First Novice Contest

So I have decided to take the plunge and muster up the courage to enter my first novice contest.

I am currently 21 years of age, sitting now quite lean-ish at approximately 9% bodyfat and 95kg, 1.80m tall. I started training when I was seventeen for fist-team rugby, and quickly learned that I in fact had more of a passion for bodybuilding than I did the ballsports (pardon the pun). Laughs. I had great dieting results from a Keto diet which I received from Mr Fitsquirrel Himself in early 2010, getting down to about 6.5& at a then smaller 82kg frame. Posted a picture below on current shape, taken early this April (2012):




Here are a few after last year 2011 dieting run:

I recovered mid-2010 from a torn pec, it was rather gruesome, and an incredibly painful experience, but nevertheless, three weeks after surgery I was back in the gym building my tractor tires. Soon John Deere was the nickname.

My current personal bests on the trinity lifts are:

Deads: 180kg 10 reps, 255kg 1RM.
Squats 160kg 8 Reps, 200kg 1RM.
Bench 140kg 6 Reps, 160kg 1RM (I have a bit of a fear of the bench now so when things start getting heavy my poephol starts getting antsy).

I am going to go the NABBA route, with novices being held here in Pretoria on the 25th Aug; I will compete in U/21 class (I assume that it is considered '21 and under'), and the Class 1: Over 1.79m.

So let me get to the point now; I would like to step on stage, and blow the judges away. I'd like to now ask some of the more experienced guys, if they would be willing to share some diet tips, and training ideas. Right from carb cycling through to de-watering in the last week and contest day itself. I have never done this before, and oftentimes at the gym, you get guys that are not really willing to help out you know. Especially when approached by someone of my age. Also, I was reading up on some of the cycle ideas here on the forum, and one of the sample cycles (TProp100, TrenAce80, Anavar20) seems absolutely insane. Has anyone had experience on this kind of cycle before? I have run three complete cycles from start to finish in the years of training, and was wondering if this is the kind of cycle I should be expecting pre-contest?

Any and all help, advise and critique would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance,
J.

cover your face bro this is an anabolic site so its just for your own safety.

Your pics didnt load properly bud,also i would edit out my face if i was you.

Unfortunantly i only share my water dropping and last week prep with the guys i work with as i have a confidentiallity agreement with doctari, and they have all done the same. I would suggest getting your self a coach to help you out bro, and i hope u got about 10k to compete properly as food and gear and tn is gonna cost you about that.

U21 is an open line up as in no height, its just under 21.

get some back photos and full body photos with your legs.

To compete is not so simple people will give you advice to a certain point then you need to start paying to get the edge.

DJ, your Keto diets worked wonders for me in 2010. Any chance could PM you and discuss a possible diet/training regime and charges associated? As I have been reading I have seen you've helped out a couple of other guys. Definitely want to take Juniors; your help would go a long way.

Mail admin from the contact us page bud. He will forward you on

Thanks DJ. Appreciate it. Be in touch soon.

You look great man! All the best!!

This site might be useful to you in your final week

www.bodybuildingsecrets.com/articles/6_d..._depletion_phase.php

I have never tried it though so its up to you if you wanna follow his carb and water protocol

Good luck and be sure to let us know how it goes

@ LXIX thank you so much bud. It is really appreciated. Will definitely check out the site a little later on. Could use all the help I can get. I definitely want to have a presence when I step on stage, been a dream for a while now but kept putting it off because of the demanding nature of my studies. Am doing a Bachelor of Engineering so time is pretty much split between varsity and gym. Be sure to watch this space. AUG 25th, juniors is going to be mine. POW!

Any time bud!
Good luck balancing between training and studies - its not easy, but hang in there, you have great potential!

Hey Garrick, you looking great bro. Welcome to the forum, you will not go wrong with DJ in your corner. You can see that from the results we have all attained with his knowledge and guidance.

As for you getting in to the under 21's - you have to be 21 or under on the day. They pretty strict on this but you should do well regardless of catergory.

