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aggressive Cut or normal Cut what to you recommend ?

14 replies9 peopleApr 13, 2026☆ Follow
Summary

aggressive cut versus moderate cut while doing lots of cardio and lifting on reta

The original poster is already lean at 80 kg with visible abs, trains heavily, and eats 1800 calories on 2 mg reta weekly. Most replies warn that a deeper deficit will cost extra muscle and raise binge risk, while a few say restriction still works if protein stays high. The OP reports feeling fine on the drug despite past bad experiences with aggressive cuts and mainly wants lower body fat for looks rather than more muscle.

What this discussion establishesWhere people disagree

Some participants argue that hard restriction still produces the desired fat loss without major side effects if protein is adequate, while others insist any deficit beyond 500 calories is unnecessary and counterproductive at the OP's leanness.

Still open

Whether the OP will ultimately lose more muscle than necessary or rebound with bingeing once the cut ends

Nothing here is advice.

14 replies · 9 people
BlueHarbour19archiveopening postApr 13

I'm on 2 mg of reta per week, getting to the gym at least 4-5 days and adding 3-4 runs that are mostly long efforts between 10-30 km with some intervals thrown in. Right now calories are set at 1800, broken down as 180 g protein, 60 g fat, and the balance from carbs that usually lands between 80-120 g. I weigh 80 kg, already carry a decent amount of muscle, and sit at a lean enough level to see a 4-pack.

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CopperLedger65archiveApr 14

Your activity level plus the calories already look pretty aggressive. How are you holding up with all that volume? What's your age and rough body-fat percentage?

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WarmLedger35archiveApr 14

Just the gym sessions alone burn 300-500+ calories. Adding 10-30 km runs pushes that another 500-2700 depending on distance. At that point 1800 calories is basically the floor you should consider, not a deep cut. Most people only drop to 1200 when activity is light, and you're way past that.

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RustCompass29archiveApr 14

Running an aggressive deficit on top of daily cardio is basically asking for a binge later. I say that as someone who does cardio every single day.

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GreenMeadow54archiveApr 14

At your current leanness anything past a 500-calorie deficit is going to cost muscle. There's no reason to push harder than that. You'll lose some muscle either way, so why give up more than you need to?

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BlueHarbour19archiveApr 14
↳ replying to @CopperLedger65

Honestly this isn't my first aggressive cut. In the past I usually felt terrible all day, but this time even with twice the activity I feel fine thanks to the reta. Hunger is still there but nowhere near the level it reached on my last cut when I only did an hour of incline cardio a few times a week. I'd guess I'm around 11-15 % body fat because my upper abs show and I have some veins around the shoulders. I'm 21.

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IronThistle42archiveApr 14
↳ replying to @BlueHarbour19

So after everything you've said, it sounds like you don't actually need to lose weight and probably never have. Is that accurate?

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PatientLedger69archiveApr 14
↳ replying to @BlueHarbour19

Slower is almost always better because bigger calorie drops mean more muscle loss. You're young, so spending time building muscle might be smarter than chasing lower fat. At roughly 12 % you could probably drop another five pounds to reach 10 %, but after that further cutting tends to cause more problems than benefits. Climbing calories gradually usually brings better energy, more muscle, and a fuller look. Long cuts also drain glycogen so muscles start looking flat. Try not to stay in a deficit too long or too hard or you'll erase gym progress.

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SlowLantern46archiveApr 14

Do you want to feel sick?

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QuietSignal61archiveApr 14

I trained really hard last week and ate 1400-1800 calories most days, which put me in about a 1500-calorie deficit. Protein was high. Monday weigh-in showed four pounds lost, which was the goal. I also lost four pounds the first week by basically starving and probably lost muscle that way. So hard restriction does work if you want to push it.

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QuietSignal61archiveApr 14
↳ replying to @SlowLantern46

I was running even more than the original poster and didn't feel sick at all.

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SlowLantern46archiveApr 14
↳ replying to @QuietSignal61

Fair enough. Any big increase can cause that and then you're stuck for a week. The guy already trains a ton though. He doesn't need to raise calories. He's basically a machine with exercise and already has abs showing.

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CopperLedger65archiveApr 14

A slower cut leaves more energy to push harder in the weight room and actually build muscle instead of losing it. Use your age and hormones while they're at their peak by focusing on solid food, consistent training, and sleep. You're at the best point in your life for that, and it would be good to see you surpass what you expect.

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BlueHarbour19archiveApr 14

The main reason I started reta was to quiet the constant food noise from working full time in a bakery where it's impossible not to think about food and end up bingeing daily. When I binge I usually get angry and punish myself by running even farther. I don't care that much about carrying extra muscle. I just want to get leaner than I am now and see how low I can push body fat to judge my potential and how I'd look in terms of attractiveness.

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SlowLantern46archiveApr 14
↳ replying to @BlueHarbour19

Oh man, working in a bakery would destroy me.

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aggressive Cut or normal Cut what to you recommend ? · ZyraTrack Community