Fasting in Bodybuilding and Fitness: Benefits, Risks, and How to Practice It

If you've ever wondered whether fasting can help you on your journey as a bodybuilder or athlete, the answer isn't as simple as a "yes" or "no." Intermittent fasting and other forms of dietary restriction have gained popularity in the fitness world, but before incorporating it into your routine, it's crucial to understand its benefits, risks, and the best way to practice it according to your goals.

 

What Is Fasting in Fitness and Bodybuilding?

Fasting, in general terms, is the voluntary abstinence from food for a set period of time. In the world of fitness and bodybuilding, intermittent fasting is the most commonly used method. This involves dividing the day into feeding and fasting windows, with the most common protocols being 16/8 (16 hours of fasting and 8 hours of eating) and 20/4 (20 hours of fasting and 4 hours of eating).
The idea behind fasting is to take advantage of certain metabolic processes that can optimize fat burning, improve insulin sensitivity, and allow for better hormonal regulation.

 

Benefits of Fasting for Bodybuilders and Athletes

When implemented strategically, fasting can offer multiple advantages:

• Fat loss without muscle loss: By reducing the eating window, you can facilitate a caloric deficit without severely affecting muscle mass, as long as your protein intake is adequate.
• Improved insulin sensitivity: This enhances nutrient partitioning, ensuring that the carbohydrates you consume go to the muscles rather than being stored as fat.
• Hormonal optimization: During fasting, growth hormone and norepinephrine levels increase, which can improve fat burning and muscle preservation.
• Greater mental clarity and stable energy: By reducing insulin spikes and allowing the body to use fat as an energy source, you may experience improved focus and less fatigue.
• Simplified eating habits: Reducing the number of meals per day can make diet planning easier, helping to avoid overeating and reducing food-related anxiety.
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Risks and Disadvantages of Fasting for Athletes and Bodybuilders

Fasting isn’t all positive, and its impact can vary depending on your training level and goals:

• Performance loss: If you train intensely and don’t have enough glycogen stores, your performance may suffer.
• Muscle loss: While well-managed fasting doesn’t necessarily lead to muscle breakdown, insufficient protein intake or excessively long fasting periods can compromise muscle gains.
• Difficulty meeting caloric requirements: If you need a high caloric intake to build muscle, a shortened eating window can make it harder to achieve.
• Fatigue and poor recovery: Lack of nutrients at key moments can affect post-workout recovery and daily energy levels.
• Negative hormonal impact in some cases: Especially for athletes with low body fat percentages, prolonged fasting can affect testosterone production and other key hormones for muscle growth.

 

How to Practice Fasting Effectively in Fitness and Bodybuilding

If you decide to try fasting, follow these recommendations to avoid issues and maximize benefits:

• Choose the right protocol: If you're a beginner, start with the 12/12 or 14/10 method and gradually adjust.
• Consume enough protein: Make sure to ingest at least 2g of protein per kg of body weight within your eating window.
• Plan your training: If you train while fasting, focus on lighter sessions or moderate cardio. For intense strength training, consider breaking your fast beforehand.
• Don’t neglect post-workout nutrition: Prioritize protein-rich and complex carbohydrate meals after training to optimize recovery.
• Stay hydrated: During fasting, drink water, black coffee, or unsweetened tea to avoid dehydration.
• Listen to your body: If you experience strength loss, extreme fatigue, or decreased performance, fasting may not be the best option for you.
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Fasting in bodybuilding and fitness can be a useful tool for fat loss and metabolic optimization, but it's neither mandatory nor ideal for everyone. If you choose to incorporate it, do so wisely, ensuring adequate nutrient intake and adapting it to your lifestyle and goals.
Remember, the key to progress will always be consistency in training and proper nutrition. Listen to your body and adjust based on what works best for you! | Follow us on X | WhatsApp | chulucanasgym@gmail.com

 

  

Key Muscle Groups for a Harmonious Physique in Bodybuilding**

When you venture into the world of bodybuilding, it’s natural to focus on developing big, strong muscles, but the real challenge and goal lie in building a harmonious and balanced physique. Having a symmetrical figure will not only help you stand out in competitions but also help you maintain a healthy and functional body.

Here are the muscle groups you need to work on to achieve that desired shape!

1.  Pecs: The foundation of a powerful upper body – The chest is the focal point of the upper body. Well-developed pecs give you that voluminous, athletic look that stands out in any fitted shirt. Spend time on exercises like bench presses and flyes to achieve a defined, broad chest.

