Julien G Road To Nationals 2016 - Project Heavyweight

Training
1

634×956 150 KB

Hi everyone, as a follow up to my contest prep thread(s) I decided to make a thread where I will be as detailed as possible about training, diet and supplementation as I will work toward competing in the Canadian Nationals in 2016

Having won the provincial championships at the end of june 2014 I would normally be qualified for the nationals both in 2014 and 2015. Having talked a bit with the Quebec association I will be allowed to have my qualification good until 2016

Why 2016? : It took me everything I had to make it in the light heavyweights at the provincials and barely made the weight… knowing I have some things to improve on competing in the light heavies was out of the question… this leaves me in the heavies…which is a class that goes from 198lbs to 225lbs… I am confident in my capacity to add some quality muscle fast, but not 25lbs in a year. The goal here is a top 3 on my first go, and this aint happening unless im close to 225… so 2016 it is.

Offseason goal : Stay relatively lean but get my weight up to around 250. This will require A LOT of calories for me as being on a 5200cals diet had me “stuck” at a bit under 230lbs last offseason.

Most important things to improve during this time :

  1. LATS LATS LATS, lower lats need to come up big time
  2. Upper chest
  3. Quads sweep (getting my lats bigger and my quads sweep bigger will give me a nice Xframe considering my small waist)
  4. Glutes

Stage weight : 203lbs

Offseason duration : ~20 months more or less. This means about 1lb of stage weight per month

Training/Diet : John Meadows will still be taking care of me :slight_smile:

Post contest strategy : For the 4 weeks post contest calories are added back gradually but at a fast pace. Training intensity is dropped A LOT but the volume is HIGH, this allows for muscle growth without fearing injuries/muscle tears (for example, I do a lot of 8 x 8 sets on a few exercises)

Diet starting point (this is what my calories were at, at the end of the prep)

Meal 1
1/2 Tbsp Virgin Coconut Oil (cook in)
1 cup of spinach or any other veggies you like (optional)
1 cup of pasteurized egg whites

Meal 2
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)

Meal 3
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
1 cup of any green veggie

Meal 4 (pre workout)
50 grams of whey iso (or any blend for that matter)
1/2 cup (dry measure) oats - get gluten free
1 tbs of almond butter

Meal 5 (intra workout)
3 scoops plazma

Meal 6 ( 1 hour post workout)
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
1 cup cooked white rice

Meal 7
8 oz cooked any lean meat (turkey, chicken, or steak)
1 cup of any green veggie - optional

Calories : 2196
Protein : 341g
Carbs : 145g
Fats : 28g

Training split (7x/week)

  1. Legs
  2. Chest/Delts
  3. Back
  4. Legs (quads sweep focus)
  5. Chest/Delts (Upper chest focus)
  6. Back (lower lats focus)
  7. Biceps/Triceps

I will NOT discuss PEDS so don’t even ask…

2

Nice to see this thread up and running Julien.This is gonna be one hell of a ride…

3

As far as calories go, will they continue to rise throughout the whole ~20 months? Or will you need to do some damage control in the form of added cardio/reduced calories at any point?

I know you’re not planning on getting fat and have one of the best coaches around so I’m guessing this wont be an issue. I only ask because any form of prolonged off-season I have ever done, I have definitely put on more fat than needed (not on purpose) making it harder to put on muscle via reduced insulin sensitivity I believe.

And are you continuing to use plazma or will it just be a generic version of cyclic dextrin and casein hydrolysate?

4

1920×1288 300 KB

Post contest - Night of the show/Day 1 - Photoshoot day - 207lbs

The day following my show I had a photoshoot so wanted to come in looking full but didnt want to overeat or overdrink (I was way more thirsty than hungry after the show)

The night after the show I just went for whatever I felt like (had some pizza, some sorbet and about 2000ml of gatorade along with 8 waffles, that was it). The following morning I had a kind of normal breakfast and had some pancakes an hour before the shoot

I also didn’t train and to be honest didnt really feel like going to the photoshoot but knew I’d be happy with the results afterward…

5

[quote]lemony2j wrote:
As far as calories go, will they continue to rise throughout the whole ~20 months? Or will you need to do some damage control in the form of added cardio/reduced calories at any point?

I know you’re not planning on getting fat and have one of the best coaches around so I’m guessing this wont be an issue. I only ask because any form of prolonged off-season I have ever done, I have definitely put on more fat than needed (not on purpose) making it harder to put on muscle via reduced insulin sensitivity I believe.

