HOW TO MINI CUT TO LOSE WEIGHT FAST | BUILD MUSCLE AND LOSE FAT AT THE SAME TIME (Mini Cut 101)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.พ. 2025
- Mini cut 101. In this video I give you a full guide on how to minicut. This is the best way to lose weight fast while building or at least maintaining your muscle. We cover:
1. Goals, advantages, and disadvantages of a mini cut
2. Mini cut organization: how long, weight loss targets, rate of weight loss
3. Diet plan setup: size of calorie deficit, macros
4. Tips & tricks: how to make your fat loss phase easier
5. Training and cardio during mini cuts
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About me: I'm a medical doctor and natural men’s physique athlete based in Vancouver, Canada. I seek to share science-based perspectives to help people lose fat and gain muscle. These will reflect the current expert consensus in the scientific bodybuilding community. I‘m lifetime drug-free and have been training since 2012.
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Disclaimers: Consider seeing a physician to assess your readiness before beginning any fitness program. Information presented here is to be applied intelligently in the individual context. I do not assume liability for any loss incurred by using information in this video.
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#MiniCut #WeightLoss #BodyRecomposition
Check out my best tips for making fat loss easier here: th-cam.com/play/PL-U2jvez_hi9_jzjoypr8aKVh_j2BzfZo.html
I can tell you are natural and i don't mean that in a negative way. You look great and realistic. Most youtubers are jacked up on who knows what and their advice doesn't apply to 95% of people watching. Thanks for taking time to make these videos, subscribed!
Thank you! That means a lot. Glad you found the channel
What are your goals?
I just did my first serious bulk but i jumped up in body fat %. I just started a mini cut. I find cutting easier than eating so much in a bulk.
It has been a while since I checked your channel out. You definitely got bigger. And btw, thanks for making your videos packed with useful information.
Thanks man! Appreciate the kind words
How has your progress been recently?
@@DrSwole @Ask Dr. Swole Unfortunately the gyms has been closed in my country (Denmark) for the last 5 months. I tried to do some workout at home, but it's not very effective tbh.
So I gained some fat, and lost some muscle mass.
I hope they open again in April :)
Maybe you can do a video about how to start working out after a long break?
Just a suggestion.
@@samitabbakh8409 Thanks for the suggestion!
@@samitabbakh8409 have you seen my videos on home training? Might be helpful! th-cam.com/play/PL-U2jvez_hi9QhqD-LxeXAlkJ1zuFJZO3.html
Hey, I love the video. I'm running my first minicut now. Was at 3800 calories on my bulk last week and now at 2800 for the mini cut, trainings going goood so interested to see how it turns out 💪😊
Absolutely brilliant content as always!!! 👍🏼👍🏼
Thanks 🙏🏼 good to see you in the comments!
How has your progress been?
listened to a few of your podcasts, great succinct content. keep it up
Glad to hear you appreciate the content!
What are your goals?
@@DrSwole Right now looking to cut down for the next 4 weeks, continue to maintain or slightly build strength, and get ready for miami trip!
@@maxweisenthal nice! Wish I was going to Miami ahah
Looking big, my dude!
Thanks bro!
How’s your progress been?
@@DrSwole pretty good man! Just bumped up intensity and volume slightly from last week!
@@EmpoDaddy99 good stuff dude!
@@DrSwole thanks man!
Great video! Is a viable cutting strategy stringing together 2-4 week aggressive mini cuts with 1-2 week diet breaks in between each?
Another great video man
Thanks man! Appreciate the support
Have you done mini cuts before?
Great info on Mini Cuts! I plan to do one in the future and will use this advice. My last cut lasted a whopping 24 weeks but I finally got around 12% BF. I think I'm only going to do lean bulks and mini cuts from here on out.
Glad to hear you got the fat off! That’s a solid strategy
Do you think you built muscle during your last cut?
@@DrSwole Hmm that's a good question. I probably didn't gain much since my strength did drop slightly but thankfully not by too much. I've definitely noticed some muscle improvement 3 months into this bulk and will likely do a mini-cut soon. Thanks again Doc!
