5 min read
Contest Prep Training for Natural Bodybuilders
How to train during a natural bodybuilding contest prep to keep muscle in a deficit: load, volume, frequency, failure and cardio, with a sample week.
Guides
Training guides
Research-backed hypertrophy guides you can turn into a program in the builder.
5 min read
How Fast Can You Build Muscle Naturally? Real Rates
Realistic natural muscle gain rates by training age, what drives them, and how to program a lean bulk that keeps the scale and the mirror moving.
5 min read
Training to Failure: How Close Natural Lifters Should Go
How close to failure natural lifters should train for muscle: what the failure meta-analyses show, how to use RIR and RPE, and where failure fits in your week.
From the guides
"The anabolic effect of resistance training can mitigate muscle loss during contest preparation."
Helms, Fitschen, Aragon, Cronin and Schoenfeld, J Sports Med Phys Fitness (2015), Recommendations for natural bodybuilding contest preparation: resistance and cardiovascular training