Written by Jeff Behar, MS, MBA
Preparing for your first bodybuilding contest can be daunting. How you
handle the last 5 days can make or break months of hard training and dieting.
Understanding how to manipulate your calories, carbohydrates, sodium, and water
levels is essential to performing well on contest day. Understanding how to
handle these items during the last week can increase the appearance of muscle
density and fullness while offering maximum vascularity and help catapult you
into the winner's circle if done correctly.
This is referred to as "Peaking". Because bodybuilding "Peak
condition" can only be maintained for a very short period of time, it is
critical that you understand how your body will react to stress, and changes in
your diet (you do not want to introduce new foods the day of the contest and
not only risk holding water), but also risk gad, intestinal and abdominal
cramping and bloating.
The Importance of Peaking Properly
Your goal must be to look your best during the competition (ideally at
pre-judging). If you are a contender after the pre-judging you may have a shot
at the overall, so maintaining your physique through the evening event is also
important. Any miscalculations and you may peak the day before or after the
competition.
It is tragic to see a bodybuilder who has trained and dieted consistently in
a ripped and vascular condition on Friday only to have the same competitor come
in flat and smooth on Saturday. Just about every bodybuilder has experienced
this at one point in their career, even experienced pros. The key is to
experiment with what works for you. Practice peaking early.
Peak Week Diet &
Training Approach
As a general rule of thumb I would suggest approaching your last week of
dieting like this:
Monday
Food:
- Consume
      6 to 7 small meals. All meals will contain protein from a variety of low
      sodium (not 'no' sodium) sources.
- Carbs
      should be approximately 0.5 grams per pound of bodyweight today. This
      translates into 100 grams for a 200-pound male.
- Carbohydrates
      should be of high fiber carbs (broccoli, other green vegetables, yams,
      oatmeal, brown rice, etc.) and approximately 50% of your normal intake.
      Protein should come from Tuna, egg whites, and other higher sodium
      sources. Condiments containing salt are still OK at this point.
Note: If you opt to low carb and salt your food this
carb depletion and salt load should occur the Friday before. If you choose to
experiment, this should be done two days before depleting carbohydrates. The
goal is to cause temporary water retention through a sodium-potassium
electrolyte imbalance.
When you eliminate salt completely but keep drinking water, the result is an
extreme water excretion from beneath the skin while using the carbs to pull
water into the muscle. Both, if performed correctly can result in a full,
"dry" vascular look.
Note: if you choose to salt load, you will need to
increase your water to confuse the body for this effect to work properly.
- Try
      to eat every 2 hours.
Water Intake:
- Consume
      16 ounces of water every hour, and sip with meals.
Supplements:
- 5
      grams of L-Glutamine 4 times daily. Continue to take your lipotropics,
      carnitine, pyruvate, etc. Cut out your creatine.
Training:
- Upper
      body very quick 2 sets per body part.
Cardio:
- Light
      cycling/cardio at 40% max heart rate.
Posing:
Minimum 1 hour on the mandatory. Hold each pose for at least one minute.
This will help build your stamina, minimize shaking and give you a more
polished look.
Also work on transitions between poses, using your arms to lead into a pose.
This will make simple routines look quite polished even if you lack the
expertise and are not a dynamic poser.
Tuesday
Food:
- Same
      as above except carbs should be approximately 0.75 grams per pound of body weight today. This translates into 150 grams for a 200-pound male.
      Protein can be reduced to maintain caloric intake.
Water Intake:
- Consume
      24 ounces of water every hour, and sip with meals.
Supplements:
- 5
      grams of L-Glutamine 4 times daily. Roughly 60% of free-form amino acids
      floating in skeletal muscles are L-glutamine. After an intense workout,
      glutamine levels in the body are reduced by as much as 50%. Supplementing
      with L-glutamine can help prevent muscle wasting that occurs because other
      tissues that need glutamine will not rob the glutamine stored in the
      muscle cells.
It can also help fat loss because muscle increases your metabolic rate,
losing it will result in a lower rate.
- Continue
      to take your lipotropics, carnitine, pyruvate, etc.
Training:
- Upper
      body very quick 2 sets per body part.
Cardio:
- Light
      cycling/cardio at 40% max heart rate. 
Posing:
- Minimum
      1 hour on the mandatory. Hold each pose for at least one minute.
Food:
- Same
      as Tuesday except high fiber carbs consumed should be approximately 1.5 -
      2 grams per pound of bodyweight. This translates into 300-400 grams for a
      200-pound male.
- Avoids
      processed foods.
- Use
      no condiments containing salt.
Water Intake:
- Consume
      24 ounces of water every hour, sip with meals.
Supplements:
- 5
      grams of L-Glutamine 4 times daily. Continue to take your lipotropics,
      carnitine, pyruvate, etc.
Posing:
- Minimum
      1 hour on the mandatory. Hold each pose for at least one minute.
Cardio:
- Light
      cycling/cardio at 40% max heart rate. If you hold water in your legs, nix
      this plan.
Thursday
Food:
- Up
      carbs to 1.75 - 2.25 grams per pound of body weight. This translates into
      350-450 grams for a 200-pound male. Lower protein accordingly.
- Protein
      shall come from low sodium sources such as boiled chicken or turkey breast.
- Read
      ALL labels, nearly everything contains sodium.
- Do
      your shopping in advance to be ready for this time.
- Avoids
      all processed foods.
- Use
      no condiments containing salt.
Water Intake:
- Consume
      16 ounces of water every hour, and sip with meals Water should be low
      sodium (not distilled).
Supplements:
- Potassium
      tablet 4 times daily. 5 grams of L-Glutamine 4 times daily. Continue to
      take your lipotropics, carnitine, pyruvate, etc.
Training:
Cardio:
- Light
      cycling/cardio at 40% max heart rate. If you hold water in your legs, nix
      this plan.
Posing:
- Pose
      and Pose to help that HARD look.
Friday
Food:
- Up
      carbs to 2.25 -2.5 grams per pound of body weight. This translates into
      450-500 grams for a 200-pound male. Lower protein accordingly. Pay extra
      careful attention to sodium. Keep this as low as possible.
Water Intake:
- Reduce
      water to 64 ounces taken between morning and 4:00 PM. Sip sparingly and
      only as needed from 6:00 PM on. When your muscles begin filling back up
      with glycogen, water is required. When you cut back to half your normal
      intake, a lot of the water it takes to make glycogen is dragged from
      beneath the skin and stored in the muscles, creating less water retention
      and clear definition.
Supplements:
- Potassium
      tablet 4 times daily5 grams of L-Glutamine 4 times daily. Continue to
      take your lipotropics, carnitine, pyruvate, etc.
Training:
Cardio:
- Light
      cycling/cardio at 40% max heart rate. If you hold water in your legs, nix
      this plan.
Other Preparation:
- Pose
      and Pose to help that HARD look.
- Apply
      two coats of Protan Friday evening.
Saturday - Showtime
Other Preparation:
- I
      wake early to get an extra meal in and to apply several coats of Protan.
- I
      add the bronzer at the contest site and arrive early to do so.
Food:
- Very
      small meals only.
- No
      sodium.
- Simple
      carbs that are non-bloating are best (raw honey, natural no sodium peanut
      butter, or apple butter, etc.)
Water Intake:
- Sip
      only as needed.
- By
      now you should be dropping water like crazy. Your abs should be very
      defined, and muscular definition and vascularity should be very high. This is
      a very delicate balance.
- Do
      not try anything new at this point to alter this condition.
- Limit
      water in case you consumed too many carbs for your physique, otherwise,       you will risk "spillage" and smooth out.
Other Tips.........
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