Hello,

I am going to try my second amature bodybuilding show May 10th. It is an "all-natural" show that is going to be piss tested so they say.

I entered my last show at 250 on the day of the show. I was retaining a bit of water still around my midsection. Since that time I have bulked like I have never added weight before. I am currently 310 pounds from eating oatmeal, flax, and any type of protein I can get my hands on. My bodyfat has gone up and I'm retaining water like a camel around my gut, but I'm still hopefull that I have put on a good 25 pounds of good solid mass underneath that flesh. As far as anyone can accuratly measure, I'm still in the 10-12% BF range and my upper abs are still fairly well defined.

I"m seeking advice on the cutting phase this time. Last time I simply did the basics - low carbs 2 days, higher carbs on 3rd. Rinse. Repeat. I don't think I was taking in near enough protien at only 1gm/pound, but since I was only cutting from about 265, I didn't lose all that much muscle in the process. I'm not sure of the total calories but I would guess it was about 12 cal/pound.

I also used lipoderm-y and Lebrada's Charge in a 5 on 2 off cycle. I did HIIT areobics each day around lunch for about 20 minutes following a morning workout. Closer to the show I added posing for about 40 min/day as well. The lipoderm caused some water retention while I was using it, but I stopped using it 2 weeks before the show so I don't think that influenced the water retention during the show. I tried some oral Yohimbe, but it makes me as hypertensive as all hell.

This time around, I would be happy if I could hit the stage weighing 260 and estatic if I could come in closer to 270. So I'm interested in keeping as much of the muscle I have put on over the past several months as I can.

I'm going to concentrate on making sure I'm getting at least 1.5-1.75gm protien/pound this time around and reducing calories to only 500 below maintenance and burn another 500 doing cardio HIIT style. I'll be picking up some Yohimburn-DF this time around and another ECA stack. I'm also considering 500mg/ed Sodium Usniate, although that is up in the air as opinions seem to be deeply divided on that suppliment.

Finally, I'm considering doing a CKD this time as well and putting myself into Ketosis for a few days each week. I have done this diet 2x before when losing weight, but never while preparing for a show. I have purchased and read McDonalds CKD book for this attempt.

I am planning on starting cutting around Valentines day - so I'm trying to get my game plan together early here.

I don't have a trainer as my gym has closed - so any feedback or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I'm just putting this together from what I have read here and other places.

Thanks,

Jorta