Table of Contents
Introduction
Whether you’ve been wanting to lose the fat that’s been nagging on you or simply bulking off, a lot of us want an effective program that can help us destroy fat, while preserving those well-earned muscles.
Remember that while stripping away fat, it’s almost impossible to gather mass because you need to eat fewer calories to lose weight and you have to take in more calories to gain weight, generally speaking.
Below we’ve got some effective bodybuilding workouts for cutting. If implemented properly and consistently, you can expect to get cut and shredded in no time!
Best Bodybuilding Workout to Get Cut:
As aforementioned, during this time you should focus mainly on losing fat and not on building muscle. And, don’t forget that it is not possible to do both at the same time.
Also, you need to keep in mind that in the cutting phase, you will have less energy. That’s because you’re going to be restricting calories and carbohydrates. Always remember that you have to get rid of extra calories, while benefiting from the weight training program and not gaining muscle.
There are many methods and types of workouts to get cut. Feel free to try out a wide range of programs that suit your needs, or even variations of the workouts listed below.
Here are a few things you need to think about while doing workouts in a cutting phase:
Concentrate on larger muscles – The main reason why it is recommended to focus on larger muscles is that it burns more calories. When you burn more calories, you tend to lose more weight faster. Therefore, focus more on the muscles like the chest, back, abdominals, and legs.
Concentrate on compound exercises – When it comes to burning more calories, compound exercises are the best bet. For example, take leg extensions and compare them to squats.
You are more focused on quads in leg extensions. But, in squats, your focus is on glutes, hamstrings, quads, etc.
The heart rate should be up during workouts – If you aretaking about 2 to 3 minutes to rest in between sets, it may be fine for some workouts. But, if your intention is to burn significantly more calories, you won’t get as far by doing that.
We’d recommend taking shorter rest periods that equate to about 30 to 45 seconds between sets.
When you consider those three things, there are, essentially, two kinds of workouts. Circuit training is the first one, which is designed to be a cardiovascular type of workout combined with weight lifting.
Hypertrophy specific training, or HST, is the second one that focuses on major muscle groups and uses a compound type of exercise.
Option #1: Circuit Training
This kind of training is perfect for a cut because it is a robust cardiovascular workout and has the advantages of weight training, such as strength gain.
Keep in mind that you may not have as much energy during the cutting stage, so do not overstep your limits. For circuit training, you have to pick around 5 to 8 kinds of exercises that work on the entire body.
After you have completed each of the exercises in a row, you have completed 1 circuit. You have to perform 2 to 3 circuits to complete the entire workout.
As mentioned earlier, you can go through it really intensely if you’re in good enough shape. Or, if you’d like, you can take a very short rest period of about 10 to 20 seconds before getting back at it again.
Another thing you can do is perform some kind of cardio between those exercises. For example, skip for about 20 to 45 seconds, which will keep the heart rate up and continually burn calories.
Also, don’t forget to pace yourself properly. Nothing’s worse that reaching your breaking point in your first circuit when you still have another 2 to 3 sessions to go!
The exercises – It is recommended to perform the below exercises in the following order:
- Bench press (dumbbells or barbell)
- Chin-ups (bodyweight)
- Shoulder press
- V-ups
- Side bends
- Squats
- Stiff legged deadlifts
Between exercises – You don’t need to take a break between exercises, if you are up to it. Hence, get ready to have a pretty intense workout.
If you need the rest, try to keep it to 10 to 20 seconds between each exercise. Just ensure that your heart rate continues to stay high. Or, you can inject cardio for about 20 to 45 seconds between lifts.
The number of circuits – When you complete all of the exercises above, it’s considered 1 circuit. Some people like the idea of 3 circuits. If 3 circuits is a bit much, there’s no shame in 2 circuits.
The number of repetitions – It is not recommended to go for a very low repetition range. Around 8 to 12 repetitions are recommended. When you feel like doing more, feel free to shoot for 15 repetitions.
Many people tend to go for more than 20 repetitions, but it’s up to you. When you go for the 8 to 12 range, you’re working more on strength.
Intensity – As mentioned earlier, you should be working in a way such that the heart rate remains high. If the rate is too low, you aren’t going to burn enough calories.
Keep in mind, however, that if you’re going too hard in the beginning, you won’t be able to complete your specific circuits. If you’ve completely exhausted yourself after the first two exercises, the remaining will suffer.
Frequency – The frequency should be 2 to 3 times a week. You want to avoid overtraining because that may push your entire phase backward.
Changing the exercises – It is important to change up your exercises. When you don’t mix things up, there is a risk of getting bored with your workouts.
It is recommended to change your workouts every 2 months. For example, you may want to try close grip chin-ups in place of chin-ups.
Option #2: HST or Hypertrophy Specific Training workout
HST is another good option you can opt for while cutting. It works on the major muscle groups, utilizing primarily compound exercises. Hence, it is very suitable during this phase. Hypertrophy Specific Training is designed to work your full body in a single workout.
But, instead of doing, say, 9 sets in a single workout, you can spread it throughout the entire week. Completing 9 rounds for every body part in a complete body workout can be a daunting task.
There are many ways to perform HST workouts. Certain programs recommend doing a single exercise per muscle group for the whole workout.
On the flip side of that, there are other programs that provide two exercises per muscle group. Either way works, it’s simply a matter of your own personal preference.
Exercises – Feel free to pick exercises of your choice that work the below muscle groups. The number next to each muscle group is the number of different exercises you should perform.
- Chest – 2
- Back – 2
- Shoulders – 2
- Legs – 2
- Calves – 1
- Abdominals – 3 for lower abs, upper abs, and obliques
- Arms – total 2, 1 for triceps and 1 for biceps
Sets – Below are the number of sets to perform for each exercise.
- Chest – 3
- Back – 4
- Shoulders – 3
- Legs – 4
- Calves – 2
- Abdominals – 3
- Arms – 4, 2 for triceps and 2 for biceps
Repetitions – It is recommended to perform about 8 to 12 repetitions per set. If you start doing more than 20 repetitions, you may or may not find it more difficult to stay consistent.
Hence, it is better to keep within the said limits. Also, you should avoid low repetitions per set; try to keep it above 5.
Rest – As you can see, you have your work cut out for you. It is recommended not to take rest too long in between sets. Keeping in mind your heart rate, the ideal resting time should be between 25 to 45 seconds, up to a maximum of 60 seconds.
Frequency – A minimum of at least 3 times a week should be the frequency of your workouts. Avoid overtraining, and drop to 2 times per week if you feel that your body needs extra recovery time.
Altering the exercises – Alter your exercises every 2 months so that you don’t get bored.
Conclusion
A cutting workout is specifically designed to improve oxidation and burn fat deposits.
The progress you make in your workout routine and how fast you make it depends on things such as nutrition, rest, recovery, supplementation, and of course, genetics.
The results could be quite shocking when proper training, diet, cardio, and supplements are all combined together. We hope this helps, and best of luck in your cutting journey!
