Tip: When You Should and Shouldn't Bulk or Cut Search Skip to content Menu Menu follow us Store Articles Community Loyal-T Club Loyal-T Points Rewards Subscribe to Save Search Search The World s Trusted Source & Community for Elite Fitness Diet & Fat LossEating Tip When You Should and Shouldn t Bulk or Cut Here' s a handy set of guidelines to help lifters find the balance between too dang skinny and too dang fat by Paul Carter August 29, 2018April 5, 2021 Tags Bodybuilding, Diet Strategy, Feeding the Ideal Body, Nutrition & Supplements, Tips Eat in Accordance with your Current Cody Comp "Should I bulk or cut?" Beginners ask this question more than any other on the net. Here's the answer: You shouldn't be "bulking" until you're below 10% body fat. Period. And at no point should you ever get above 15%. In fact, 15% is pushing it. And I don't care how much muscle you're packing, if you look like you'd bleed chocolate pudding if you suffered a gaping wound then you're just a fatty. Adipose is both estrogenic and pro-inflammatory. Both work against you for building muscle. If you're so skinny you could dress for Halloween as a thermometer, then carbs and five to six meals a day should become your best friend. The Basics Regardless of your current state of body comp, eat whole and mostly unprocessed foods 90% of the time. Chicken, tuna, fish, jasmine rice, eggs, egg whites, sweet potatoes, avocado, and all the vegetables you can handle should make up the bulk of your diet. Get at least 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight. That's total bodyweight. Quit complicating this. Factor in your starting point for daily caloric intake at bodyweight x 15. Adjust up or down from there by 300 calories a day depending on what the scale and your physique is telling you each week. Set a caloric "floor" for fat loss at bodyweight x 10. Set a caloric "ceiling" for mass gain at bodyweight x 20. Carb and fat intake are the two macros to be manipulated at those caloric values. Adjust them accordingly. This isn't hard. Training and nutrition create a synergistic paradigm. They both help you reach your goals. But if you want your own championship-looking physique then create championship-looking meals. Five Guys and Chipotle do not qualify. Get The T Nation Newsletters Don' t Miss Out Expert Insights To Get Stronger, Gain Muscle Faster, And Take Your Lifting To The Next Level related posts Eating Tip The Absolute Worst Time to Eat Yes, you'll get fat if you eat too much. But you'll get fat even faster if you're making this very common mistake. Diet & Fat Loss, Diet Strategy, Dietary Myth Busting, Feeding the Ideal Body, Nutrition & Supplements, Tips Chris Shugart May 19 Eating The Sustainable Diet for Lifters Most people fail at dieting because they eat and train like competitors. Here's a simple way to avoid the extremes, lose fat, and maintain leanness. Diet Strategy, Feeding the Ideal Body, Nutrition & Supplements Paul Carter October 4 Eating Tip This Internet Rumor Needs to Die Fast No, eating this crappy Frankenfood isn't good for you, despite what some internet influencers are suggesting. CLA, Dietary Myth Busting, Feeding the Ideal Body, Nutrition & Supplements, Tips TC Luoma April 9 Diet & Fat Loss Tip Banana Nut Muffins for Bodybuilders Store-bought muffins are a total calorie bomb. Make these instead and get fewer carbs and calories, plus more protein. Feeding the Ideal Body, Nutrition & Supplements, Protein, Recipes, Tips Chelsie Lysenchuk January 19