Contest prep

[halifax]

Hi guys!

I am just starting to plan my workout routine for my first contest. I have been looking around but I have not found any good tips on this.
Questions that I have:
How many times should I work each muscle per week? How many excersises, reps?
Are there any good homepages, that are for free, or with good info on (step by step guidelines)?
I am not even going to start my nutritional questions...

Right now I am working out 4 days a week every muscle once a week, no cardio so far.

Thank you!

[silverfox]

Well I truly think you shouldn't change your workouts too much, stick with same reps etc.. you MAY want to up the volume a bit, to burn the extra calories or you can do this by adding cardio, after a few mistakes last couple of times i feel the less cardio you can do the better. Some ppl will say do more reps shorter rest times between sets, but i personally don't think that is good idea, train as heavy and hard as you can trying to grow right up until contest day. As for diet, you kinda have to tell us where your at right now in terms of bodyfat and what your eating day to day.

[halifax]

Thanks for the answer...
Well I have tried dieting once last year and I managed to cut my fat % from 25 to 7.2. First mainly for fun then I wanted to see how far I could go... Maybe enter a show... What I did was that I have started to do my body in three days and to train oposit muscles in supersets. That is, do curl for biceps and then immediatly go over to do push down for triceps. Do three sets of this and then another two exercises. Then another two. I did my cardio first thing in the morning, 2 times a week then gradually raising it to 5 times a week and sometimes even after workout.

I ate five-six times a day 3g of protein per kg muscle (1,5g per pound...). That was mainly the only thing that i watched and I also tried not eating any fat and not too much carbo. Thats it.

The only problem was that I did not seem to know what to do at the very and of the diet. I was still holding water in various parts (legs mainly) and I could not lose the last fat on my abs. So I decided not to enter the show. This went on for 12 weeks.

Workouts were great but training like I did requires a lot of freedom in the gym. You run around between machines and they need to be free, so I trained mainly late in the evening even after closing hours. This is unfortunattly not possible anymore. What I was thinking of now is to do my body in four days (back/biceps, quads/shoulders, triceps/chest, hamstrings/shoulders, abs/calves every day). Two days on one day off. Raise my protein to two grams per pound.

I took Clen for one week and then eff/coff/asp for one week. This the last five weeks.

Silverfox, I would apreciate your help. Canada? I use to live in Halifax a long time ago... Best years in my life.

[MIKE_XXL]

I believe in reducing the volume a bit, ussually about 20% for me, when you are dieting and the nutrients are limited, i feel by reducing the volume, less catabolism will take place, however i still train heavy and approach every set as if it's my last one ever and give it all i got...XXL

[silverfox]

Ok, what are you stats right now? I live about 2H form Halifax but viste there have few good buds in area. Basicly you want to following something along the line of:

2g per lbs for protien
cycle your carbs intake between 80-100g up to as high as 400-500g of CLEAN carbs, for example two days low, one moderate, antoher low, then carb up day, you get idea. Keep fat min. but do take your EFA's. Your worksouts seems fine, like mike said do every rep of every set like it's last one you'll ever do. Your cardio seems to be on track if you been to 7% before your not far off from show ready, in terms of water, it's real just manging your cards and water/sodium at end of diet.

[halifax]

Well I have just started! I had three weeks of holiday, with no training. Just eating (pizza, pizza, pizza, pizza...).

My show is on the 7th of December, thus 17 weeks to go. I have not started measuring my food intake. I am 197lbs now and my bodyfat is around 15% (I will have it measured this week, take pictures and stuff.)

Looks good, but my abs are my week area. Immediatly start packing on fat as soon as I do not watch my food. Especially the middle of my abs, I still have veins on my seratus (saw muscles) but the rest is FAT. The more you get into the middle the more fat you have. Any tip there?

Rest of my body is OK (veins and cut) Also I do not seem to get cut in my outer (side) leg. Quads are good. What could I do? Someone told me to wear sweat-suit on my legs while doing cardio, to sweat ou the water there. I guess I will try it later in the progress but for now I need some good exercises to separate the outer part of my quads from my outer hamstring (hope you get the picture)...