Annaruthus Member

Competed in my first bikini competition! I was TOO muscular for my division (see profile pic), but I loved the way I looked. I'm going to compete in a figure competition in March/April. Can't wait! Also trying to get at least 270 on my PT test in October!

congratulations! Way to go!

Super read, thanks for sharing! I'm not different.... I'M JUST MOTIVATED!

I'm looking to gain some lean muscle mass over the next 4-5 months myself. I want to compete in a figure competition, and I would feel better about it if I had a little more upper body mass.

If you want to lose water weight, I would just take some diuretic pills like the week leading up to whatever event (wedding, photo shoot, etc), and maintain a clean diet while drinking plenty of water to help your system flush. You'll lose water weight, and not starve to death.

Thank you. I do enjoy my six small meals. i like to eat, and this way, I can do it often!

This is my first time trying to gain, so I already know I will have to make adjustments so it fits me. If I have to eat 2400 calories, or 2700 then so be it, but I don't want to overshoot and just get fat. Budru, would .5 a month/every two months be more realistic then? I don't want to be unclear about what I should expect…

Well thanks a bunch for all your feedback. I will take these things into consideration. For the person who said I will be eating too little. I'm 115 pounds, no where near man sized, so my requirements will be a lot less than a man. Keep that in mind.

If you love HIIT, then you should try Tabata workouts. Totally kicked my butt the first time I did it!

I prefer the 5 to 6 smaller meals throughout the day. I like to eat, and that fulfills my desire :-) My macros don't usually end up spread that evenly; they usually cluster around my workout time. I usually eat the most then. Thanks for the tips guys. I'm hoping to gain maybe .5-1 lbs per week. Don't want too much fat!

Just spent about 20 minutes trying to find the right calculations for my bulking phase, which will hopefully start about a week or so after my competition. Maybe right after, we are grocery shopping on Monday, and I am not the girl to sit around with out a plan! Anyway, I calculated my daily caloric needs to be between…

I wear simple black Harbinger ones, and I AM a serious lifter. Helps me go the extra mile. You're right, it is hard to go all out when your hands hurt the next day!

3 oz chicken breast, 1/4 cup mashed sweet potato, and 10 roasted asparagus spears.

It is a cycle of bulking and cutting right? Since I want to do a clean bulk, I might make it longer, since I won't put on as much.

Neck: 14" Waist: 23.5" Hips: 33.5"

Couple days out from my competition, and here is where I am at: Height: 5'3" CW: 115.6 lbs GW: 115 lbs BF: 13-14%

My 2400 daily caloric need was including the fact that I worked out twice a day, and that at least one of those times included cardio, if not both times, since I was slimming down for my competition. So my caloric needs will definitely be lower since I won't be doing nearly as much cardio, and focusing more on the weight…

Okay, thanks. A "clean" bulk will by tremendous amounts of fun for me, since I have been eating lower for so long! It means bigger portion sizes! How exciting! lol.

So for bulking, if I ate a clean 1800-2000 calories per day, minimized the cardio to 2-3 times per week, and lifted weights 5-6 times per week, I would be on the right track? I know these are all general numbers, but it would take time to tweak. I'm pretty sure I want to start bulking after my competition (this saturday).

Lol, I start posing!

@KG it really does, thanks so much! I liked your format selection :-)

Now of course this totally depends on YOUR body, so what I'm about to say, I would really appreciate people not punching me. I'm not saying this is "you" specifically, and I'm sure there are thousands of people in which this would not apply. Okay now that the disclaimer is done Studies done on women who proceeded with…

thank you so much for your feedback. Just so you guys know.... I wear regular length shorts and racer back tank tops when I go workout. No booty shorts here. Although I figured I could pull off capris since I would be showing my clients how to do the exercises, if necessary, but I wouldn't be doing a full on workout. I get…

Started making our own taco and chile mixes, and it's awesome. Not only is there no MSG, the sodium content is now in your control too. I hate having food that is healthy in every other way, but is a sodium bomb!

I eat at 0345, 0600, 0800 and 1000 on most days because I'm up super early to workout before formation everyday. So I obviously partake of the splitting up the meals advice. 0345 is a pre workout snack, 0600 is my post workout shake, 0800 is usually oatmeal or eggs, and 1000 will be oatmeal or eggs depending on what I had…

Well if that is the case, my husband regularly laments the loss of my 36D's. Now I'm a 32D with a six pack, so I'm happy. I know I'm only still in the D category because of my chest muscle, but hey, I'll take what I can get!

butternut squash! I had never eaten it before yesterday. It fits in to my competition diet plan, so I figured why not when I bought it. I baked it in cubes until it was completely soft, then pureed it, and put some cinnamon on top! Low calorie, low carb, but high fiber. Super delicious! Glad I have it in my lunch today!

Thank you! The super low carbness starts tomorrow, although I've only eaten sweet potato, oatmeal, and butternut squash yesterday, and today. I mean in the way of carbs. Eating a ton of chicken breast! Asaparagus and cabbage are on the menu too, to help with the water shedding.

So.... butternut squash is delicious. That is all... :-)

I was just posting some thing I thought was interesting. I'm training for a fitness competition, and have to be aroung 13-14% body fat. So for someone like me, the types of carbs I ingest are extremely important. For someone looking to lose weight in a healthy way, this information can be beneficial as well. Eating simple…