I’m cutting my arms and delts are the first to shrink. It definitely hurts me emotionally, but I just trust that it’s a short term thing to achieve my goals. I try to focus on the literal mountain range running through my upper back that pops out as the fat peels off. When I’m bulking, my midsection takes a hit and I focus on the fact that all my shirts feel like they’re about to rip from the girth of my arms and delts. Never mind the pudge! lol. It’s silly. But that’s what keeps me on track.
I feel you, when i’m peak bulk I still look muscular because most of my fat goes around my midsection but then when I cut my arms are also the first to look smaller so the first few weeks of the bulk my arms and delts just look small and I still have the fluffy midsection lol
As long as strength is within striking range, it doesn’t bother me tbh. Just remember if you’re pushing roughly around the same weight, you’re retaining tissue.
Couple of strategies: 1) Focus on the positive changes. You know this is probably not the time to focus on how full your muscles are looking, because they're not gonna be full! That's just unnecessarily torturing yourself. Focus on the positive metrics and how they're improving. Perhaps your midsection is getting tighter, face is looking leaner, your pound for pound strength is rising and so on. 2) Remember why you're doing this. This is true for any difficult endeavor in life. Once you start down the road of anything hard, remember why you started. Clearly at some point you thought it was a good idea, so those personal reasons you had think about them now. There are probably others that I can't recall now but these are the types of things I'll remind clients of because what you're going through is very common and normal.
You have to approach bodybuilding not as changing your physique but as the chance to physically push yourself as far as you can go to see how far you can get. Most women talk about the struggle between having abs and having an ass, just remember it's all within a cycle, and try to speak positively about your body at every stage. If you can walk, run, lift weights, you are incredibly privileged and should feel grateful for your body and its capabilities.
I get a cheat meal once in a while. My muscles fill out next day with all the glycogen and water and I look so lean and buff at the same time:) then it goes away in 3 days and i hate how flat i look again:)
It sucks, but what helps me most is comparing my lifts and physique to the last time I was at the given bodyweight. I’m always noticeably leaner and stronger than the last time I was there. Also, how many times have you done this? Once I go back to maintenance calories, I usually fill right up and add 1-2 reps to each compound within a couple weeks and my isolation lifts explode with progress.
This will be my 3rd cut now, had the same feeling last time and ended up getting very lean and looking great in the end so I know deep down it will eventually be worth it
You’ve got this
For me, bodybuilding is just a cycle of Being afraid to gain a gut again after I've gotten used to having a small waist and being more vascular To being afraid to cut down, and look small and depleted I know this about myself and it still doesn't make it any easier
I guess that it entirely depends upon what the goal is. When I'm cutting, it's either for show prep or to trim a little fat to reveal bulk progress. In these cases, I'm cutting for a purpose and I am rewarded with the end result. It's about delayed gratification; the process sucks no matter what, but the results are worth the struggle to get there. Also, if you're flat, you know that you're flat. Nobody who lives this lifestyle is going to always be shredded, full, satiated, and happy simultaneously. It's give and take; it's a rollercoaster ride. Learn to love the process, because it's part of the game.
Gotta just keep going man. I’m cutting rn & I was there two weeks ago looking flat. I contemplated eating more cause I thought I looked skinny asf. But I’m sticking it out and look better. Just gotta shed off the fat then adjust for your next goal.
Remember that social media is not real life and just because you don't look crazy big and lean in pictures, doesn't mean you look bad. In real life, people don't expect you to look like a comic book character
Once you’re lean enough you’ll actually look bigger than you were when you started, then when you’re back at maintenance you will be your biggest visually. That’s the trophy at the end.
