Sugaring in 12 steps

The spring competition season is approaching, the preparations are finishing and you want to appear in the best form.

Sculpted to the bone with the valcha-like stripes on your butt, with the brutal veins that Branch Warren boasts, the full musculature that four-time Mr. Olympia Phil Heath can offer, and the symmetry that five-time Arnold Classic champion Dexter Jackson offers.

And what else do you need to please the judges? Volume!!! And on how to look much bigger than you really are, this article is written by one of the most knowledgeable people around, pre-contest preparation specialist Chris Aceto.

Want to look 7 pounds bigger in a week?

Flex Wheeler was able to drastically transform his appearance in less than 10 days. One of the reasons for this was that he had a well-managed carbohydrate supercompensation, i.e., sugaring. This system, which requires significant but temporary changes in carbohydrate, sodium and water consumption, can produce almost miraculous changes in appearance with muscle condition.

This process creates a temporary illusion. It's such a quick fix that will allow the bodybuilder to look much harder due to fuller muscles and less water retention.

Whether you're a bodybuilder before a competition or just going on a beach vacation, below we'll show you the steps you need to take to deplete the carbs in your body and replenish your carbohydrate supply. You might be shocked at how much better - and bigger - you'll look in just a week.

Step 1

Preparation: increase your sodium intake

In the week before cutting back on carbs, add on sodium - just add table salt. The easiest way is to add a little salt to every meal. Adding salt will increase water retention and reduce the production of aldosterone, the hormone that causes retention in the body.

Hold the higher sodium intake until one day before the actual sugaring (in step 7). Once you cut back on sodium intake there, aldosterone levels will return, and your body will use even more water - and most of it will come directly from the subcutaneous tissue. This will lead to better definition.

Step 2

Preparation: increase your water intake

When you add sodium, it's essential to add about 50% more water than normal. Simply add another half to each glass of water. Again, the higher water intake sets the stage for better definition at the end of the process.

Hold this intake until step 10.

Step 3

Days 1-2: Take 50% off carbs

This is where the carb subtraction really begins. Reduce their intake by 50%. This will prevent the shock of cutting back too quickly. If you've been eating roughly 1500 calories from carbs, which is normal for a 90 pound bodybuilder who wants to keep the weight off, take off about 200 grams a day.

Focus mainly on complex carbohydrates, eat them early in the day. But on those two days, still maintain your simple carbs before and after training. The total should be about 50 grams in these two meals.

Step 4

Days 1-5: add protein lightly

Some people get it wrong here. When you cut back on carbs, you need to add on protein so you don't lose muscle. However, if you increase your protein intake too much, a lot of it will be used as fuel, and the body won't get rid of glycogen stores.

So to spare your muscles while removing glycogen, only add about 50g of protein per day on each of the low-carb days. A 90-pound bodybuilder who normally eats two grams of protein per kilo of bodyweight should consume about 250g per day at this stage.

Step 5

Days 1-5: train with a higher number of reps

When you've beaten out your glycogen stores for five days, train more reps - 12-18 per set - and put in 50% more sets than normal. So if you normally train 10 sets for biceps, put in 15 (50% more work overall) and aim for 12-18 reps in each set.

Of course, you'll have to drop the weight to get to that volume of work. However, the goal is to reduce carbohydrate stores, and a high volume of work is very effective for that. Again, it's about supercompensation. The more carbs you consume, the more you can store when you bulk up, and the bigger and harder your muscles will look.

Step 6

Days 3-5: further restrict carbohydrates

On these days, limit their intake to 100-150g per day and take them from complex sources like sweet potatoes, oatmeal and brown rice. Concentrate them in the first half of the day.

When carbohydrates are taken away, glycogen stores in the muscles start to decrease. Once this occurs, the body will begin to increase production of glycogen storing enzymes. As you add on carbohydrates later, these enzymes will ensure that you fill up on glycogen and your muscles will look fuller than ever before.

Step 7

Days 5-7: Take away sodium

The day before you add carbs, stop adding salt to your food. Once the sodium is reduced, you'll notice changes in your aldosterone levels that will aid in getting rid of water, thus a harder appearance.

You don't have to go to zero sodium, taking away the extra you ate should be enough.

Step 8

Days 6-7: Sugaring

This is where the fun begins. After five days of carb deprivation and high-volume workouts, your muscles will be very low on fuel, and literally begging to be replenished. Once you add carbs, a lot of them will be stored directly in your muscles.

I recommend a minimum of 5 grams of carbs per kilo of body weight and up to 9 for those of you with a faster metabolism or weighing over 100 pounds.

Avoid fruit and sucrose (table sugar) or high fructose corn syrup. Starchy, complex carbohydrates are ideal, namely from potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, pasta, white and brown rice.

Step 9

Days 6-7: Reduce protein intake

When you've finished eating, you can cut back on the protein from step 4. This follows the simple idea that says carbs and protein work like a seesaw.

When you take away carbs, you have to add on protein, when you add carbs dramatically, you don't need the extra protein. These days, eat only two grams of protein per kilo of body weight.

Step 10

Days 6-7: Reduce water intake

In step 2, you increased it. Now reduce it to 50% of what you would normally drink before applying Step 2. For example, go from two litres of water a day to one. Because carbohydrates need water to make new muscle glycogen, many people think they have to drink like thirsty camels.

This is not true, because with reduced water intake and increased carbohydrate intake, the muscles make up for it by pulling some of that water into the muscles from the subcutaneous tissue. The result is less water retention in the subcutaneous tissue and muscles that look harder.

Step 11

Days 6-7: take a day off and don't train

As a rule of thumb, when you're sugaring, it's better not to train, as this will take some in the carbohydrates supplied and thus take away from optimal muscle fullness. Because of this, some bodybuilders don't look fuller until a few days after a contest.

Optimal compensation for them only takes place when they take time off. In fact, avoid energy expenditure altogether to keep your muscles optimally full.

Step 12

Day 7: pump up and take pictures

Before you get on stage, pump up your muscles and take pictures of yourself so you can impress people.

Use light weights (or isometric exercises) and full range of motion. Keep the number of reps low - you don't want to burn carbs.

You may be in the best shape of your life on this day. Take pictures for comparison the next time you sugar up. Photos are a good way to monitor your bodybuilding progress.

Source: www.flexonline.com
Author:Chris Aceto
Translated by Jaromir Uhlir (Cha Cha)
Original Article Title: 12-Step Carb Loading Program