is contest prep possible on keto?

[juggernaut]

I am epileptic and have been on a ketogenic diet. I like to compete, but hate carb loading. As I understand it, it is possible to get through the final prep week without being flat or glycogen loaded. How is that possible? I'm going to be going into my first NPC show in November. I had it with the natty division of OCB-too much bullshit involved in using basic ephedrine and didnt like the PH laws.

[juggernaut]

bump

[militantmuscle]

Contest prep is very possible on keto. I had 4 of 5 athletes qualify for Nationals at the Southern USAs this past weekend, all were utilizing a ketogenic approach.

[juggernaut]

what did you do for glycogen depletion/loading? I'm interested in how you handled that.

[juggernaut]

Also, Dros made mention on another site that it is possible to NOT look flat with salt. I know salt is an ally of a contest prep bber, but how and why can it help in the appearance of being full?

[Frosty]

juggernaut, sodium controls fluid balance. Don't have any salt, you don't hold onto water, you tend to retain water because of this, and your blood volume isn't as high. This makes you flat.

Why not just experiment with fat loading during prep instead of carb loading due to your medical condition?

[-BLP-]

I'm keto one month to go for contest , I suffer not happy , grumpy , have a bad breath but look real good , big not flat , the only disavantage of keto is the rebound when you start eat normal or too much after contest , rebound is violent , gain back 30 pounds is water in a week , I try not to do it again but when contest done it stronger then me , will see

[Frosty]

BLP....have a planned out diet to "come off" keto as strict as your contest diet. Just think that instead of 4 weeks to go, you actually have 12 weeks left of dieting :) You just have a show in the middle there.

[-BLP-]

This is genuinely masochistic LOL I touch ice cream I can't stop I need more control this time , sure be less off season I will suffer way less dieting I lost 12 inch on waist in 9 weeks , crazy

[Frosty]

Use strict dieting when coming off...don't even think of touching ice cream. Slowly add carbs in that you won't abuse. I dunno, like sprouted breads, squash, or maybe yams...whatever works and does not have a high potential for abuse :)

[juggernaut]

but the problem is if I can stay keto all the time I'd e happier, only because I bloat like a whale when adding some carbs back. I get bad cramps to a point that I can keel over

[Frosty]

but the problem is if I can stay keto all the time I'd e happier, only because I bloat like a whale when adding some carbs back. I get bad cramps to a point that I can keel over

So stay in keto the whole time :)

If needed, you could once a week have a higher cal meal that's fattier. For example a steak with some buttered veggies and some mac nuts or peanut butter. Never really tried this but might be something to play with.

I'd make sure you get in shape ahead of time so you're not dieting hard and doing lots of cardio. It's that part that makes people flat. If you can get in shape ahead of time and cut back a lot on cardio and get in plenty of fats, you shouldn't be all flat and stringy by show time. You may not have to load at all...maybe just drop your salt and water the day before the show to dry out a bit.

[juggernaut]

excellent idea.

Now, on the other hand, do you think it is possible to BULk with keto? I think it is just a matter of adding additional fats and protein. I realize carbs are anabolic, but they make me feel like shit.
That being said, I did a 22 lb gain in a month on mdrol. Great results, I did cheat a small bit, as it was my birthday (cake and cookies). It did make me feel like shit-I just dont know...I want to gain a lot of weight, I'm currently at 235 and want to get to 250. I am looking into a beastdrol/19tren stack or mdrol/pplex bridge. I just wanna know if I am going on either sides of the spectrum from leaning out to gaining, can it that be done on keto? I can even do a ud2 bulk. But those high carb days suck fat whale ass.

[Frosty]

You should be able to put on muscle mass even on a theoretical zero carb diet the entire time. Studies that put people on keto diets often see increases in muscle mass along with fat loss in untrained people. This is simply because they're eating more protein!

To gain on low carb I'd suggest 2-2.25g/lb bodyweight. Make sure you have adequate stomach acid levels to digest this protein otherwise it makes it hard to grow! There are betaine HCl testing methods to assess stomach acid and supplemental requirements to restore levels.

Fat intake would be at least 40% and often people go up to 60%. I would suggest use of whole eggs for arachidonic acid and cholesterol content.

Leucine and BCAAs in high enough doses and properly timed would also be a great aid in adding muscle mass without carbs. Leucine at 5g with a meal for 3-4 meals a day spaced out, and BCAAs 0.44g/(kg lean body mass) before/during a workout is another great aid.

[juggernaut]

Ive used bcaas in the past with good results...only thing I dont like is that is so expensive to use because of my size.

Should I add any carbs, or keep it to under 50g for ketosis? Not that I care about hitting ketosis, especially when bulking. I've also been told that I may be allergic to gluten, which is what I am currently investigating now.