Bodybuilding.com - My Journey To The 2003 USA Naturals - Week 13!

Printable page

Did you know?
Idrise Ward-El got his pro card at his 3rd contest.

Follow me as I go through a strict training and diet schedule leading up to the USA Naturals on August 9, 2003!

Week 13

I had a very productive weekend, but also got plenty of rest and recovery. I am now ready to attack a new week of training and move closer and closer to an outstanding level of conditioning and muscularity.

I attended a local bodybuilding competition on Saturday with Tennelle. Witnessing the differences in the competitors levels of preparation made me realize how important it is to put in the time and effort to 1) Get into contest shape and 2) learn how to pose properly. It was obvious which competitors put the most time and effort into their contest preparation, and they are the ones that did the best for the judges, for the crowd, and most importantly for themselves. Seeing some of the very well-conditioned athletes at this show gets me motivated to keep pushing harder and to get better and better every single day.

Training

Intensity, focus, and execution was very good all week long. My energy and strength was also good with the exception of legs on Tuesday. Over the next few weeks, it is very important that I maintain a great attitude about training and strive to improve every week. As my calories get lower it will be a battle to hang on to all of my muscle mass, but I must continue to lift heavy and with the utmost intensity, while using proper execution, if I want to look my best on August 9th. I performed another three 10 minute midday Max-OT cardio sessions this week as well as my normal cardio sessions every night.

I am seeing and feeling the positive effects these midday cardio blasts are having on my metabolism and physique. I will keep performing these midday cardio sessions and probably add in more in the last couple of weeks before my contest.

Nutrition and Supplementation

Now, its time to REALLY get down to business. Over the next five weeks I have one word engraved into my mind...SHREDDED! I have less than five weeks to lose the bodyfat I have left and that is it! I must hold nothing back and give everything I have into getting as lean as possible while continuing to train heavy in order to hang onto all of my muscle mass. I'm coming into the final stretch and it is full throttle all the way to the finish line.

If I do not get it done NOW then it is not going to get done by August 9! I will not just get into outstanding shape because I want to. I must execute all of my contest preparation tasks every single day to the best of my abilities in order to present a muscular, ripped physique at the Pacific USA Naturals.

I lost another 2 lbs this week down to 213 lbs. My daily calories reduction this week comes to 202 calories.

This Week, I Will Reduce My Daily Calories As Follows:

My diet changes this week allow me to make a pretty big calorie drop while only losing 12 grams of protein per day. Substituting the VP2 and Ny-Tro Pro 40 for eggbeaters in Meal #2 and Meal #4 will also reduce the amount of food I have to cook, which will be beneficial when I have to travel at the end of this week and then all of next week. You can check out my entire nutrition and supplementation plan in this week's training journal.

This weekend I ate about 2300 calories on both Saturday and Sunday. My weekend post cardio supplementation consisted of 1 scoop VP2 and 1/2 serving of DGC, along with 10 grams of GL3 L-Glutamine and 5 grams of micronized creatine. The rest of my meals consist of either Ny-Tro Pro-40 or chicken, egg whites, lean beef, and vegetables. I also have oatmeal with some of my whole food meals on the weekends, but have mostly cut out all starchy carbs at this point. Vegetables will be my best friend over the next 5 weeks.

Updated Pics: