condiments

[lean+liftin_]

i have been on my contest diet for over a month and am seeing some progress. my show is in september. i have a few questions concerning condiments...dressing, seasonings, etc. in the morning i do 1/2 dry oats. i love them mixed with a packet of splenda and some no kcal, carb, or sodium butter spray. on my salads i put 2 tbsp of low sugar, fat, and kcal dressing. am i compromising things with these little additions? do i need to be eating as clean (plain and bland) as possible? i figure that the closer i get to the show, the more i need to eliminate ALL excess sugars (or sugar-like substances) and salts. does it matter 2 months out though? thanx in advance!!

[Ms. J]

I am training for my first show, so I am definitely no expert, but my nutritionist took me off ALL seasonings (including splenda, cinnamon, marinades, etc..) except for salt-free dry seasonings like Mrs. Dash at eight weeks out. I can tell a difference (much less water retention).

I have also read that a bunch of the pro girls take out all sugars and sweeteners precontest.

It is a sacrifice though, the oats with just water taste like dog food!!

[Catt]

Ive been pre contest dieting for 2 months now. (This will be my first show.) In the begining I really stayed away from the artificial sweeteners, because I was trying to stay as clean as possible. I have recently brought them back in because I've been craving sweets like crazy. My biggest splurge is sugar free Jello, and crystal light in my water...and diet coke occasionally. I havent noticed any set backs in my results. I am still dropping body fat at approx. .5-1% per week.

If you want to spice up your oatmeal, try protein powder in it! Its my favorite. I had Vanilla pp with cinnamon added for a long time, until I got burned out on it, now I alternate choc, and strawberry.

As far as salty foods, I like to spice them up with mustard, hot sauce, salsa (in moderation, no sugar of course.) Lemon juice sprayed on salads and veggies, and balsamic vinegar. Onions and garlic too. For me that helps brighten up the bland a bit

[missmuscle]

Bump to the ladies - NO CONDIMENTS or spices with salt. Unfortunately, even spray butter should be avoided. It sucks, but if you want to win, you have to make the sacrifices- I'm doing a show in Nov and I am already longing for some tasty condiments!!

[lean+liftin_]

i really appreciate all of the informative response to this post...thanx ladies and keep the advice coming! you are all helping this rooky out a lot and it is paying off to have this forum as a networking system!

anyways, to continue on with this question, what about synthetic protein? i have been supplementing only one, if that, meal (usual my post-lifting one) with a nitro-tech rtd or a low carb, high protein bar. i try to eat most of my protein from lean meat, fish, and poultry. the meal replacements are convenient, but do i want to lay off of them soon as well. i know that there are random artificial substances, glycerin, oils, and added salt and sugar to some of these products and i figure that this is doing me more harm than progress...any say on it?

thanx in advance
LL

[missmuscle]

You're good to go on whey ONLY shakes with water after a workout and/or before bed. You may want to look into getting 2 kinds. I have an afterworkout whey that absorbs quickly and then I have a bed time whey that is made with egg and milk protein that is time released. No bars for competition diet- too many fillers and SUGAR! Cut those out unless you are going to pass out from hunger and that's all you have on hand. Good luck!

[lean+liftin_]

yo miss muscle...just out of curiousity, what brand of whey do you use/recommend. i have been looking for a good time release formula...also something that doesn't taste too funky. i fugure since you are in the valley area you could also suggest a good supplement store. i like house of fitness. anywhere else?? thanx for all your help.

[missmuscle]

That's right! I forgot we're both here! Hof Fitness sells that kind I buy- actually, out of all the smaller supp stores they are the only ones except for Nutrition Warehouse. Sometimes One Stop sells it, but usually out of Chocolate. It's called Lean Protein by Extreme Labs- the label looks cheesy, but it's a great product and the only one I have ever tried that mixes in water super easy!!! I've tried the Vanilla and Chocolate and the choc is like choc milk!

[lean+liftin_]

i agree with you that the smaller stores usually have the better stuff. i like one stop nutrition too. where is nutrition warehouse?...need to check that one out! hey is there any where that sells dream tan. i don't think npc allows it but the smaller shows i am doing do. house of fitness has jan tana and pro tan stuff...do you recommend anything else?
**totally off the topic of condiments**oh well, it's my post
thanx in advance!

[missmuscle]

I have used Jan Tana and Pro tan- NPC doesn't allow Dream Tan b/c it gets all over everything and really pisses the people off who run the sights for the events. I like Jan Tana for the first few coats and then protan over that

[hwilbur]

Hi,

I'm not an expert but I have competed in 14 shows over the last year and a half. For every show, I kept my sodium to under 2000 mg per day the week of the show tapering down to 500 mg the 2 days before my show. It is not necessary to restrict the sodium weeks out from a show. Your body will be less responsive in the last few days when you want everything to tighten up.

For one show I was holding water 2 weeks prior and kept my sodium low. I ended up "peaking" too early. After that, I stuck with what worked every other time.

Just my experience!

Holly
www.hollywilbur.com