Year Round Off-Season and Pre-Competition Diet and Supplement Plan

By: Jim Heflin
No Nonsense Magazine Volume 15 # issue 4

Editor's Note: Jim Heflin, our mentor, benefactor, and friend passed away Friday, July 23 at 7:10 pm.

Jim laid the foundation for the quality, integrity, and reputation that is Beverly International. We are thankful for him in so many ways. He gave us a wonderful opportunity. Our lives are richer having known him.

Anyone who met Jim at one of the several thousand shows where he displayed BI products knows how generous he was with his time and knowledge. But, what many do not know, is that when he got back off the road, he spent countless hours writing and mailing nutrition programs for everyone from pro IFBB'rs, up and coming amateurs, employees from other supplement companies, and most of all, the average guy or gal who just wanted to get in shape.

We have a box here containing literally thousands of carbon copies that he typed by hand on his typewriter and mailed.

Here's a copy of a  letter  Jim prepared  for Bill from Waldron, MO  who requested a year round pre competition and competition cycle diet to continue improving from one contest to the next.

July 20, 1997

Dear Bill,

As per our recent conversation, I have put together a year round pre competition and competition cycle diet, the type which is used by most of the top pros.

Key points to remember when approaching your preparation:

1. Nutrition constitutes 80% of the battle.
2. For a winning competitor, there is no such thing as Off Season, you are either preparing for an upcoming show or a future show.
3. Your overall potential is dictated by your inherited genetics.  The sole purpose of this type program is to bring you to your own personal optimum potential.
4. As you advance up the ladder of competition, you will be facing competitors with better genetics, who are bigger and more experienced, you can beat these guys by maintaining good condition year round.
5. For best results, you should not be more than 10 pounds over competition weight year round.
6. Stacking your supplements to achieve a specific goal is important.  Although many of the supplement companies would like you to think there supplements wrought miracles, don’t you believe it. 
7. Supplement the body at the optimum times to take advantage of your metabolism, and regeneration cycles.
8. Effective supplements can vary during both the pre season and contest preparation cycles.
9. Correct training procedures are critical, as a natural trainer - over training can be your worst enemy.
10. You do not live off of the supplements alone, they are available to bring your nutrition to its optimum.
11. Allowing yourself to get way out of shape in the off season often ends up with the athlete resorting to starvation methods which results in muscle lost and that flat look.
12. Sodium loading and depletion during contest preparations often back fires.  Smart dieting should handle everything.

POST SEASON PROCEDURES

Primary Goal:  Increase Muscle Size while lowering Body Fat.

Desireable Protein Intake:  1.25 grams or more of protein per pound of bodyweight daily

Desirable Protein Foods:

Chcken Breast

Turkey (white meat)

White Fish

Tuna

Egg Whites

Desirable Fat Sources

One teaspoon daily (for the essential fatty acids) of one of the following cooking oils:

1. Safflower
2. Flax
3. Sunflower

Foods that are No No’s

Dairy Products (other than those noted herein): Sources of Sodium, Fats, Preservatives and Simple Sugars

Fatty Red Meats:  Sources of Fat

Seasoned Meats:  Sources of Fat, Sodium

Canned Foods:  Sources of sodium and allergy causing preservatives

Simple Sugars:  In the form of artificial sweetened foods and table sugar

Determine your Caloric Intake

Obtain a calorie counter and chart your food intake for a normal week to arrive at average daily caloric intake.  This figure will be the norm that it takes to maintain your current body weight.  Once you have established this average, you can adjust your caloric intake between 300 to 320 calories per day to gain one pound per week or reduce by the same amount to effect a one pound weight loss.  Chart your weight daily to determine your individual caloric requirement.  Weigh at the same time daily to allow for normal fluctuations.

Meal Structure

Distribute your calories over six (6) meals per day eaten two to two and half hours apart.  Eat your last meal one to two hours before retiring.  Each meal should consist of one Protein Source, One Starch and one to two Fiber Carbs plus your supplements. 

Supplements

Supplements play a critical role in your successful dieting.  Timing is of the utmost importance.  There is no Quick Fix that does it all, but a combining process of key nutrients.