And are you continuing to use plazma or will it just be a generic version of cyclic dextrin and casein hydrolysate?[/quote]

As far as fat gains are concerned obvi trying to keep them lower, but might do a little bit of “dieting” at some point in those 20months depending on how things are going, we will see

Right now im using plazma, what I use in the future will obvi depends on a few things I cant mention here but will be obvious to some

6

710×706 92.6 KB

For the “reverse dieting” part JM and I decided I would do it myself. I actually offered him to do this as he had 2 preps going on along with other things and I felt confident enough to make the required adjustments anyways

07/01/2014 : 209.6lbs (2 days post contest) - First diet change

Meal 1
4 whole organic free range eggs
1/2 Tbsp Virgin Coconut Oil (cook in)
1 cup of spinach or any other veggies you like (optional)
1 cup of pasteurized egg whites

Meal 2
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
1 cup cooked white rice

Meal 3
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
1 cup of any green veggie

Meal 4 (pre workout)
50 grams of whey iso (or any blend for that matter)
1/2 cup dry cream of rice
1 tbs of almond butter

Meal 5 (intra workout)
3 scoops plazma

Meal 6 (1 hour post workout)
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
2 cup cooked white rice
2 tbsp honey

Meal 7
8 oz cooked any lean meat (turkey, chicken, or steak)
1 cup of any green veggie - optional

Calories : 3198
Protein : 363g
Carbs : 333g
Fats : 46g

7

Thanks for getting this thread going, Julien. Please don’t slack off with your updates haha because we are all excited to follow you on your offseason journey!

8

3456×4608 3.41 MB

07/02/2014 : 211.6lbs
07/03/2014 : 213.8lbs

Diet change #2 07/04/2014 (the changes were to be made about every 4-5days with about 500cals increases)

Meal 1
4 whole organic free range eggs
1/2 Tbsp Virgin Coconut Oil (cook in)
1 cup of spinach or any other veggies you like (optional)

Meal 2
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
2 cups cooked white rice

Meal 3 8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
1 cup of any green veggie
1 cup cooked white rice

Meal 4 (pre workout)
50 grams of whey iso (or any blend for that matter)
1/2 cup dry cream of rice
1 tbs of almond butter

Meal 5 (intra workout)
3 scoops plazma

Meal 6 (1 hour post workout)
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
2 cup cooked white rice
2 tbsp honey

Meal 7
8 oz cooked any lean meat (turkey, chicken, or steak)
175g red potatoes
1 cup of any green veggie - optional

Calories : 3678
Protein : 375g
Carbs : 441g
Fats : 46g

9

07/04/2014 : 217.6 (post cheatmeal)
07/05/2014 : 214.8
07/06/2014 : 217.2
07/07/2014 : 218.6
07/08/2014 : 221 (post cheatmeal)

Diet changes #3

Meal 1
4 whole organic free range eggs
1/2 Tbsp Virgin Coconut Oil (cook in)
1 cup of spinach or any other veggies you like (optional)
2 slices ezekiel bread with 1 tbsp organic butter

Meal 2
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
2 cups cooked white rice

Meal 3
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
1 cup of any green veggie
1 cup cooked white rice

Meal 4 (pre workout)
50 grams of whey iso (or any blend for that matter)
1/2 cup dry cream of rice
1 tbs of almond butter

Meal 5 (intra workout)
3 scoops plazma

Meal 6 (1 hour post workout)
2 scoops whey iso blend
3 poptarts or 3 cups kids cereals

Meal 7
8 oz cooked any lean meat (turkey, chicken, or steak)
175g red potatoes
1 cup of any green veggie - optional

Calories : 4067
Protein : 372g
Carbs : 469g
Fats : 72g

**The changes are fast paced because I was still so hungry and still lean, if I didnt add more cals I just ended up having some “shit” in between meals or after meals (choc bar, drumstick, etc)

10

3456×4608 3 MB

07/09/2014 : 224.2
07/10/2014 : 223
07/11/2014 : 220.2
07/12/2014 : 222.2 (post big cheatmeal)

Diet changes #4 (starting from 07/13/2014 - 2 weeks post contest) - At this point my stomach was struggling with the food volume, added in probiotics and digestive enzymes, helps a lot

Meal 1
4 whole organic free range eggs
1/2 Tbsp Virgin Coconut Oil (cook in)
1 cup of spinach or any other veggies you like (optional)
4 slices ezekiel bread with 1 tbsp organic butter
1 cup frozen raspberries

Meal 2
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
2 cups cooked white rice
1 tbsp Extra Virigin Olive Oil

Meal 3
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
1 cup of any green veggie
1 cup cooked white rice
1/4 cup pecans

Meal 4 (pre workout)
50 grams of whey iso (or any blend for that matter)
1/2 cup dry cream of rice
1 tbs of almond butter

Meal 5
3 scoops plazma

Meal 6 (1 hour post workout)
2 scoops whey iso blend
4 poptarts or 4 cups kids cereals

Meal 7
8 oz cooked any lean meat (turkey, chicken, or steak)
1 cup cooked Brown Rice Penne Pasta
1 cup of any green veggie - optional

Calories : 4735
Protein : 387g
Carbs : 565g
Fats : 103g

11

640×640 63.5 KB

07/13/2014 : 223
07/14/2014 : 226.8 (post big cheatmeal)
07/15/2014 : 227.4
07/16/2014 : 227

