Last week I competed in the UK Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation (UKBFF) British Finals.
It was a fantastic experience stepping out on stage but that bit of the contest is a very small part of it – much of the contest preparation happens long before the event!
Contest preparation is all about looking lean on stage
So here’s a quick insight into what my last week of competition preparation consisted.
Contest preparation – the final week
The weeks prior are very repetitive and boring. The last week, also known as peak week, is where it all becomes more interesting.
When you’re one week away from the stage, the first contest preparation element that I am looking to change is to reduce my overall carbs intake. I start doing this with a view to the lead up to my two depletion days which are normally the fourth and third days out from your competition.
So I’m still doing plenty of cardio exercise until the fourth and third days out from the competition. At this point my food intake will consist of only turkey breast, grilled, seven times throughout the day.
My water intake will be up to about eight litres minimum. Along with this I have to train whole body on each day. Why? To help deplete my body of all glycogen stores.
Sadly this is not part of contest preparation!
Re-introducing carbs for your contest preparation
After these two days, the fun beigins! The carbs are introduced to pump me up and I normally do around 1.5kg of sweet potato and 1.5kg of white potato along with 600g of turkey breast grilled.
This will be distributed into 10 (yes, 10!) meals throughout the day. So broken down that works out as 150g of each potato and 60g turkey breast 10 times throughout the day.
On the second day of carb loading I cut my water to dehydrate ready for show day. Additionally I’ll consume a big glass of red wine to help dehydrate me.
Come the big day, the contest preparation is almost done and for my breakfast I’ll have grilled 200g lean steak and asparagus.
At this point I’m pretty much ready to step on stage. Throughout the day I’ll slowly eat baked potato so I’m not left starving or dizzy.
The results of my contest preparation
How did I do? My contest preparation obviously worked as I ended up collecting fourth place in then men’s physique class over 180cm. I’m pleased with this as it means I’ve also qualified for the European championship.
How do you prepare for a contest? Let me know in the comments, it’s always interesting to hear other people’s contest preparation methods!
A great result after all my contest preparation!
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