Hey all…I have found a coach and have decided to try and enter a weightlifting meet in about 8 weeks. My question for those who might be able to help is that I am used to a bodybuilder’s diet and nutrition strategy (much thanks to the folks at t-mag for that!) and I am not quite sure how this should change given the upcoming change in my training methods and energy systems. Are there any supplements that I could/should be using, other than creatine of couse. Right now, I am sticking with surge during and after a workout, but after that what can I do in terms of eating and supplementation. Thanks to all who can help? By the way, any other suggestions or tips for a newbie competitor?
Truthfully since you’ve been following a bodybuilding type diet you’ll probably find your nutritional and supplementation knowledge superior to most strength athletes as it’s something they tend to worry less about and many powerlifters and 0lifters laugh at the bodybuilding obsession with calorie and macronutrient counting, supplementation, etc. Depending on whether or not you need to gain or lose weight you can get excellent results following your bodybuilding nutrition and recovery plan, just make sure your fat intake is around 30% to optimize testosterone production. For specific supplementation for strength sports if you read through the archives of Charles Poliquins question of strength columns he had a good response to specific supplements to use for this purpose. I recall he thought supplements that increase neural arousal and focus were actually more important for these sports than nutrition although I don’t recall his specific recommendations. Definitely stuff like MD6, Power Drive and acetyl-l-carnitine will help with your focus, concentration, and ability to recruit high threshold motor units essential for o-lifting.
As always, thanks Kelly. Sounds right on the money…