@David.biohazard: Thanks bud. Appreciate the compliments, though I know I still have a way to go if I want to be contest-ready. Hopefully the Fitsquirrel can give me the guidance and expertise I need. I will be 21 on the day of the contest, so I am hoping I can at least have some sort of chance of taking class. I am super nervous about this all, but super excited all the same. Getting in touch with DJ soon, going to be a cracker next few months. Once all is finalised and decided, I will attempt to keep weekly logs of progress right up to contest day. Wish me luck, gents!

"When you want to succeed, as bad as you want to breathe, then you will be successful."

Hey Garrick,looking good bud. What 3cycles have you done if you dont mind asking?

Thanks iMan. Much appreciated buddy. I am not such a huge fan of long-chained test 'cause I am quite prone to gyno. I have used an 8 week oral only cycle, running Oxandrolone and Proviron with dosages tapering up towards the end. Then the standard "regular" bulking cycle, Sust/Deca combo. And I have also used a Prop/Equipoise/Winstrol combo before. By no-means as hectic as a pre-contest cycle would be. But I definitely want to have the edge over the competition this year, and with DJ's help and expertise I know I stand a good chance. I saw the podium finishers at this last weekend's NABBA meet in Boksburg, and whilst I am not taking anything away from any of the winners in the Juniors division (because their conditioning is truly good), I do reckon I have a bit of an advantage mass wise on some of them. The overall Junior winner looked great-had very good conditioning, great obliques, nice narrow waist, but not really that much mass; maturity does play a big part I realise, but he weighed in at 62kg and he is my height more or less (I think I have five cm on him). Needless to say, I think I might have at least 20kg of mass on him if not more; and symmetry wise, whilst my lats do need more work, I think I have a better x-frame shape. So yes boys, this is a dream, and now I am going to definitely give it all I have got. Will definitely keep you all posted as the prep progresses. Starting early may with DJ and his help. Looking really forward to it.

@DJ...you are the world's biggest legend (and motivation) bud. Can't wait to get started.

Looking forward to see you grow and progress. Good luck. From your pics looks like you got a good frame and base to start with. Have you got a full body shot?

Will post them soon regz! Thanks a lot.

Like your attitude Out of curiosity what dosages did you run the anavar and proviron aprox and how was the gains like. It's quite frowned upon to not have test in cycle

@iMan, it was actually taken straight from this site-an article written by 00pump in the "sample cycles" section. Check it out. Though I didn't run test, it was my first experience with AAS; I was already quite low on the bodyfat side, and was looking for quality over quantity. I was actually prescribed Proviron by a doctor because of the gruelling nature of my studies and training combined-I was constantly tired. I mean I would be on campus from 730 am to 6pm and then hit a 90 min gym session, come home and prepare food and then still hit the books again. So he ran some blood tests and then actually wrote me a script for it. A lot of students take 'Concerta' which is a Ritalin-type compound, but because of the fact that I was an active lad he gave me the Proviron. After doing some research I added in Axiolabs/KeiFei Anavar (I would recommend the Axio over Keifei) and ran that as 00pump recommended with the Proviron, with the dosages tapered up as the article suggests. I think over the 8 weeks I gained around 3/4kg of really quite solid mass, and running the post cycle accordingly I literally kept all of it. So yeah, it was a nice little introduction to AAS. Then the Sust/Deca followed in the winter after that...

Check out the site sample cycles section. Admin and the like have some serious stuff over there, and recall these guys know a lot more than we do, or your average joes. So check it out.

I must say, there are so many thoeries around for depletion and laoding the final week. It must be a bitch to decide what to do for a show

ABC01 last week prep is a bitch!

DJ wrote: ABC01 last week prep is a bitch!

The last 10 Days are the absolute worst, to really nail it is difficult.
The Sodium Load, Carb Depletion, Water Load, Water Depletion, Carb Load, take everything out of you, then you must still pose and smile like everything is ok.

Maybe a stupid question but would the last week of a prep for a fitness show be the same as the last week prep for a bodybuilding show?

Yup it is, your last week can make or break your whole prep

DJ wrote: Yup it is, your last week can make or break your whole prep

Cool! Then we might have a few things to discuss in the near future bud