Pre-pre-contest and IF

[RoroCwalker]

Hi,

I've been wondering if before starting my 21 weeks first pre-contest , I could gradually, for let's say 3 weeks, reduce the amount of calories I consume so that at the last week of the pre-pre-contest I reach maintenance calorie, taking it slow from there instead of jumping from a bulking phase to a pre-contest phase within a day?

Also, I've been bulking on IF, will I have to change my meal frequency coming into pre-contest or is it a safe way to go? I know as a matter of fact meal frequency does not matter it terms of calorie consumption but what I mean is that, doing IF while on a serious yet progressive deficit (going for striated glutes ), will it be harder to endure mentally, will it be easier on my own well being to have frequent meals?

-Thank you

[stubbee21]

You aren't going to want to make any crazy drops in your macros, so I think you would be safe lowering your numbers slightly(100-250) cals and see if you start dropping weight. If you notice that you are dropping too fast then you can adjust accordingly. Also, if you are working with a coach you should run this by them as well.

As for doing IF throughout your prep, it is going to be your call. You might notice it works while you are still on higher calories, but maybe you will want to try more frequent meals the longer you go into your prep. It's honestly going to be what you feel most comfortable with and how you feel mentally. I know that I personally would have a hard time on IF during prep because I am usually thinking about my next meal before I'm done chewing the one I'm on lol. Best of luck!

[RoroCwalker]

Thanks for your input.
I drop weight extremely fast, that's why I don't wanna go too crazy and go extremely slow.

The thing with IF is that I'll have school in the meanwhile and I'm wondering if it's really going to affect me mentally, to be on a deficit and having 16-18 hours of fasting + school, I'm worried about my grades.

[RoroCwalker]

So would it be safe to let's say..experiment 3 weeks before the actual prep?

[stubbee21]

So would it be safe to let's say..experiment 3 weeks before the actual prep?

Why not just start early? The longer you allow yourself to prep, the easier it is going to be. This will allow you to keep yourself losing at a slower rate, keep as much hard earned muscle as possible, keep macros higher, and if you are lucky you will be ready early.

[simpleguy4]

What are the calorie amounts you are talking about...bulking and maintenance? Agree with stubbee21...just start now at 24 weeks out and start dropping calories slowly and see how you progress. As you go if you drop too fast add some back in, or, if not dropping reduce by another 100-200kcal per week or so and see how you respond.

[RoroCwalker]

Why not just start early? The longer you allow yourself to prep, the easier it is going to be. This will allow you to keep yourself losing at a slower rate, keep as much hard earned muscle as possible, keep macros higher, and if you are lucky you will be ready early.

What are the calorie amounts you are talking about...bulking and maintenance? Agree with stubbee21...just start now at 24 weeks out and start dropping calories slowly and see how you progress. As you go if you drop too fast add some back in, or, if not dropping reduce by another 100-200kcal per week or so and see how you respond.

I'm scared of over doing it and being ready way too early because I lose weight extremely fast.

My bulking cals are 4k during workout days and about 3.7k during off days (as I increase my fat intake and reduce my carbs).
My maintenance...hmmm I really haven't really tried yet but with the 3.7 - 4k cal a day, I gain about 1-2 pounds a month. So I guess my maintenance cals would be around 3.5k maybe? I really haven't tried yet, also, thanks for your responses. The thing is I don't know what to reduce, my fat intake or my carbs intake?

Here are my approximate macros (taken from a thread I made a month ago) but I've changed my meat and carb intake so I'll approximate the values.


220g pro, 200g carbs, 200g fat in OFF days

240g pro, 310g carbs, 150g fat on working days

[stubbee21]

If you lose weight at a rapid pace it probably means that you are reducing your macros too much. You just want to make slight adjustments to keep yourself losing at a steady pace and I would make sure to not lose more than 2lbs per week.

Your fats are VERY high. Protein looks good, but I would drop some fats and add them back in as carbs.

[RoroCwalker]

Nothing more than 2lbs per week, alright, got it, thanks.

But aren't fats digested at a slower paste than carbs? That's why I added so much fats because I do IF.

What about the sodium? I put an extreme amount of salt on whatever I eat.