It is not a secret that in order to build muscle, you will need to push your calories up to a surplus, and with that – as well as gaining quality tissue through training and recovery – will also come some body fat gain. Of course, this is completely normal and in fact, quite healthy and necessary too, as staying...

Do you feel like you’ll never be able to step on stage and compete as a bodybuilder? Here’s the thing: neither did I. But yet, irrespective of that, I tried. I didn’t let that stop me. And trust me, there were many times where I felt like I wish it had. “I’m going to make such a fool of myself”;...

If you’re an aspiring competitive bodybuilder, have you ever noticed how your mind can spend a lot of time convincing you that you will never look like you belong on a bodybuilding stage? Well, let me tell you this. You probably won’t ever feel  feel like a “proper competitive bodybuilder” till it’s show day, when you’re eating rice cakes with...

If you’ve ever taken part in any sports or performed anything (dance, music, singing, …) in front of an audience or crowd, it’s likely you’ll be familiar with experiencing some degree of competitive nerves or anxiety. Competitive anxiety looks like, and is experienced as, a stressful situation which leads to a combination of mental processes (thoughts around worry) as well...

Let’s be honest, in an Instagram world that promotes being lean year-round as the epitome of fitness, going into a gaining phase / offseason / push phase as a female can be a real mental challenge. Not only are you going against everything you’ve ever been taught, but you’re also going to be working “against” that mainstream media messaging of...

Accomplishing any big goal that you’ve set for yourself takes a lot of consistent effort; it requires you to pour a lot of energy into something that might be months or years in the future. That is, it takes razor-sharp focus. However, the importance of focus for goal attainment isn’t only relevant in the long-term context. In fact, although it’s...

If you have ever dieted down to the extremes – or even just dieted for a prolonged period of time – you will know that with the joy of wrapping up a diet also comes a bit of apprehension around weight gain. Although I have seen this more in females than in males, this can be true for anyone. After...

Do you ever scroll through Instagram and wonder how on earth competitors cope with weight gain post-show? Do you sit there unable to relate to women embracing curvier bodies, whether it be after spending 20-24 weeks dieting for a show, or just as the normal thing to do in their offseason? I get you. Losing weight and then re-gaining it...