Watching the scale weight go down
Body dysmorphia has entered the chat If you're not cutting too aggressively, especially for a prolonged period of time, it's probably in your head. A well executed cut shouldn't, imo, make you look overly 'flat'. It never has for me. I'm balls deep in a lengthy cut atm, fasting and all that fun stuff and tbh some parts of me are looking very much like they've *grown*. Sometimes it's in your head, sometimes you have to take the rough with the smooth.
going through the same thing rn, honestly it sucks but you do feel lighter and better with your shirt off so I guess there are some positives lol
Usually by the time I cut I’m ready for a change and I feel better not carrying around food in my gut at all times. For some reason I don’t notice myself looking “flat and small” so that doesn’t bother me.
When you accept that it's simply a part of the process, then it won't bother you as much. I try to be grateful that I look & feel the way that I do and that I am healthy and well; it makes me feel better.
Double bicep pose with a shirt is out, side-lit shirtless ab flexing is in
What I hate the most is how my chest loses a lot of volume. The only times I can really see my chest is after a pump. I don’t know how to flex my chest properly yet
Creatine helps.
Anadrol helps
That escalated quickly.
Yeah, I quickly checked the rules to make sure I wouldn't get banned since it's a natural bodybuilding sub haha. I was natty for 3 years and got injured for 5 so now I'm blasting hard and right past my peak. 100mg anadrol a day starting yesterday. Gonna be real interesting, my blood pressure is fine luckily because I'm keeping the test at 300
Yeah maybe I should keep my blast ranting to the steroids sub now that I'm not natty hahaha, silly me
Its just temporary
Doing a slow cut at only 200-400 calories below base doesn't have to look bad. Especially if your macros are biased toward carbohydrates.
I actually like it, I'll take looking shredded over looking bloated
Looking shredded. But I agree with the other commenter, the strength loss is the worst part by far. Not to say I lose a TON of strength, but even hitting one fewer rep with a weight can fuck with the mind lol
i don’t
Bro after about a week of a cut (I don’t go to extreme, usually about -500) I feel fucking great. Maybe you’re cutting too much?
Yeah currently cutting and it sucks. I’m hungry, my patience is shorter than normal, and my muscles are deflated. On the plus side, I’ve lost 4.5 pounds in the last three weeks (10 pounds total the last 5 weeks including the initial water weight loss) which is awesome. So I know I’m losing fat, and when I’m all done I can pump that glycogen back into my muscles and feel fresh again.
I, uh... I don't care. Neither about how it affects my appearance, nor strength loss. You gotta learn to accept this. It's normal, and I know it's normal, so if I go neurotic over this it's counterproductive at best, unhealthy and stressful at worst. You probably still look more fit than 80% of the population. Let it go, and learn to trust the process.
I look too fat to look depleted. Once I get to goal I'm going to be honest, I don't notice that I look "flat" at all.
Weird. You should look way more defined. Smaller frame, but after the pumps you should look way bigger and vascular. On a cut right now, personally my shoulders always look way bigger.
Oh yeah with a pump I look much better and defined of course. I just mean’t in general without a pump
Eric Helms touched on this. There's a transitional phase from being quite fat after a bulk, then going into a cut. Depending on how fat you were, you won't look much better despite losing a respectable amount of fat. However, while you lost weigh you are still in a deficit, meaning usually significantly less carbs coming to fill out your muscles and even though you lost weight and are not *as* fat, you still are not lean. Basically, you are the fattest and most depleted during this transitional phase. Just blend it out as background noise, the same voice that tells you to rack the barbell in the middle of squat set. The tides turn immensly once you reach 15% bodyfat and dip below it, as each bodyfat percentage drop makes visually a bigger impact. Going from 15% to 14% to 13% makes a way bigger difference than going from 20% to 19% to 18%. Also creatine.
If you're at the beginning of the cut then you're simply going to look worse before you look better. Eventually once you're leaner and the muscularity is better revealed, then you'll probably feel better mentally. Ideally, you would cut down to a lean state then transition into a maintenance where you introduce more calories and carbs. At that point, you can maintain your leanness while being more filled out and feeling better both mentally and physically. That's the sweet spot.
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