@@lolfirepoisonftl cool! Muscle isn’t that easy to lose if you cut correctly. Glad to hear you’re getting the hang of things
I am starting a 4 week mini cut this week in prep for my wife and I traveling to celebrate our 10 year anniversary. I have been doing a 3 day/week full body split for the past 3-4 months. Would you recommend keeping lifting training volume relatively the same during this mini cut? Thanks for all your expert advice!
What should I do after the mini cut? Should I reverse diet or just bring my cals back up to where they're before my 3 week cut?
Awesome video brother
Thanks bro!
Do you use mini cuts?
Love the video. I have been bulking for about 3 months now coming out of a Recomp/cut. I was at 9% BF but somehow managed to gain 13 pounds in such a short amount of time. I did a body analysis and came out at 15% BF so I’m assuming I’m at too high of a surplus(but my strength has gone up a lot). Would you recommend I do a mini cut and start over with a lean bulk?
Hey Dr Swole, long time fan here! Can you elaborate on how this differs from a normal cut? I tend to do 500cal deficit anyway
Hey man! Good question... there’s no hard definition but I’d call it a mini cut for the short time frame and relatively* aggressive deficit. Most of the principles are the same as for other fat loss phases
How long do your cuts usually last?
currently on a mini cut, on week 4 of 5. this is a great vid!
How is it going?
@@Notoriousnipple down 5 lbs in 3 weeks hopefully gonna loose another 3ish lbs\
Glad to hear it’s going well! 👌🏼
Hey Dr, Can you please make one video mentioning Ryan Crowley injury. What is the possible cause of that and how can we avoid such incident.
Mm thanks for the suggestion
Have you been injured before?
@@DrSwole Minor pain in tennis elbow and wrist happened most of times. Isn’t doing bodybuilding everyone face this, what you say ?
@@entervikas I think some minor pains are pretty common, as long as they don’t become chronic injuries!
Hi dr Swole. I watched a lot of your video’s recently, and they awnsered a lot of the questions i had. A few minutes ago I watched the video about mini cutting, how do i make sure im losing fat and not just losing weight? I still got a lot of questions coming, if you don’t mind I’d like to get awnsers from you some day.
Do you have a recommendation for best literature review source you utilize for your scope of fitness content? Thanks! Great video!
I draw quite a bit from podcast discussions I do with researchers in the field, and following them on social media. MASS is a great resource if you want to really get into it
What resources have you been using?
@@DrSwole Not currently using any source in particular. Just looking into the literature on my own but was thinking about MASS because of the student discount haha and easier to digest more at once. Thanks for your input!
@@karacrump glad to help!
Thank you Doctor!
I'm an intermediate lifter, I've been bulking for 5 months and want to go into a Minicut. I took a 3 week break where I only lifted once a week and ate at maintainance. Now I want to start the cut in a pretty big deficit and keep training like usual, right?
My problem is that I now get really sore after my workouts if I use my usual weight (I dont't have trouble maintaining my strength and I dont do that much volume). It takes around 3-5 days until I feel ready again to hit the same muscle group. What should I do? I'm afraind to lose muscle when I workout that rarely but I'm also afraind to lose muscle if I go down with the weight.
What to do after mini cut? how to transition?
Great question. I typically just go back into lean bulking, aiming for a certain rate of weight gain to guide me
Have you carried out a cut before?
@@DrSwole Thanks doc, not my first time cutting, but first time on a mini cut, subscribed by the way
I've been experimenting with fat-adapted fasting as a quick fat loss method. No carbs, eat in a surplus, only lift on fed days. Supplement electrolytes, drink plenty of water, and do some fat-adapted fasted cardio (with yohimbine!) if you're a real masochist. There isn't a better way to lose fat and preserve muscle than this, and I'm going to die on this hill. ADF is superior to even the most agressive mini-cut, PSMF or IF style diet.
My 2.5 week ADF cutting protocol: 36 hour fasting windows, 12 hour eating windows, no carbs. Full-body lifting sessions on fed days, and a combo of 10 minutes HIIT, followed by 40 minutes of LISS on fasted days. Absolutely sickening cheat day at the end.
