How to Prepare for a Bodybuilding Contest

Preparing for a bodybuilding competition requires commitment and intense training.

Bodybuilding may spark images of defined, muscular physiques, but it's not all about appearance. Bodybuilding is a sport that tests your physical capability and involves intense, detailed competitions. The process of sculpting your body for a bodybuilding competition requires months, even years, of demanding preparation, self-discipline and commitment. However, if you already have years of rigorous physical training and clean eating habits under your belt, you're ready to put in the time and dedication needed to prepare for a bodybuilding competition.

Things You'll Need

• Weights and barbells
• Supplements
• Mirror
• Posing outfit
• Show tan cream
• Posing oil
• 2 to 3 pairs of rubber gloves
• 2 to 3 towels
• Warm-up band

Instructions

Choose a Bodybuilding Competition

1. Choose the bodybuilding organization and competition you want to compete in. Posing, judging and supplement testing vary among organizations, so research an organization's requirements before making a final decision.

2. Submit your application by the due date and purchase a membership card for the organization you choose to compete in. either in advance or the day of the show.

3. Stick to local competitions if you're a beginner. Starting out small will help you learn how to prepare and how the bodybuilding competition process works.

Plan Your Diet

1. Plan and follow a diet that allows you to lose body fat while maintaining as much lean muscle mass as possible, starting 90 days minimum before the competition.

2. Eat five to six small meals a day. Include in your meals lean proteins, such as ground turkey, eggs and egg whites, low-fat cheeses, skinless and boneless chicken breasts and fish; green vegetables, such as broccoli, asparagus and spinach; and whole grains and complex carbs, such as brown rice, slow-digesting fruits and regular oatmeal.

3. Incorporate healthy fats into your daily meals, whether from food sources, such as salmon, tuna packed in water, black olives and avocados, or by cooking with natural peanut butter, extra virgin olive oil and safflower oil.

Hit the Weights

1. Refine, shape and condition your muscles with weight training, and make the parts of your body that most lack muscle and definition a priority.

2. Include an upper-body day and a lower-body day two consecutive days of the week, to focus on building and maintaining strength. Use a heavy weight and perform two to five sets of five repetitions (reps) for each exercise. Warm up with two sets of 15 reps for exercises that focus on your priority muscles.

3. Take a rest day and then focus on individual muscle groups on the next three consecutive days of the week. Focus on two muscle groups each day, use light to moderate weights and perform two to three sets of 10 to 20 reps for each exercise.

4. Avoid over-training and performing new exercises. Keep your weight training simple and comfortable to avoid injury and hurting your physique.

Increase Your Cardio

1. Increase your cardiovascular regimen to burn fat, get lean and keep your muscles from looking soft.

2. Include two moderate 30-minute cardio sessions per week to increase blood flow and step up your metabolism. Include one high-intensity interval training session to burn more calories in the hours after your cardio session.

3. Increase or decrease your cardio sessions' length or intensity as your body gets leaner and the competition day nears. A fitness trainer can help you determine how much or how little cardio you need as you progress.

Start Taking Supplements

1. Increase your protein intake with protein powders and meal replacement powders (MPR). Mix with water, or mix with water or milk and antioxidant-rich fruits in a blender to make a protein shake. Consume protein powders between meals, particularly after workouts, to aid in muscle recovery and growth. Consume MPRs in place of a meal or after a workout.

2. Take fat burners containing ephedrine, caffeine and aspirin, sometimes called an ECA stack, to increase metabolism and fat loss.

3. Take glutamine and amino acid supplements to replace loss of these during intense workouts.

Practice Your Required Poses

1. Discover the poses you will be required to perform at your competition well in advance.

2. Practice posing in front of a mirror several days a week, as simultaneously flexing all the muscles in your body while appearing relaxed requires great strength and endurance.

3. Keep in mind that judges will not only be looking at muscular size, definition and symmetry but how well you present these through your posing.

Pick Your Individual Posing Routine, Music and Outfit

1. Create and practice your individual posing routine regularly so that you feel and look confident on stage. Use this opportunity to emphasize your strongest areas and hide your weakest ones, as the individual posing portion of the competition has no required poses. Judges look for variety in your routine, so avoid repeating poses.

2. Choose posing routine music that is tasteful, motivational and makes you feel confident on stage.

3. Choose and purchase your posing outfit early on to avoid the last-minute stress of finding an outfit. Choose a style and color that complements your physique and skin tone.

Start Tanning Ahead of Time and Get Posing Oil

1. Start tanning early enough to lay a base for your show tan cream, find the right shade and correct mistakes.

2. Get your show tan cream well in advance. You may not use your show tan cream until just days before or the day of the competition, but experimenting early on will help you find the right shade and avoid last-minute mistakes.

3. Bring your show tan cream as well as posing oil to apply on competition day. Apply or spray a thin, even layer of posing oil on your skin to enhance your muscle definition on stage.

Tips & Warnings

• Pack rubber gloves to wear when applying tan cream and posing oils on competition day.

• Bring towels to wipe your hands after applying tanner and oil and to wipe away sweat during last-minute workouts.

• Bring warm-up bands in case the weight rooms are poorly equipped or overcrowded.

• Bring two copies of your music and two outfits, just in case you need a backup.

• Pack some healthy snacks such as honey, natural peanut butter and rice cakes; sodium-free water; and potassium supplements to avoid cramps while posing.

References

• Fitness Equipment and Health: How to Prepare for a Bodybuilding Competiton
• Arnold Bodybuilding: Some Essential Insider Tips on Preparation for a Bodybuilding Competition
• Bodybuilding.com: How Should One Prepare for their First Bodybuilding Competition?
• Ultimate Bodybuilding Competition Guide