Possible to cut without sacrificing *any* muscle?

[Polska]

I am new to the dieting thing...

I've always had a very fast metabolism and had managed to stay very lean (6% bf), but after starting to eat like a horse a year ago my metabolism seems to have slowed down as I am now probably double that bf.

So I decided to start cutting instead of going on with my winter bulker. I am currently on a high protein, low carb, low fat diet. Absolutely no carbs after 6pm, I try not to eat anything after 8, except for a protein shake which I mix with water. Calories are around 2500 a day, if that. Workouts are in the early AM while I am completely deplated of carbs.

I am still around 190lbs at 12% bf (apprx), weight's dropping though.

I really just hate to see my muscle waste away. Maybe I am paranoid and it's just the fear of smallness that bothers me as I am used to being bulky. Would Winstrol guarantee muscle retention while dieting down?
I want to stay muscular, but get the body fat down to around 8% or so.

[Polska]

is 2,500 calories a day too much below maintenance for me? I was used to upwards of 4,500 a day.....

I guess my question is, will I drop too fast eating only 2,500 cals/day?

[silverfox]

You will always drops of little bit of LBM when dieting no matter how many drugs or how good your diet is. You said you have a fast metalism, so I would eat maintace cals and not drop your carbs, just eat very clean and add in about 30min of cardio 5x a week, then make adjustments from there.

[yellows2k]

It would be nice to tell us what your maintenance calorie number was. If you dropped from 4500 to 2500 in a week that's too quick and yeah you will lose alot rather quick, not to mention you will gain more body fat. If you were at 4500 and you are trying to go to 2500, at the fastest it should take 4 months to get to 2500, dropping 500 calories from your diet each week.

"Workouts are in the early AM while I am completely deplated of carbs. "

Why?

[BIG TEXAN]

UUuuuummmm yellows2k is right. Slowly reduce calories and keep protein high with moderate carbs and low fat. Best of luck to ya.

[yellows2k]

i mean 4 weeks, not 4 months, my bad.

[Polska]

Workouts are in the morning because of my current schedule... I can't schedule my workouts any later than 5:30 AM. I forgot to mention that I am on a 10mg d-bol bridge to help with catabolism that early in the morning.

So... should I up the calories again...? I've been at 2,500 for two weeks now. I believe I was over-eating at 4,500, which is why I gained as much bf% as I did.

[yellows2k]

2500 is fine if its around 500 below maintenance, but you should have dropped it slowly from 4500 to 2500 not just a drastic drop.

[Polska]

2500 calories = 4 small meals daily spaced around 3 hours apart. 9am, 12pm, 3pm, 6pm. no carbs after 6, if i get a craving i might grab some fruit or down a protein shake mixed in water. Protein is high, carbs are low, fat is almost entirely from flax seed oil. so this sounds ok to keep up.. ?

[yellows2k]

Try to eat 6-7 meals a day. I get anywhere from 6-10 a day. And when I meant dropping cals slowly, I meant eat 4500 one week, then 4000 the next week, then 3500 the next week, etc.

[Polska]

I heard moderate carbs is better than low carbs for mainting muscle mass. Could I up my carb intake if I taper down throughout the day?
I heard it was hard to cut down fat while maintaining/building muscle but damn. I figure I might as well start working on having my six pack show now. There's something about steel abs that just seems to drive the g/f crazy...

[yellows2k]

Depends what your definition of low and moderate carbs are. I'm on a low carb diet, which is 165g. WHen I bulk I get around 400g. Make sure your macros are right and get plenty of protein and like I said, eat more frequently to maintain higher metabolism.