by EM2WL | Jan 4, 2013 | Fitness Cycles (Periodization)
Do the terms “bulk” & “cut,” intrigue, yet scare (or confuse!) you at the same time? Are you ready to start really seeing results in your workouts, or at least just “look” like you workout? Incorporate (mini) fitness cycles for better results.
If you’ve followed our video series “Results: why you aren’t getting them and what you can do about it,” then you know that a huge reason that many people don’t see results from their workouts is that they are not being specific enough with their workout regimen. Being “hodgepodge” in our workouts is about the equivalent of not working out at all when it comes to changing your body composition. Bodies that you see and admire are not a result of being random in the gym. The knockout bods that you see on the covers of magazines are the result of specification or fitness cycles. Even if they don’t know it, their trainer does, and they do what the trainer says.
I’ve shared how I’ve incorporated fitness cycles into my own lifestyle, according to different times of the year, that work for me. I work on building strength and adding muscle in the winter (bulk), dedicate my warmer months to more endurance activities/ shedding any fat (cut), and even periods of randomness where I’m too busy to care, and not expecting any physique changes at all (maintain). For me this ends up being about 3-4 months per phase, but what if you’re not ready to dedicate months at a time to specific phases?
Enter: “mini” phases
Mini phases are a great way to introduce the specialization concept into your training. You take a short period of time, and dedicate your eating and exercise to a specific goal. You then repeat this process with a different goal. This could be as simple as dedicating 4 weeks to muscle building (mini-bulk) in between marathons, or inserting 1-2 weeks of higher cardio days into your 6+ month bulk (mini-cut) . Professional athletes, models, and competitors do this all the time, in the “off-season,” and you can too. It’s all about making the cycles work for you, your goals, and your lifestyle. If you want a more muscular physique, then you will want to incorporate “mini-bulks” into your routine as often as possible, so that when you arrive at your desired weight/body-fat percentage, you will have the look that you desire. This type of body recomposition is more appealing than just a wave of weight loss that leaves you just looking like a smaller version of your larger self, with lots of extra skin where fat used to be. You will instead take on a slower approach, giving your skin time to catch up and tighten around your ever firming figure. Doing regular mini-phases similar to this one will also keep your metabolism high because you’re not constantly “dieting” (lowers metabolism), but instead building muscle (increases metabolism). You will likely also reach your goal at a much higher weight than you originally thought, because your body has slowly replaced fat with youthful, lean, dense muscle of equal weight.
Curious about how to start your own “mini” phases or fitness cycles? Why not test it out yourself and let us know what you think?
Need a place to start? Here’s a 30-day, 2-phase plan to help kick-start your year, and provide a gentle intro to periodization. This mini-cycle plan will have everything you need to test the waters of bulk/cut cycles without a lengthy commitment.
by EM2WL | Jan 2, 2013 | Testimonials, Transformations
I was never one of those lucky ones who stayed thin without any effort. I have battled with my weight for as long as I can remember – always either being “on a diet” or totally out of control with my eating, at one point hitting an all-time high of 260 pounds ( a definite low point of my life…)
I have always been very successful at losing the weight, often losing 30, 40 or 50 pounds by eating at 1,200 calories a day or less, only to gain it all back plus more after hitting the inevitable plateau each and every time.
This time it had to be different. I was looking at turning 49, and had to find a way to make the weight loss “stick” this time. In November 2011, a friend introduced me to MFP, and once again, I began the 1,200 calorie a day diet. Over the course of about 5 months I lost 50 pounds, but then, just like every other time before, I hit that plateau. My natural reaction was to eat less and exercise more (which, as we all know, does not work…). The difference this time was my MFP friends. 
In the past, I would have gotten discouraged and quit, but this time I had support of my friends. Some of them saw that I was eating less and less and adding more and more cardio workouts. Several times I posted about getting discouraged and stuck, and several of my friends directed me to the Eat More 2 Weigh Less way of life.
In May of 2012, I joined the original EM2WL group on MFP and read, and read, and read. It all made sense in my brain, but I was terrified to take the plunge and raise my calories. I was only 10 pounds from my goal weight of 150 and could not imagine gaining any weight back yet again. There was a desperate battle going on in my brain. What I really wanted was to get to my goal weight, and then up my calories and work on maintaining – unfortunately, my body would not cooperate. I was stuck.
Over the next month or so, I upped my calories from 1,000 to 1,800, and then finally to 2,000 calories a day. I made it through that process without gaining any weight, and in fact over the next few months, I was able to slowly get down to my goal weight of 150. Imagine that! I was actually able to lose weight while eating more and actually feeling full and satisfied every day. Everything that I had read was true – “Trust the process”, “Have patience”, “Give your body time to heal”… It was all true! I could Eat More and Weigh Less!!!
After joining the EM2WL group on MFP, I gathered some like-minded friends and saw that those that were really happy with their progress had implemented weight lifting into their exercise programs. I also noticed that most of them were younger than me – much younger… I was looking at turning 50 in a few months and questioned if I could begin strength training at 50 – especially heavy lifting. I knew I would not want to go to a gym at 4:00 each morning, so that workout would have to be done from home, and I had no home gym equipment except for my “dreadmill”. DVDs would have to be my answer.
Once again, Kiki and my MFP friends steered me in the right direction: Cathe Friedrich. I purchased other types of weight training DVDs, but something about Cathe “clicked” with me. There is nothing rushed about her lifting, and she concentrates on perfect form. Since I had never lifted anything much heavier than a bag of groceries in my life, this was the perfect introduction into the world of weight lifting for me. I took it slow and gradually built up my little home gym, starting with light dumbbells and a step to use as a bench, and adding heavier dumbbells and eventually a barbell as time went on.
I have to say that the weight training has given me the most surprising results and truly changed the shape of my body. Even while maintaining my weight, I have continued to get smaller and “tighter”. I have gone from wearing a size 8 or 10 to a consistent size 6 (and even the occasional 4…) I have a feeling of strength and power that I have never experienced in my life. Even with my 50th birthday staring me right in the face, I feel better than I have ever felt in my life. If you are thinking you are too old, trust me… you are not!!! Pick up something heavy – you will not regret it!
Thanks to Kiki and all of my EM2WL friends, I have found a way of living that I know I can maintain for the rest of my life because I am not hungry! I have given my metabolism time to heal, trusted the process, and am able to easily maintain my weight for the first time ever — and all while eating more than 2,000 calories a day.
If you are stuck on a plateau, terrified of gaining back everything you have worked so hard to lose, and dreading a lifetime of starvation and deprivation, please learn everything you can about this process. Read the forums, ask questions, gather like-minded friends and jump in! You have to have patience, but it is so worth it! I only wish I had the knowledge I have today about 40 years ago… Trust the process – it works!
Thanks Kiki – YOU ROCK! ~Anitra
Have an EM2WL transformation to share? Willing to let us tag along on your journey? We’d love to see it! Be featured on our Transformation/Journey page by submitting your story to Success@EM2WL.com
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