The Ultimate Argument: Repartioning vs. Bulking and cutting

[RONJON]

This post was brought up the other day and I found it VERY fascinating!

EVERYONE has an opinion one way or another...each method has very interesting points


**broken link removed**


Thoughts???

 

[kappainf]

That is probably true, How many pros stay lean all year?

 

[Kaladryn]

I didn't bother to read the link, but all I have to say is that "repartioning" is bs as far as bodybuilding is concerned. You can bulk or cut, not both, that is perhaps one of the must important rules to understand in bodybuilding.

 

[kscowboy]

I think Dante is light years ahead of his time. Just my 2cents

 

[myosin]

My personal experience...

I hired a great trainer. In almost eight weeks I have...

1) Dropped almost two inches off my waist
2) Increased strength significantly
3) Become more defined
4) Put on muscle

ALL WHILE KEEPING THE SAME WEIGHT- the first week I dropped 10 lbs (which was all bloat from a few weeks of horrible diet and training), after that, my weight hasn't budged, yet all the above holds true.

- NO fat burners: I will use 25-50mg Ephedrine before my workout, but not a couple times a day, etc... just pre-workout OR ONE 25mg Ephedrine on my 13 hour work-shifts

- MINIMAL "super-supplements"... I mean minimal, in mg's and NO orals

And no, I won't post pics, b/c as a whole... I'm still too fat hahaha

 

[MEAN V.]

I think Dante is light years ahead of his time. Just my 2cents

x2

 

[jay_dub]

I didn't bother to read the link, but all I have to say is that "repartioning" is bs as far as bodybuilding is concerned. You can bulk or cut, not both, that is perhaps one of the must important rules to understand in bodybuilding.

You can't do both?

I think I'm proof enough that you can do both. Check out my pics if you dont believe me. You can do amazing things with the right diet and training. The days of cutting and bulking are definitely over for me.

 

[ssdark1]

I think Dante is light years ahead of his time. Just my 2cents

i dont understand what is so "light years ahead" by saying that you should bulk and then cut...pretty standard practice. no disrespect to dante, it was a good post...he has a knack for explaining things to where they "click", but this isnt some revolutionary idea.

 

[DOGGCRAPP]

I dont like bulking and cutting at all

Im a believer in eating big and doing everything in your power to keeping the bodyfat off while getting bigger....thats my plan. I use meal scheduling and cardio a great deal while getting someone larger

I was trying to explain to this kid if you want to look at extremes as to what is the fastest....thats the fastest...its also the most unacceptable way for health, and personal happiness too.

So what do you do? You find your middle ground.

If you are 200 pounds today and your goal is to become a strong balanced athletic offensive lineman in the NFL.....seriously whats going to get you there? Eating 500 calories over maintenance? or getting up there and beyond as soon as possible and tweaking it downward...in essence taking the governor off....gaining fat is easy, gaining muscle is hard...taking the governor off of both makes it accumalate the fastest. Getting to be the biggest bodybuilder you can become the fastest isnt much different than becoming the biggest offensive lineman you can become.

Again i dont want this misconstrued at all...I am not recommending someone become a fat unhappy MF. I am just stating whats the fastest way to point B from point A. Everyone needs to find their middle ground of whats acceptable for them.

 

[Ness]

I didn't bother to read the link, but all I have to say is that "repartioning" is bs as far as bodybuilding is concerned. You can bulk or cut, not both, that is perhaps one of the must important rules to understand in bodybuilding.

With all due respect, you are wrong.

 

[Dusty Hanshaw]

This thread has been started hundreds of times and I never get sick of it. I think this is truly one of the great debates among bodybuilders that will never be won. The key is to find what works best for you and run with it. I for one have gone the "bulking route" as well as the "lean muscle gain route" and have found that perfect for me sits right between the two.

When I was younger I felt a kcal was a kcal so all I worried about was eating as much as possible and checking that scale each and everyday to ensure that I was getting HUGE! After losing all of that lard and coming to the realization that I was never HUGE, just a big fat ass I had to make some changes. Now I am far more disciplined and in the offseason I force myself to eat ungodly amounts of clean food while cheating only once a week. That meal can be whatever the hell I want it to be but after that I am right back to stuffing my face with only high quality nutrients. This has made me much bigger while also keeping my bodyfat under control and also keeping my bloodwork within healthy levels.

 

[Bruce_Campbell]

I am in 100% agreement on this.

With all due respect, you are wrong.

 

[concreteguy]

This thread has been started hundreds of times and I never get sick of it. I think this is truly one of the great debates among bodybuilders that will never be won. The key is to find what works best for you and run with it. I for one have gone the "bulking route" as well as the "lean muscle gain route" and have found that perfect for me sits right between the two.

When I was younger I felt a kcal was a kcal so all I worried about was eating as much as possible and checking that scale each and everyday to ensure that I was getting HUGE! After losing all of that lard and coming to the realization that I was never HUGE, just a big fat ass I had to make some changes. Now I am far more disciplined and in the offseason I force myself to eat ungodly amounts of clean food while cheating only once a week. That meal can be whatever the hell I want it to be but after that I am right back to stuffing my face with only high quality nutrients. This has made me much bigger while also keeping my bodyfat under control and also keeping my bloodwork within healthy levels.

