Cutting

[Ivegotsunshineinabag]

Can someone explain, so an idiot like me can understand, the difference between cutting and calorie deficit?

I’ve spent months building muscle through progressive overload, with cardio, eating protein. The results from the Boditrax machine in the gym are positive. Great muscle, water, bone %. Fat Free Mass index is great. It’s all brilliant, except my BMI is still over and, if you looked at me, you’d say fat. Lots of jiggle.

So I need to cut? Or just put myself in calorie deficit?
I exercise a lot. Do I cut down and eat less for a bit? Or just eat less?

I'm sure someone more experienced will be along, but my understanding is they are similar. My coach is doing one, and basically you just gradually reduce in the same way you gradually increased (if you did that). So cut 100 calories for a couple of weeks, see how that is..stay there if the weight is shifting, or cut further when it plateaus. My coach has upped the cardio during the cut. I don't know exactly but I imagine the science is that metabolism has several components - your BMR which will naturally decrease if you get smaller in size, your NEAT (how much you move, fidget), which will decrease if you have less calories, you will notice yourself wanting to be still more, and consciously have to make an effort not to, thermoegnic effect of food (especially protein which is seveal times higher than carb) which will also lower if you have less food, calories burned through exercise (not as many as you think hence why upping NEAT is good) but helps maintain muscle and muscle is metabolically more active so that will help. My experience / understanding is go slow, as fast weight loss usually results in muscle loss too.