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Continuum of nutrient & supplement timing importance.
Source publication
The popularity of natural bodybuilding is increasing; however, evidence-based recommendations for it are lacking. This paper reviewed the scientific literature relevant to competition preparation on nutrition and supplementation, resulting in the following recommendations. Caloric intake should be set at a level that results in bodyweight losses of...
Context in source publication
Context 1
... for objectives relevant to body- building, the current evidence indicates that the global macronutrient composition of the diet is likely the most important nutritional variable related to chronic training adaptations. Figure 1 below provides a continuum of im- portance with bodybuilding-specific context for nutrient timing. ...Citations
... IIFYM emphasises reaching daily targets for macronutrients but does not necessarily consider micronutrient intakes and it is presently unknown whether powerlifters reach the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for micronutrients with an IIFYM approach. Micronutrient intakes below the RDA have been reported in bodybuilders [22] but micronutrient intakes have not been quantified in powerlifters. Recently, in a cohort of bodybuilders, Ismaeel et al., [14] reported intakes of vitamins A, D, and E; potassium; and fibre below the RDA, with similar prevalence between males following a macronutrient-based diet and those following a more rigid, 'strict' diet. ...
Purpose
To characterise self-reported nutrition practices and beliefs of powerlifters.
Methods
Actively competing male (n = 240) and female (n = 65) powerlifters completed a cross-sectional online survey of self-reported nutrition practices across the competitive cycle, within specific competitive phases, and hard and easy training days. Data are presented as number (n) and percentage (%) of all powerlifters practicing a given strategy followed by a % of responses reporting various practices or beliefs within this strategy. Differences in categorical sub-groups (sex, age, and weight class; and competitive calibre) were analysed with a chi-square test and denoted where significant (p ≤ 0.05).
Results
Most powerlifters reported following a specific diet long-term (n = 203, 66.6%) of which If It Fits Your Macros (IIFYM)/flexible dieting was most common (n = 159, 78.3%). Over half reported introducing a special diet for a competitive phase (n = 162, 53.1%), of which IIFYM/flexible dieting was most followed for competition preparation (n = 80, 63%) and off-season (n = 48, 71.6%). Compared to normal dietary intake, most reported eating more on harder training days (n = 219, 71.8%) and refraining from eating less on easier training days (n = 186, 61%).
Conclusions
IIFYM/flexible dieting is commonly followed by powerlifters to support performance and body composition goals. Females seemed to report more often restricting energy and dieting for body composition reasons than males. Powerlifters tailor their energy intake on harder training days to the higher training demands but refrain from reducing energy intake on rest/easier training days.
... To prepare for a bodybuilding competition, the athlete needs to maintain a negative energy balance both by lower energy intake from the diet and by the longer time dedicated to training trying to reduce the body fat percentage as much as possible until the stage presentation [1]. Thus, the total preparation for a bodybuilding competition basically consists of two phases: the preparation phase and the pre-competition phase; this bodybuilding modality involves pre-established preparation phases that athletes will be judged on their muscular appearance [2], hence the importance of a physique with the lowest body fat percentage possible. However, the approaches generally applied to these athletes tend to bring severe energy restriction [3], but is that really necessary? ...
... There are evidence-based guidelines for a balanced diet and training to achieve ideal body composition. However, professional bodybuilders generally choose restrictive eating to achieve the desired body composition (Helms et al., 2014;Mitchell et al., 2017). In bodybuilders, an obsession with a muscular body image precedes maintaining health (Efthymiou et al., 2021). ...
Being in optimal body composition is an important factor in athletes due to factors such as health, performance and success of athletes. In general, lean body mass is considered an indicator of muscle fitness and is a performance-related factor. Bodybuilding is a branch of sports that aims to increase the strength and volume of the muscles and is mostly done by men. After a while, the training goals can move towards body images that cannot be achieved under normal conditions. In this review, it is aimed to examine the relationship between body composition, self-esteem and body image on male bodybuilders. Recent studies have shown an increased interest in the relationship between body dissatisfaction, self-esteem and body image. It is seen that there is a negative relationship between self-esteem and body image in individuals with body dissatisfaction. Approaches that change one's self-esteem and body image can lead to positive results in a treatment that will provide an approach to body dissatisfaction. More work is needed on this subject.