Over the course of two weeks, I fast for 36 hours, 7-8 days in total (counted by sleeps), and I lose anywhere from 6-10 lbs of straight fat while retaining all of my muscle mass (Measurements stayed almost exactly the same each time I've done this). I stay under 20g of carbs per fed day (30g max) for the duration of the cut, and I eat only fat, protein, and some veggies. I usually go for a 300 calorie surplus on fed days boosts recovery and to keep myself satiated. I take a multivitamin every fed day, and I make sure to get in a lot of good quality Leucine-rich protein (the amino acid that depletes the most during fasts). On fasted days, things are simple. I just drink water and supplement the big 3 electrolytes; potassium, magnesium, and sodium. Amounts differ for everyone. Coffee and tea are also fine, but you can't add anything to them, or the insulin spike is going to blunt the fat burning effects of the fast. I personally don't bother with anything but water. Pro-tip, carbonated water is better at blunting hunger pangs, which are almost nonexistent after 1-2 fasted days.
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My anecdotal findings after four rounds of this:
-Muscle loss is almost nonexistent, HGH spikes mean almost zero muscle wasting, better than any traditional caloric deficit style diet. People think they lose muscle cutting because they get smaller, when in reality they're just losing water (held onto by glycogen) and intramuscular fat.
-Insulin sensitivity improves massively after a period without carbohydrates, excellent for breaking addictive eating habits and as a mental reset for people struggling to control themselves.
-Stable blood sugar and insulin also seemingly allows for certain fat stores to take precedent over others, namely visceral fat.
-Controversial, but I actually believe it's possible to grow doing ADF as a newer lifter, the ultimate recomp?
-Strength will suffer marginally as you cut bodyfat, but not nearly as dramatically as when I had tried traditional deficit diets. Maintaining strength levels and increasing relative strength as you drop bodyfat is absolutely possible with a good training program.
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So yeah, that's it. I'm not a doctor like my man Dr. Swole, but I've put in a ton of research into fasting, hormones, health, lifting, muscle mass, and fitness, and given my own experiences I feel comfortable opening people up to the idea of fasting as a tool for fat loss for everyone, not just the morbidly obese. I had a good amount of experience with IF and I wanted to give something a bit more hardcore a try, and to my surprise it works well enough that I felt like telling people about it. Again, not encouraging anyone to try what I do as it's pretty extreme, but I encourage you guys to do your own research and to think outside the box some.
Also, consult your swole doctor before you do any kind of aggressive cut!
Thanks for sharing your experience! I do think that calorie cycling can work well for fat loss and can have theoretical benefits. Although if dropping calories on rest days I’d prefer a protein-sparing modified fast
Hey dr swole. In your push pull legs video you showed that moving bicep work to leg day was better do to the biceps being pre fatigued on pull day. Is this really nesessary? I actually feel like I push bicep work harder on pull day due to being fatigued from squats
I think it depends on how much pull work you’re doing. Typically you can still train arms well after legs
How much back volume are you doing?
@@DrSwole I am doing about 6 sets 1-2rir. And 4 sets to failure. So 10 sets total
@@sergio1503 10 sets across the week or per workout?
@@DrSwole 10 sets per day
Awesome man keep making videos and podcast 🔥
u suggest 500cal deficit ? (1lb) lose on minicut ? or what
I recommend 0.5-1.5% body weight loss per week
How much do you weigh?
82kg
@@mahmoudmesl7y okay so you could go for a higher rate of loss like up to 2 lb loss per week if you can handle it
@@DrSwole thanks , we need more podcasts menno and mike 🔥
Will doing this split be just effective as upper lower? Day 1 chest back biceps.
Day 2 shoulders triceps legs. Rest. Repeat rest. Rest
I think it would be ideal to separate back and biceps
Some people will also find their triceps/anterior delts need more rest
I dont think anyone has such a str8 to the point intro, cant do it any better
Thanks bro! Good to see you on the channel
Have you done mini cuts before?
@@DrSwole im currently on a cut and ur channel has been helping a lot, I wanted to shoot u a dm showing my little back transformation
@@ainan2574 well done! Looks like you’ve made serious progress
@@ainan2574 how much weight are you trying to lose?
quality content.
Appreciate the support!
What are your goals?
What do you think of Lyle McDonald's PSMF (Protein Sparing Modified Fast) diet?
