Coming to the end of my first cycle!

[GPS226]

Hey everyone, newbie and first-time poster here, but I have been reading on these boards extensively for awhile now. I'm am currently in week 8 of my 8-week first cycle ( Test Enanthate 500 mg/week plus 40mg d-bol ED weeks 1-3) My CURRENT stats are: 23 years old, 5'6", 174 lbs, BF about 10%..at the beginning of my cycle my weight was 151, BF% about the same....so I've put on some quality gains, and I'm pretty excited about that! I do have two questions that I haven't been able to find a clear answer for. I have 1 injection of Test E left to go, so I believe that means that I have 2.5 weeks of active test left in me before PCT begins..I am thinking about using this time to cut and get ripped instead of waiting and then trying to cut while I'm off-cycle, in order to preserve muscle. Is this a good idea? Can I drastically reduce my calories while on Test and preserve lean mass? Or would it be a better idea to eat and eat to try to maximize my gains? Any advice would be a GREAT help, because I would like to lay out my course of action within the next day or two....and 1 more quick question I had was..I gather that the general rule of thumb is to stay off-cycle as long as you are on. Does PCT time count as off or on?

[LivingToBeBig]

DO NOT Cut before you have finished PCT, keep eating like a machine and more so into pct to keep the hard earned gains. And yes PCT time is counted as on cycle so 8 weeks +2 weeks +PCT = time off.