Diet changes #5 (as of 07/16/2014) - Weight seems stuck around 227 if I dont have a cheatmeal or something not in my diet, adding more cals is starting to be hard for my appetite

Meal 1
4 whole organic free range eggs
1/2 Tbsp Virgin Coconut Oil (cook in)
1 cup of spinach or any other veggies you like (optional)
4 slices ezekiel bread with 1 tbsp organic butter
1 cup frozen raspberries

Meal 2
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
2 cups cooked white rice
1 tbsp Extra Virigin Olive Oil

Meal 3
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
1 cup of any green veggie
1 cup cooked white rice
1/4 cup pecans

Meal 4 (pre workout)
50 grams of whey iso (or any blend for that matter)
1/2 cup dry cream of rice
1 tbs of almond butter

Meal 5 (intra workout)
3 scoops plazma

Meal 6 (1 hour post workout)
2 scoops whey iso blend
4 poptarts or 4 cups kids cereals

Meal 7
8 oz cooked any lean meat (turkey, chicken, or steak)
2 cup cooked Brown Rice Penne Pasta
1 cup of any green veggie - optional

Meal 8
2 scoops whey iso blend
1/2 cup oats

Calories : 5290
Protein : 447g
Carbs : 637g
Fats : 106g

12


07/17/2014 : 228.6
07/18/2014 : 227.4
07/19/2014 : 227.2
07/20/2014 : 227.6

Diet changes #6 - Weight is stuck around 227 still… Never managed to break that plateau…yet… never been this heavy at this level of leaness either though… Still have one week of going at it hard before tapering down training volume and everything to give my body a break… Hawain Pizza is back in… but not post workout

Meal 1
4 whole organic free range eggs
1/2 Tbsp Virgin Coconut Oil (cook in)
1 cup of spinach or any other veggies you like (optional)
4 slices ezekiel bread with 1 tbsp organic butter
1 cup frozen raspberries

Meal 2
1/2 large hawain pizza

Meal 3
8 oz cooked any lean meat (horse, turkey, chicken, or red meat)
1 cup of any green veggie
1 cup cooked white rice

Meal 4 (pre workout)
50 grams of whey iso (or any blend for that matter)
1/2 cup dry cream of rice
1 tbs of almond butter

Meal 5 (intra workout)
3 scoops plazma

Meal 6 (1 hour post workout)
2 scoops whey iso blend
4 poptarts or 4 cups kids cereals

Meal 7
8 oz cooked any lean meat (turkey, chicken, or steak)
1 cup cooked Brown Rice Penne Pasta
1 cup of any green veggie - optional

Meal 8 2 scoops whey iso blend
1/2 cup oats

Calories : 5621
Protein : 432g
Carbs : 656g
Fats : 141g

13

How do pop tarts digest? I thought you tried to go gluten free? Also on that note, how does brow rice pasta digest compared to white rice?

As far as changes regarding plazma goes, only those with…prime knowledge…will understand :slight_smile:

Will john jump in after your reverse is completed?

14

Cheats have any structure? Are you altering them over time?

15

[quote]Mr. AWEstomy wrote:
How do pop tarts digest? I thought you tried to go gluten free? Also on that note, how does brow rice pasta digest compared to white rice?

As far as changes regarding plazma goes, only those with…prime knowledge…will understand :slight_smile:

Will john jump in after your reverse is completed?[/quote]

I deal well with gluten (used to skipload with a lot of stuff filled with gluten) but still try to “avoid” it in some meals. Poptarts digest fast and used to be one of the first thing I had in my skipload day because of how well it digested (that and rice krispies).

For the brown rice vs white rice I don’t really notice much of a difference between both but tbh I alternate between white rice and brown rice pasta, dont think it matters much, in the end

Yes John will be doing everything when reverse dieting is done :slight_smile: Lets hope he wont be too pissed at what ive been doing :slight_smile: lol

16

[quote]1 Man Island wrote:
Cheats have any structure? Are you altering them over time?[/quote]

2 cheats/week

One usually saturday night or sunday morning as I have big workouts on saturday and sunday, then the other one whenever I feel like during the week

Right now with cals so high and pizza/poptarts every day I dont really feel a need to have a cheat though… i just use it for more “social” occasions

17

Hello brother started to consume the Micro-PA

18

[quote]THE WALL wrote:
Hello brother started to consume the Micro-PA[/quote]

Yes 6 pills/day since the start of my post contest, honestly though the current situation makes it really hard for me to evaluate effectiveness

19

So does gluten digest fine for you if you just eat a bit each day, and avoid it at some meals, but if you did too much would it mess with you? And I’m assuming the processed stuff works out better then whole grains, etc.

One last question for now at least ;). I can’t really afford something like pepto pro, but would hydrolyzed whey be second best and combine that with bcaas?

Thanks Julien.

20

Impressive as always. How long ago did you compete for the first time?