I think it might be okay in the latter stages of a long fat loss phase, but for the most part you probably don’t need that drastic of a deficit. I wouldn’t lose weight faster than about 1.5% a week
Have you used it?
Was going through random fitness videos when your channel popped to me and I'm glad it did. You really have awesome content and I think your channel is going to grow faster than your muscles⚡
Also a quick question.
I've been following push pull legs for 3 months now and my set volume is usually 27-28, 24-25, 18-20 on push pull leg days respectively. I just want to know if I'm training more than I should (I train 6 days a week) because if I train sets lower than that then I don't really feel that pump in my muscles and I feel like I haven't worked out enough.(ps I go till failure in mostly every set)
Thanks man! Glad you found the channel. I would guide your volume by progress. There’s an optimal amount that differs for everyone
More here th-cam.com/video/ZQ8h2zau0Ko/w-d-xo.html
@@DrSwole thanks mate. But I think maybe you misunderstood my question. I meant to ask what is more optimal. Going into total fatigue in every workout or just completing moderate sets as you suggested like 20 to 22 sets
@@GLADoP yes I understood you. There’s an optimal number of sets and proximity to failure for everyone. You should test out higher and lower volumes and see what gives you better progress
@@DrSwole yeah that might be a step in the right direction.. Thanks mate. Really appreciate it :)
Thanks
nice breakdown. Would you say that for Max fat loss without muscle loss while cutting, anyone above 20% body fat, lose 1.5% total body weight weekly. At 15%, losing 1% total bw. At 10%, losing 0.7% per week, at 8% bf, lose 0.5%. Per week. under 8% losing 0.3%... Assuming weight lifting with fat loss.
But would the amount of muscle and training “age” dictate the upper limit of fat loss? So for someone who has reached their limit of muscle mass, if they are at 15% body fat, would losing 1% of total body weight per week be too much, or in general, mass doesn’t matter as much as long as workouts are consistent?
Thanks 👍🏻
I think something like that might have some application but I don't think it's that clear. If you're obese you're better off losing weight at a fast rate. In the 10-15% range something between 0.5-1.0% per week is fine. And sub 8-10% be careful and shoot for 0.5% or lower
What rate do you usually lose weight at?
@@DrSwole I see, that makes sense, thanks for the reply. I’ve been reading around and trying to see if there was a more consistent answer, but of course relates to variables of each person and individual body fat % etc. I’m aiming for a 1% weight loss per week, that’s something I’ve noticed as the general answer. As for now as I’m going down from 15%. My goal is around 10%-8%, I’ve been at 13% before but back when I cut cals too much, I noticed more drastic strength drops. Now I’m basically keeping track with weekly average but also with workouts. So if I’m still able to progress with reps/weight, I know I can decreasing calories more until I’m at the point where I’m just able to maintain strength levels. Which then I’d assume my “wall” would be reached in terms of max rate fat loss with no muscle loss.
@@justin__G fair enough! It’s a good idea to play it by ear when you start getting really lean
Hi, I'm Dr swole are learning information translated the writing on a blackboard I am a Turkish follower. My English is not good enough. I thank you.
It’s great seeing subscribers from all of the world!
Are you able to understand after translation?
@@DrSwole Very little of what they speak, but I understand what is written on the blackboard I apply the workout programs Even though I am an intermediate level, it has made me progress a lot
@@ProAffeDerMi great to hear you’re making progress!
Hey, I’m about 3 weeks into a 4-week mini cut. I’m currently down 7 pounds and was able to maintain great gym performance for the first two weeks. However, this week, my performance has tanked. Do you recommend a re-feed day? And in general, do you recommend re-feed days during a mini cut, or just powering through?
I personally like 2 day refeeds even during a minicut
Have you done refeeds before?
@@DrSwole yes, I’ve done refeeds, but on more long-term/conventional diets with smaller deficits. I’ve gone back up to maintenance on those days. I just didn’t know if refeed days should be avoided on a mini cut since it’s for a much smaller about of time versus a conventional diet.
@@DrSwole when you say that you like 2 refeed days during a minicut, is that 2 refeed days per week? Or what are you saying?
Also, I’m a new subscriber, and I really like your channel! 👍
@@doherpa That’s controversial. Some people don’t like the idea of refeeds on a mini cut but I do
how long do you recommend for the caffeine layoff to be?
