There is a saying in the boxing and MMA world — never let the fight go to the judges. The feeling is that when a fight is allowed to go to the judges there are times when the better fighter does not win. I have to agree with this in principle. Many times the decision of the judges does not match the fight I witness.

Bodybuilding is 100% subjective. People go to shows and observe the athletes. In their mind they know who should place where. Many times the judges disagree and place the athletes differently than expected. They have their reasons for doing so. Whatever the reasons, it is sometimes a passionate outcry that will result from the crowd. I witnessed this during my show this past weekend.

First, let me say that I am totally clear on the fact that different judges look for different things. Some judges will put a conditioned athlete who is smaller as the winner while others will always go for size. This weekend it was clear that the judges were into size. I will look at this from the perspective of the women's bodybuilding division.

Two women were paired against each other. One was doing her first show and had obviously put in the work required. She was very well conditioned. She had nicely symmetrical muscles. Her body looked great. The opponent was also in good shape, but not as conditioned. She was definitely larger than the first woman. This woman took first over the smaller woman and the crowd booed.

In my division I placed behind a guy who was obviously not as conditioned as I was. I heard this from 3 other competitors–my conditioning was better. However, I placed behind him due to his size.

Some would get frustrated by this, but this is why I love the sport. Now I konw that I need to be bigger to move up in placing. It is obvious after doing two shows. If I pay attention to size as well as conditioning, I am going to do well. It is really that simple. Now on to the hard work!

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Getting comfortable is sometimes seen as a term that is bad. In fact, it can definitely be bad when used in certain contexts. However, when used in the right context, getting comfortable is good.

When is Comfortable Bad

If you are getting comfortable with your workout routine to the point where you just do the same thing each time, that's a bad thing. When getting comfortable means settling into a routine, that's a bad thing. When getting comfortable means you do your cardio at an easy pace without pushing yourself, that's a bad thing.

When we take the time to hit the gym and train, getting into a comfort zone is a bad thing. We want to always be pushing the limits so that we can see the changes we desire.

When Getting Comfortable is Good

I competed in my second bodybuilding competition this past weekend. It brought back to the surface all of the emotions I went through the first time. I was remembering very clearly the things I had gone through the first time–good and bad. However, I immediately noticed a change in several areas.

1. I was comfortable with the environment. I didn't feel like I was completely out of place and I understood the process that I was going through.
2. I was comfortable with getting on the stage. I had been through this before and processed it many times in my mind since. I was able to get up on stage and not fear a thing.
3. I was comfortable with my posing routine. I had been so focused this time on building muscle that I neglected coming up with a specific posing routine. I did my thing off the cuff. I managed to get the crowd involved and completely enjoyed the experience.
4. I was comfortable with my competitiveness. Going in I knew I was not a favorite to win. At the same time, I was comfortable enough with the changes I'd made that I knew I'd be way more competitive this time around. It served to ease my nerves.

The Comfort Zone Changes

It seems odd, but changing my comfort level changed my comfort zone completely. I felt better about the entire process. I enjoyed it all so much more than I had previously. This type of comfort builds confidence.

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I am about to embark on my second bodybuilding competition in just 3 days. In my preparation for both contests I have been told about a rebound effect that one can take advantage of after a prolonged period of contest dieting. For me, I've been on a contest diet for 6 months. This concept of a rebound effect is one that is very interesting to me, but I wondered if it was real, so I did some research. This is what I found out.

Six Week Opportunity

Most of the research I did shows that there is a six week period where you can capitalize on the rebound effect. You can take advantage of this six week window to pack on mass as a result of the rebound effect.

Use Carbs to Help Build Muscle Post-contest

Anyone who has ever dieted down for a contest knows the sacrifices that have to be made. Sometimes these sacrifices include a loss of muscle. The body has mechanisms to cope with drastic and extreme changes that it undergoes. The rebound effect is the result of one of these mechanisms the body uses. This is why it is essential to use carbs post-contest to help build muscle. It is essential to continue eating clean to avoid a large amount of fat gain, but a sufficient amount of good carbs and fats must be introduced post-contest. Your body will be craving those things. It will respond to their introduction by using those things to put on muscle mass.

Follow the “150” Rule

During the competition diet every bodybuilder has consumed a different amount of carbs. The rebound effect includes a rule that is called the “150” rule that says you should just add 150 grams of carbs to what you were eating during your diet and you will gain muscle. Thus, if you were eating 120 grams of carbs during your contest diet you would up that to 270 grams of carbs post-contest. It is important that most of those come from slow burning carb sources (oatmeal, brown rice, etc.)