... To prepare for a bodybuilding competition, the athlete needs maintain a negative energy balance both by lower energy intake from the diet and by the longer time dedicated to training trying to reduce the body fat percentage as much as possible until the stage presentation [1]. Thus, the total preparation for a bodybuilding competition basically consists two phases, the preparation phase and the pre-competition phase, this causes bodybuilding modality involves pre-established preparation phases that athletes will be judged for their muscular appearance [2], hence the importance of a physique with the lowest body fat percentage possible. However, the approaches generally applied to these athletes tend to bring severe energy restriction [3] but is that really necessary? ...
... For a preparation, the bodybuilder athlete when in precontest period (PC), usually lasting 8 to 26 weeks previous to the stage presentation, they are in negative energy balance by caloric restriction and for more time dedicated to training [1], for the body weight adjustment to the respective weight class reducing as much body fat as possible and maintaining a greater portion of fat-free mass (FFM), because, on the bodybuilding sport modality the competitors are judged by their muscular appearance and symmetry [2]. Recent reports have revealed the athletes' adherence to emerging strategies as diet breaks and refeed [3] and other also recent finds has proven advantages of interruption of calorie restriction momentarily with refeed strategies for reduce compensatory metabolic responses and improve weight loss efficiency [4]. ...
... The cutting phase involves a reduction in body fat and the maintenance of the muscle mass gained through the bulking phase. During this phase, in addition to regular resistance training, most bodybuilders follow a high protein (2.3-3.1 g/kg of body mass), calorie-restricted diet, aerobic exercise, and isometric "posing practice" to prepare for the mandatory physique poses that judges use to place competitors [13,14]. ...
... Different sources were used to compare whether the dietary intakes (calories and macro-and micronutrients) were in line with the recommended dietary allowances (RDAs) present in the literature. In the case in which specific recommendations for bodybuilders were present, such as for protein, sport-specific recommendations were chosen [12,14]. Regarding the dietary intakes of critical micronutrients, as no specific recommendations for bodybuilders were present, the RDAs provided by the Italian Society of Human Nutrition for omnivores [21] and vegetarian/vegan diets [22] were used. ...
... The dietary intakes were investigated on whether they were in line with the recommendations present in the literature. The thresholds provided by Iraki et al. [12] for the bulking phase and Helms et al. [14] for the cutting phase about protein intake in bodybuilders were used. Moreover, the dietary intakes of critical micronutrients were compared with the RDAs provided by the Italian Society of Human Nutrition (SINU) for omnivores [21] and vegetarian/vegan diets [22]. ...
Numerous athletes compete at a high level without consuming animal products; although a well-planned vegan diet might be appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, a few elements need to be addressed to build a balanced plant-based diet for an athlete, particularly in bodybuilding, in which muscle growth should be maximised, as athletes are judged on their aesthetics. In this observational study, nutritional intakes were compared in a cohort of natural omnivorous and vegan bodybuilders, during two different phases of preparation. To this end, 18 male and female bodybuilders (8 vegans and 10 omnivores) completed a food diary for 5 days during the bulking and cutting phases of their preparation. A mixed-model analysis was used to compare macro-and micronutrient intakes between the groups in the two phases. Both vegans and omnivores behaved similarly regarding energy, carbohydrate, and fat intakes, but vegans decreased their protein intake during the cutting phase. Our results suggest that vegan bodybuilders may find difficulties in reaching protein needs while undergoing a caloric deficit, and they might benefit from nutritional professionals' assistance to bridge the gap between the assumed proteins and those needed to maintain muscle mass through better nutrition and supplementation planning.
... bodybuilding) or where resistance training is the sport itself (e.g., powerlifting and strongman) to ones in which resistance training can improve performance on the field(e.g. enhance vertical jump, sprint time, etc.) [1,2]. ...
... For all models, we used uninformed priors; recent meta-analyses might have been used to inform priors, however this would constitute a form of 'double counting' given the studies that were included in them have also been included in the likelihoods for the present models. Models were estimated using 23 1 Monte Carlo Markov Chains with 2000 warmup and 6000 sampling iterations. Trace plots were used to examine chain convergence and posterior predictive checks to examine model validity. ...
... These gave us the most probable value of the parameter for a given level of probability. 1 C -1 where C was the number of cores available on the computer used to run the analysis (build available here: https:// uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/C6VXRT). ...
Background: Range of motion (ROM) during resistance training is of growing interest and is potentially used to elicit differing adaptations (e.g. muscle hypertrophy and muscular strength and power). To date, attempts at synthesising the data on ROM during resistance training have primarily focused on muscle hypertrophy in the lower body.
