Getting Ripped: How Long Does It Really Take?

Without revealing too much information just yet, ‘ripped’ could be defined as walking around at a lower body fat percentage that shows off muscle definition and abs.

Note, that one would need to have some lifting experience and already be muscle-bound. Low body fat without muscles is just ‘skinny.’

Some individuals want to get ‘ripped’ at rapid rates, whereas others would prefer taking a steady approach. This article highlights and discusses six factors that influence the time it takes to get ‘ripped,’ and also gives an idea of how to get ripped.

Factors Influencing Time to Get Ripped

There are a multitude of factors influencing timeframe, but this article outlines 6 of the main ones.

Starting Point

How long does it take to get ripped? Typically, fitness enthusiasts set out to get ‘ripped’ in short timeframes for special occasions like summer vacations and parties. More often than not, they do not take into account their starting points for body fat and muscle mass.

In order to get ‘ripped,’ an individual would need to be at a relatively low body fat percentage whilst being somewhat muscle-bound. Many fitness experts would consider a body fat percentage of 10-15% as ‘ripped’, because muscle definition and abdominals are more visible.

As an example, if someone weighs 200 pounds and sits at 25% body fat, a minimum of 10-15% body fat would need to be managed to get remotely ‘ripped’. Give or take, this would be equivalent to 20-30 pounds of body fat (10-15% of 200 pounds=20-30 pounds).

Approach To Caloric Deficit

Whilst trying to get ‘ripped,’ a caloric deficit is absolutely crucial. A caloric deficit would force the body to ‘burn’ body fat as energy (stored calories). The aggressiveness of a caloric deficit would dictate how long it takes to get ‘ripped’ for the most part. However, cutting calories too fast has been shown to cause muscle loss through protein degradation.

A modest caloric deficit could be 10-20% below maintenance calories. A more aggressive approach could be a 20-40% cutback.

Referring back to the previously mentioned example, a 1000-calorie deficit would be an aggressive 35% cutback. A calorie deficit can be achieved through limiting food intake and increasing activity levels, which will be discussed shortly.

There are approximately 3500 calories in a pound of body fat. If an aggressive 1000-calorie deficit was maintained daily, a fat loss of 2 pounds per week is likely. Some additional weight loss is expected from muscle, glycogen, and water retention.

In a perfect scenario, it would take 10-15 weeks to get ‘ripped.’ This is due to the 200-pound example subject holding 20-30 pounds of excess fat (2 pounds x 10-15 weeks = 20-30 pounds).

On the other hand, a modest 500-calorie deficit, or 17.5% cutback, may only remove 1 pound of fat per week. Therefore, taking double the length of 20-30 weeks to get ripped (1 pound x 20-30 weeks= 20-30 pounds). Nevertheless, less muscle may be lost with less drastic deficits. Overall, weighing slightly more but looking ‘more ripped’ in a longer period of time.

Then again, the timeframes to get ‘ripped’ would vary depending on how much fat needs to be managed. If an individual is really overweight (~30% for men and ~35% for women), a more aggressive approach to the weight cut may be preferred. Otherwise, the process of getting ‘ripped’ may take too long and possibly demotivating.

Food Intake & Macronutrient Composition

Whether someone decides to take a fast or modest approach to getting ‘ripped,’ a good macronutrient composition is vital. There are three macronutrients that all contain calories (highlighted below).

Protein: 4 kcal/g| Carbs 4 kcal/g| Dietary fat: 9 kcal/g

Dietary protein is the most important macronutrient to observe while trying to get ‘ripped’. The reason is, it helps to maintain muscle for a ‘ripped’ appearance. Not to mention, holding onto more thermoactive muscle tissue can help preserve the metabolism as much as possible.

For a 200-pound individual, a gram of protein per pound of body weight should be effective based on the data.

The BCAA’s within dietary protein activate muscle protein synthesis (muscle building) through a pathway called mTOR. Concentrated BCAA’s may help maximize and elongate the response of muscle protein synthesis further under certain conditions. Biaxol supplements just happen to offer the highest quality BCAA’s on the market.

Secondly, protein has the highest thermic effect of ~30% compared to carbohydrates and dietary fat. In more simple terms, protein burns an equivalent of ~30% of its own calories for digestion. So, from 800 calories of protein, 240 calories would be burned for processing. All in all, high protein intake can help one achieve a more ‘ripped’ physique at a slightly faster rate.

Carbohydrates and dietary fats are also important for:

Fuel source
Hormonal balance
Muscle preservation
Muscle size
Micronutrients
Digestion
Some thermic effect

For a lifter trying to get ‘ripped,’ 50% carbs and ~15% fat from the total calorie intake should suffice.

