Traditional Bodybuilding Approach vs. Reverse Taper Dieting

Here’s the next episode of the UNCENSORED Podcasts Season 3.

Traditional Bodybuilding Approach vs. Reverse Taper Dieting

Whether you Forward Taper or Reverse Taper to achieve your final look. Rest assured there's some hard work and effort involved.

Whether you Forward Taper or Reverse Taper to achieve your final look. Rest assured there’s some disciplinek and effort involved. Are you working SMARTER or HARDER?

Today’s podcast with John Barban and Brad Pilon compares the two dieting styles of traditional bodybuilding’s  “Forward Tapering” to the Adonis approach of “Reverse tapering.”  The key discussion points of the podcast were provided via a research paper studying natural bodybuilders preparing for an upcoming competition. Other items of interest that were measured caloric intake, exercise time, body fat levels, hormonal levels, etc.

The data from the research paper on the bodybuilders was fairly comparable to the data submitted by our prior Adonis Transformation Winners.

 

Traditional Bodybuilding Approach

“Forward Tapering”  is when you begin dieting at a HIGHER calorie level and continually DECREASE your calorie intake as you get leaner.

This is the traditional bodybuilding approach to preparing for competitions.  Most contest prep plans span between 12-20 weeks.  The goal is for the bodybuilder or competitor to “peak” or look their very best on the day of the show.  There are several tricks a person can perform to hit their “peak” or final look.  It normally begins with drastically cutting calories and increasing their cardio to resulting in depleted glycogen and fat levels.  More advanced preps might include sodium loading/depletion, water and/or carbohydrate cycling.

However most of these efforts are short-lived and hard to maintain because the effort it took to achieve that look is not easily sustained.  Unfortuately, if a competitor does not have a post-contest gameplan they are at risk of  the dreaded “post-contest rebound.”  Some have even ended up looking worse than before they started their prep.

 

Reverse Taper Dieting

“Reverse Tapering”  is the OPPOSITE,  you begin dieting at a LOWER calorie level and continually INCREASE your calorie intake as you get leaner.

 This Adonis Lifestyle approach is SIMPLE, but it’s not EASY.  It requires discipline upfront, when there is no deadline looming in front of you.  Your hard work is done in the begining and provides more room for you to make adjustments as you progress in your transformation.  The Reverse Taper  approach also focuses more on  calorie deficit through eating LESS food as opposed to eating MORE food and doing MORE exercise.

 

It’s Not a Competition, It’s a Lifestyle

Most people who would be opposed to this approach simply have to win the “mental” battle in their mind to believe that this process is more efficient and sustainable.  If they trust the process they can avoid the longer exercise periods needed to create a caloric deficit with the traditional bodybuilder approach. 

John and Brad truly deliver in this podcast, discussing the in’s and out’s of the “Fitness Competitor” lifestyle.  In conclusion, both of these approaches have proven results.  But the question you must ask yourself, are you working SMARTER or HARDER towards the pursuit of you fitness goals?

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Vote for Allen – A True Adonis Spokesmodel!

Today’s post is about Spokesmodels…

So you may ask, what exactly is a spokesmodel?

A spokesmodel is someone who is an attractive or otherwise appealing person who is hired to speak on behalf of a company or product.

As you know, Allen Elliott is on our team here at Adonis and he’s been selected as a Top 20 Semi-Finalist for the 2014 Bodybuilding.com Spokesmodel search. He is a National Level Men’s Physique competitor and of course he’s got a perfect Adonis Golden Ratio!

 

Vote for Allen - A True Adonis Spokesmodel!

Vote for Allen – A True Adonis Spokesmodel!

 

We’re asking you for your support to go vote for Allen as the next BodySpace Spokesmodel and give the world a bit more exposure to a true natural Adonis Golden Ratio Body!

Allen definitely has the look most guys are aspiring for so let’s give him some support for making the most out of his body and fitness modeling career!