Objective: Our aim was to meta-analyse and systematically review the effects of ROM on a variety of outcomes including hypertrophy, strength, sport, power and body-fat type outcomes. Following pre-registration and consistent with PRISMA guidelines, a systematic review of PubMed and SportsDISCUS was performed. Data was extracted and a Bayesian multi-level meta-analysis was performed. A range of exploratory sub-group and moderator analyses were performed.
Results: The main model revealed a trivial SMD (0.12; 95% CI: –0.02, 0.26) in favour of full ROM compared to partial ROM. When grouped by outcome, SMDs all favoured full ROM, but SMDs were trivial to small (all between 0.05 to 0.2). Sub-group analyses suggested there may be a muscle hypertrophy benefit to partial ROM training at long muscle lengths compared to using a full ROM (–0.28; 95% CI: –0.81, 0.16). Analysis also suggested the existence of a specificity aspect to ROM, such that training in the ROM being tested as an outcome resulted in greater strength adaptations. No clear differences were found between upper- and lower-body adaptations when ROM was manipulated.
Conclusions: Overall, our results suggest that using a full or long ROM may enhance results for most outcomes (strength, speed, power, muscle size, and body composition). Differences in adaptations are trivial to small. As such, partial ROM resistance training might present an efficacious alternative for variation and personal preference, or where injury prevents full-ROM resistance training.
... Dane zawarte w formularzu posłużyły do wykonania obliczeń i analizy sposobu żywienia. Ocenę sposobu żywienia badanych respondentów wykonano z zastosowaniem programu komputerowego Dieta 6, opracowanego przez pracowników IŻŻ w Warszawie [5][6][7]. ...
Streszczenie Przedmiot badań Przestrzeganie zasad prawidłowego żywienia jest ważne dla utrzymania zdrowia i jak najlepszej dyspozycji fizycznej sportowców. Cel badań Celem badań była analiza ilościowa sposobu żywienia wybranej grupy sportowców – biegaczy narciarskich oraz osób, które ćwiczą na siłowni. Materiał i metody Badaniem objęto 117 osób czynnie uprawiających sport. W badaniu wzięło udział 64. biegaczy narciarskich i 53 osoby, które regularnie ćwiczących na siłowni. Do oceny sposobu żywienia wybranych grup sportowców wykorzystano metodę wywiadu z 24h poprzedzających badanie. Ocenę sposobu żywienia badanych respondentów wykonano z zastosowaniem programu komputerowego Dieta 6, opracowanego przez pracowników IŻŻ w Warszawie. Wyniki Na podstawie przeprowadzonych badań, wykazano szereg nieprawidłowości w sposobie żywienia sportowców: zarówno w grupie biegaczy narciarskich, jak i osób ćwiczących siłowo. Zarówno w diecie mężczyzn, jak i kobiet z obu badanych grup, wykazano zbyt niską podaż energii, węglowodanów, wapnia, witaminy D i jodu. Dieta badanych kobiet z obu grup charakteryzowała się zbyt niską podażą żelaza. Wartość zalecanego dziennego spożycia (RDA) w dietach respondentów obu grup została przekroczona zarówno w przypadku składników mineralnych: sodu, potasu, magnezu, fosforu, żelaza, miedzi oraz cynku, jak i witamin: A, E, B1, B2, PP, B6 oraz C. Wnioski Ze względu na liczne błędy żywieniowe występujące wśród sportowców biorących udział w badaniu, istnieje potrzeba prowadzenia badań w tym kierunku oraz szersza edukacja środowiska sportowego, podkreślająca istotę przestrzegania zaleceń dotyczących odpowiedniego żywienia. Abstarct Introduction Complying with the rules of good nutrition is important for maintaining the athletes’ good health and possibly the best sporting performance. Aim The aim of the investigations was to perform a quantitative analysis of nutrition in a selected group of athletes – ski runners and individuals doing physical activity in the gym. Methods The study included 117 persons regularly performing sport: 64 ski runners and 53 persons regularly doing physical activity in the gym. In order to assess the way of nutrition of selected groups of athletes the method of a survey was used from 24 hours before the investigation. The assessment of the way of nutrition of the examined respondents was done using a computer program Dieta 6 prepared by the researchers from the National Food and Nutrition Institute (Instytut Żywności i Żywienia) in Warsaw. Results On the basis of the performed investigations a number of nutritional abnormalities were found both in the group of ski runners and the persons who did physical activities in the gym. In the diet of both men and women from both examined groups an inadequate supply of energy, carbohydrates, calcium, vitamin D and iodine was found. The diet of the examined women from both groups was characterized by too low iron supply. The value of Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) in the diets of the respondents from both examined groups was exceeded both as concerns the mineral components: sodium, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, copper and zinc as well as the vitamins: A, E, B1, B2, PP, B6 and C. Conclusions Because of multiple nutritional mistakes made by the athletes who took part in the study, there is a need to perform further investigations in this field and also to better educate the sport environment, emphasizing the importance of complying with the rules of good nutrition.
