Ever since I starting bodybuilding over 12 years ago, I have heard the same bodybuilding myths and advice over and over again. Things like; you have to do hours of low intensity, fasted cardio, don’t eat carbs 3 hours before bed, no fruit during contest prep, and my favorite……no water day of show. I thought I would touch on some of these myths and get to the truth.
First off - I will admit that I have fallen victim to many of these myths back when I was younger. I was either coached to follow some of these bodybuilding myths or I researched and talked myself into them. That’s alright! The important thing is that you learn from it and accept that some of the things you have been told are not true or are a must. With that being said everyone’s body is different so we must each decide what works best for us, but the basic science is the same for everyone. Here are some of the bodybuilding myths and basic explanations to each.
• No fruit during prep: No fruit during contest prep is a popular one. The theory behind this one stems from the fact that fruit has sugar and sugar is bad. This one is humorous because sweet potatoes also have sugar but is a popular in a competitor’s contest prep. So why is fruit bad, but sweet potatoes are not? It must be the GI! Nope. The GI of sweet potatoes is higher than many of the fruits you “cannot” have. Brown rice has a higher GI than most fruits. So this myth is debunked. Fruit during a prep is fine and has a lot of health benefits.
• No carbs 3 hours before bed: We have all been told carbs are bad, especially before bed. Those carbs will turn directly into fat! This one has some truth to it, but still isn’t completely true. Any unused calories will be stored as fat not just carbs. So can you have carbs before bed? The simple answer is yes. If your daily requirement has not been met then go for it. With that being said I would place my carbs throughout the day when needed most, breakfast, pre, and post workouts. This is when your body needs them. If you weren’t able to get them during the day and your body needs them somewhere in that “no no” time of 3 hours before bed, go for it.
• Hours of fasted low intensity cardio: This is the one I hate the most of any of them. I see all these competitors doing hours of low intensity cardio a day for weeks on end and most the time fasted. I almost never have my competitors do low intensity cardio. But “you will burn muscle if you do anything else but low intensity cardio” you were told. Sorry to tell you but you were told wrong. What really gets me is the logic people use to justify this. The logic goes something like this: Fasted cardio will burn pure body fat and keep the body in the fat burning zone. So you’re telling me that fasted cardio burns pure body fat, yet you’re in the most catabolic state during the day you will ever be in. Not only that but low intensity cardio which slows your metabolism down is the better than HIIT that boost metabolism. Myth debunked! Do hours of low intensity fasted cardio if you are looking at burning your muscle tissue and probably causing metabolic damage to yourself. Still sound like a good idea?
• No water day of the show: You were told to cut your water down 2 days before the show, and then cut it out the day before and to not drink any for 24-36 hours. The logic is that you will be super dry and every muscle and striation will show. Reality is that you will be flat, tired, miserable, and look smoother than 1 week out from the show. The hard truth is if you have “water” to lose to look great is that you probably need to diet longer and the “water” is actually fat. Sorry if I hurt your feelings, but I see it all the time. Nothing you do the last week of prep will magically bring in the abs and striations. You should look ready to step on stage 1 week out from show, if not, keep dieting. Muscle is 75% water so when you pull water completely out for over 24 hours you are depleting the muscle and will look flat, like a deflated balloon. Not only that but you will typically look smooth and have no vascularity. Not to mention it’s just dangerous! But if you carb up that will fix the problem? Nope, not unless you have water and sodium to push the glycogen and water into the muscle. Myth debunked.
That is part 1 of this 2 part series on popular bodybuilding myths. I’m sure I have ruffled some feathers and pissed a few people off, but proof is in the pudding. The picture is of the clients I had in just the last show. All first time competitors. Overall, 1st, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place finishes. I didn’t use any of your traditional bodybuilding myths and never pulled water day of show. No one had a huge rebound after the show and all are excited to continue being disciplined and to compete again. The most important thing here is that you educate yourself on the truths of health and fitness. There are many so called “coaches” that still push many of these bodybuilding myths and are hurting their clients more than they help them. Metabolic damage is something I am running into a lot lately and can take months if not years to fix. Now don’t confuse metabolic damage with metabolic slowdown. Metabolic slowdown is normal, but metabolic damage is serious. Before you spend your hard earned money to pay an “expert” to help you achieve your goals, make sure they are an expert! With all that being said everyone is different and everyone’s goals are different. Not one way works for everyone and there are exceptions to every rule. Looking forward to writing part 2 next month. Hit me up on Facebook and let me know what questions you want answered! www.facebook.com/staggstim
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