NUTRITION

I would describe myself as a classic ectomorph, meaning that it is relatively easy for me to get lean, but difficult for me to put on muscle.  I know some of my friends will argue with me on this, as they feel that I am more of an ecto - meso mix, meaning that I have the best of both worlds. Off-season I will take in 3,500 to 4,000 calories per day, eating around 9 times per day.  This includes at least 300 grams of protein per day, sometimes over 400.  I try not to go over 10 percent bodyfat, although I do enjoy cheat foods in the off-season. 

Pre-contest my diet is at least 8 meals a day, keeping the protein relatively high at around 300 grams.  I cycle my carbs between 100 and 300 grams per day, and keep my fats relatively low.  Higher carb days fall on more strenuous training days (legs, back).  I diet for at least 25 weeks in order to get into contest shape, during which I will not have a cheat meal.  A sample contest diet is included below:

Meal #	Time	Content	Prot		Carbs		Fat
				Low	Med	High
1	6:00	Pre-cardio (1/2 scoop whey & oats)	12	7	7	7	1
2	7:15	Post-cardio whey & oats	40	20	33	60	6
3	9:30	Tuna & veggies / rice	37	0	10	30	5
4	12:00	6 oz chicken & rice	42	0	25	40	5
5	2:30	Egg white / whey / oat muffin	38	20	20	20	4
6	4:30	Rice & 96% lean beef	35	20	33	45	7
7	7:00	Post Workout Shake	46	30	45	80	7
8	8:00	Fish & Veggies	42	0	0	0	3
9	10:00	Egg whites / whey	40	3	3	3	4
		Totals	332	100	176	285	42
		Calories		2106	2410	2846

There is no "magic diet" that will get you into contest shape.  In fact, I am a firm believer in bodybuilders constructing their own diets.  There are plenty of people out there who you can pay to put together a contest diet for you (some of them are my close friends), but my personal opinion is that you gain valuable knowledge and experience by figuring things out for yourself.  Particularly in today's age, the Internet makes information easily available for natural bodybuilders – and there is never any substitute for doing your own research and implementing a strategy that you believe optimizes your own physique.

Plus, when you use your mind to put together a winning strategy and then follow through with a lot of hard work, it only feels that much better knowing you did it all on your own.  Natural bodybuilding is about the combination of brains and brawn – knowing what it is you have to do and having the discipline and work ethic to get it done. 

 

Food Prep

Like most people involved in natural bodybuilding, I have a full-time job.  Bodybuilding is merely a hobby, and preparing 9 meals for each day is not something I have time to do every night.  So, during contest prep, I make all of my meals for the week during the weekend.   

Here is a week's worth of food on my contest diet.  Except for a big jug of whey protein and a large container of oatmeal, this is basically everything I will eat in a given week. 

 

Supplements

Supplements are just that...supplemental to a nutritional program. The basis of a bodybuilder's diet should be whole food. That said, my supplement regime consists of the following while I am contest dieting:

Time	Supplement Taken
Prior to Cardio	Thermogenic, BCAA
With non-carb meals	Essential Fatty Acids
Pre-workout	Thermogenic, Nitric Oxide product
During workout	BCAA (Scivation Xtend)
Post-workout	Waxy Maize, Creatine, Leucine
Throught the day	BCAA

I am fortunate enough to be sponsored by Scivation, who undoubtedly make some of the best bodybuilding supplements out there. A list of their products that I use:

• Thermogenic: Dialene 4
• BCAA: Xtend, BCAA
• Nitric Oxide: Vasocharge
• Essential Fatty Acids: Sesamin, EFAs