Going to do a figure show!

[hotgymchick]

Hey girls-
I decided I do want to do a figure show. Not only is it going to be special, because I'm 19, but I want to gain some experience.

So my question is...how many weeks do I give myself (so I know what contest to pick?) I'm at 13% BF and I don't weigh myself anymore, 5'5".

[imperfectly_lou]

That's awesome Kristen!!!!! How exciting!

I would say you would want to pick one about 6-8 weeks out, so you could aim to lose about 0.5% of BF per week. But if you were to post some pictures, we might be able to give u a better idea.

[hotgymchick]

I could try the pics, the only thing is I don't have a scanner or digital cam...hmm.....

[missmuscle]

Congrats! Welcome to the world of pre comp dieting!!! I woudl recommend giving yourself 12 weeks just so you can ease into the dieting part!! Since you are already low in bf, you should be able to lean out pretty quickly. But since the diet is really tough, I find it's a lot easier to stick to for beginners if you give yourself some time to adjust and make small changes every week instead of diving right into a superstrict pre comp diet. Without seeing pics, I can't really make too many recommendations and would need to know a bit more about how your body reacts to foods, salt and cardio- ie, do you normally hold a lot of water? Do you lean really easily? DO you have to do cardio to lose fat or just diet?

Give us some more details and I would be happy to help!!

MM

[hotgymchick]

missmuscle-

I don't normally hold a lot of water, I stick to low sodium and try to drink a lot. I like doing cardio, so I've never gone without it, but I might be doing too much (6 days a week,sometimes twice a day but never more than 20 minutes each session). Or I will do Max-OT cardio (16 minutes at the highest intensity sustainable).

Hmm what else...sometimes I have problems with hunger at night, which sidetracks my diet.

Anything else you need to know? All I really need are some basic starting points for the first few weeks, such as what to do differently, and by then I should have pics. ( of course they will be emailed to the girls I want opinions from)

[Emma-Leigh]

Woo hoo!!! That is great news Kristen!

The cardio may have to be dropped back at first, and then progressively loaded again to help you lean out further. Also, are you still on the low carb, low fat, only protein diet? Because you might have to modify this as well. There is not much you could do to your diet at the moment to help you lean out - as it is already pretty low cal/low carb/low fat. Maybe carb cycling could be something to consider?

As far as training etc goes then I agree with Lou - picks would help us to guide you as to what area's you would need to work on before getting on stage.

[hotgymchick]

Hmm carb cycle...I think I will try that out! Should I plan out exactly each day..or some days just eat more? Can anyone give me an approximate grams of what to eat per day?

[Emma-Leigh]

Hmm carb cycle...I think I will try that out! Should I plan out exactly each day..or some days just eat more? Can anyone give me an approximate grams of what to eat per day?

Depend on what type of carb cycling you are doing (eg: There is a difference between different programs - some say your high carb day is 'eating carbs until you are satisfied', others have planned macro-ratio targets for evrery day). But planning to a certain degree is always needed.

How many grams etc you will need will vary depending what plan you decide to go with, your lean weight and what you are hoping to achieve (eg: If you need to add more lean mass before you compete).

[hotgymchick]

I was perusing BB's article database and really didnt find anything I liked on carb cycling..I'm more of a fan of John Berardi and that clan...anyone got any good links?

[missmuscle]

Kristen- I agree with Emma- with someone like yourself who is blessed with the ability to stay pretty lean year round, I would drop off some of the cardio for now and pick it up again as you get closer to the show.
As far as carb cycling- I would suggest including complex carbs in your diet for at least 3-4 days per week in the beginning and then tapering off as your body changes. Some people are very sensitive to carbs and when they take them out, drop bf like crazy. I am not one of those people!! I would suggest malt o meal or oats in the am and then yams and or brown rice for another 2 meals during the day. You could do a higher carb day, then reduce for 2 days until very lo carb then repeat, but since you seem to not have a prob leaning down, I don't think it may be all that imperative in your sepcific scenario.
Good luck
MM

[hotgymchick]

I'm thinking about doing carbs in the AM (usually 1/2 c. oats), at an afternoon meal, and post-workout for awhile.

For a pre-bedtime meal, is it okay to have protien powder, 8 oz. skim lactaid, and a tablespoon of peanut butter? I don't really care about the carbs in the lactaid THAT much, since I haven't eaten/drank dairy in a good 5 years.

[missmuscle]

You may want to cut the carbs after the workout, but add them in prior and as far as the lactaid and pb- while dieting, you really should avoid having fat before bedtime, I would just shoot for a shake with water and have the pb sometime during the day

[Emma-Leigh]

I'm thinking about doing carbs in the AM (usually 1/2 c. oats), at an afternoon meal, and post-workout for awhile.

