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Upper — heavy
Monday| Exercise | Sets × reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Barbell bench press | 3 × 5–8 | 2–3 min |
| Barbell row | 3 × 6–10 | 2 min |
| Standing overhead press | 2 × 6–8 | 2 min |
| Lat pulldown | 2 × 8–12 | 1.5 min |
| Triceps pushdown | 2 × 10–15 | 1 min |
Cut without losing muscleA cutting workout planthe fat goes, the muscle stays.
Cutting means losing fat while keeping the muscle you've already built. It stands on three legs: a moderate calorie deficit, plenty of protein, and strength training that stays heavy. Here's the full plan — the workouts, how much to eat, and how to know it's working.
What cutting is
Three things that make a cut
The fat comes off because of the deficit. The muscle stays because of the training and the protein. Drop one of them and you get weight loss, not a cut.
A moderate calorie deficit
Eat a little less than your body burns — 10% to 25% below your TDEE. Too big a deficit costs you strength, sleep and muscle.
Plenty of protein
In a deficit protein moves to the top of the range: about 2.0 g per kg of bodyweight, spread over 3–4 meals.
Heavy training
Keep lifting heavy to give your body a reason to hold on to muscle. The goal on a cut is to keep your weights, not to break records.
Eating on a cut
How much to eat on a cut
Step 1: what your body burns. Start from your TDEE — the calories that keep your weight steady — based on age, height, weight, daily routine and training. Work it out in the TDEE calculator.
Step 2: the deficit. Take 10% to 25% off your TDEE. A good pace for a cut is losing 0.5% to 1% of your bodyweight a week — the leaner you are, the more it pays to stay on the slow side. The calorie deficit calculator works out the daily target, the weekly pace and when you'll reach your goal weight.
A TDEE of 2,500 calories, a 20% deficit → 2,000 calories a day
A 500-calorie daily deficit ≈ 0.45 kg a week
Step 3: protein. With strength training in a deficit — about 2.0 g per kg of bodyweight, so 140 g a day if you weigh 70 kg. Protein helps you keep muscle and it's filling, which helps when you're eating less. Get your exact target, and how much per meal, in the protein calculator.
The rest of your calories split between carbs and fats however suits you to sustain. Carbs before training help keep your performance up, and fats shouldn't be cut out altogether.
4 days a week
The cutting workout plan
Two upper-body and two lower-body sessions: one heavy and one moderate for each half. The main lifts stay heavy, and the accessories get slightly fewer sets than when building — so you still recover while eating less.
Lower — heavy
Tuesday| Exercise | Sets × reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Barbell squat | 3 × 5–8 | 2–3 min |
| Romanian deadlift | 3 × 6–10 | 2 min |
| Machine leg curl | 2 × 10–15 | 1.5 min |
| Standing calf raise | 2 × 10–15 | 1 min |
Upper — moderate
Thursday| Exercise | Sets × reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Incline dumbbell press | 3 × 8–12 | 2 min |
| Pull-up or lat pulldown | 3 × 8–12 | 2 min |
| One-arm dumbbell row (per side) | 2 × 8–12 | 1.5 min |
| Dumbbell lateral raise | 3 × 12–20 | 1 min |
| Dumbbell curl | 2 × 10–15 | 1 min |
Lower — moderate
Friday| Exercise | Sets × reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Leg press | 3 × 8–12 | 2 min |
| Bulgarian split squat (per leg) | 2 × 8–12 | 1.5 min |
| Hip thrust | 3 × 8–12 | 2 min |
| Machine leg extension | 2 × 12–15 | 1 min |
| Plank | 3 × 30–60 s | 1 min |
How to train on a cut
The rules that keep your muscle
- Keep your weights. If you squatted 80 kg for 5 reps at the start of the cut, the goal is to keep lifting close to that. A small drop in strength late in a long cut is natural; a sharp, steady drop is a sign the deficit is too big.
- Light weights for lots of reps don't “tone”. No kind of training burns fat from a particular spot. Being “toned” is what it looks like when fat comes off over muscle you've kept — and heavy load is what keeps it.
- Crunches don't take fat off your belly. They strengthen the abs, which is good, but fat comes off the whole body according to the deficit, in the order your body decides.
- Steps and cardio are a tool, not a must. They grow the deficit without cutting more food. A target of 7,000 to 10,000 steps a day, plus 2–3 moderate cardio sessions of 20–30 minutes a week, suits most people. Do them apart from heavy leg days or after them, not before.
- Sleep. Recovery is slower in a deficit, and short sleep makes you hungrier. At least 7 hours is part of the plan.
Still building a base, and training for less than a few months? The beginner gym workout plan works in a deficit too, with the same eating rules.
Tracking
How to know the cut is working
Your weight jumps around from day to day because of water, salt and carbs, so a single weigh-in doesn't say much. What does:
- A weekly average. Weigh in 3–7 times a week, in the morning under the same conditions, and compare this week's average with last week's.
- Waist measurement. Measure once a week at the same spot. It drops even when water keeps the scale stuck.
- Your training weights. If they hold, your muscle most likely holds too.
Average hasn't moved in two or three weeks? Take another 100–200 calories a day off or add steps, and keep tracking. As your weight drops your body burns less, so recalculate your TDEE every few kilograms.
In Fitshare you log a meal in a sentence or a photo and see calories and protein against your daily target, log a workout in a sentence, and weigh in — and the app shows your weight trend over time. More about the nutrition tracker.
Start tracking in the appNot medical advice. These guidelines are for healthy adults. Under 18, while pregnant or breastfeeding, with a medical condition, on medication that affects weight or with a history of disordered eating, plan a cut with a doctor or dietitian.
FAQ
Questions about cutting
How long does a cut take?
It depends how much fat you want to lose. At 0.5% to 1% of bodyweight a week, a 5 kg cut takes roughly 8 to 14 weeks. A particularly long cut can be split into stages, with a few weeks of eating at maintenance in between.
Can you build muscle while cutting?
Beginners, people returning after a break and people with more fat to lose — often yes, with a moderate deficit and enough protein. People who've trained for years and are fairly lean usually keep their muscle but don't add much. Either way, the first goal of a cut is to keep it.
How much protein should I eat on a cut?
For people who strength train, about 2.0 g per kg of bodyweight a day — the top of the 1.6–2.2 range that suits building muscle. At 70 kg that's roughly 140 g a day, for example 35 g at each of four meals. The Fitshare protein calculator works it out from your weight and goal.
Do I have to do cardio to cut?
No. What takes fat off is the calorie deficit, and you can create it from food alone. Cardio and steps help grow the deficit without cutting more food, and they're good for heart health — but they're an addition to strength training, not a replacement for it.
Why isn't my weight dropping despite the deficit?
Most often it's water — a salty meal, more carbs, your period or poor sleep can hide fat loss for a week or two. The second common reason is eating more than it seems: oil, sauces and snacks that weren't counted. Look at a two-to-three-week average, and if it hasn't moved, take 100–200 calories a day off.
More guides
After the cut
Get started
A cut you count, not guess
Download Fitshare, save a calorie and protein target, and log meals and workouts in a sentence. Your weight trend shows whether the deficit is working.