When I transition from CKD to another phase, I give it 4 weeks.

For example, at the end of August I plan to stop "cutting" and start "bulking". If I jumped straight into bulking, I would store alot more fat since the lage caloric excess would cause my body to store fat in the event it begins to "starve" again (lower calorie intake).

So, for the month of September I will use either the Zone diet, or an Isocaloric diet, with calories adjusted to be just a little over what I need for maintanance/activity. Each week I will increase my calories by 250 or so per day, until the scale registers a 1 lb. gain per week.

Then, in October I go all out on a bulker until the end of December.

In January I do just the opposite. I go back to the Zone and ramp my calories down during the month, until the beginning of February when I should be at 5% below maintanence.

Then the fun begins ...

Did I make any sense? If not, let me know if you are transitioning into a bulker or a maintainance plan.