# lower cals on off days



## Guest (Jan 20, 2013)

Who if any one lowers calories on the off days? I don't mean go into a defecit. Just dropping some carbs but still keeping with in a surplus.

Good or bad idea? To me it seems it could minimise fat gains


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## arnoldisnumerou (Jan 7, 2009)

I try to minimise my carbs if I can't make the gym for a few days can't say it's been too effective


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2013)

arnoldisnumerou said:


> I try to minimise my carbs if I can't make the gym for a few days can't say it's been too effective


hmm, how long you been trying that for\?


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## flinty90 (Jul 1, 2010)

thing is cutting down things the days after a workout etc is not helping the body repair IMO maybe dropping a tiny amount of pre workout carbs on days off , but i personally wouldnt drop too much out of it . your body doesnt just need fuel when training it needs the nutrients to repair when your resting too !!

just my opinion of course


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2013)

flinty90 said:


> thing is cutting down things the days after a workout etc is not helping the body repair IMO maybe dropping a tiny amount of pre workout carbs on days off , but i personally wouldnt drop too much out of it . your body doesnt just need fuel when training it needs the nutrients to repair when your resting too !!
> 
> just my opinion of course


Yes mate. I am on about just dropping a scoop of oats and maybe a little bit of fat so about 200 cals. But will still keep me in a 300+ surplus


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## Bigfoot1985 (Aug 29, 2012)

I read that on IF then on non training days you would cut right down and people have had good results from it


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## DazUKM (Nov 22, 2012)

^ science mofo view of Different Calories On Training Vs Nontraining Days


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## DazUKM (Nov 22, 2012)

conclusion of that vid: fat n broteins can take 48-72 hours to absorb all the cals so attempting to change cals on off days is :death:


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## Little_Jay (Feb 6, 2006)

i just dont have my intra/post workout stuff, all stuf the same aprt from that


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2013)

Little_Jay said:


> i just dont have my intra/post workout stuff, all stuf the same aprt from that


Yeah I'd loose a pre workout and then the post workout oats/sugars etc.


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## Greenspin (Dec 27, 2010)

Jd123 said:


> Who if any one lowers calories on the off days? I don't mean go into a defecit. Just dropping some carbs but still keeping with in a surplus.
> 
> Good or bad idea? To me it seems it could minimise fat gains


If you think about it mate, dropping from a large surplus, to a medium/low surplus should not make a difference to gains in muscle, as both levels are surplus to muscle repair/gains, I.e., not required. So it would make sense to just be in a small surplus every day; though, it would be easier to be in a large surplus, in terms of making sure you are definitely not in a deficit...


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## Bigfoot1985 (Aug 29, 2012)

I read that having 2 low days a week will give you results on a cut. Then other days you would just eat your normal daily intake


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2013)

Greenspin said:


> If you think about it mate, dropping from a large surplus, to a medium/low surplus should not make a difference to gains in muscle, as both levels are surplus to muscle repair/gains, I.e., not required. So it would make sense to just be in a small surplus every day; though, it would be easier to be in a large surplus, in terms of making sure you are definitely not in a deficit...


Worked out that my maintenance was around 2400 per day, and have been eating at 2800 so I'm not too high over. But like you said as long as I am still in a surplus I should be good to go?


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## Greenspin (Dec 27, 2010)

Jd123 said:


> Worked out that my maintenance was around 2400 per day, and have been eating at 2800 so I'm not too high over. But like you said as long as I am still in a surplus I should be good to go?


If your actual maintenance calorie requirement/day is 2400, then you need to be in a surplus that will support your rate of growth, which will change. I don't know what that will be for you personally, but if using AAS then I guess it will need to be increased at a greater rate. Unless you do some serious nerding up on your diet's stats in relation to your weight gains, then I'd say stick with what you're on, if it's not making you add to much fat (or you're happy with the fat gains); or if you want to experiment, reduce the number of kcals by maybe 100, and see how strength gains are affected, plus weight gains, and etc. It can be really complicated, or easy. Your choice really. But in terms of the use of the English language, yes, if you're in a large surplus to muscle gains, you could reduce it to a small surplus to muscle gains, without it affecting the actual muscle gains.


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2013)

Greenspin said:


> If your actual maintenance calorie requirement/day is 2400, then you need to be in a surplus that will support your rate of growth, which will change. I don't know what that will be for you personally, but if using AAS then I guess it will need to be increased at a greater rate. Unless you do some serious nerding up on your diet's stats in relation to your weight gains, then I'd say stick with what you're on, if it's not making you add to much fat (or you're happy with the fat gains); or if you want to experiment, reduce the number of kcals by maybe 100, and see how strength gains are affected, plus weight gains, and etc. It can be really complicated, or easy. Your choice really. But in terms of the use of the English language, yes, if you're in a large surplus to muscle gains, you could reduce it to a small surplus to muscle gains, without it affecting the actual muscle gains.


Will probably just keep it the same. Like you said will make it easier. And yeah when I stop gaining will be sure to increase


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## L11 (Jan 21, 2011)

I do, but only because I train first thing so I have porridge at 6am, the proper breakfast after the gym..

If i'm not training I just have proper breakfast at 6ish


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## dtlv (Jul 24, 2009)

D9S4 said:


> ^ science mofo view of Different Calories On Training Vs Nontraining Days


"Dietary fat and protein can take up to 48-72 hours to absorb"... hmmm, have never seen any credible (reliable method) clinical studies demonstrating a slower transit time than around 24 hours [time scale for absorption of all nutrients, inc trace minerals]... the very slowest absorption rate comes from fatty red meats which usually take 5-8hours to reach the large intestine and then up to 16 hours to the point of total extraction... but even here most of the nutrients are excreted prior to reaching the large intestine, with barely a fraction left to be absorbed after the first 8 hours or so... the large intestine functions mostly as the site where minerals and vitamins trapped within dietary fiber are absorbed and those fibers and resistant starches are broken down by bacterial action to synthesise vitamin k, and short chain fatty acids. There is also simple storage of fecal matter, and any delay in total transit time beyond this simply represents that delay.

The large intestine also acts as a site for maintaining fluid balance by removing water from waste matter... the idea that what you ate on monday is still providing significant amounts of protein and fat to your system on wednesday just isn't right... if it was true then diets like IF, targeted keto, and carb backloading wouldn't have the metabolic effects that they do, and tracer experiments with radioactive amino acids would show different release patterns also.

I do think he's got some of it right on the general stuff about recovery and growth though, although he doesn't seem aware that the growth phase is different between newbie trainers and others... in newbs muscle protein synthesis does take 48hrs or so, but in people with more than just a few months training this window shortens to around 28 hours, and compacts so that most of the growth takes place in the first 4-6 hours after a workout (about 50% in this time, 40% in the next 12 hours or so and the remainder in the next 10 hours). In newbs the pattern is less bunched up towards the start of the window and more level for 36-48 hrs, so what he's saying maybe does have some relevance to newbs, but not for people who have been consistently training for more than just a few months.

In respect of cycling calories I don't think there is any detriment to it at all, although not convinced there is any anabolic or fat burning advantage either. I do it myself when lean bulking but simply for the reason of comfort... am not a big eater and get intestinal discomfort and highly suppressed appetite if I eat loads every day. By eating bigger for two days and backing off for a day I find my appetite resets nicely and I feel refreshed from a day of not feeling bloated. I usually make this my non training day.


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