forget cutting and bulking...how about balancing?

[the small soldier]

I've been trying to gain muscle mass for years and I always end up feeling too flat after "cutting" or too fat from "bulking" I've recently started to eat a huge surplus of calories and as I start to get fat I start to taper calories down slowly until I see fat melting (and muscles growing). Does anyone else find that cutting/bulking isn't giving them desired results? If so I suggest trying to play with calories and macronutrient balance. I've noticed I'm still getting stronger and leaner, but my muscles still look and feel full.

 

[desmond]

Google the phrase culking.

Layne Norton and Alan Aragon often talk of "culking", which "fuses the whole cutting & bulking cycle in to one slow, steady, refinement of the physique in terms of both size AND leanness. This is entirely possible to achieve, but the timeline is generally a period of years rather than months": see comments by Alan Aragon in .


http://www.alanaragon.com/bodybuild...ragon-will-brink-jamie-hale-layne-norton.html

 

[the small soldier]

interesting concepts in there good read bro.

 

[Big A]

i believe in what ur talking about bro, thats what im all about now.

 

[desmond]

Or doing 6 week bulk, 2 week cut cycles, again per Layne Norton:

"one of my favorite things to do to stay lean while adding muscle is cyclical dieting

I "bulk" in a caloric surplus of 500 above maintenance for 4-6 weeks then cut for 2 weeks in a 500 kcal/day deficit. This takes advantage of the metabolic swings that occur from changing things... ie you are very anabolic after a cut b/c your insulin sensitivity is very high and it is very easy to lose fat when you start cuttting after a bulk because leptin, T3, etc cutting hormones are all elevated."

I found this in another bodybuilding forum, so I'm not going to post a link as I think that's not permitted, however, simply googling some of the words would probably get it if you doubt its authenticity.

 

[SouthernLord]

Google the phrase culking.

Layne Norton and Alan Aragon often talk of "culking", which "fuses the whole cutting & bulking cycle in to one slow, steady, refinement of the physique in terms of both size AND leanness. This is entirely possible to achieve, but the timeline is generally a period of years rather than months": see comments by Alan Aragon in .


Bodybuilding Nutrition Roundtable: Alan Aragon, Will Brink, Jamie Hale, Layne Norton - AlanAragon.com - Fitness Based on Science & Experience

This is some good info!

I like the idea of obtaining a reasonable body fat level, then consuming mass quantities of clean food while getting brutally stronger and the whole time keeping your body fat in check with cardio and metabolic enhancers. After gaining a significant amount of LBM the body fat should come off relatively easy with a few dietary changes and maybe an increase in cardio activity. This is of course if you don't turn yourself into a slob gaining that LBM. I am testing this theory now lol.

 

[Maxwell89]

Am i right in thinking that Layne Norton's Cyclical Bulking and Alan Aragons Culking are the same thing?

So 6 week surplus to 2 weeks deficit???

Thanks, any help would be great!