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Contest Mentality: Why Do I Want to Compete Again?

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The contest mentality is definitely a different one. Why would anyone want to have a restricted diet, long cardio sessions and intense weight training sessions? What benefit is there to the person competing? Let me try to answer those questions for you in the following paragraphs.

The Dieting

Honestly, the dieting part of contest preparation didn't bother me in the least. What I do is set up a simple menu and stick to it. I keep the variety at a minimum because I have worked to dial in the macronutrient ratios. I find it simpler to just stick with less variety in order to achieve the results I am after. To me it doesn't matter if I eat the same food every single day. Food is simply fuel and nothing more.

The Long Cardio Sessions

Cardio is boring. I will not argue that point. However, when you attack it with the proper mindset it isn't so bad. You have to tell yourself that it is a necessary evil and then, like Nike says, just do it! I find that mixing up what you use for cardio works wonders. I know most bodybuilders swear by the step mill and stick to that exclusively during contest preparation, but I believe that any intense cardio will do the trick. I stick to the step mill very closely, but not exclusively. I incorporate the treadmill on a regular basis, using various types of treadmill workouts I have designed myself. I also incorporate outside cardio. I will routinely run on a track or do long, brisk walks. Whatever it takes to raise my heart rate. I also use a heart rate monitor to get good results.

Intense Weight Training Sessions

This part is the easy part for me. I love intensity when training with weights. I love pushing hard and getting great gains as a result. I have used High Intensity Training with great results. I have used body part splits with great results as well. It is all about the intensity.

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Let’s Talk About Contest Preparation

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Contest preparation. Those two words seem to scare so many people. I am going to talk to you about contest preparation from my perspective. Maybe it will help you if you're on the fence about competing.

Making the Decision

You have to make a decision to compete before you will ever have to embark on a contest preparation cycle. Once you compete you will be addicted to it. I personally have caught the bug and this coming year (2014) I plan to do several shows. In order to make this decision you need to consider your will power, finances and discipline. It has to be something you are doing for yourself as that is the only way it is going to work. All of the work will have to come from you so you can't do this because you want to make someone else happy.

Evaluating Your Mental State

The one thing that I see that hurts people during contest preparation is their mental attitude. People whine and complain if their carbs are cut or their cardio is increased.  A good coach will adjust these variables as you go along. You have to be tough and just do the work. To me the meals are just fuel for my body. The supplements help the fuel. The training shapes the body. Thus, any adjustments to any part of the plan is fine. I don't stress myself out about it. I figure I signed up for this so why complain? Will whining change anything? You bet it will–in a negative way. It is going to get in the way of your progress. If you are going through contest preparation and have made the plan to actually complete it then suck it up!

Creating the Plan

I sat down with my prep coach, Ken Turchek, and planned out how to handle the contest preparation. We did this 6 months out from the show. I need to build more mass and that is why we sat down so early. It is a long and difficult process to gain muscle and I needed all the time I could get. Ken and I looked at my training schedule and made some serious decisions. The training schedule I keep is NOT something most people would feel comfortable with. Because of the need to build muscle we decided to hit some body parts multiple times per week in a 6-day training cycle. Ken continually tells me that the body has no idea what a week is, so just train!

Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6
AM Cardio Chest Cardio Cardio Shoulders Cardio/Biceps(p)
PM Back(t)/biceps(p) Shoulders Biceps(h)/triceps(h) Back(w)/Calves Chest/Triceps(p) Hams/Quads

This plan takes care of really hitting my weak spots. It gets me doing cardio 3 times each 6 days. It is almost an average of 4 times a week over the course of a month. I run this training cycle back to back to back. After Day 6 I go right back to Day 1 and continue. I do not take rest days during contest preparation. It is work and I have to get that job done!

We also planned my supplementation usage. We used a strategy to this as well. Ken is a huge believer in BCAA usage (I am as well). In fact, as we got down to the month before the show I was constantly sipping BCAAs.

Executing the Plan

Here is where the rubber meets the road. There are going to be adjustments to the plan as you go along. Just hang in there. Do what your coach tells you to do. Understand that everything you do is aimed at accomplishing your goal of stepping on stage. The sore muscles, hunger pains, etc. are all worth it in the end. Be diligent about your execution of the plan. The rewards are worth it. Do you have any comments to share about contest preparation? Put them in the comments section below.

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Working with a Coach

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I have tried every single way I know of to lose weight and get into great shape. I have done it on my own. I have used a personal trainer. I have used a contest preparation coach. There are distinct differences between each approach and today I want to describe the benefits of using a coach.

