CANADIAN PHYSIQUE ALLIANCE July/August SUMMER ISSUE | Seite 121

05
TOPPING CARDIO
COLD TURKEY
Now stopping cardio cold turkey is another mistake
many do make even though you would think this is a
no brainer. It is true that you probably put ten
thousand miles on that treadmill and climbed enough
stairs to make you dread even going up to your
bedroom, but the fact remains you still need to keep a
moderate amount of cardio in your plan once the big
day is over. Every coach and each clients' personal
needs when it comes to cardio training can vary
greatly. But the last thing you want to do is be hitting it
hard for two -60-minute sessions per day only to drop
it completely as soon as the contest is over. This is a
recipe for disaster and I have seen this happen time
and time again. There is no need to keep it at the same
duration and intensity, but gradually reducing it week
by week is a much better approach allowing you to
manipulate your caloric expenditure in a much better
fashion. Thus allowing a more moderate approach to
putting weight back on with the majority being quality
gains of lean tissue, not rolls of flab.
18
MISSING
WORKOUTS
This is another thing I see happening all the time. Now
many athletes will take a week off after the show to
allow themselves some rest and recuperation. This
isn't a problem at all and in many aspects, it's most
likely much needed. What I am talking about is seeing
athletes training twice per day during prep 7 days a
week and once the show is over they make every
excuse not to even go to the gym at all. I have seen
athletes take 3-4 full months off after a prep all the
while eating as much junk food as possible. Their
once Adonis-like physiques downgrade to a morbidly
obese Dad Bod in a few weeks. Why kill yourself with
all the blood sweat and tears during your prep only to
let it all fade away in such a short period of time?
Reducing training volume, intensity, and duration is a
proper way to de-load after a show. But turning into a
sloth-like couch potato where the most strenuous
thing you do is opening a bag of Chewy Chips Ahoy is
definitely not doing your ever-expanding waistline
any favours!