Reflecting on My 2024 Cutting Phase

My cut officially ended July 7, 2024

The day previously I ate hot dogs and Oreos, but somehow managed to keep my calories around maintenance (~3,200)

I'm excited to drink whole milk every day again. 1% milk was good to me during the cut, but I'm ready for that full fat milk – my favorite beverage.

Here is the end of cut picture, 2 days after finishing my cut, 1 day after my Oreo and hot dog feast. Weekly average weight = 196.9 lbs

This picture is from the 7th week of my cut. My weekly average weight was 200 lbs at this point

And this one is from day 1 after a 12 month bulk. The average weekly weight was 211 pounds.

Overall I'm happy with the 10 week process. It's too bad I injured my shoulder during the third week of this cut, which prevented me from training my chest, shoulders, and triceps the way I would have liked, but I think I managed well enough.

I'll maintain for the month of July and then embark on a slow bulk with a slight surplus for ~8 months. I may continue the bulk for a full 12 months, like I did last year, but only if I'm still at reasonable body fat levels. I let myself get a little too fat on my last bulk and probably should have begun my cut 1-2 months earlier than I did.

Now that I know I can sustainably cut with just a 400-600 calorie deficit, without feeling low on energy or starved, I'll approach future cutting phases with a much more positive attitude. 

I truly enjoyed this year's 10 week cutting process. 

In the past, I usually just avoided cutting altogether or I'd crash cut for 4-6 weeks, lose weight along with muscle and not make any significant changes to my body fat levels. 

I finally figured things out this time. What can I say – I'm a stubborn donkey and a slow learner.