Ideally all the time when you don’t really need it
Do you use caffeine at baseline?
@@DrSwole i have caffeine everyday but at a bodyweight of 53kg, i try to cap it at 150-250mg!
@@withrowwrites8331 good idea!
@@withrowwrites8331 I like the idea of having some in reserve for when needed
Hi Dr. Swole, how should i (29m, 5'9") deal with the physiological & psychological changes during the first week or two of an agressive minicut? I typically go from a 200-300 kcal surplus at the end of a bulk (~20%bf/180-185lbs) to about 700 kcal deficit for 4 weeks, resulting in a -1000kcal difference. I experience a massive reduction in motivation, overall drive and a moderate hit to my libido. All that plus frequent trips to the bathroom at night, which reduce my sleep quality quite a bit.
If you find it too tough you may want to start with a less aggressive deficit
Choosing lower fatigue exercises and prioritizing recovery may help
@@DrSwole should I start with -300kcal and gradually increase it to a more aggressive deficit towards the end of the 1st/2nd week?
@@DrSwole is there any way I could reduce the water secretion at night while not lowering the water intake? (Usually around 1 gallon per day). Like, higher sodium intake, for example? Thank you so much for the replies in any case 😊
I've been having a popping left knee even with doing bodyweight squats, (the feeling is different than other pops) should I avoid doing squats at all or should I try out bulgarian split squats for example?
I’d have someone check your squat form but you could try other movements as well
Does that happen with all squat stances?
@@DrSwole It seems to be fixed. I dont really feel it any more luckily
@@Faaababaa okay great!
This is probably a newb question, but here goes.... So my RMR was estimated to be 1850 based on LBM from a dexa scan. I am doing a PPL-R, repeat. I want to get rid of the last 15 pounds to reach my target weight (down 90 so far). I have been eating primarily low carb/high protein, high fat. I have been lowering total E lately to see if that would get past this plateau. The question is, most tracking apps give you calories back for a workout. It is not uncommon for my app to say I earned 500-700 calories after a workout. I just wonder how accurate that is. I still want to lose 15lbs, so should I use the earned exercise calories, or stay closer to the RMR and do not eat the exercised calories instead letting them go towards weight loss. I do worry about lowering BMR. Thanks.. wrestling with this one.
Good question. I wouldn’t use those estimates at all, lots of variation and the numbers will change depending on your weight/how long you’ve been doing cardio
What’s your calorie intake right now?
@@DrSwole I have targeted my RMR + exercise calories. So around 2300/day depending on exercise intensity, but that just maintains current composition and weight no progress
@@DrSwole oh. Did you mean keto not cardio? I don’t do much cardio mostly resistance training. I have been low carb for 2-3 years. I am 70 and found cardio was not giving much benefit but du get my HR up with intense workouts
After a minicut, do you just bump your calories back to maintenance immediately or reverse back up again?
Good question. I come back to maintenance but cautiously, maintenance cals may be lower than when you started
What do you usually do?
@@DrSwole running first real minicut actually. Before I would just bulk and then do actual 12-16 week cuts so I’ll be sure to take your advice!
@@jaywchan okay cool!
Looking swole lately must be off season
Thanks man! I am ahah gotta love the bulking life
What about no cardio during the cut and just up your NEAT?
You can definitely do no cardio, not sure what your plan is for upping NEAT?
Hi Dr Swole, i weigh 135lb 17% bf, im 18, what would you recommend my fat loss rate? do u think i could do 1.5% for my age?
also do you have to go into maintainance phase after mini cut or can go straight into lean bulk?
I’d probably aim for 1% to start and see how it goes
No need for a maintenance phase!
I have a holiday in 4 months, should I cut try get to 10% then maintain till the holiday, or mini cut 6 weeks probably get down to 14% then lean bulk and then mini cut again just before the holiday, I’m really stressing out what approach I should do, I also fit the recomp category, I really need help😭
@@Zero3Ronin I’d say run a cut for awhile to get into the 12% range if possible
@@Zero3Ronin then lean bulk, right into your holiday
I'm goin slow. Loosing 2-4 pounds aweek. Slow and steady wins the race
With me, I cannot lose that without losing muscle