This is fine. I would keep carbs post-workout. You have no idea when you are going to go into comp and there is no need to compromise your recovery for now. Also, you do not know if you need to put on any more muscle before you compete - so why risk loosing what you have??

For a pre-bedtime meal, is it okay to have protien powder, 8 oz. skim lactaid, and a tablespoon of peanut butter? I don't really care about the carbs in the lactaid THAT much, since I haven't eaten/drank dairy in a good 5 years.

Ok - inform me what lactaid is? If it is just like milk then that is fine, but I would try to get a caesin based powder to increase the nitrogen retention capabilities of the meal. The PB would be a good addition (as would walnuts/linseeds).

[missmuscle]

Sorry- I was making that recomendation based on the idea that you were competing soon! Pls keep in your carbs after workout if you will be trying to build lean mass!!!

[hotgymchick]

Not soon, but within 6 months.

Emma, Lactaid is like milk, without the dairy part. It has 80 cals/13 carb/10-15 (I forgot) g. protein/per 8 oz.

For an example of my diet:

Meal 1: 1/2 c. oats, 1 scoop protein
Meal 2: 1/2 whole wheat tortilla (15 g. carbs), 4 oz turkey, 1 c. green beans
Meal 3: 1/2 c. cottage cheese, 1 scoop protein
Meal 4 (Postworkout): 1 scoop protein, 8 oz lactaid
Meal 5: 1/2 c. cottage cheese, 1/2 scoop protein
And for fats, about 3 teaspoons of pb thrown in there throughout the day.

[Emma-Leigh]

Not soon, but within 6 months.

You do not need to be thinking about pre-contest diet until 12 weeks out... And, seeing you are already very lean, you probably do not even need to be concerning yourself with dropping carbs post-workout until part of the way through that time anyway...

Emma, Lactaid is like milk, without the dairy part. It has 80 cals/13 carb/10-15 (I forgot) g. protein/per 8 oz.

Ok...

For an example of my diet...

Arggg...!!! **spaz attack** Boy I could have a field day with this!!

I hate to say it but in addition to the fact that this diet severely compromising your recovery/health at the moment, it is not going to give you ANY room to move when you want to lean down for a comp.

I would slowly start to increase your carbs and calories again - at this stage you have a good 3 months to focus on solidifying your muscle mass and correcting your symmetry (although, without piccies, we can not tell you what to work on) and this is the time you NEED food.

Anyway - a few pointers:

Meal 1: 1/2 c. oats, 1 scoop protein

Good to see 1/2 cup oats (dry measure!!)
Protein is ok (but real food such as egg-whites would be better)
Consider adding some healthy fats to this meal (flax?).

Meal 2: 1/2 whole wheat tortilla (15 g. carbs), 4 oz turkey, 1 c. green beans

Is that 15g for the whole tortilla or 15g in half a tortilla...?? Either way, you want a little more carbs that that... 25g is more like it.
4 oz turkey, if it is cooked, is fine.
Beans are excellent...

Meal 3: 1/2 c. cottage cheese, 1 scoop protein

Add carbohydrates to this meal... Pre-workout the last thing you want your body to be doing is looking for energy.

Meal 4 (Postworkout): 1 scoop protein, 8 oz lactaid

Add oatmeal/fruit/yoghurt etc (in addition to the lactaid) to increase your carbs in this meal. You will not recover with only 13g carbs, especially if your next meal is only protein/fats!!!

Meal 5: 1/2 c. cottage cheese, 1/2 scoop protein

Add fats.

And for fats, about 3 teaspoons of pb thrown in there throughout the day.

This is ok, but remember that for HEALTH reasons alone you need a minimum of 0.3g/fat per pound. So, at between 110 and 115 pounds (questimating) you are going to be needing a minimum of 35g fat/day! You are NOT getting this on your current diet. Add some omega-3 fats - linseeds/walnuts, fatty fish or fish oil capsules.

Omega-3 fats INCREASE your bodies ability to burn fat as a fuel source and, ultimately, keep you leaner as a result. DON'T FEAR THE FAT!

You can drop the carbs (or cycle the carbs) closer to the comp time - for now, put them back in.

[hotgymchick]

Thanks for that Emma...I do take Omega 3-6-9's too.

I'm still going to keep 2 cheat MEALS a week (not a day). I'm scheduling one of these on my VO2 max training day, as I will be burning tons of calories. I think that, since I don't have alot of fat to lose, I can keep this and start incorporating the other changes slowly.

So I figure, my objectives for the next few weeks will be to: have carbs in the AM and post workout at least, and the rest of the meals to contain some fat.

Also, even without pics, can some of you ladies give me suggestions for training legs? I have really developed quads, hams, and calves, and good definition. I was doing some serious leg workouts (walking lunges-20lbs, bulgarian squats, lunges off a 6" box, weighted step ups) and don't want to really do that anymore. Is it better to stop training them, so they pare down, or do a circut type workout with different exercises?