Add More Carbs Four Weeks In

At the start of the fourth week post-contest, add more carbs (100 grams). Your body adjusts to what you do, so adding even more carbs at this point will help your body continue to produce muscle mass gains.

Don't Be Shy About Fat

Dietary fat helps keep testosterone levels high. When trying to build muscle post-contest, fat is going to play an important role. Dieting tends to cause testosterone levels to drop dramatically. Adding back the right fats to your diet will help to counteract that issue and help you take advantage of the rebound effect.

Protein is Your Friend–To An Extent

Post-contest diets should include about 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. This may sound crazy, but the reason is simple–efficiency. By increasing the amount of carbs and fats you are eating your body increases testosterone levels which makes it more efficient at using protein. Thus, you won't be wasting as much protein. More of it will be available for muscle growth.

Change to Heavy Training

The first thing you should do is take a week off of training. After that, start lifting heavy weights for low repetitions. You will see that there is an increase in strength and that will lead to an increase in size as well. Push your workouts hard during this six week period of time and you will be amazed at the results.

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The “why” behind why I compete is a complex one with many different angles. Most of my reasons, however, have to do with achieving goals and continually improving my physique. I want to share with you 3 important reasons why I compete and maybe inspire you to do the same someday.

It Helps to Have a Goal

I am the type of person who will not stop until I achieve a goal. I pull out all the stops and push harder when a goal is on the line. My original reason for competing was to achieve a weight loss goal. Now that the goal is achieved I could sit back and enjoy or I could push forward and continue to compete. I have chosen to continue competing because of how focused it makes me. Eating is easier when I know I am going to have to compete. Training is more focused when I know I am going to have to compete. I just look at life differently.

Honing My Physique is Easier

After competing for the first time I realized that I want to improve much of my body. I want bigger pecs, bigger arms and chiseled abdominals. While I'm sure I could achieve these things without competing, just knowing that I need to step on stage makes me more focused on these goals. I train harder to improve my physique because I want my family to be proud of me when they see me up on stage.

Training is More Intense

Since I focused on competing, I increased the intensity of my training. The weights have become even more important in my life. I love my time in the gym. I look forward to getting in there and getting the job done. It is like my own little sanctuary away from the world. I can escape and focus on my training and how it makes my body feel.

Perhaps Competing is For You?

If you find it hard to focus in the gym and have a hard time sticking to an eating plan, perhaps entering a competition will help you get focused and stick to the plan? The accountability a competition brings to you is a very strong motivator. If you are serious about achieving your goals, give a competition a try. Just be careful. Like me, you may become addicted to competitions.

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I just finished reading 8 Evil habits that Hijack Your Progress and Snuff Out Your Motivation by my friend Marc David and it got me thinking. It is an article you definitely want to read, but I realized there are 5 more evil habits that could be included.

1. Constantly changing their eating habits. It is pretty clear to me that most people fail at the fat loss game because they don't stick it out long enough. They change things up too often because they don't see the results they expect right away. I can tell you that by sticking to the same plan for enough time that it can take effect, you can safely evaluate your progress. Only make changes to nutrition: (a) when it isn't working; or (b) when you are going into contest preparation.
2. Not working hard enough in the gym. Changes to your body requires you to work harder and harder. Each time you go to the gym you should beat what you did there previously. Most people just take it too easy. They get satisfied with the way things are and don't push themselves hard enough. This type of mistake is costly because not only do you fail to see results, but you cannot get back the time you wasted.
3. Underestimating the importance of cardio. Like Marc's point about gurus, too many of us underestimate the importance of cardio exercise. We read that we can burn fat in just 10 minutes a session, so naturally we go for the easy path. I can tell you from experience that I only get great results when I do at least an hour of cardio each day. Do not underestimate how important cardio exercise is.
4. Underestimating the importance of carbs. Somwehere along the way people turned carbs into something that is evil. They work hard to keep carbs low at all times. This could really be stalling their progress. I only saw serious fat loss after increasing my carbs.
5. Thinking you can make up a workout. Many people find nothing wrong with skipping a workout only to “make it up” later. You can't make up a scheduled workout. Once you miss it, it is gone forever. Make sure you stick to your training schedule.

If you relate to anything above, think about how you will fix the problem. Make the proper change and you will see a change in your results.

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