For example, if a 200-pound individual is targeting an intake of 2300 calories per day, 1150 calories from carbs could be considered. 800 of these calories could come from protein. Lastly, 350 calories would be left for fat. The macronutrient composition would be as follows.

Protein: 200g| Carbs: 287g| Fats: 38.8g | (2300 kcal)

Exercise & Activity

Nothing matches strength training when it comes to getting ‘ripped.’ Firstly, it helps to burn some extra calories. Secondly, it helps to maintain that ‘ripped’ muscle and metabolic rate to some extent.

Cardio is also useful for getting ‘ripped’ as it burns more calories, speeding up the process. However, many experts recommend introducing cardio during the later stages of a fat-loss phase to match the lowered metabolic rate. So basically, the leaner one gets, the more calories have to be deducted to maintain the rate of weight loss.

Non Exercise activities can also boost the time it takes to get ‘ripped.’ These activities can include walking, cleaning up around the house, mowing the lawn, hand washing your car, washing the dishes, etc. For the most part, high amounts of subconscious micro-movements are inherited traits seen in those with a ‘naturally fast metabolism.’

Supplementation

Most so-called fat-burning supplements do not work. There are only a couple of supplements that can really boost the metabolic rate.

The first supplement is caffeine. Caffeine has a thermic effect, meaning that calories are burned to process it. Once in the bloodstream, it inhibits the adenosine receptors in the brain (relaxing signalers).

This leads to the central nervous system being stimulated, thereby promoting a burst of energy. Essentially, this translates into more calorie-expending workouts and more activity outside of the gym.

According to the research, 3 mg/kg of caffeine an hour before activity should boost performance and metabolism. For a 200-pound individual (90kg), 270 mg of caffeine should be sufficient.

Caffeine can be obtained from drinks, shots, coffee, jells, and even nasal sprays. Infact, Bioaxol supplements offer a caffeine nasal spray that is scientifically researched and tested.

The second supplement is Yohimbine. Yohimbine works by stimulating the sympathetic nervous system, thus activating the body’s fight or flight response and causing chemicals called catecholamines to be released into the bloodstream, subsequently increasing blood pressure and temperature.

These chemicals bind with fat cells through the androgen receptors, which may promote fat burning. A dose of 0.1-0.2mg per kg of body weight has been shown to be effective. Bioaxol supplements also offer Yohimbine, which is worth considering.

Sleep

Sleep does not actually affect weight loss while observing a caloric deficit. Even so, sleep-deprived individuals are more likely to lose weight from muscle as opposed to fat mass. So, it definitely hinders the rate of getting ‘ripped.’

A classic 2010 study in the Journal of Annals of Internal Medicine compared weight loss between two sleep conditions over 14 days. The first group was sleep-deprived (5.5 hours sleep), and the second group was well-slept (8.5 hours sleep). Both conditions lost ~6 pounds.

The sleep-deprived lost around 1 pound from fat and 5 pounds from muscle. At the same time, the normal sleep individuals lost over 3 pounds of fat and close to 3 pounds of muscle.

This outcome is largely due to the effect that sleep has on hormones and muscle protein synthesis/recovery.

Take Home Message

For the most part, the time it takes to get ‘ripped’ depends on the starting point of body fat and whether an individual is muscle-bound or not.

Generally, for those who are close to the ‘healthy’ body fat range(18-25% body fat), it can take 10-15 weeks with a very aggressive 30-40% caloric deficit to get to ‘ripped’ (10-15% body fat). So, answering the question of the message, ‘Can you get ripped in 3 months or less?’ Absolutely!

On the opposite side of the spectrum, while utilizing a modest 10-20% calorie deficit, it may take 20-30 weeks to get ‘ripped’. However, an individual may be able to get into a better condition by preserving more muscle mass.

Whilst in a caloric deficit, observing a high protein intake of around a gram per pound of body weight can help preserve muscle and get ‘ripped’ faster. By no means should the other macronutrients be neglected.

Furthermore, exercise and activity can help preserve muscle and burn calories to reach the ‘ripped’ body condition faster.

Many supplements are proposed as fat burners, but in the real-life setting, they are not that effective. Caffeine and Yohimbine have been proven to stimulate the central and sympathetic nervous system to boost caloric expenditure.

A single caffeine dose of 3 mg per kilo of body weight has shown to be effective. Slightly lower, a single Yohimbine of 0.1-0.2mg per kilo of body weight should aid the cut.

Remember that this article is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice and treatment provided by your physician or licensed healthcare provider.

If you have any questions regarding product usage or purchasing, feel free to contact us directly.