Thinking of competing

[Jason Evans]

Hey everyone. I was wondering what would be a good weight and bodyfat to shoot for in a natural comp with a height of 5'10. I weight about 180 right now and I'm fairly lean(some visible abs), and would like to know what I'd need to compete.

[pullinbig]

at 5' 10" you need come in at about 220.

[IrishMobBoss]

maybe for nationals

a level one show and you could get away with 180 or so,but thats on contest day,it all depends on the weight class you want and how far you want to take this

if nationals are a goal 220 is a good place to be at 5'10

[sonis9]

for a natural show as a first timer 185 on stage would work!! if you want to go to the dark side or a national level you best be 220 or better at that height

[Jason Evans]

I don't plan on ever going any higher than the provincial level. Its something to train for, but also won't be the focus of my life. I figure I will shoot for light-heavy weight. What weight and bf% do you think I will have to be during the off season?

[IrishMobBoss]

during contest dieting you lose roughly 40-50lbs,or atleast thats very common for most guys,off season I wouldnt go any higher then 12-13%,believe me any higher then that and its hard to drop the weight

[Jason Evans]

Wouldn't trying to lose 40-50lbs naturally take a fair chunk of muscle with it?

[pullinbig]

not if youy got you diet right.

[IrishMobBoss]

diet is def the key,just listen to your body and if you start dropping to much mass back down on cardio a tad,but you will drop a good deal of water which could account for 15-20lbs of the total weight lost,all depends on your body

[DirkMoneyshot]

There is no need to drop 40 - 50 lb, if you stay under 12%.

And 15 - 20 lb Water weight is a little High. You would have to be severly bloated.

Most Natural Competitors stay about 25 lb over Contest Weight.


I would set a goal of competing at 190 lb (5%) bodfyat should be your goal.

That means your off season weight needs to be about 215 lb @ 12%

Good Luck, I'm sure you'll do well

[IrishMobBoss]

Needsize is proof that around 40lbs was lost and he started at 12 or 13% if I remember right and he came in on the day of his show at 180 totally shredded,and I believe he was 225-230 when he started at 12%

[DirkMoneyshot]

I've told him numerous times he

1.) Over dieted (meaning lost to much muscle) was using a lot of T3 and Clen, way more than he should have.

They way it broke down needsize lost 25 lb LBM and 25 lb Fat. 50%/50% ratio is bad anyone will tell you this. And don't give me its all water. Where was he holding it (all in the fat and sub q) don't think so. He lost muscle tissue probably about 12 - 13 lb muscle tissue and 12 - 13 lb water.

2.) Did not carb up properly and was flat (he's said that). Should have come in heavier.

Stated himself that he was 195 lb and 5% (2 weeks out).


Just because someone comes in one way doesn't mean they did everything right.

I've dieted down numerous individuals for diet and i can say that they typically only lose 8 - 10 lb water weight and very little Muscle tissue if given the proper amount of time.

[IrishMobBoss]

I stand corrected,I didnt think he dropped to much muscle but I seem to be quite off

[needsize]

The formula you are using to determine how much mass I lost is way off bro, at most I lost a few lbs of mass, the rest was fat and water. I dropped 15lbs of water in the 2 days before the show, and another 6-10lbs in the 2-3 weeks leading up to it when I cut the sodium out.
I was 195lbs a few days out. The only real mistake I did make was to not carb up enough, which made a difference it how thick I was on stage, but that was not mass lost.
My bf was around 13% when I started, but my trainer also said that I carry more water than anyone she had every seen, and she has trained many, many people for shows

[DirkMoneyshot]

Well i think you made my point he shouldn't expect to lost 15 - 20 lb of water. And there's no need to lose 40 lb to get in contest shape. Since you hold more water than anyone, going by you as an example wouldn't be realistic.

I still personally can't see how you would drop that much weight and feel it was all water. That far into a contest diet and with that low of a bodyfat it would be unrealistic to think its all water. But i'm not here to argue so i'll let it be.

[needsize]

Originally posted by DirkMoneyshot
Well i think you made my point he shouldn't expect to lost 15 - 20 lb of water. And there's no need to lose 40 lb to get in contest shape. Since you hold more water than anyone, going by you as an example wouldn't be realistic.

I still personally can't see how you would drop that much weight and feel it was all water. That far into a contest diet and with that low of a bodyfat it would be unrealistic to think its all water. But i'm not here to argue so i'll let it be.

going by the calipres, and the fact that I dropped weight fast first when I dropped the sodium, then 15lbs in two days on a diuretic, it was easy to tell what is was I was dropping. I averaged a 1% drop in bf every two weeks, all the way through the diet, so any changes in that make it easy to tell.

As far as not needing to drop 40lbs to get into contest shape, that depends on your body and where you started at. A guy I train with is doing a show in Aug, he started in the 280s and still had abs, he has the best trainer(and most expensive) that I know of, pro bodybuilder Laura Binetti, plus his training partner won the world police/fireman bodybuilding championship, and they are figuring he'll come in at 235lbs(hes a sick 255 now). Thats pretty close to the amount I dropped. It also changes things when you are aiming for 3-4%,. and not 5-6%

[IrishMobBoss]

what show is he doing needsize,I think I know the guy your talking about

[needsize]

London, I saw him today, 250lbs and so shredded I could see the veins on his chest through his shirt. He is a local cop, so you may know him, he trains at bodyline and athletic club now

[IrishMobBoss]

yupp large blonde guy,I wont mention his name,but I may have to go see that show,Im sure he is gonna kill it

[needsize]

Originally posted by IrishMobBoss
yupp large blonde guy,I wont mention his name,but I may have to go see that show,Im sure he is gonna kill it

he will, they figure he'll be 235-240lbs on stage, thats massive for a level one, I love training around him as I know we will go toe to toe on stage some day, so its motivating as hell