27 Dec Mini Cut To Drop Weight Fast (Without Losing Muscle)
A mini cut is a more extreme method to help you drop weight fast.
It involves cutting calories by a larger amount than normal but for a shorter time.
I don’t normally recommend extreme methods of dieting and fast weight loss, but there are some instances where it does make sense.
This article I’ll explain when to use a mini cut to drop weight fast and how to know if it’ll work for you.
Do You Need A Mini Cut To Drop Weight Fast?
If your goal is to lose weight fast, of course a mini cut sounds like a good idea.
Think about it though. You’ve tried quick fix after quick fix to drop weight.
Maybe you have some success initially, but you end up piling the weight back on.
Why?
It’s not because you need a different weight loss method.
You need to get yourself into the right starting position.
You can’t lose weight fast if you’re already eating 1200 calories or less.
And you won’t lose weight fast if you already have a habit of yoyo dieting.
If you’re attached to that number on the scale, or think carbs are bad for you, you’re not going to have success with a mini cut right now.
First, you need to spend time NOT trying to lose weight.
This means not restricting your food or trying to be in a calorie deficit.
Instead, your priority should be developing a healthy mindset around weight loss and healing your relationship with food whilst getting your metabolism in a better position.
Basically I wound’t recommend a mini cut right now if:
1. You’ve been eating less than 2000 calories per day for the last 6 months or longer
2. Binge eating is something you deal with
3. Being hungry bothers you a lot and you have to eat something every time you’re hungry
4. Life is stressful for you right now
5. You’ve got a lot of events coming up and you can’t see yourself tracking your food or restricting yourself at these events
You’ll respond better to a mini cut once you’ve spent time eating at maintenance and working on your mindset. Boring yes, but it’s either that or fail at another quick fix.
The good news is that you can still lose body fat and get leaner eating at maintenance using this method here.
How To Approach A Mini Cut To Drop Weight Fast Without Losing Muscle
A mini cut is hard to stick to.
You need to be mentally ready to be strict with your food choices for the duration of the mini cut.
Here are some recommendations to help you stick to a mini cut to drop weight fast:
- Plan your meals in advance.
This is where a meal plan can be useful. You’ll have less room to play with your calories and you need to make sure all your food fits in advance.
You can make your own meal plan by pre logging the food you plan to eat for the day. Then simply stick to what you’ve put in your food diary for the day.
To make it easy you can stick to the same meals for 7 days then change them. To help you manage your hunger, you can aim to stick to the same meal times too.
- Choose mostly whole foods to build your meals.
Every meal should have a protein source as the main ingredient. Then complete your meals with plenty of vegetables or fruit. This will help keep you full and give you the illusion of getting to eat more,
Limit snacks especially packaged ones. If you really need something between meals, stick to fruit (watermelon, berries, apple, pineapple), veggie sticks, cottage cheese or high protein greek yoghurt.
- Have one small treat at the end of the day.
Knowing you get a treat to look forward to daily helps prevent cravings and keep you motivated.
Make sure it’s a real treat and not some “high protein” or “low calorie” version unless you really love that. The idea is you don’t want to feel like you’re missing out. You get to lose weight fast and have your treat too.
You may think you’re fine and you can go without treats. In most cases, completely depriving yourself backfires. If you’ve never been able to stick to a diet before, try including a treat daily.
- Choose less ingredients not more.
Your meals don’t have to make sense or look pretty.
Grilled chicken and pineapple can be your lunch. You don’t need dressings or for it to look like a restaurant meal.
The less ingredients in your meals and the more basic they are, the better. Flavour your food with salt, spices and herbs when needed but keep it simple.
- Push your first meal back as late as possible.
You don’t have to do this if it doesn’t feel good for you…
If you don’t love eating breakfast then it can help to skip it or eat it later than usual.
Yes this is essentially intermittent fasting but you don’t have to follow some strict routine. Just push your first meal back a bit.
Some people find it easier to stick to lower calories and manage hunger when they start eating later in the day. See if it works for you.
- Eat majority of your meals at home.
It is easier to mostly eat at home during a mini cut. If you do eat out, you’ll need to be fussy.
Look up the menu in advance and choose the option that has the least ingredients- think a steak or grilled chicken with salad. Ask for dressing on the side if you get a salad. Stay away from fried food.
Say you’re going out with friends and the menu doesn’t have anything that suits… eat at home before you go and have a low calorie drink when you’re out.
Other people might think you’re too strict or get triggered by you. That’s their problem not yours. You need to stick to the plan and ignore the people who don’t understand your goals.
Also note your training volume should be lowered to manage recovery and less energy availability. The point of working out during a mini cut is to maintain as much muscle as possible. You are not weight training to build new muscle or to burn calories.
How To Set Up A Mini Cut To Drop Weight Fast
A mini cut is essentially a calorie deficit, just a larger one than normally recommended.
To set up a mini cut you’d calculate your calorie target the same way you’d do with a calorie deficit.
First, you need to estimate your maintenance calories. If you need help with this check out this article.
Then you subtract 30-35% off your maintenance calorie target.
Set your protein on the higher end: aim for around 1.2 grams per pound of body weight. This is to help keep you fuller for longer and preserve your muscle.
Carbohydrate and fats can fill in the remaining calories however you’d like.
Be strict with sticking to your calorie and protein targets for 2-6 weeks. Then you’re done.
Coming Out Of A Mini Cut
You don’t want to stay in a mini cut forever. The goal is to commit to it, stay consistent for the duration then stop.
If you stay in one for too long you will end up losing lots of muscle = goodbye feeling toned.
You’ll also start putting your health at risk. Getting all the nutrients your body needs to function optimally is hard if you’re eating very low calories.
It’s important to end a mini cut the right way so you don’t gain the weight back.
This is how a mini cut differs from just another quick fix.
There is an entry strategy and an exit strategy.
We’ve discussed the entry strategy: you need to get yourself into the right starting position for it to work.
The exit strategy involves coming out in a controlled manner so you don’t end up overeating.
A mini cut won’t destroy your metabolism but there might be some metabolic adaptation.
The calories you maintained your weight on before the mini cut are not the same as what you need to keep your new weight.
You have to find what your new maintenance calories are.
There are two ways to do this:
- You can reverse diet up to your new maintenance calories using this method here.
- Or you can calculate an estimate of your new calorie needs and start eating there.
Finally…
There are no shortcuts to sustainable weight loss.
Yes you can lose weight fast with a mini cut but you must have done the ground work first.
If you’re in the right position both physically and mentally, there is no harm in dropping weight fast.
But you don’t want to extend your mini cut forever otherwise you run the risk of losing too much muscle and creating health issues.
You need to wake up each day and choose to commit to the plan no matter what.
Go get what you want. It should be hard in the moment but it will be worth it for the results to come.
If you need more support and accountability to stay on track with your weight loss journey, you can reach out for coaching here.