Allen’s BodySpace Username: CaptainHealthy

Vote for Allen here ==> VOTE FOR ALLEN

– John Barban

How Much Weight Should You Use During Workouts?

In the upcoming weeks John and I will seek to provide our feedback and insight on “trending” topics and questions from within the  AGR Community.

Today’s topic is a frequently asked question among our newest brothers in iron.  The question many people ask once they begin the AGR workouts is, “How Much Weight Should I Use?”

 

Adonis Golden Ratio: Solid Goals & Simple Metrics

Adonis Golden Ratio: Solid Goals & Simple Metrics

Unique to the the AGR program,  the repetition ranges are specifically designed for positive progression toward your “Golden” Adonis Index Score, which is based on the  Fibonacci Sequence and cyclical, periodized weight training.

It’s important to note  that a “repetition” or “REP” is directly related to a suggested level of effort.  The level of effort on a scale of  1 to 10, will determine the amount of weight that you train with.

Below is break-out of REP ranges and the level of effort that should be applied when lifting a specific amount of weight.

AGR-Bo

 

FINAL THOUGHTS:

  • Give yourself permission to lift lighter weights, to maintain your form.
  • Always use a spotter if you are training with heavy weights.
  • It’s ok to train while “sore” but NOT while “hurt.”
  • Try, Fail, Adjust– Record the amount of weight you use and look for opportunities to SAFELY increase upon the weight used in previous workouts.

Flex & Review: 2013 Mid-Year Interview with Allen Elliott, Adonis Lifestyle Ambassador

Today’s post is the latest installment of  the  Golden Eye for the Adonis Guy series. I had the opportunity to chat with John Barban and  during a recorded podcast session we discussed the “Lessons Learned” from my association with the fitness modeling industry.

As we approach the mid-year point of 2013, John and I  were able to discuss some of this year’s highlights as well as my future goals and plans.

Here a few photos that relate to the topics discussed in the podcast:

January 2013 Max Sports & Fitness  Magazine Cover Model

January 2013 Max Sports & Fitness Magazine Cover Model

March 2013 Fitness Tear Sheet - Max Muscle Featured Writer

March 2013 Fitness Tear Sheet – Max Muscle Featured Writer

 

LifeCast Model for Custom SuperMan Costume - MySuperHeroGuy.com

April 2013 LifeCast Model for Custom SuperMan Costume – MySuperHeroGuy.com

 

June 2013 Bodybuilding.com FIT USA Finalist

June 2013 Bodybuilding.com FIT USA Finalist

 

In today’s Podcast, you will also discover:

-How to avoid the “Competitor in the Lime-light” syndrome

-The benefits of treating your physique like a abusiness

-Staying the Course, the Power of Focus

-How to Become SuperMan, A LifeCasting Experience

-How to prioritize your time effectively

-How to market your physique to take advantage of “un-orthodox” fitness opportunities

-The In’s & Out’s of Fitness Competitions

-How to build your Fitness Model Resume

-How to display Confidence and receive support and inspiration when co-workers, friends, and family challenge your fitness Goals

-Lessons Learned from the fitness industry and “Passing the Fitness Torch”

-The art of handling rejection and realizing, “Who you are as a person, is actually independent of what you do”

 

In conclusion, I hope that you find today’s podcast encouraging, informational, and last but not least entertaining. Remember to enjoy the journey, “It’s not a Competition, It’s a Lifestyle.”

 

Your Brother in Iron,

Allen Elliott | Adonis Golden Ratio Ambassador

 

Allen’s Interview:

See below to listen to Allen’s podcast interview:

“The People’s Choice” & “An Ambassador’s Request”

I will kick-off this post by asking a series questions:

  • What is choice ?
  • What is consequence?
  • Is consequence the result of choice?

These are all important questions to ponder on, especially with the latter question being rhetorical in nature. Let’s return to them later.   I struggled greatly  with choosing a title for this post because I am presenting a three-fold message. It is one-part “announcement,” one-part “confirmation,” and one-part “request.”