2.  Back: The key to the famous “V” shape – The back is one of the largest muscle groups and often one of the most neglected. Developing the lats will help you achieve the coveted “V” shape, adding width and depth to your physique. Lat pulldowns and barbell or dumbbell rows are your allies here. And don’t forget the traps—well-developed traps add visual bulk and strength!

3.  Shoulders: The touch of width— Strong shoulders not only increase your appearance of power but also harmoniously connect the torso with the arms. Work the deltoids in all their parts (anterior, lateral, and posterior) to avoid imbalances. Presses and lateral raises are key.

4.  Arms: The perfect combo of biceps and triceps – Well-developed arms are always admired. But to have fully developed arms, you need to focus on both the biceps and triceps. Exercises like barbell or dumbbell curls for biceps and dips or triceps extensions will help you maintain balance between both muscles, achieving an impressive aesthetic.

5.  Abs: Definition at the center of the body – A sculpted abdomen is the hallmark of a well-worked physique. It’s not just about aesthetics; strong abs provide stability in other heavy exercises. Incorporate variety: from crunches to planks, to achieve a strong, well-defined core.

6.  Legs: The foundation of any great physique – Voluminous quadriceps are fundamental if you want a complete and proportioned physique. Well-developed hamstrings balance the volume of your legs and protect you from injuries. Squats, leg presses, and deadlifts are essential to making your legs as impressive as your upper body.

7.  Glutes: Don’t underestimate them – In bodybuilding, well-developed glutes are crucial for a strong and balanced physique. They help improve your posture and shape the lower body. Exercises like hip thrusts and lunges are key for developing this area.

8.  Calves: Don’t neglect the details — Calves are one of the most challenging muscles to develop, but well-developed calves complete a balanced figure. Include calf raises in your leg workouts to ensure this muscle group doesn’t fall behind.

Why is balance important? – It’s not just about having big muscles; what will make you stand out is a proportioned physique. A harmonious development will help you avoid injuries, improve your performance, and, most importantly, achieve a visually pleasing body. Working on each muscle group in a balanced way will not only make you a bodybuilder but a complete athlete.

Stay motivated to keep improving! – Bodybuilding is an art, and you are the sculptor of your own body. Don’t just focus on the muscles that are more visible or easier to work on. The key to success lies in balance and consistency. With every workout, you are one step closer to your best version. Remember: true strength lies in balance! | Follow us on X | Write us at WhatsApp | chulucanasgym@gmail.com 

What influences in your capability to focus?

Taking your first mighty steps into bodybuilding depends on you and around you.

 

Pics & footage provided by OnCeTr.

 

When OnCe Tr was 17 years old had to pass through his first heavy test in bodybuilding. He contested  in Junior Category along Talara Province  (Piura, Peru) . “I was the youngest among all them up to that day,” he remembers. He did it very well – he got the second place.

 

“My parents and my uncle motivated me to do it, so achieving experience.” Only for the record, the uncle he refers to is the pro bodybuilder and South American champion José escobar.

 

Just one year before, at 16, he has started his training  in this discipline, but  he already brought the experience from other disciplines he had doing before. Muay Thai among them. “Because before I didn’t like the fitness world much, but I began to train from nothing, then I held on this,” he affirms.

 

At the moment we post this entry, OnCe Tr is 19 years old, 5.7 feet height, 170 lbs weight. He’s plenty focused in bodybuilding, he started to work as a trainer and a personal trainer at Séco’s Gym, his parents’ facility in Los Organos, one of the cities in the Talara Beaches Circuit, Northwestern Peru.

 

It’s “a part of the process”

From Monday to Saturday, his days begin at 7:00 in the morning. His first work is training other people. Afternoons are dedicated to him training his own body. After 10:00 at night, OnCe is already in the bed.

 

“It’s hard because standing so much time inside one only place is stressful, but it’s for a purpose, so I assume it as a part of the process.” That doesn’t mean he leave to amuse in his free time: “I like to go out eating with friends, going to the beach, or sometimes playing video-games.”

 

And when you are 19 years old, friends try you many times to get out the rule  once a time. Your will power comes in there. “If I have no time, then I say I can’t, or if it’s something I don’t like, I say I don’t like or not for now.”

