Should i cut or bulk?16

[eyezen]

I want to maximise height im 16 im at arrount 20 22 ish bf percentage i want to maximise height as im not even 5 8. Idk if my palettes r fused and my pearents said no to an xray . If i cut ill feel like im missing out on nutrition but if i bulk i migjt have too much estrogen and wont grow taller? What do u guys think?

 

[the atrain]

3iu Hgh

 

[eyezen]

Bump

 

[eyezen]

Bump

 

[eyezen]

Bump

 

[mmakharat]

At 16 your priority shouldn’t be “cutting” or “bulking” in the traditional bodybuilding sense - your priority is optimizing your growth environment. Right now you’re in the middle of the window where height potential is determined by three things:

1. Growth plate status (open or closing)
2. Your hormonal environment (GH/IGF-1, testosterone, estradiol)
3. Energy availability (calories, micronutrients, sleep)

Cutting or bulking at this age affects these systems directly.

1. Cutting at 16: bad for height. If you drop calories, especially with 20–22% BF:

• GH pulsatility decreases
• IGF-1 drops
• cortisol rises
• testosterone dips
• sleep gets worse

All of these slow or blunt height growth. You’re right to feel like you’d be missing out on nutrition — because you literally would. Adolescents who cut aggressively almost always stall growth for months.

2. Bulking at 16: also not ideal, but NOT because “estrogen stops growth” People misunderstand this. Estrogen is what closes growth plates, yes - but estrogen is made from testosterone, and your levels will rise naturally no matter what you eat. Bulking does NOT “flood you with estrogen.” Extra body fat can increase aromatase activity, but not to a degree that it suddenly fuses plates. Real growth plate fusion is mostly genetic + pubertal stage, not nutrition.

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3. The best strategy at 16 is neither cutting nor bulking It’s called high-calorie maintenance, which means that you have to eat at maintenance or slightly above (+150–250 kcal/day), but still

• prioritize protein
• control ultra-processed foods
• keep body fat stable
• train consistently
• sleep 8.5–10 hours

This creates the best hormonal environment for height:

• GH high
• IGF-1 high
• healthy testosterone
• low cortisol
• minimal estrogen fluctuations
• maximal bone mineralization
• open plates last longer

You don’t need to be lean at 16 — you need to be growing.

4. How to know if your growth plates are still open (without an X-ray). Not 100% accurate, but HIGHLY predictive:

• Are your feet still growing?
• Do you still have voice cracks sometimes?
• Do you get random erections easily?
• Has facial hair fully matured?
• Are shoulders still widening?
• Has your shoe size changed in the last 12 months?

If YES to 2+ of these — plates are almost definitely open. Most guys finish around 17.5–18.5. So at 16, you are not done.

5. Optimal plan, if you care about height, is sufficient diet (eat enough to support growth, NOT a deficit): 2–3 g/kg protein (muscle + bones need amino acids);
Calcium + Vitamin D3 + K2 + Zinc + Magnesium (these directly support bone elongation);
Sleep 9 hours (most GH is secreted early night);
Strength training 3–4×/week (stimulates GH/IGF-1 naturally);
Avoid aggressive bulking/cutting (stay around the same weight while growing taller)

6. TL;DR

• Cutting → BAD for height
• Bulking → doesn’t stunt height, but unnecessary
• Best: high-calorie maintenance, train, sleep, grow
• At 16, you’re nowhere close to finished
• If you keep a stable body fat and provide good nutrition, you’ll maximize height potential

Hope this helps, you can ask me if you have any questions left