To bring the newer members of the Adonis Golden Ratio community up to speed, this blog post is also the latest installment in the  Golden Eye for the Adonis Guy series.  In which several topics are discussed regarding my experiences, observations and “lessons learned” from fitness/fashion shows and my association with the fitness modeling industry.

The Golden insight  I’m privileged to  share with you comes from the results of applying the “Adonis Golden Ratio”  workouts & philosophy to my personal goals/endeavors.

 

“The Announcement”

I’m excited to announce that I’ve been chosen as a finalist to compete in the 2013 FIT USA Fitness model
competition.  Out of the 600+ contest entries, the top 10 male and  top 10 female competitors were selected to  compete in a “Live” competition on June 8th at the Century Link Arena in Boise, Idaho.   The opportunity to compete in a “National-Level” Competition such as this was a great honor to me as I was the only Military member for the male division.

Here’s a pic announcing my selection as a FIT USA Finalist:

 

Top 10 Finalist: 2013 Bodybuilding.com FIT USA Fitness Model Competition

ALLEN ELLIOTT | Top 10 Finalist: 2013 Bodybuilding.com FIT USA Fitness Model Competition

 

“The Confirmation”

Having trained exclusively with the Adonis Golden Ratio system for more than three years, I’m extremely confident that AGR can serve as a road map to achieve your fitness goals and so much more.

My confirmation in this belief originates back to the very origins of my  fitness journey.

Growing up I played sports with a particular interest in wrestling. I found wrestling to be challenging both physically and mentally. A unique requirement of the sport was that of weight management; in order to compete, I had to make weight before each match. This taught me valuable life-long lessons of both discipline and accountability. 

Discipline was needed to properly prepare for a match and I learned what it meant to be accountable because my coaches’ and teammates depended on me to make the weigh-in.

Now serving as a military officer, I subscribe to the Air Force Core Values which are: Integrity First, Service Before Self, and Excellence in all we do. I’m grateful for the lessons learned from wrestling and the military because I’ve been able to apply those same skill sets toward my fitness model endeavors.

The ability to view my “Physique as a Business” was first presented to me by  the AGR system.  Upon this discovery I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to compete in  Men’s Physique Fitness Competitions, graced the runway in several prominent fashion shows, and have published work as a fitness model.  This success adds further confirmation to the fact that, “The Sky is the Limit” when it comes to applying the AGR system.

Nevertheless, I’m very proud to serve as an Electrical Engineer in the Air Force and as an Ambassador to the AGR system, also known as The Golden Army.”

 

The Adonis Index is truly the GOLDEN Standard

AIG is the GOLDEN Standard for Commercial Fitness

“The Request”

At the beginning of the post I posed a series of questions:

  • What is choice ?
  • What is consequence?
  • Is consequence the result of choice?

I believe the answers to these questions can be answered by the quote below:

“We are free to choose our paths, but we can’t choose the consequences that come with them.” – Sean Covey

As ” The Golden Army” continues to grow by leaps and bounds I’d like to encourage the members, especially the newer one’s participating in the Adonis Transformation Contest (AT11)  to remember that consistency and effort are the little things that when done on a regular basis make for the greatest transformation in a relatively short amount of time.

But don’t just take my word for it!

I highly encourage you to listen, study, and  learn from other successful members of AGR Community.
Here are some great links to help get you started:

10 Most Useful Lessons from Our Successful Adonis Contest Winners: Part I

In conclusion, my final request is if  my “Adonis Lifestyle” story or posts have inspired you to pursue your own fitness goals,  I’d be delighted to have your vote for the People’s Choice Award of my upcoming competition 2013 FIT USA Fitness Model Competition.

To VOTE, simply visit:

Thanks in advance for your support!

 

Your Brother in Iron,

Allen Elliott | Adonis Golden Ratio Ambassador

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