How To Get Competition Ready...Shredded!
Well, I finally stumbled into the fitness section of Steemit. Most of my posts are about more personal development and mindset related issues but as your neighborhood #nutritionist I want to get more active in the fitness community!
There is a lot of conflicting information floating around online about how to get lean and ripped, which is basically everyone’s goal in the end. You’re hitting the gym, improving your body and you want to look and feel good and see the muscle tone...you want to see your hard work paying off!
This was a six month transformation for my client Tina who did a fitness competition five years ago. This was the first time I had trained someone for a competition, but to be honest I wasn’t very nervous. After all, as a trainer and nutrition coach isn’t it my job to get people jacked?
Again, there are a million different strategies for building muscle and losing fat using nutrition. Some people fast, some eat everything in sight, some eat one meal a day, some eat six to eight meals per day! There’s keto, low fat, high protein...virtually anything will have a positive benefit if it is applied consistently.
Here are my top general concepts that people should understand regardless of the program they use:
Consistency is crucial. Many people eat sporadically, skipping meals here and there. The body gets used to schedules, it is very smart. It adapts to what you give it. This is one reason that eating a lot of small meals tends to work so well and is popular in the fitness world. When your body is getting consistent carbs, fats and proteins it will increase metabolism. It knows its getting regular food so it doesn’t need to hold on to as much fat in case of famine! This is an evolutionary response. There was a time not that long ago that food was not so easy to find, and our bodies adapted. If you’re going to do intermittent fasting then keep the feeding window consistent day to day. Your body will get used to not having breakfast...and you have surprising energy. Which leads to the next tip...
Are you a carb burner or a fat burner? The goal for my clients is to become fat burners. This means that they are using fat for fuel. As stated above the body is very adaptable and will run off the fuel it is given. Many people are “sugar burners” since they eat so many refined carbohydrates. You can tell if you are a sugar burner because if you skip a meal like breakfast you will get the feelings of hypoglycemia (headache, fatigue, light headed, cravings). However, as you switch to a higher fat, lower carb diet you’ll notice that you can go literally days at a time without eating, and still having energy! Carb burners tend to have trouble losing fat too because their bodies are just burning off the sugar they eat, or storing it as fat. The fat cells themselves are never needed for fuel.
Medium protein intake. Even according to the NSCA guidelines a professional bodybuilder needs from 1.3-1.9 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. Emphasis here on kilograms! Not pounds. Protein is very important don’t get me wrong, but you don’t need to eat five chicken breasts a day. Even at 210 lbs lean, I still only need about 120 grams of protein per day to maintain, even with vigorous exercise.
Spread the protein evenly! Many people make the mistake of eating all their protein right after the workout. It works so much better to spread it evenly throughout the day. This is another reason that eating lots of small meals works. Your body keeps tabs on blood amino acid profiles. When you don’t eat for a long time these levels can drop, and the body will break down muscle tissue. If you’re eating consistently then your blood will always have fresh amino acids ready.
Carbs around physical activity only for most people. Carbohydrates are probably the trickiest aspect that people run into with their programs. Improperly timed carbohydrate intake will result in increased insulin levels. A good rule of thumb is to keep the carbs in a several hour window before and after the workout. If you workout at 5 pm then consume your carbs from about 2:30 to 7:30 to maximize results.
These are just a few ideas. Drop any questions or additions below! I’m always open to help people with nutrition and fitness so don’t be shy.
Don’t get too over complicated. Focus on the basics and fundamentals like consistency and common-sense food decisions. Strive for lots of fat and medium protein with low carbs and the food choices tend to take care of themselves.
Ben
If you enjoy my writing on #Steemit, please like share and most importantly give your thoughts in the comments and find me on my main writing channel on #Medium: https://medium.com/@benhetzel
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If you’re looking to lose weight or have a health or fitness goal email me directly at: [email protected]