... Slight alterations to training during peak week can include staying further from muscular failure, completing training days earlier in the week, and avoiding exercises which train muscles at long lengths to reduce muscle damage; however, these modifications are not to reduce fatigue, but because muscle damage can interfere with muscle glycogen synthesis (40). The omission of a resistance exercise taper in physique sports is likely due to the emphasis on peak aesthetic condition rather than physical performance (30, 41,42). ...
Deloading refers to a purposeful reduction in training demand with the intention of enhancing preparedness for successive training cycles. Whilst deloading is a common training practice in strength and physique sports, little is known about how the necessary reduction in training demand should be accomplished. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to determine current deloading practices in competitive strength and physique sports. Eighteen strength and physique coaches from a range of sports (weightlifting, powerlifting, and bodybuilding) participated in semi-structured interviews to discuss their experiences of deloading. The mean duration of coaching experience at ≥ national standard was 10.9 (SD = 3.9) years. Qualitative content analysis identified Three categories: definitions, rationale, and application. Participants conceptualised deloading as a periodic, intentional cycle of reduced training demand designed to facilitate fatigue management, improve recovery, and assist in overall training progression and readiness. There was no single method of deloading; instead, a reduction in training volume (achieved through a reduction in repetitions per set and number of sets per training session) and intensity of effort (increased proximity to failure and/or reduction in relative load) were the most adapted training variables, along with alterations in exercise selection and configuration. Deloading was typically prescribed for a duration of 5 to 7 days and programmed every 4 to 6 weeks, although periodicity was highly variable. Additional findings highlight the underrepresentation of deloading in the published literature, including a lack of a clear operational definition.
... During the pre-contest phase, bodybuilding athletes maintain a negative energy balance both by lower energy intake from the diet and by the longer time dedicated to training, to try reducing the body fat percentage, maintain a greater portion of fat-free mass (FFM) and to present a dense and dry physique on stage in the competition day [1]. Therefore, the bodybuilder is considered a competition in which athletes go through pre-establishment phases to prepare and are judged on their muscular appearance, poses, symmetry and thinness in proportional physiques [2]. ...
Background & Aims
The total preparation for a bodybuilding competition basically involves two phases, the preparation phase, and the pre-competition phase, in which both tend to add up on average 32 weeks. During the pre-contest phase, bodybuilding athletes maintain a negative energy balance both by lower energy intake from the diet and by the longer time dedicated to training, to try reducing the body fat percentage, fat-free mass (FFM) maintenance and to present a dense and dry physique on stage in the competition day. Therefore, this work tries to bring a correlation explanation between a greater caloric deficit applied to the bodybuilding athlete during his preparation with the variation in fat free mass between the preparation and pre-contest phases. This way, open the question: “could greater caloric deficits in the bodybuilding athlete's dietary intake be closely correlated with negative changes in fat-free mass for stage performance?”
Methods
The author searched PubMed and ScienceDirect databases for recent studies involving the food consumption of bodybuilders when preparing for competition using the keywords “bodybuilding”, “diet” and “preparation”. 16 results were obtained from ScienceDirect and 8 from PubMed. Two cross-sectional studies and two case studies involved the evaluation of the food consumption of forty-four male athletes practicing bodybuilding over eighteen years of age during their preparation that lasted from 5 to 32 weeks. Participants' diet was monitored by self-report. The studies were selected and observationally evaluated by the author regarding the size of the variation in the energy intake and its possible correlation with the variation in the fat-free mass from the beginning of the preparation until the day of the competition.
Results
Of the four studies, the greatest average variation in energy intake (final minus initial) exceeded 1700 kcal and the smallest did not reach even 300 kcal. On the other hand, the study with the longest preparation time had the greatest loss of body weight even without applying the greatest energy variation between the studies in table 1 yet had the greatest fat-free mass loss with a worse result than the study with the shortest preparation time.
Conclusions
Observationally, higher caloric deficits in the bodybuilding athlete's food intake cannot closely correlated with negative changes in fat-free mass for the stage presentation.
