PEAK WEEK! LET’S GO! 143lbs, Monday.
Feeling good after my day off yesterday, first day of no exercise at all in over 5 months. Yesterday didn’t feel too good, just run down in general, but I also didn’t really sleep the night before. Got a good night sleep last night, and I’m about to dig in to some eggs and bacon.
Just to summarize for anyone reading that may not be aware, “peak week” is the week leading up to the show, where you put the finishing touches on what is hopefully an already ready-to-go package, to get the final very full/tight/shrink wrapped look on stage. It really only works if you’re already stage-ready, which I haven’t been before. Last year I didn’t get to this level of conditioning, so I’m very excited to see what a well executed peak week protocol will do come Saturday.
It’s pretty simple, for the next 4 days we deplete carbs using a keto style diet, and short pump sessions in the gym. We do NOT train legs, because they need to relax. Legs are the only muscle group that doesn’t look good with a pump, they get inflamed and you can’t see the separation. So, no leg training, and during the pre-show pump up, also no legs. Then Friday, we load up with plenty of fast digesting carbs that are shuttled right into the muscles, filling them out with glycogen, so come Saturday, we’re looking on point. Here’s how the week is shaping up:
MONDAY-WEDNESDAY - Same diet, keto style (fat and protein.) Pump workouts in the gym. I’ve been between 1650-1800 cals for the past 4 weeks, my keto numbers put me at 2,200. Very excited about that. While a no-carb diet can bring some lethargy and brain fog, one thing it doesn’t bring is hunger, the constant fats and protein keep ya full with stable blood sugar.
THURSDAY - Keto diet, no training. Full body shave in the morning, apply first coat of Pro-Tan in the evening. Pro Tan is the base tan that is applied in multiple layers before the Dream-Tan, which is the “top coat” applied day of the show. Gotta be dark dark dark on stage and I am pasty white white white.
FRIDAY- CARB UP BABY, 350g for me. Finibars, Bananas and Reese’s spread, complete cookies, and cinnamon toast crunch are on the menu. Pump workout in the gym to help get the carbs into the muscles. 3 coats of Pro-Tan throughout the day.
Drinking 3 gallons of water a day Monday-Friday.
Last night we went shopping for the last minute items like a door-mirror for the show day to bring into the show site and keep an eye on our conditioning, which helps us know if we need to eat more/less, last minute food items, etc.
I also finished my posing routine last night, and will be practicing my mandatories and routine each day for sure.
Going to be a busy week but I’ll update as often as I can, and I know we’ll have @The_Mighty_Stu and @BrickHead posting updates on show day!
EDIT: We’re also expecting a huge blizzard starting tonight, weather channel says anywhere from 12-15 inches. Hoping that won’t throw too much of a wrench in the week. We did our food shopping already and have everything we need. The one thing it might hinder is getting to the gym tomorrow. We’re hoping to wake up early and get it done, but in the worst case scenario, we have enough equipment in our basement that we can knock it out at home. We have an adjustable bench, a couple sets of adjustable dumbbells, various weights and a pull-up bar.