Doing it On Your Own

When most people decide they need to get into shape they make an attempt at doing it themselves. For many that works, but for most it does not. It is all about how well you can motivate yourself. However, I believe that even if you are great at motivating yourself you still need a coach of some kind. Accountability alone is worth it. You can only do so much. It is too easy to lie to yourself.

Using a Personal Trainer

This one is hard. Personal trainers know a lot about exercise execution, but usually not much more than that. In order to get in great shape you need help with exercise, nutrition and mindset. These are things that most personal trainers are not equipped to handle. You have to decide what your needs are and how to best meet them.

Using a Preparation Coach

These guys know everything about body transformation. Some refer to themselves as body recomposition specialists. Whatever the title, I have found that working with one of these people virtually guarantees success. A preparation coach will prepare a nutrition plan for you and will modify it as needed. They will set you up on an exercise program and will change that up as needed. They will work with you on your mindset.

By working with a coach you will hit all areas of your body transformation with one person. They will know all the struggles you are going through and will know exactly how to help you. Just think…someone who understands how your body responds to carbs and cardio. Someone who knows that low carb makes you uber grouchy. They can help head off problems before they become a problem.

To me, the coach made the entire process bearable. I hear all the time how preparing for a contest (or going through a transformation) is so grueling, but I didn't find it that bad. My coach got me through it with minimal effort. Thus, I would recommend a coach.

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Let’s look into metabolic damage

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Dr. Layne Norton (@biolayne) has recorded 3 videos about metabolic damage. They have caused a major uproar in the industry. Today I want to review the contents of the metabolic damage video, not for entertainment purposes, but to help Layne spreads the word. I normally embed the video much lower in the article, but today I want to be sure you've seen the video. If not, please take the time to listen to the video before you continue reading this article.

BioLayne Video Log 9 – Metabolic Damage

[pro-player type='video']http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHHzie6XRGk[/pro-player]

Layne Speaks for Himself

The points Layne makes in this video pretty much speak for themselves. He presents them clearly and concisely. I want to just address the issues that really hit me as someone who has gone through a contest preparation cycle twice.

Metabolic Damage Defined

Layne discusses how he is a big believer in science, but based upon the nearly 1,000 people he has worked with he knows certain things to be true yet doesn't have the scientific evidence to back it up yet. Metabolic damage is one of those things. Layne sees this problem as one of the biggest issues for long-term body fat loss.

Metabolic damage is defined as the point where your metabolism is so repressed that you lose the ability to drop body fat without starvation. Layne then gives the example of a mythical bikini or figure competitor who has a coach. This coach has put them on what is essentially a starvation diet — 900 calories a day and 2 to 3 hours of cardio a day and yet they do not lose weight. This is because they have destroyed their metabolic capacity.

Always Preparing for a Contest

A typical scenario is there is a bounce back after a show. The competitor gains weight and fat. They have already caused a problem for their metabolism. They then want to compete in another show and have to start dieting down again. The problem is that their body won't let go of the body fat.

By always preparing for the next contest you never give your body a chance to bring the metabolism back to its maximum capacity. That's the purpose of the off-season. Layne gives an example of a guy at 15% body fat and needs to lose 25 to 30 pounds for the stage. If one guy is maintaining their weight at 250 grams of carbs per day or the person maintaining their weight on 500 grams of carbs per day, which one is able to get stage lean easier? It is obviously the one with the 500 grams of carbs per day.

How do you fix this?

Layne has some good recommendations for fixing the metabolic damage that has already been done. The first thing he tells you is to stop competing.

He takes you at your baseline of calories and macronutrients and then slowly adds carbs at a rate of 5 grams per week. As your carb intake increases your body weight (for some reason) does not increase. The body somehow just absorbs the small change in carbs. He continues to build this until he gets you to the point where you gain some weight. He then keeps you at this level because you are now at a good set point.

Layne gave an example of a client of his who he used this approach on. She started at 800 calories a day and 2 hours of cardio per day. After 18 months she was maintaining her weight on 325 grams of carbs per day, a woman who weighs close to 110 pounds. She improved her metabolic capacity so much that getting lean was easy for her.

He also recommends that you should be doing 3 to 4 HIIT cardio sessions a week and to avoid doing a ton of LISS cardio. He says that LISS cardio has been shown to damage the metabolism.

Think It Over

This video really made me think. I have always wondered if we were possibly making trouble for ourselves by dieting the way we do. I saw this potential in action in my own progress.

