I did the whole bodybuilding thing for several years. I was never a great bodybuilder by any means. I trained and dieted my ass off and I would put dedication and work ethic up against anyone. Over the years I also got into prepping bodybuilders for shows. Granted, I worked with more women then men, there are simply more female competitors when you consider figure, bikini and all that, but here I'm simply focusing on bodybuilding. Over the years, along with my own bodybuilding I have prepped around 200 competitors, 70 or 80 bodybuilders the rest figure and bikini. With that in mind here are some things I think are useful to know and worth consideration.
1. There's an old saying some long term bodybuilders may be familiar with "whoever has the best drugs wins." This statement is not entirely true but it does hold an element of truth. Steroids and gear in general are the most important factors when it comes to bodybuilding or at least winning shows. This is something many are uncomfortable with, even some bodybuilders but I assure you it is the truth. Quality gear is important, and if you happen to have two genetically identical bodybuilders who prep the same, the one with better gear will more than likely win. But what's the most important is the genetic response to gear. This may be the single most important aspect in bodybuilding. If you work your ass off, I mean beat yourself into the ground but your response to gear is average at best, the odds are strong you will not beat a guy with a better response to gear even if he didn't train and diet as hard as you.
2. There's another old saying "whoever uses the most gear wins." Again, not entirely true but not entirely false. Whoever uses the most gear and possesses the strongest genetic response to gear will most likely win. This doesn't mean that guy doesn't have to diet, but there's a good chance he won't have to diet as hard. However, the genetic response is still the most important. In fact, with a gifted genetic response the guy that wins might have even used less gear than you if your genetic response is average.
3. Dieting: one of the biggest mistakes bodybuilders make is eating too much clean food when dieting. They are so worried about losing size that they don't cut their calories enough...especially towards the end of the diet. Then, if they finally realize they're behind, a diet that's already brutal goes to brutal hell. Keep in mind, if you're prepping for a show, consuming an adequate amount of protein and using a significant amount of gear, you're not going to be at risk of losing massive amounts of muscle tissue.
4. Size vs. Ripped: While size is important it is nowhere near as important as conditioning. If you worry about size more so than conditioning you will probably lose. Just a hypothetical example: Guy #1 is 225lbs at 6%bf. Guy #2 is 215lbs at 4%bf. Both are the same height. If the show is judged with at least a reasonable amount of sanity guy #2 will always win. Also, keep in mind if you're a competitor competing in the NPC or similar overseas organization, conditioning is paramount....you're not competing against Ronnie Coleman and if a Ronnie like guy happens to show up, well this is once in a million.
5. If you use more gear in your off-season than during your prep more than likely you're an idiot or simply don't understand what you're doing.
6. If you get to the last wk or two before your show and you feel you don't look your best as you're holding a fair amount of water, 99% of the time you're holding a fair amount of fat.
7. If you feel like a million bucks when you step on stage 99% of the time you're not ready and it's highly unlikely you'll win. If you do pull off a win, more than likely your competition was weak or your genetics are so superior that you're 42 seconds from being a pro.
8. If you've prepped correctly and you're ready or at least damn close to ready 2wks out, most bodybuilders who end up looking worse the day of the show do so because they went nuts with their carb manipulation, water or both. Sodium can also be thrown factored into this, but carbs and water are the biggest factors. If you've never competed and deplete completely and then gorge on carbs the last few days, you'll probably look like crap. Keep it very simple and next time make moderate adjustments on that...MODERATE and then continue to go from there.
9. Now I'll admit, I'm stealing this one but it's one of my favorites. Bod Chick once said if you come in second and there are only two guys in your class that means you came in last.
10. If you're a decent bodybuilder, you've qualified for nationals and you want to compete, if you're not willing to use HGH there's a good chance you won't place well. Exceptions? Absolutely, but most need it at this stage. Also, just because you won your class at a local show, this does not mean you should compete on a national stage. I cannot count how many bodybuilders I've seen completely demoralized because of this. Use your head, gauge yourself accurately. Just because you won a show does not make you a bad ass. To begin it doesn't make you a bad ass because it's bodybuilding and no one actually gives a crap. But truly see yourself properly and if you're smart you won't rely on your own eyes, you'll have someone who's honest help gauge you along the way, someone who won't sugar coat things and you won't blow up like a douche when they are criticizing only to help you.
11. Most need 16wks to prep for a show. While this is a long period and while you may not actually need 16wks of full blown dieting, this will allow you to ensure you are ready well ahead of schedule. Hopefully it will prevent you from having to diet till near the point of death at the end. Keep in mind, this doesn't mean the diet won't be hard. There are very few things in life as hard as contest prep if done right.
12. Now this one will piss a lot of people off, I understand that but again I assure you it is the truth. If you have the desire to be a hardcore bodybuilder, you want to compete in numerous shows and take yourself as far as you possibly can in that, if you follow what's considered general responsible gear use you're not going to go far. Your national level guys do not follow "Time on Equals Time off", they do not stay on less than off but stay on the majority of the time. For these guys, cycling typically means cycling the different compounds and varying the doses. It does not mean running a cycle, stopping, completing a PCT, staying off for a set period of time and then getting back on. It also means that while periods of use are planned out, various gear related items and doses, they may very well change as time evolves out of necessity. Is this type of use responsible? By standard message board responsible rules it's not but it is the nature of bodybuilding.
That's all for now. I may add more later if this has been worth anyone's time. If not, oh well, I guess I'm talking to myself, lol!