Contest Dietin Woes

[Tim Wescott]

I have done 3 contests so far this year, the first one was in May, and then 2 more at the beginning, and the end of June.I have eaten over 90 cans of dry tuna fish in the last 60 days or so.I am so sick of eating tuna,, and egg whites, it`s incredible.I have 10 more days to go, then one more show in NY City in Nov.Once I`m done I never want to see a can of tuna again .The only good thing about it is that I`m definately ripped.

[jstone]

Tim, I'm thinking of doing an ANBC or NABF show in the spring. I did one about 9 years ago and made the traditional mistakes such as not increasing my protein as I decreased my calories and not coming in dark enough. At the time, I didn't have alot of guys I could bounce questions off of so I made some mistakes. In a nutshell, how do you traditionally prep for a show?

[Tim Wescott]

J Stone wecome to the board.I determine how far out I should start my diet by "guesstimating" ,just how much time I will need to get in shape from the amount of weight/bodyfat I have put on over the off-season.Lately I have been dieting 16 weeks out from the contest .I used to start at 8 weeks, but I feel that losing bodyfat slower over a longer period of time, gives you more of a chance to tweak the diet as the contest gets nearer.I immediately clean up my diet just by eliminating all junk foods. I then cut bread,and dairy products,and add in more cardio per week.I still do light cardio in the off-season, but nothing too taxing.My workouts stay heavy and I try to train a bit faster.As the weeks go on, I keep a close eye on my physique, and will cut carbs a bit if I feel the need to, judging by how I look.I always cycle carb intake and will do 3 low carb days followed by 2 slightly higher days.Never going too high.I have tried sodium loading this year but don`t quite know yet if I will continue doing it in the future.As I get closer I may feel the need to cut calories further ,and sometimes have been down to 1200-1500 per day ,with 35-50 grams of carbs.I drink a ton of water and always keep my protein intake high regardless of my goals.There are a few more things like cutting sodium, and water, and carb loading, but this is basically what I do.I don`t quite carb load, I just increase them somewhat for three days as my carbs are always pretty low even on high days.I hope this helps as I`m starting to ramble.If you need further details, as I`ve even confused myself somewhat, I`ll be glad toSorry about the rambling. elaborate.

[tarzan]

Tim, do you ever use protein shakes or fat bruners/ECA stacks?

[Tim Wescott]

I have in the past but not in the last year.
I truthfully see no difference in my results!!Protein shakes,in my opinion are just good for the convienience.
Nothing can beat good food and strict dieting.

[Maximum6]

You can always get canned Salmon now as well...or even chicken breast with broth in can. You don't have to have only Tuna...though..i love Tuna...

[Maximum6]

what's your Meal plan for low and high days about 1 month from contest?