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The Calendar

Your Year, Mapped Out

Four intentional phases. Twelve months of purpose. Every phase sets up the next. Here's exactly when each phase happens and why the timing matters.

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The System

The 4-Phase Calendar

Four intentional phases. Twelve months of purpose. Every phase sets up the next.

Phase 1

Baseline

Jan 1 – Mar 31

Reset and stabilize after the holidays. Rebuild consistency, lock in tracking habits, and prepare your body for the work ahead.

Calculator: "Maintain"

Phase 2

Cut

Apr 1 – Jun 30

Reduce body fat while preserving muscle. Enter summer looking and feeling your best with a strategic, time-bound deficit.

Calculator: "Lose Fat"

Phase 3

Maintain

Jul 1 – Sep 30

Lock in your new body composition. Reverse diet back to maintenance, recover your metabolism, and enjoy summer at your leanest.

Calculator: "Maintain"

Phase 4

Build

Oct 1 – Dec 31

Invest in next year's results. Fuel muscle growth in a controlled surplus. Holiday meals work for you, not against you.

Calculator: "Build Muscle"

The Strategy

Why This Timing?

Every quarter is chosen for a reason. The phases align with real life — holidays, seasons, motivation, and biology.

January – March: Baseline

You're coming off the holidays. Most people are bloated, overtrained, or both. Instead of jumping straight into a cut when your willpower and habits are at their weakest, you spend Q1 rebuilding consistency. You stabilize your weight, lock in your tracking habits, and prepare your body for the work ahead.

April – June: Cut

Spring into summer. You're cutting when motivation is naturally high — warmer weather, longer days, and summer on the horizon. You enter summer looking and feeling your best. Three months is the sweet spot: long enough for real progress, short enough that your metabolism doesn't stall out.

July – September: Maintain

You just finished a 3-month cut. Your metabolism needs a break, and summer is for living. This phase locks in your new body composition, restores your metabolic rate, and lets you enjoy cookouts and vacations without stress. You earned this.

October – December: Build

Fall and winter. Cooler weather, heavier clothes, holidays with big meals. This is the perfect time to be in a caloric surplus. You're fueling hard training, adding lean muscle, and the holiday meals work for you instead of against you. The muscle you build here is what your next year's cut will reveal.

Calculator Settings by Phase

Run the Black Iron Macro Calculator three times — once for each goal setting — and you have your numbers for the entire year.

Phase 1

Baseline

Jan – Mar

"Maintain"

Phase 2

Cut

Apr – Jun

"Lose Fat"

Phase 3

Maintain

Jul – Sep

"Maintain"

Phase 4

Build

Oct – Dec

"Build Muscle"

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Go Deeper

What's Inside Each Phase

The calendar shows you the what and when. The full Blueprint shows you the how — week by week, phase by phase.

Phase 1: Baseline (Jan – Mar)

Post-Holiday Reset

The full Phase 1 guide covers week-by-week expectations, transition checklists, and the rules that make maintenance work. Learn why you start with maintenance instead of a cut, what to expect as your body recalibrates, and exactly when you're ready for Phase 2.

Available in the full Blueprint

Phase 2: Cut (Apr – Jun)

Strategic Fat Loss

The full Phase 2 guide covers the cutting rules that protect your muscle, week-by-week expectations from the initial drop through the grind, and the transition checklist for moving to post-cut maintenance without rebounding.

Available in the full Blueprint

Phase 3: Maintain (Jul – Sep)

Lock In Your Results

The full Phase 3 guide covers reverse dieting protocols, how to gradually bring calories back up without fat rebound, the summer mindset for enjoying life at your leanest, and the checklist for transitioning into the build phase.

Available in the full Blueprint

Phase 4: Build (Oct – Dec)

Invest in Next Year

The full Phase 4 guide covers building phase rules for lean gains, how to navigate holidays in a surplus with purpose, week-by-week expectations, and year-end measurements to compare your progress year over year.

Available in the full Blueprint

Get the Complete Phase-by-Phase Guide

The calendar shows you the system. The Blueprint gives you everything you need to execute it — week by week, phase by phase, all year long.

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