40 Year Old Wanting to Compete in Physique Competition May 2014

[hirez]

Hey all, I have been visiting this site the past couple of days and I have to say it is awesome. Question for the board. I want to compete in a master's physique competition in May 2014 now that I am 40. Right now I am sitting at about 215, about 18% body fat, most of it around the waste. My current routine is:

Monday - Chest / Back, 30 minutes of light cardio
Tuesday - Dynamic Stretching / Abs / Calves
Wednesday - Shoulders / 30 minutes cardio
Thursday - Dynamic Stretching / Abs / Calves
Friday - Biceps / Triceps / 30 minutes cardio
Saturday - Legs

I do 3 exercises per body part with 3 sets each. Also I play basketball once per week.

I eat (although not as strict as I will get too) about 200 to 225 grams of protein per day, and around 2200 to 2800 calories.

My schedule is odd because I workout with my wife who is a fitness instructor on M,W,F.

I have been diagnosed with low T. I have been on replacement, about 100ml per week for about a year and a half and that has me at about the middle of normal range. Recently I bumped it up to 200ml to get to high normal.

Some challenges I have are that I have bad knees, pre-mature arthritis from years of basketball. This makes HIIT really a challenge because I can't push with the intensity that I would like.

My current strengths are shoulders and calves, chest and back are OK, weakness arms (bis, tris, forearms).

My goals is to compete in a local masters physique show and give a good go at winning. Please let me know of any advice or thoughts you may have. Thanks!

 

[CptFKNplanet]

What kind of advice are you looking for? I'd start with getting a diet/training coach and a posing coach.

 

[hirez]

I am not opposed to utilizing either, but prior to that I would like folks to take a look at what I am currently doing and provide suggestions or recommendations on what to modify prior to investing in paid consultants. Since I still have a good 8 months or so and being older I would like to give myself a long lead time.

 

[CptFKNplanet]

Well first you're definitely going to need to cut a lot of fat. I would start dialing in your diet right now. Without pictures it's very hard to help say what you need to work on, which is why I suggested hiring a coach. If you head over to the diet section, our resident nutritionist 3J has a free diet advice thread if you aren't ready to sign up for one of his plans yet. He also offers competition prep, which is what I would recommend for you.

 

[CptFKNplanet]

How tall are you btw?

 

[hirez]

I am 5'10'', I have been checking out the diet section and I will look into 3J. I have a bodybuilding friend who is also a Dr. of Occupational Therapy and he guestimated and on stage weight of about 185. Honestly that is a helluva lot of weight but sitting at 215 that is 30lbs, so roughly 4 lbs a month / 1 lb a week. While definitely doable, one of the challenges is of course my capacity to do high intensity cardio and second time constraint. When I have begun dieting in the past I also have had problems with a loss of work productivity, which in my job is an absolute no no.

So in short that is why I am seeking out other folks opinions because it really seems like a huge jig saw puzzle trying to put something together that really is workable across many dimensions. It may not be, but I at least want to do my homework and get some thoughts from folks like you and others on the the board. I am heading over to check out 3J and the diet board now. Thanks!

 

[CptFKNplanet]

185 would put you around 10% BF given 65% of the weight you lose is actually fat, and also given that you are legitimately 18% now. That being said, it is absolutely doable by the show you want to do. I know how you feel about dieting and losing some focus / mental capacity... that's going to happen no matter what when on a caloric restriction. You have 7 months, which is plenty of time though. I'd suggest upping your calories for now to at least maintenance, maybe even slightly above to get out of "diet mode" and drop cardio altogether or at least drop it down significantly.
Cardio is a tool you will want to have on the back burner for when you start dieting hard, and if you're already doing a half hour 3x/week that doesn't give you much room to add more if you're running into time constraints. I hope that makes sense. You're going to want to let your diet do most of the work and add in cardio as a "supplement" to your weight loss.
Definitely check out the diet section and hit up 3J. Good luck with the show man.

 

[bigben66]

185 would put you around 10% BF given 65% of the weight you lose is actually fat, and also given that you are legitimately 18% now. That being said, it is absolutely doable by the show you want to do. I know how you feel about dieting and losing some focus / mental capacity... that's going to happen no matter what when on a caloric restriction. You have 7 months, which is plenty of time though. I'd suggest upping your calories for now to at least maintenance, maybe even slightly above to get out of "diet mode" and drop cardio altogether or at least drop it down significantly.
Cardio is a tool you will want to have on the back burner for when you start dieting hard, and if you're already doing a half hour 3x/week that doesn't give you much room to add more if you're running into time constraints. I hope that makes sense. You're going to want to let your diet do most of the work and add in cardio as a "supplement" to your weight loss.
Definitely check out the diet section and hit up 3J. Good luck with the show man.

He's gotta be striving for an end result of about 5-6% bodyfat to be anywhere near competitive in a physique competition though hasn't he Cap?

 

[CptFKNplanet]

He's gotta be striving for an end result of about 5-6% bodyfat to be anywhere near competitive in a physique competition though hasn't he Cap?

Yeah, I should've added that in there. Looking back the way I said it doesn't get my point across lol. 10% BF is not lean enough to compete, so you will most likely have to come in lighter than 185 unless you are able to add a few lbs before dieting down. The guys in MP aren't quite as lean as BBers, but they are only a couple % off. I don't think they come in as dry either, so water manipulation isn't AS big of a deal. Remember you get marked down for being too big or too lean lol.

 

[hirez]

Fat

Yeah, I should've added that in there. Looking back the way I said it doesn't get my point across lol. 10% BF is not lean enough to compete, so you will most likely have to come in lighter than 185 unless you are able to add a few lbs before dieting down. The guys in MP aren't quite as lean as BBers, but they are only a couple % off. I don't think they come in as dry either, so water manipulation isn't AS big of a deal. Remember you get marked down for being too big or too lean lol.

I was thinking about 7%. I think I can put on a few lbs of muscle. I just don't see myself being able to drop down to 175ish, that is what I boxed and played college ball at 14 years ago.

Do you think I should give myself an longer time frame and shoot for a fall show in 2014?

 

[CptFKNplanet]

I was thinking about 7%. I think I can put on a few lbs of muscle. I just don't see myself being able to drop down to 175ish, that is what I boxed and played college ball at 14 years ago.

Do you think I should give myself an longer time frame and shoot for a fall show in 2014?

At 5'10 175 - 180 is probably ideal for physique. You're honestly going to want to be around 5%, but remember it's more about how you look than the numbers themselves. This is where a coach will really help. I think doing a show in May will give you plenty of time. It's 100% up to you though. I say just go for it. It's your first show so don't be discouraged if you don't win. There's a lot of competition in MP now.

 

[bigben66]

At 5'10 175 - 180 is probably ideal for physique. You're honestly going to want to be around 5%, but remember it's more about how you look than the numbers themselves. This is where a coach will really help. I think doing a show in May will give you plenty of time. It's 100% up to you though. I say just go for it. It's your first show so don't be discouraged if you don't win. There's a lot of competition in MP now.

I couldn't agree with ^^^^^ more....

Do the May show, even if you don't finish up with the results you crave - you will learn more about your body and how it adapts and reacts in those weeks leading up to the show - than you imagine... then it's a case of repeating what worked and tweaking what didn't for further competitions ahead.

Good luck man, and get started!

BigBen

 

[CptFKNplanet]

^ Exactly! It's all a learning process man.

 

[hirez]

Thanks guys, really appreciate the feedback. I am going to give it a go.

 

[zimmy44]

Talk to 3J. He is very good with diet and preparing for contests as well as being reasonable in the budget!