Q&A Part 1

So basically this past month and a half, I've been focusing mainly on lifting and getting stronger, and I must say that I've made some satisfactory gains. Right now I want to get back into the cardio shape that I was before, but at the same time I don't want to sacrifice too much strength along with it.

At this point I'm trying to add more definition with a "mini cut"...in other words cutting cals but not by that much while attempting to lift just as much (or as close to it as I can) as I am currently.

I'm sorry to bother you, but I was just wondering if there's any advice you could give me (i.e.-Program, approach, etc.). Thank you for your time!

-G

I have a couple of suggestions. If you can keep the intensity up, keep following your lifting program. Now, the main issue is recovering properly, so there are several things you can do to help that. First, make sure you're consuming tons of protein. You don't have to go crazy, but you want around 1.5g per lb of bodyweight.

There are several reasons why I recommend this much protein. First, the body needs protein to recover, especially on a cut, so it's better to be safe than sorry. Second, protein does two things in the body better than carbohydrates do: It suppresses the hormone Ghrelin (which makes you hungry) and stimulates PYY (which makes you feel full). Again, protein does this better than carbohydrate, so on a cut when you're more likely to feel hungry, eating some protein rather than carbohydrate (don't cut carbs out completely obviously, you need those to recover too) can help you feel fuller.

Second, of all the macronutrients, protein has the highest Thermic Effect of Food (TEF). This is essentially the calories that your body burns just to digest the macronutrient. Protein has the highest TEF, so it makes sense to eat a lot of it, to try and burn more calories. Now, it's not a huge part of the day (I think TEF accounts for like 5-10% of all calories burned) but every little bit helps.

So, now that that's covered, let's talk about recovery. You said you're wanting to get into better cardio shape as well. I suggest steady state cardio rather than HIIT. HIIT can be quite taxing on the nervous system, which reduces intensity in the weight room, where you need as much intensity as possible to reduce strength loss (or even gain strength).

I have no idea why, and this is pretty anecdotal, but I find that the nervous system recovers better when eating at a surplus. For this reason, HIIT while on a cut really batters the body, while SS cardio allows you to get the conditioning work in, burn some calories, and still recover.

Finally, if you find that you're still not able to keep intensity up in the weight room, cut some volume. For example, if you were doing 3x5 at 135 on the bench press earlier, drop it to 1x5 of 135, or maybe even (since there are fewer sets) 1x5 of 140 or 145. You have to keep the weight high to mitigate strength loss. That's because it's easier for the body to maintain than it is for the body to gain- so even if you're having issues, you can come out of the cut with the same level of strength.

Now, I think that you should be able to actually gain strength through the cut. As you know, you won't be able to build muscle, since that requires eating at a surplus, but there are other factors that serve to increase strength. Neurological factors play a huge role in increasing strength, and there are also microadaptions that occur. Both of those things can (and do) happen while eating at a deficit, so I'm fairly confident that you'll be able to keep gaining strength.

Basically, do steady state cardio on your off-days, keep lifting with a strength program, eat lots of protein, and if recovery is getting compromised, cut volume in the strength program while keeping intensity up.

Sorry that was so long, I got sidetracked and I enjoy talking about this stuff.