Contest advise

[JamiePhyisque]

Hi All,

i had been bodybuilding (natty) for 4 years now i am 5'10 196 pound and around 12-13% body (abs just visible in decent lighting) and had just signed up to my first mens physiques show in 10 mouths time, what is your best advice for me? bulk and put on as much muscle is i can and if so until when? or do mini cuts in between? whens best to start my prep 20 weeks? I've never done a show so any advice or tips of stuff you think id benefit from?

[TPlain24]

Hi All,

i had been bodybuilding (natty) for 4 years now i am 5'10 196 pound and around 12-13% body (abs just visible in decent lighting) and had just signed up to my first mens physiques show in 10 mouths time, what is your best advice for me? bulk and put on as much muscle is i can and if so until when? or do mini cuts in between? whens best to start my prep 20 weeks? I've never done a show so any advice or tips of stuff you think id benefit from?

I'm still an amateur at competing in physique, so take my advice with a grain of salt....if you're at 196 pounds, 12-13% bodyfat at 10 months out, I would say you are in a great position to land a very conditioned physique around show time. 20 weeks seems to be the gold standard for prep time, but I'm sure you know it varies per individual dependent on many factors. If i were in your shoes, I would eat at a slight surplus (200 calories) till around 6 months out, focusing on compound lifts and bringing up lagging areas (if any). Your stats show you have a strong body composition, so your "muscle conversion" of the added weight gained shouldn't contribute much to increased bodyfat percentage...again, this is just speculation based on your tenure, current stats, bodyfat percentage. From there, i would guess your stage "shredded weight" to be anywhere within 168-175, though I wouldn't focus "too" much on the scale...focus more on how you look, and monitor your strength and energy in the gym closely.

[TrainBeastMode]

Hi All,

i had been bodybuilding (natty) for 4 years now i am 5'10 196 pound and around 12-13% body (abs just visible in decent lighting) and had just signed up to my first mens physiques show in 10 mouths time, what is your best advice for me? bulk and put on as much muscle is i can and if so until when? or do mini cuts in between? whens best to start my prep 20 weeks? I've never done a show so any advice or tips of stuff you think id benefit from?

Are you doing classic physique or just regular? There's a big difference in the two. If you are doing regular physique, especially a tested natural show, I wouldn't focus on getting "too big." If you are doing an NPC show or some other untested show, then all bets are off. I started out in natural physique, but eventually had to switch to bodybuilding because I was told that I was getting "too ripped" for physique. At the time, I was around 190 @ 6'1. They are looking for a different body type, especially at natural shows for physique. I used to know a lot of the judges in the PNW and it's comparable to a "surfer bod." They want you to be lean with abs and such, but they aren't looking for large amounts of striations or huge muscles. If you're doing classic physique, I would say bulk first, then cut. I consider classic physique to just be bodybuilding with different shorts and a few other poses. I know a lot of guys who crossover and do both classic and bodybuilding just for more stage time. You work hard for maybe 3-5 minutes of time on stage depending on your class. So you want to maximize it. If you are able to maintain your current bodyfat then you might be able to get away with a shorter prep which would allow you to bulk for a bit longer. I've done prep in as short as 12 weeks, but I was in decent shape to begin with. You'd probably be OK with a 16 week prep for your first one if you kept your bodyfat down.