Today marks the end of my pre prep diet – 14lb pulled off in total

Like many of you reading this, I used to see this phase as a fad

But I want to run you through why I have l used it and the benefits it may have for you at the end of on offseason push up

First of all, how does it look for me?
Taking advantage of the immediate time post offseason to hit a 4 week aggressive mini diet

Although being ‘off cycle’, androgens will still be high in my system as hormones gradually taper back to a physiological level – so it’s a nice opportunity to pull off bodyfat and restore sensitivity where a heightened level of anabolics will offer a anti catabolic effect

Why have I used it?
As I pushed my appetite and bodyweight to the limit peak offseason – so physically and mentally I needed a pull back, continuing to push would have yielded little muscle but a lot of body fat – ultimately putting me in a far worse place to start prep

So now the goal is to gradually build food back upwards for ~6 weeks nothing aggressive, keeping the body composition in the same place but giving us a better baseline of food / expenditure to make changes to at the start of prep

Remember the starting point of a diet will often dictate the end look – so make sure you start it in a good place & give yourself the best opportunity to get peeled

So the decision has been made… to compete 2023!

In recent posts I spoke on whether competing was something I wanted to do this year as I was very much on the fence.

I cant say I am an ‘optimist’ when it comes to my own physique – but I don’t think many of us are in this sport – we will never see our self in the same light that others will and that’s the reality.

So even though its extremely evident from training performance, body composition and bodyweight big improvements have been made – I still don’t think these will be enough to be ‘competitive’ for a pro card; don’t get me wrong – I am still going to do a pro qualifier to see where I stand, but I’m realistic in the sense that I know what pro’s look like as I am around them every single day now in Binous, and I’m just not there yet.

In all honesty I am totally fine with that – as this is where the love for competing, the process and bodybuilding as a whole overrides my desire to become a pro as that status will always be there when the time is right.

I think its a valuable message for everyone, live in the moment and do the things you enjoy. We never know what life has in store for us and I want to be able to look back in the years to come and know that I made the most out of my competitive journey from a fulfilment perspective.

So I guess that leads me onto – what shows will I compete in?
- PCA Qualifier
- PCA Finals (id love to take a national title this year)
- International Pro Qualifier (as I am a UAE resident I no longer need to do a 2bros qualifier – thank god haha)

I will run through next week the timeline of how this year will play out, this is an important one for anyone getting on stage (or even has a physique goal for that matter) – set a date, track back from that date, set phases, milestones and a structure so we know exactly what is in store

2023 is going to be a good year