Dusty, do you feel that this type of eating could work for most guys training and supplementing as you do, or do you feel your gifted genetically?

 

[Lenny]

This thread has been started hundreds of times and I never get sick of it. I think this is truly one of the great debates among bodybuilders that will never be won. The key is to find what works best for you and run with it. I for one have gone the "bulking route" as well as the "lean muscle gain route" and have found that perfect for me sits right between the two.

When I was younger I felt a kcal was a kcal so all I worried about was eating as much as possible and checking that scale each and everyday to ensure that I was getting HUGE! After losing all of that lard and coming to the realization that I was never HUGE, just a big fat ass I had to make some changes. Now I am far more disciplined and in the offseason I force myself to eat ungodly amounts of clean food while cheating only once a week. That meal can be whatever the hell I want it to be but after that I am right back to stuffing my face with only high quality nutrients. This has made me much bigger while also keeping my bodyfat under control and also keeping my bloodwork within healthy levels.

So, Dusty would you say the only difference between offseason and precontest nowadays is amount of calories because you are eating quality nutrients year around?? How many weeks do you prep for with lower calories if you do so and do you eliminate the one cheat meal from the get go of prepping or as you get closer to the competition?? Always interested on how others do things...I assume you do not carb cycle, but do moderate carbs throughout your prep if you stay in decent bodyfat ranges from offseason to precontest.

 

[MaTrlx]

Im a believer in eating big and doing everything in your power to keeping the bodyfat off while getting bigger....thats my plan.

So what do you do? You find your middle ground.

Everyone needs to find their middle ground of whats acceptable for them.

Pretty much sums up the topic imo. Finding middle ground is key, as the amount of calories needed as per individual is different.

Whatever that works for you may not work for others. Finding what works for you instead of "following the herd" is the key to making bodybuilding a enjoyable sport, in terms of gains and how you look.

 

[Dusty Hanshaw]

Dusty, do you feel that this type of eating could work for most guys training and supplementing as you do, or do you feel your gifted genetically?

I think this would work for anyone who is willing and able to put down enough clean food to intake the k cals they need to grow. I hear guys say things like "I can only grow if I eat dirty." but what they are really saying is that they are unable to eat enough clean calories to grow so the only way that they get to a level of calories that is a surpluss is by eating dirty foods.

 

[Dusty Hanshaw]

So, Dusty would you say the only difference between offseason and precontest nowadays is amount of calories because you are eating quality nutrients year around?? How many weeks do you prep for with lower calories if you do so and do you eliminate the one cheat meal from the get go of prepping or as you get closer to the competition?? Always interested on how others do things...I assume you do not carb cycle, but do moderate carbs throughout your prep if you stay in decent bodyfat ranges from offseason to precontest.

Yeah, there aren't many changes besides overall calories for me between precontest and offseason eating. As far as the cheat meal I can't really say when it will be eliminated if at all because that decision is based 100% on what the body does and what adjustments are needed to come into a show at your best. The body is an adaptive machine so it is important that you understand that there are no clear cut rules and that it is best to just watch the physique evolve and let it tell you what it needs. For example I hadn't been doing the cheat meal all offseason but after Chris gave me the okay to have one we took pictures. My body responded really well to the surpluss of calories and we have been doing it ever since. Will we always do this? WHo knows...

 

[Kaladryn]

Lets suppose a few things:

1. You are a highly trained bodybuilder, past his "genetic potential."
2. Your bodyfat is relatively low (abs mostly showing, vascularity most places), probably 8-10%.

Under these conditions, there is no way in hell you are going to GAIN MUSLCE while on a calorie restricted diet.

There is no way in hell you will LOSE BODYFAT with an excess of calories.

Therefor there is no way in hell you can "repartition" anything at all.

Now about the term "bulking" I hear this so often but I think it means something different to everyone. To me it means this: Eating an excess of calories so that you ensure you are gaining the absolute maximum amount of muscle possible, while gaining the minimum amount of fat. Under absolute ideal conditions, you could gain zero fat while bulking, but because we have no way of knowing our absolute exact amount of food needed, we eat a very tinny excess to ensure maximum gains. This could mean gaining one pound of fat every 3 months, as long as there is at least some excess.

Now on the flip side, take someone with subpar training, not on a "perfect" diet, and not past their genetic potential. Of course if you dial everything in perfect, you can achieve some muscle gain and some fat loss at the same time, however the muscle gain would be greater (however slight) if they didn't lose fat at the same time.

I hope this clears up my stance on this subject, I think that under the conditions I outlined above, most experienced bodybuilders would agree with me.

 

[godzillaballs]

"clean" calories. Lmao

 

[kscowboy]

i dont understand what is so "light years ahead" by saying that you should bulk and then cut...pretty standard practice. no disrespect to dante, it was a good post...he has a knack for explaining things to where they "click", but this isnt some revolutionary idea.

Not once did i quote him and say that his quote was light years ahead of its time. I SAID DANTE WAS!!!!!