SUPPLEMENT CYCLE DURING THE POST SEASON

With Breakfast:

One (1) Beverly Super Pak

Protein Drink consisting of 16 oz of bottled water and 2 scoops Muscle Provider

With Each Meal:

Three (3) Muscularity Branch Chain Amino Acid Tablets

One (1) Lean Out capsule

Prior to Workout: 

15 minutes prior:  10 Ultra 40 tablets

30 minutes prior:  8 Mass Amino tablets

After Workout:

Within 30 minutes:  8 Mass Amino tablets

Within 60 minutes:  5 Muscle Mass (BCAA) tablets

Improving the Quality of Muscle during the Post Contest Season:

Alternate cycles of gaining and losing weight.  (This systemeatic overtraining will set your body up to gain size in the Gaining Cycle.)

Gaining Cycle: Gain approximately one (1) pound per 100 pounds of bodyweight each week until you feel you should lean out.

Losing Cycle: Target to lose one half pound per 100 pounds of bodyweight each week.  Do not decrease your Caloric Intake, but rely on the addition of aerobic activities and increased intensity of your workout.

PRE CONTEST DIET CYCLE:

Primary Goals:  To lean out, retaining muscle size and shape.  If you have dieted properly in the previous cycle, your body fat should already be at a low level.  There should be no need for a starvation, energy depleting diet which will result in losing valuable muscle size.

Setting The Scene For The Pre Contest Cycle:

With a target weight loss of one pound per week, commence your precontest cycle the number of weeks out corresponding with the number of pounds over your desired contest weight.  This would normally be in the neighborhood of 10 pounds or 10 weeks out.  Decrease your intake of starch carbs to approximately one half of that eaten during the Post Season period.  Eliminate carbs entirely from your last meal. Commence a morning aerobic workout 45 minutes to one hour. The elimination of carbs from the evening meal will insure burning more body fat rather than a dependence on stored glycogen.  Increase your intake of quality protein (in the form of supplements). If you allowed yourself to get too heavy in the post-season, add an additional aerobic session after the last meal of the day. 

Modification Cycle:

Beginning from four to eight weeks out, eliminate your sixth meal, reduce your starch carbs and increase your fiber carbs.  Evaluate your progress and your diet looking for possible allergies causing foods (those which cause retention of fluid).  If evident, then eliminate them from your diet for three days.  If you excrete excess water when this food is eliminated, you are probably allergic to it.  If you want that hard look for your contest, you eliminate immediately those foods found responsible for fluid retention.  If experiencing fatigue from the sharp decline in starch, you may add in one serving of Muscle Factor mixed in water (as a meal replacement). (Ed note: today a combination of Up-Lift and Glutamine Select pre training and pre cardio would take the place of Muscle Factor.)

SUPPLEMENTS FOR PRE CONTEST CYCLE

Breakfast:  One Super Pak

With Each Meal: 

3 Muscularity Branch Chain Aminocapsules

1 Lean Out capsule

4 Ultra 40 Liver tablets

Prior to weight workout: 

30 minutes prior:  10 Mass amino tablets, 2 Energy Reserve tablets

15 minutes prior:  1 Lean Out capsule

After Weight Workout: 

30 minutes after:  10 Mass Amino tablets

60 minutes after:  5 Muscle Mass tablets

Prior to Retiring:

8 GH Factor capsules

KEEP A CONSTANT AWARENESS OF YOUR PROGRESS AND PERFORMANCE

1. Record your bodyweight every morning.
2. Total your caloric intake at each meal including grams of protein, carbs and fats.
3. Total the milligrams of potassium and sodium and maintain a constant ratio between these two minerals.
4. Maintain a daily log indicating how you feel and look; analyze your procedures to determine what is working and best for you.
5. Any changes in your diet, do them one at a time so as to rationally analyze any changes in your appearance.
6. When everything is going right, DO NOT CHANGE HORSES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREAM.  This is what got you there.  Radical changes could make you look worse.
7. Use bottled water, do not use tap water, switching back and forth can cause an electrolyte imbalance resulting in fluid retention.

Good luck in your quest.

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