Bodybuilding Pre-Contest Diet Plan
It's no secret that competitive
bodybuilders are among the most successful dieters in the world at losing pure bodyfat and getting "ripped". Bodybuilders do things differently than the 95% of dieters who fail. And in this article I will outline the basics of a good
bodybuilding pre-contest diet plan. This information will really help you if you are planning on competing in the future. And even if you are not really interested in getting on stage as competitive bodybuilder, but you would like to look like one, then the info covered here will help you get that lean "beach body" look.
I've been competing in
bodybuilding competitions since 1995 so I've picked up a few tricks over the years and I'm going to share them with you here...
I personally start dieting for a contest at least 6 months in advance. I want to have plenty of time to prepare myself. For the first month I simply cut out all junk foods and eat nothing but clean foods. Such as beef, chicken, turkey, fish, eggs, milk, protein shakes, rice, potatoes, pasta, fruit, vegetables, etc. I eat about 5-6 small meals each day. I drink plenty of water at least 1 gallon a day. I will also do about 30 minutes of cardio exercise 4-6 times each week, before breakfast. I will continue my regular weight training workout.
The second month of preparation is very similar to the first. I will still eat the same as mentioned above. But I will increase my cardio exercise to at least 45 minutes, 5-7 times per week, before breakfast. The whole idea of doing cardio before breakfast is to help burn up more stored bodyfat. At this time there is no food in your system to be used as fuel so you'll burn more bodyfat from your cardio. It also helps to jump start your metabolism for the day. After exercise your metabolism is elevated and remains so for
several hours.
The third month I get stricter with my diet. I will begin to cut back on my portions of starchy carbohydrates while keeping my protein intake high (between 250-300 grams of protein per day). I also eat more vegetables. My diet is now mainly foods such as very lean meat, poultry, fish, protein supplements, vegetables, rice, potatoes, oatmeal, etc. I will increase my cardio to about 60 minutes each morning before breakfast.