# Contest Prep



## IRON MAN (Apr 22, 2006)

When it comes to ???Pre-contest Prep??? theres no such thing as following an exact plan that has been written down on paper. The pre-contest prep is rather simply yet it???s up to the individual to interpret their situation and make the needed adjustments based on what is needed. With that being said, I would not risk going to extremes the final 3 days before a show. If everything is on and you are in shape, you will not be holding much water at that point. It takes more effort to get the muscles filled out properly while using a diuretic during the carb loading phase. Competitiors are known to get all bent out of shape a few days before a show and begin to do drastic things such as water load, water deplete, sodium load, sodium deplete, take large amounts of diuretics, sit in saunas, etc, and then wonder why their body looks soft and puffy on stage. If your spot diet is on and you are ready to compete no last minute fix is going to change things.

It???s best not to cut down on the large amounts of water- ???2 gallons??? until the day before the show. If the show is on Sunday you will want to start dropping water intake on Saturday morning. Beginning at which point take in 4-6 oz as needed with every carb meals until show time. Drastically cutting off the bodies water and sodium/salt supply is a huge mistake during the 3 day carb up phase. Drastically cutting water and sodium will leave you flat as a pancake regardless of how many carbohydrates you take in!!! 

Note: Continue to drink 4-6 ounces of water as need to fill out the muscles. Keep drinking water as needed to reach and maintain this status. 600 carbs should be eaten each day starting 3 days prior to the show along with 20-30 grams of creatine monohydrate divided into 2-3 dosages. 10ius of slin injected 3 times daily along with 2-300 mgs of alpha lipoic acid will also assist in filling out the muscles. This is called the "Synergistic Carbing up Phase" and it will be followed by A 2 day carb depletion inorder to supersaturate the muscles with gycogen. 


Salt is a bodybuilders friend come show time. The secret to subcutaneous water retention control is two hormones called Aldosterone and Estrogen. Estrogen can be controlled by using drugs such as Arimidex/Nolvadex. But when Sodium is taken away from the diets, it???s causes our bodies to produce Aldosterone. Aldosterone makes the body rid itself of potassium and hold even more sodium/water. This negative reaction occurs because our bodies takes defense, and begins increasing water retention causing a soft bloated puffy appearance. The secret is to keep salt intake at a normal level until 3 day before a show. During the 3 day carb loading phase the production of Aldosterone will be reduced because of the extra sodium intake coming from the additional carbs/food eaten. This slight increase in sodium will aid in keeping the body from releasing Aldosterone and help with the sodium-potassim pump when you begin to pose. By using this method you put your body in a state where the salt stays in the muscle tissue and attracts water where it needs to be. Reducing salt intake also decreases the effects of the sodium-potassium pump that is all so important when trying to display your hard earned muscle mass. When salt is reduced in the muscles, the amount of water that is stored in the muscles is also reduced. 

Our muscles are made up mostly of water. If you cut off the bodies water supply it does not matter how many carbohydrates you take ingest during the 3 day loading period because carbs cant enter the muscles without 2 grams of water per 1 gram carbs. It???s virtually impossible to get a muscle pump when you are dehydrated because the carbs can???t enter the muscle cells and fill them with muscle pumping glycogen. Some have been led to believe they came in flat because they didnt take in enough carbs, but it???s almost always due to a lack of water/sodium!!! 

Some bodybuuilders use harsh drugs such as Lasix and experience flat muscles on stage due to the simple fact that lasix is not a potassium-sodium sparing drug. Drugs like Diazide or Modurectic work best because they allow the muscle to retain water without increasing estrogen levels. 1 Diazide capsule taken every 6 to 8 hours with water and carbs/salt is the ticket and the excess water and salt will be dispelled from the body by taking the diurectic.

The colon holds alot of un-digested waste and an over the counter laxative like Senoct should be taken 1 day prior to the show not the day of the show. Use no more than 1 tablet that morning. 


Final Note: It's not uncommon to see bodybuilders begin using diurectics and start carbing up while simultaneously cutting the water/sodium. They???ll lose 5-15 pounds and come in looking flat. Ironically as it may seem to them, the next night after the show they look spectacular. Why??? Because they started drinking loads of water and eating massive amounts of salt loaded carbs while gaining weight process!!!


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