Joel's Cut
October 17 to November 15. Four weeks to bring the waist in for the November meetings, keeping the size you built.
The short version
2,000 calories and 200 g of protein a day, with the lifting kept heavy so the size stays. The waist is the number we judge it on. It runs through both weeks of meetings and finishes the same week your training block ends.
Every Day
Weekends and travel days included. Within about 100 calories either side is a good day.
2,000
Calories
200 g
Protein
8,000
Steps
7 h
Sleep
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Three proper meals
Protein at every one. Starch at breakfast and lunch, then most of it comes out at dinner. Dinner is protein and a big plate of vegetables, with the rice and potatoes left off the plate.
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Train exactly as programmed
Same sessions, same weights on the bar. The heavy work is what tells your body to hold on to the muscle while the food comes down.
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Evenings
This is where the hunger shows up. A Slate after dinner is your fallback, and it fits inside the 2,000. Keep the sweet stuff out of the house for the month.
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Sleep
Short nights make the next day hungrier and the bar heavier. Don't answer the afternoon dip with extra caffeine, it'll cost you the sleep.
Week by Week
What to expect on the scale, in the mirror and under the bar.
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Oct 17 to 25
Week 1
The scale drops fastest here, often 2 to 4 lb. Most of that is water and stored carbs from the lighter dinners, so don't read too much into it either way. Lifts should feel normal.
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Oct 26 to Nov 1
Week 2 First read
The scale slows to around a pound a week. The water has gone and what comes off now is fat. The waistband should start to feel easier. Sunday the 1st is our first proper look at the numbers.
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Nov 2 to 8
Week 3 Meetings
The waist should be visibly coming in. Some sessions may feel heavier. Keep the weight on the bar and take a rep off before you take weight off.
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Nov 9 to 15
Week 4 Meetings
Hunger and energy tend to be at their lowest by now, so this is where we stop.
Realistically: 5 to 7 lb on the scale and an inch or two off the waist by mid-November. Your arms and shoulders will barely change, and that's the size we're keeping. Some of the 3.5 inches came with muscle you want, so we're aiming for jackets that button clean.
What We Watch
Three numbers, checked the same way every time.
Waist, every Sunday
First thing, before food. Tape around the belly button, relaxed. Send it with your check-in. This is the number for the suits.
Weight, daily if you can
First thing, after the bathroom. We judge the weekly average and ignore the single day.
You were 203.0 on October 13 and 197.5 three days later. Same man, different water.
The big lifts
If these hold through November, the size stayed.
- Box squat295 x 5
- Push press185 x 5
- Close grip bench210 x 6
If the waist and the weekly average haven't moved since the end of week one, I change one thing: either more steps or about 200 calories less. One lever at a time.
Meeting Weeks
November 2 to 15. Same plan, on the road.
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Same three meals
Don't skip breakfast to save room for a dinner. That's when the evening runs away from you.
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Business lunches and dinners
Order the steak, fish or chicken, swap the fries for vegetables, leave the bread basket and skip dessert. A glass of wine is fine, just log it. The eating-out guide has the restaurant swaps: supra-eating-out-guide.pages.dev
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Between meetings
Pack your Slates and a few meat sticks for the gaps. Chomps are my go-to: chomps.com
How It Ends
Coming out of a cut matters as much as going in.
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Sun Nov 15
The call
We look at waist, weight and lifts together. Either we finish there, or we run one more week to November 22 if the waist wants it and you're feeling good. Thanksgiving week is maintenance, no cutting.
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Two weeks
Coming out
Calories go up in two steps of about 200 a week, with protein staying at 200 g. That puts you around 2,400, which should be close to maintenance for you. I'll confirm it from what your scale does.
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First week up
The scale bump
Expect 2 to 3 lb as the carbs refill the muscle. That's water. The tape will show the waist holding.
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December
Back to building
Slower than the summer, with the waist checked every Sunday so the suits stay in the rotation.