Now lets get started first thing is first. Based on the specific needs and goals of my clients it allows me to custom tailor their specific nutritional program to help them achieve their specific fitness or bodybuilding goals. Now alot of you might disagree with me here but I am a big propiant of staying withing striking distance in the off-season and that usually means I try to keep my guys in the 10% bodyfat range in the off-season and my reasoning for this is simple. There is no reason to get blown out in the off-season as it is just alot more cardio and suffering when that ever elusive contest prep begins. with this in mind lets get down to some basic nutrition. I use the industry standard method otherwise known as the harris-bennedict equasion to figure B.M.R.(BASAL METABOLIC RATE) or in laymans terms the amount of calories your body requires to maintain its current bodycomposition. To do this I will always ask for not only skinfold caliper readings to figure bodyfat percentage as well as bodyweight but I also ask for current supplement or cycle regimn as well as past usage because prepping a natural athlete is much different than an enhanced athlete and the diet corresponds with that. Once I have that I also ask for a few current pic's so I can access what I have to work with and who I am working with.
Basic nutriton facts: Basically we then figure a caloric intake based on the specifics supplied to me by my athletes at which point depending on their body-type I will adjsut their ratios of FAT/CARBOHYDRATES/PROTEINS in such a manner that it will work most effectively for their bodytype(once again endo,ecto, or meso) Usually I have found that with a ratio of the following is a good starting point for most of you as I will break down a typical 40/40/20 split as well as how to split the ratio's to keep you lean while adding leanbodymass

EXAMPLE: Lets say for example I have a bodybuilder that has a maintenance caloric intake of 3,000 calories a day and he wants to stay lean while adding LBM I will adjust his caloric intake accordingly and in this instance he also tells me he is on 4iu GH per day, 750-1000mg testosterone enenthate per week,30-40mg d-bol per day, and 400-600mg deca per week(i kept this fairly basic as this is just an example as everyone is different) all of which i note and take into consideration while planning his meal plans and adjusting his ratios accordingly.

Nutritonal facts: please understand these and learn these as they will help you both off-season and pre-contest
1 gram of carb=4 calories
1 gram of protein=4 calories
1 gram of fat=9 calories
3500 calories= 1lb+-
now to add 1lb per week you would need an increase of 500 calories a day for a total of 3500 calories in a 7 day week and the same holds true with dropping the weight althoe once again the variables will include caloric intake,activity level or caloric expenditure and supplement regim and body-type(some people usually ectomorph's have a faster metabolism and require less cardio and/or less caloric restriction when dieting. I prefer to keep your calories up and make up for it with caloric expenditure(laymens terms CARDIO!LOL)

Now back to the example with the bodybuilder. We have establsihed his baseline caloric intake as well as his supplement regimn. He tells me he wants to add 15lbs of leanbodymass(we need to be realistic here as 15lbs of leanbodymass is equal to 30-40lbs total bodyweight) I take into consideration that we have 6 months or roughly 31 weeks to add the leanbodymass before dieting him for the show. With this in mind If we can add 1lb. of quality size per week that is a qualitive 31 pounds in 6 months which infact would equate to about 16-18lbs of leanbodymass before he starts the diet(not bad for 6 months worth of work) Keep in mind you will undoubtedly loose a good 3-4lbs of leanbodymass dieting down that is to be expected. Knowing that I need to increase his caloric intake 500 calories a day for 7 days to get the desired 3500 calories we need to add that one pound so I set a plan of attack in motion.
In most instances I will divide the 3500 calories equally into 6 meals(more or less meals depending on caloric intake)

EXAMPLE: 3500 DIVIDED BY 6= 583 CALORIES PER MEAL
Once I know that we are taking in 583 calories per meal and knowing that I need 40% to come from protein and another 40% from carbohydrates and 20% need to come from fats(i prefer EFA'S and omega-3's) I will write the meal plan to adjust to that accordingly and evenly for all 6 meals to come up with the total caloric intake. This is where it can get tricky as I will either add or take away carbs depending on the time of the day as normally i will load carbs the first 4 meals and back them down the last 2 meals to let mt clients body ascimilate the carbs and use them up. I am a big propiant of pre-workout and post-workout carb meals as I feel this helps to carry the athlete thrue their workouts. To do this I use a combination of simple and complex carbs as I have found that this works best for not only instant energy but also helps maintain energy throughout the workout. a good combo is pre-workout 1 cup oatmeal w/bananna or granny smith apple and post-workout 2 scoops biochem or iso-pure with vitargo as you will want something that is easily ascimilated by the body postworkout to fuel and replenish the body and restore glycogen levels. This is a basic introduction and I can/will also outline off-season foods split up into carbs(simple,complex and fiberous),proteins,fats if there is a need for that. This is the first installment. Next week I would love to tackle carb-up but it is so varried from bodybuilder to bodybuilder there is no way to cover it here. I can explain the basic concept of water manipulation,what part sodium does play in this process,the use of diuretics and its usage as well as understanding aldasterone and its effects the body. I hope this is of some help to you all and please let me know the next article you prefer or weather you would prefer me to get more in-depth in regards to off-season bulking with supplements,meal plans,ect.... and I will do that. best wishes wyldeone.

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