 

Motivation comes from home

OnCe Tr works out as a bodybuilder, in his own words, because he likes it. But that affection has been influenced by a bodybuilder dad and a mom who involved into fitness by the motivation of OnCe’s dad, Rigoberto Paredes a.k.a. el Séco. Although it’s not a general rule, wouldn’t it logical if your parents are athletes, you end to be an athlete?

 

For sure, OnCe didn’t want to do anything with the bodybuilding in the beginning, despite the pushing of his parents. “I remember once upon a day I said them when they sign me up in a martial arts academy, I enter the gym that day.” The wish was granted. But OnCe also had to accomplish his part of the deal. “I entered the gym that day ignoring I settled it down.”

 

His parents’ support has been total. In return, OnCe support them by working at the gym. And that support extends to what is already his sports career.

 

To be strong

Regarding, his friends think OnCe has gained something like a lottery: “They say I’m lucky for having parents so because it seems they give me all, but that’s not so – I simply live quiet, that’s it.”

 

OnCe sustains you must be strong on what you want. He has it more than clear in his case: “Following up on my own, because when something gets inside your head, you must not leave despite anyone bloks you to do what you want.”

 

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Freddy Pozo’s 7 big challenges

This athlete reveals what made him to hold on a sport career despite the obstacles.

 

 

All photographs provided by Freddy Pozo.

 

Freddy Daniel Pozo Guerrero was born in Piura City, Peru, on October 7^th, 1982.  When he still studied at San Miguel School, in this city, he premiered as an athlete in 1994 School Games. He was recruited because of his talent into the so-called Achievement Poles promoted by Cuban trainers.

 

In 1997, he classified to a Peruvian Northern tournament. He got a place that same year for a nationwide’s else.

 

Since 1999, he began to train with Jose Bonilla Cortez. The next year, he won marathons in Piura City, Trujillo (both in Peru), and Macará (Ecuador). His achievement as a top athlete allowed him to enter directly the university in Trujillo, in 2001, where he highlighted in the 5K, 10K pedestrian tests, while he got high scores  in lane – 800 meters, 1500 meters tests.

 

When his sport career was rising, the first difficulty came in. An injury forced him to break it all. He lost the scholarship.

 

He had to return to Piura where he entered another university. His body seemed to react again as much as he was an athletics university champion between 2005 and 2007. One of his major achievements was winning in Cuenca (Ecuador) amid his category.  He covered 44.4 miles  in 6 hours.

 

Despite he was the Best Piurano in Piura’s Half Marathon, he decided to leave the sport and focus in his studies in 2008. Then, he faced his second big difficulty. He looked for sponsors but no one granted him. “Sports are not profitable because you have  to train 6 daily hours,” he tells. Aside the time, he might invest in feeding and supplements. There was no money.

 

This decision carried him a third difficulty. Freddy is 5.5 feet. In 2008, he was 123 lbs. Breaking suddenly made him to increase 88 lbs, slightly .

 

A fourth difficulty returned him to athletics but not in a competitive level. His mother was diagnosed with cancer in 2016. In the beginning, she survived it, and the physical activity was part of the treatment. Freddy turned her coach.

 

He lived a fifth difficulty with his mother. An apparent medical negligence caused her to pass away in 2019.

 

Freddy sheltered in the sport. He went out running in the mornings, he went to the gym at nights, beginning himself in Olympic discipline – powerlifting, very different to bodybuilding, because the first one addresses to hold on a weight in the air the most time in the less number of moves as possible, the second one basically addresses to model the muscles.

 

“Many people remembered me from my time as an athlete,” Freddy comments.

 

It was when the sixth difficulty came in. Somebody used a pesticide to poison one of his colleagues. Somehow, Freddy got poisoned. His central nervous system was under attack causing him a temporary paralysis that has turned a fibromyalgia –defined by Mayo Clinic as generalized muscular pain and sensitiveness—through the years.

 

In freddy’s case, it turned him off some flexibility. As the physical therapies were very expensive, he had to learn applying them. Even, he opened a specialized center but he might close it because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Here we have the seventh difficulty.

 

During the lockdown, he studied handball and volleyball which he graduated as a technician. The interesting is he never has done any of them in his lifetime. “I’m a little self-taught,” he affirms. “What I have learned was by my own.”

 

Up to this date, Freddy Pozo coaches handball teams in sub-13 and sub-17 categories, he’s 135 lbs, he believes the sport helped him to overcome every difficulty. It rejuvenated him,even: “The training and the lifestyle make me looking like a 27-year-old dude,” he assures.

 

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