Wednesday, October 27, 2021

Training For Your First Bodybuilding Competition at Any Age : The Final Two Weeks Of Contest Prep

Training For Your First Bodybuilding Competition at Any Age : The Final Two Weeks Of Contest Prep
The Final Two Weeks Of Contest Prep :

The plan during the final two weeks is to lose any remaining fat and water and to bring out the cuts and definition in your muscles.

First, you will act a little goofy. Expect it. This is due to a blend of a high protein and low carb diet. The body needs carbs. When you take them away or cut them back, you tend to lose a little of your thought processes. Not enough to be dangerous to yourself or others. It's OK to drive, etc., but you might become a little forgetful.

Week one of the two weeks is loaded with ground turkey and fish! After a breakfast of three egg whites and 4 ounces of 98% lean ground turkey, the rest of your solid meals consist of fish. Fish and salad for lunch, fish and green vegetables for dinner. The other two meals are protein shakes. On Monday and Thursday, add a sixth meal, a carb load, consisting of a cup of oatmeal, a banana, a cup of broccoli and ½ of a sweet potato. This meal is designed to fill you out a little so you don't wind up looking flat on stage. You want to look like Bluto, not Popeye. Or if you are a girl, Betty Boop, not Olive Oyl. The other part of this week's diet is water. Lots of water. One to two gallons a day. It seems like a lot, but if you keep a jug nearby, drinking from it and filling it when it's empty, you can easily take in the water you need. Try drinking filtered water or spring water. Don't be surprised if you visit the bathroom a lot. You are flushing out your system and removing subcutaneous fluids while drinking this much liquid. Stay away from too much coffee (one cup a day is OK) and stay away from alcohol during this training period. Don't snack. You will have cravings. Just focus on your contest. Wouldn't you hate to blame a loss in your contest on a slice of chocolate cake?


Your workouts this week should be moderate. Use lighter weights with 8-10 reps per set. Don't go heavy. You are weak due to the diet and doing heavy lifting could cause injuries. Be careful in the gym. Go slowly. Watch what you are doing. Stay focused. Don't get angry or impatient with others. Do no more than 20 minutes of easy cardio per day.

Week two is loaded with ground turkey, fish, lean ground beef and grapefruit. On Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, after a breakfast of three egg whites and 4 ounces of 98% lean ground turkey, like week one, the rest of your solid meals consist of fish. Fish and salad for lunch and fish and green vegetables for dinner. Again, the other two meals are protein shakes. On Wednesday, eliminate the salad and vegetables and substitute grapefruit. Fish and ½ a grapefruit works well. Also on Wednesday add a sixth carb meal. Same schedule on Thursday. On Friday, the final cutting day, all five meals consist of 6 - 8 ounces of lean ground beef and ½ a grapefruit.

Your workouts this week should consist of pumping up in the weight room and then practice posing. No heavy lifting. You should have done your last leg workout no later than last Saturday. Last Friday is even better. Don't do any cardio after Tuesday.

On Saturday morning, before pre-judging, have a steak and two whole eggs. Eat the toast and hash browns. Have a cup of coffee. Just sip water as needed. About 45 minutes before your contest, have a Snickers bar. It will fill you out a bit and give you the boost of energy you need for pre-judging. Be sure to spend about 20 minutes back stage pumping up everything except legs. Then, have fun on stage.



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