When I first started taking weight off I utilized a place (seems they are no longer in business) called PhysiqueTransformation.com. They had a very detailed system. You were required to log everything you eat. They would grade you. The goal was to get as close to the macronutrient ratios they set as possible. If you got it spot on you got an A+. This got me thinking about the importance of the macronutrients. Clearly their system was focused on them. Another thing their system did was recommend calorie increases or decreases over time. After the first 2 weeks of logging food the system would begin to recommend a plan of action. Ironically, for me, it kept raising my calories yet the weight kept coming off.

My second experience was when I plateaued on my weight loss. I had lost 40 pounds and was stuck. Chris Albert of Metroflex Gym Long Beach took me under his wing. The first thing he did was increase my calories for 2 weeks and make me eat a lot of food. I began to lose weight almost immediately. It was pretty crazy.

I am glad that I have not fallen for the extremely low carb dieting plans that are out there. I have always been suspicious of them and now I seem to be vindicated by what Layne says in this video. What are your thoughts?

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Will You Do What It Takes?

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So you've decided that you want to step on stage. Have you asked yourself if you are willing to do what it takes? Do you even know exactly what it takes? How much research have you done? These are questions you need to ask yourself before you start down the path. What are the steps for preparing for a bodybuilding competition?

Find a preparation coach

I highly recommend finding a preparation coach. They will help you through the process, making sure that you hit all the relevant places at the right time. They will be there to encourage you when things seem impossible. They will prepare you for what is to come next.

When I prepared for my 2 contests my coach was extremely important. I specifically remember a conversation we had about how my motivation to train was waning. He basically talked me off the ledge by explaining that as a travelling salesman he had times when he was so tired he didn't feel like training, but he had to dig down deep and make it happen. He said that I should focus on the goal and the rest would come.

Your preparation coach will set up a nutrition plan and a training schedule for you. Most of them offer personal training for an additional charge. You would be wise to avail yourself of their training services at least every few weeks. It will keep you motivated and teach you proper muscle building techniques. These things will become extremely valuable for the rest of your training life. 

Follow a nutrition plan

As mentioned, all preparation coaches will set you up on a nutrition plan. It may seem “boring” or “tasteless” but stick to the plan as written. The plan is designed to help you move towards your goal of a lean and muscular physique. If you know you are going to do a show, get with someone very early on. I am already planning for a show March 2014 and it is June 2013. That's 9 months. The reason is that your nutrition plan will change to a “cutting diet” 12 weeks out from the show. Prior to that you want to build as much muscle as possible, so your eating will be very different.

The nutrition plan can be a difficult thing to stick to, but by doing so you will see the results appear before your very eyes. You will be amazed at what your body is capable of in a short period fo time. It truly is amazing.

Follow a precise training plan

Your coach will give you a training plan. It will not consist of specific exercises to do, but it will be a guide to how s/he wants you to train. My own coach believes in “instinctive training” and that's how I handle things as I approach the show date. However, when I am trying to build muscle I change things. I stick to a basic split and then add supplemental workouts for lagging body parts. It works for me so I do it. What works for me may not work for you, so pay attention to your body, your need for rest and the results you are producing. They will be your guide.

Train like an animal

I cannot say it enough–give it everything you have. Train hard in the gym and eat right outside the gym. Give every set your all. Don't give up when you still have reps left in you. That's an extremely important rule. Take your training seriously. It is now your job and you must do it well or be fired (ie. look terrible when you step on stage). You will benefit from your training the harder you work. Just get busy and get the job done.

Practice posing

I cannot stress enough how important it is to practice posing. I've done two shows and I am still learning proper techniques for making my muscles show well. It is not an easy task that is for sure. Just do the work. Practice on a daily basis. Use music when you practice. Obviously eating and training are the keys, but if you are in great shape and don't know how to show your body off you will not do well on stage.

Work with your coach on the mandatory poses. Learn them so that they become second nature. Work on being smooth on your transitions from one pose to another. It should look like poetry in motion.

My final recommendation about posing is something that drove my own family nuts, but has really improved my posing technique. I suggest getting comfortable by practicing certain poses while you are out in public. If you are at the grocery store stop for a moment and do a lat spread. If you are shopping at the mall do a double biceps pose while waiting for your significant other. Why should you do this? It will make you comfortable posing in front of a crowd. You should not care what other people think. Just think–if you can't pose with your clothes on in front of strangers how are you going to do it in your posing trunks in front of strangers while on stage?

Enjoy the process

The final part for you to understand is to enjoy the process. You have done what it takes. The show date is approaching. You've taken everything your coach said seriously and have done your best to execute his instructions. If you didn't like the process then it really wasn't worth it.  Do your best to enjoy the entire thing. In the end you will feel extremely proud of yourself and your accomplishments. Take lots of pictures so you can remember this moment, the moment you were in the best shape of your life.

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