CANADIAN PHYSIQUE ALLIANCE JULY || ISSUE 36 | Page 42

Keep training as you did before.
I still go as heavy as I can in
order to keep as much muscle as
possible. Higher reps with lower
weights do not burn more fat,
but will put you at risk for
muscle loss. As for cardio, start
adding it gradually as you go
along.
It is also preferable to be in
shape 2-3 weeks before the
event. This will allow you to
properly taper off from training.
Someone with rested muscles
will simply look fuller and better
than the guy who was doing two
hours of cardio until a day prior.
At the same time, being in shape
early will give you a chance to
post as many Facebook updates
as your friends can handle.
Contest Prep Mistake
#2 - Over-reliance
on
supplements/PED's,
especially fat
burners
Here is how the typical contest prep
starts: calories are being cut, cardio
added, and a fat burner is being
thrown into the mix. Low and
behold, the athlete loses weight, at
least for a while. The problem with
that is:
You don't know what works.
Where do you go from here if you
reach a plateau?
My approach is to keep simple. At
first, you cut your calories by 500 a
day. Your diet is responsible for
80+% of what you will look like, so it
pays off to be meticulous in that
department.
After two to three weeks of reduced
calories, I start adding cardio for
about 4x30 minutes per week.