There are some old threads on pre-contest dieting etc. however most are very (5-8 yrs) old. I am sure that in the past years the approaches to pre comp diets have changed and would love for someone to post up their or others strategies on competition. That is how far out to start cutting, what macros, what changes over time to macros as well as changes to workouts, aas intake, and of course the final weeks and how you deplete and replace carbs, water etc.
Many thanks to any who respond.
This is what I have learned after researching and listening to what the top natty coaches have to say.... Now IMO the good natty coaches are years ahead of all the drug coaches you may hear of.... Learn front he nattys
Diet slowly... Allow yourself enough time to loose 0.5% of your body weight per week plus 4-6 weeks extra for complications or a diet reversal .... If your 200 lbs and 10% bf and want to hit 4% give yourself 18 weeks.... By dieting slowly you can maintain most, if not all of your muscle by maintaining a higher calorie intake and in turn maintaining or even improving pound ages in the gym...
Do as little cardio as possible and keep your carbs as high as possible while still hitting your weekly average weight loss targets....
Macros are going to be so variable it's not even worth going into it without an example....
As far as macro changes.... This will only occur if required..... If progress slows and target weight loss is not achieved weekly energy balance will need to be adjusted slightly... Be it from an increase in calories out (cardio) or a decrease in calories in (carbs and fats)...
Don't **** around too much with water manipulation.... If your shredded then your shredded.... If your not shredded your not ready, pick another show.... With a target of being shredded and stage ready 4-6 week out there should be no last minute bullshit wizardry required to have you looking your best....
Workouts need to remain progressive throughout the cut in order to preserve LBM and metabolism....
If you want to learn about contest prep I advise you to search for the following guys...
Alberto Nunez
Eric Helms
Layne Norton
John Otis Hollywood
My first comment would be there are no set specific formulas. A good bodybuilder has a plan but he will change that plan as needed at anytime progress comes to a halt. Here's the best personal example I can give you...I've been doing contest prep for people for the last 10-12yrs. It didn't start that great but I've gotten a lot more comfortable with it over the years. Now, I have a few base diets I start most people on, but as the diet progresses, for the sake of the example let's say there are 10 people dieting, by the time you get into the diet a month or two those 10 diets won't look anything alike. Sure, they'll have a lot of the same foods, but the overall plan looks different.
Everyone is different, this is always an important thing to remember. I know guys who are pretty much identical to me height, weight and body fat but I can't eat as much as they can on a diet if we're going to end up at relatively the same lean point...not a chance.
As far as the type of diet, I am a big fan of Keto diets. Nothing will condition you like a well-planned Keto plan. Yes, there are periods where you'll look really flat but as time goes by you will find you start filling out when you eat fats. Works every single time. And there is less room for error when you're on a Keto plan...screw it up and you can feel like dog crap and it can be hard to get back on track. Unfortunately, in my experience, I've found most do not know how to plan a proper Keto plan and that's why some hate it.
How far out should you start? That's impossible to say. That depends on how much fat you have to lose and how easy or hard of a time your body fights against fat loss. Any new person I work with, I prefer to have 16wks. That doesn't mean we're contest dieting the whole time, often it does, but either way it allows time figure things out. And the next time you work with them, as you'll have a better understanding of them (assuming they've stayed in shape) you might be able to diet less time wise. There really are though a lot of variables.
Weight training should for the most part stay the same. Do what got you to that point. Granted, most need to cut down on the volume as the diet progresses, especially towards the end, but overall it should stay the same. There is no special weight training protocol for dieting.
My thoughts on water and carbs:
*Drink water as normal until the night before pre-judging. Rarely and I do mean rarely is there a need to cut water earlier than this.
(Stick with potassium sparing diuretics and start them on Fri morning.)
*Carb up: If you're a week out and you look absolutely fantastic, don't carb up. However, I do like small carb ups with a hard depletion prior. My preference, 3-4 days of absolutely nothing but tilapia and asparagus, one day of high fats and protein and start carb up on Thu. Thu have 30-35g of carbs per meal and Fri. keep the same or increase to around 50g per meal if you still have room to fill out. Now these are very general recommendations. I would never in a million years tell someone 10wks out this is what they should do their last week. This is just an example, of what I like for me.
Gear: Use more than you did in the off-season, make Tren your staple and understand how to keep testosterone as high as you can for as long as you can. Use only pharma grade HGH and a good T3 product. After that, everything else is just bonus. I like Masteron the last half and NPP the first half of the diet and possible Anavar if you can get good Anavar. Anadrol is also great at a low dose the last 3wks or so before the show if you are in great shape.
Thanks a lot guys appreciate the replies.