| Contest season is just around the corner. While | | | | mode. Many novices start off with a terrible amount of |
| browsing fitness and bodybuilding forums, I find it | | | | cardio, up to an hour or two a day the first month. |
| common for new competitors to be completely lost in | | | | When the body adapts to this amount of exertion, |
| an abundance of information. | | | | what does it have to fall back on? Three hours a |
| Information overload can destroy your best intentions. | | | | day? |
| Many individuals that are new to the fitness sport | | | | A better approach would be to start your cardio 16 to |
| gather a ton of quality information. While this is good, | | | | 20 weeks before the show, starting with three days |
| the downfall is that they use every method they have | | | | of 15 to 20 minutes and build on that every week in a |
| outlined, leaving no back up sources for when a | | | | slow manner. This way you have a backup method. |
| plateau strikes. | | | | Last Minute Fatal Tricks - This is the deadly downfall |
| Consistent Off-Season Diet - You can't realistically | | | | to 90% of the newbie's and even some veteran |
| look 100% on contest day if you haven't maintained a | | | | competitors. Last minute fatal tricks can destroy you |
| clean and consistent off-season diet. You can't go | | | | on contest day. Don't get this confused with last |
| from eating pizza and burgers all winter and attempt | | | | minute tactics employed to further prepare you for |
| to clean it up come January and expect to enter a | | | | contest day. A fatal trick will be something along the |
| show in May. While you may make some physical | | | | lines of loading creatine the week before a show or |
| changes, you won't be in the shape you could have | | | | eating a dozen donuts the night before. Yes, I've seen |
| been if you ate well in the off-season. Off-season is | | | | these "tricks" used before and it will destroy a ready |
| the time to build muscle quality and density. It's | | | | physique in a matter of hours. |
| extremely difficult to attempt to build density and lose | | | | General Steps To Bodybuilding and Figure Contest |
| body fat at the last minute. | | | | Preparation |
| Last Minute Preparation - This can fall under the lines | | | | Eat well year around. When a contest is 24 weeks |
| of the above to some degree, but what I'm putting | | | | away, begin cleaning up your diet by eliminating any |
| emphasis on here are those who decide on a contest | | | | obvious junk food you may sneak in during the day. |
| at the last minute, thinking they can start from scratch | | | | Limit your bread and dairy intake as well. |
| and prepare in twelve weeks. Contest preparation and | | | | After a few weeks of general cleaning up, start |
| competing on stage takes time, effort, and vision. While | | | | tracking your calories to find your caloric baseline. |
| I have seen many take the last minute approach, it's | | | | Take your stats and design a diet based on your lean |
| quite obvious they were not prepared and just | | | | body mass and activity level. Make sure you feed |
| competed for the sake of saying, "I did it." | | | | your body a complete meal every three hours. |
| Cutting Carbohydrates - Granted, limiting and even | | | | Add cardio to the equation. Start off on the low and |
| restricting carbohydrates will lean you up, get you hard, | | | | progress slowly each week. Don't overload the body |
| and define physique, but many people go about this in | | | | with too much cardio too soon. |
| the wrong manner. You can't realistically cut | | | | Tweak your diet only when it shows no positive |
| carbohydrates until you have them in your diet first. | | | | results. A tweak would be considered something minor, |
| The best approach for reducing carbohydrates and | | | | such as lowering the carbohydrates, or adjusting the |
| lose body fat is to cycle the carbohydrates down | | | | calories, or changing the cardio. Do not do all at the |
| slowly. This way you are always presenting something | | | | same time. Use only one tactic at a time. |
| new to the body and it keeps the body responding by | | | | If you simply cannot make proper adjustments, hire a |
| shedding fat. By the time you are in your final week of | | | | trainer. It's far better to have a watchful eye over you |
| dieting, you will be on very low carbohydrates and | | | | than for you to destroy your own plan at the last |
| showing a great amount of detail. However, you can't | | | | minute when panic strikes. While your trainer's plan my |
| get to this point overnight. Dieting down properly takes | | | | not appear effective on paper or at the time, you must |
| time and it should follow a formula. | | | | have faith in them. Preparing for a contest is a far |
| Supplementing - Supplementing your diet is crucial if | | | | different avenue than general dieting and it can have |
| you are planning to compete. When you prepare for a | | | | many unfamiliar faces. |
| contest you are putting your body under a great deal | | | | In Summary to Bodybuilding and Figure Contest |
| of stress mentally, physically, and nutritionally. You must | | | | Preparation |
| compensate with supplements that provide nutrients, | | | | Getting into contest shape is not an overnight process. |
| such as a quality vitamin/mineral. Adding sports nutrition | | | | You have to prepare wisely. No amount of tricks can |
| supplements to aid in muscle growth and recovery, as | | | | help if you didn't do your homework off-season or in |
| well as fat burning will be a plus. | | | | contest-prep mode. Look for changes in your physique |
| Cardio - Cardio is a tactic many people employ, | | | | each week or two by comparing pictures. Stay true |
| thinking it will get them ripped. While cardio is wonderful | | | | and honest to yourself and your program and you will |
| for the cardio-pulmonary system, too much can | | | | be your best on contest day. |
| destroy muscle gains and put you into over training | | | | |