Dietary strategies of elite natural bodybuilders - abstract only

Competitive bodybuilders are judged on their muscular development and conditioning (appearance of low body fat). Competitors employ a combination of resistance training, cardiovascular (CV) exercise, calorie reduction, supplementation regimes and peaking strategies in a bid to lose fat mass while maintaining fat free mass. Research into the contest preparation regimes of bodybuilders is limited. The British Natural Bodybuilding Federation (BNBF) runs an annual drug free competition for elite bodybuilders. Study of this cohort provides an opportunity to examine the dietary and training practices of elite natural bodybuilders. Here we report the results of a recent cross-sectional study of bodybuilders competing at the BNBF finals. Fifty-one competitors (35 male and 16 female) completed a 34-item questionnaire, which assessed dietary and training habits at three time points throughout contest preparation. At each time point participants recorded food intake over a 24-h period in both grams and portions. During analysis competitors were split into two groups depending on their contest placing. A “Placed” competitor finished in the top 5 of their category, and a “Non -placed (DNP) competitor finished outside of the top 5. Nutrient analysis was performed using Nutritics (version 2.267) and statistical analysis used a repeated measures ANOVA and effect sizes (Cohen’s d) (IBM SPSS (version 24). Mean preparation time for the competition was 22 weeks ±9. Total carbohydrate (CHO) intake decreased over time (P < 0.05) in the male (Start 4.4 ± 1.4 g/kg bw, End 4.1 ± 2.4 g/kg bw) cohort. Moreover, Placed male competitors had a greater carbohydrate intake at the start of contest preparation (5.1 vs 3.7 g/kg BW) than DNP, the effect size being large. Protein (PRO) energy increased over the preparation period (P = 0.04), (Start 33%, Middle 35%, End 38%) amongst male competitors. The amount of CV exercise performed in addition to resistance training increased in the male cohort (P = 0.001), (Start 18.5 ± 19.7, Middle 27.6 ± 23.2, End 34.1 ± 25.4). In conclusion, the mean intake of natural bodybuilders reflected a high PRO, high CHO, low fat diet. As preparation progressed CV exercise increased, while carbohydrates intakes decreased. Protein intake was maintained at a high level presumably in an attempt to preserve muscle tissue.