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Cutting without losing muscle

Cutting means eating in a calorie deficit to lose body fat while keeping the muscle you've built. Enough protein, lifting heavy and a sensible pace do most of the work.

3 min read Updated 4 sources

On this page
  1. Why the details matter
  2. Your cutting targets
  3. Step by step
  4. Keeping hunger down
  5. Common myths
  6. References

Why the details matter

Any deficit will lower the number on the scale. The goal of a cut is for that weight to be fat, not muscle. Three things protect muscle: lots of protein, continuing to lift heavy, and not losing weight too fast.

Research spotlight

Athletes who lost weight slowly (about 0.7% of body weight a week) gained lean mass and made bigger strength gains during their diet than athletes losing twice as fast, whose lean mass didn't change.

Garthe et al., 2011Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2011;21(2):97-104 [1]

Your cutting targets

0.5–1%Body weight lost a weekthe sweet spot for keeping muscle
2.0–2.4 g/kgProtein a daymore than when bulking
TargetGuideline
Calories10–25% below maintenance. See Calories
Rate of loss0.5–1% of body weight a week2
Protein2.0–2.4 g per kg of body weight a day3; very lean lifters may need up to 2.3–3.1 g per kg of lean mass2
FatAt least about 20% of calories
TrainingKeep lifting heavy. Your muscle needs a reason to stay
Cutting targets

Research spotlight

In a 4-week trial with a big calorie deficit and hard training 6 days a week, men eating 2.4 g of protein per kg gained 1.2 kg of lean mass and lost 4.8 kg of fat. Men eating half as much protein kept their lean mass level and lost 3.5 kg of fat.

Longland et al., 2016Am J Clin Nutr. 2016;103(3):738-746 [3]

Step by step

  1. Work out your maintenance calories, then take off 10–25%.
  2. Set protein first, keep fat at 20% of calories or more, and fill the rest with carbs.
  3. Keep lifting with the same weights and intensity; drop some volume if recovery suffers.
  4. Weigh yourself 3–4 times a week and compare weekly averages.
  5. Every 2–3 weeks, if you're losing slower than 0.5% a week, take off another 100–200 kcal or add some steps.
  6. Plan the end: spend a few weeks at your new maintenance before you bulk or cut again.

Keeping hunger down

  • Protein at every meal. It's the most filling macronutrient.
  • Fill up on volume. Vegetables, fruit, soups and salads give you lots of food for few calories. See Fruit and vegetables.
  • Fibre and water slow digestion and keep you full.
  • Sleep 7–9 hours. Short sleep makes you hungrier.
  • Consider diet breaks. Alternating 2 weeks of dieting with 2 weeks at maintenance led to more fat loss for the same number of dieting weeks in one trial4.

Common myths

MythYou need hours of cardio to cut.

FactThe deficit comes from diet first. Cardio helps you burn a bit more and is good for your health, but lifting is what protects your muscle.

MythCarbs stop fat loss.

FactA calorie deficit works whatever mix of carbs and fat you eat. Keeping some carbs around training helps you keep your strength.

MythYou'll lose muscle whatever you do.

FactWith enough protein, heavy lifting and a sensible pace, many lifters keep all their muscle during a cut, and newer lifters can even gain some.

Track this in NutriLog

Cut with the numbers on your side

Set a fat-loss plan, log meals with barcode scans, and let the weight tracker's trend line show your real rate of loss.

Free to use. No card needed.

Set up a cut

References

  1. Garthe I, Raastad T, Refsnes PE, Koivisto A, Sundgot-Borgen J. Effect of two different weight-loss rates on body composition and strength and power-related performance in elite athletes. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2011;21(2):97-104. doi:10.1123/ijsnem.21.2.97
  2. Helms ER, Aragon AA, Fitschen PJ. Evidence-based recommendations for natural bodybuilding contest preparation: nutrition and supplementation. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2014;11:20. doi:10.1186/1550-2783-11-20
  3. Longland TM, Oikawa SY, Mitchell CJ, Devries MC, Phillips SM. Higher compared with lower dietary protein during an energy deficit combined with intense exercise promotes greater lean mass gain and fat mass loss: a randomized trial. Am J Clin Nutr. 2016;103(3):738-746. doi:10.3945/ajcn.115.119339
  4. Byrne NM, Sainsbury A, King NA, Hills AP, Wood RE. Intermittent energy restriction improves weight loss efficiency in obese men: the MATADOR study. Int J Obes (Lond). 2018;42(2):129-138. doi:10.1038/ijo.2017.206

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