Figure Athlete - The Figure Program

The Figure Program
Waterbury's diet and training guide for figure competitors
and the women who want to look like 'em!
by Chad Waterbury

You might not realize it, but female figure competitions are huge. They're fast approaching the leading physique competition in the United States. I find that fact very refreshing. After all, I'm one of those coaches who appreciate a female physique that doesn't force me to look between a girl's legs for proof of gender.

If you analyze the gross metamorphosis that's happened with female bodybuilding over the years, you'll probably find yourself wondering what in the hell happened to the classic, feminine physique.

Don't believe me? Just look at top placing in the Ms. Olympia competitions since Rachel McLish graced our presence back at the inaugural event in 1980. Every year subsequent to 1980 demonstrates that the Ms. Olympia judges must've been a little too intellectually challenged to realize that "Ms." denotes a female.

By the mid 1990's, a Ms. Olympia competitor would've had rotten, pharmaceutically infused tomatoes thrown at her if she didn't show up looking like Lee Haney in a bikini. Unfortunately, that trend is still in place.

So it's no surprise to learn that those of us who appreciate the Rachel McLish physique are forced to look elsewhere. And if you ask me, this is one of the primary reasons why figure competitions have become so popular. Girls who enter a figure competition don't want to look like Juliette Bergmann. Nope, figure competitors want that sexy, lean, athletic look that was portrayed in the early 1980's.

But there's another reason why I think figure competitions are becoming more popular than ever. You see, most women have a career outside of training — whether that career means a business, family, education, or any combination of those.

After all, it's not convenient for a mother to swing through Tijuana after she drops off the kiddies at soccer practice. And a high-powered female executive probably doesn't want to take a recess in the middle of a business meeting to inject a gram of Primobolan in her ass. I say, who wants to do business with a gal that's sportin' a mustache like Tom Selleck and a voice like James Earl Jones?

Since figure competitions don't embrace a look that mandates a tsunami of steroids and growth hormone, many women can handle the type of training and dieting that's necessary to win a competition without being summoned with divorce papers or a search warrant.

Hell, some women might not ever want to compete in a figure competition, but they might want to looklike it. This article is for them.

I've been blessed with much success in the training business. As such, I can basically pick and choose what type of clients I want to work with. At the present time, I primarily focus my efforts on two specific categories: fighters and figure competitors.

I won't get into all of the reasons why I favor those two seemingly opposite groups of people, but I will say that I sleep very well at night. I don't wake up screaming and squirming in a pool of sweat as I envision a girl with 18" arms, cannonball delts, and tree trunk thighs who's wielding a sharp object at me as her baritone voice hollers, "What have you done?! I said I wanted to look like Jessica Simpson, not Jay Cutler!"

With respect to figure competitors, or girls who want to look like figure competitors, it makes me feel at ease knowing that I'm helping a girl achieve a look that parallels my own bias.

I guess if I took this a step further and gave you full disclosure, I'd tell you that I really don't know much about training a girl who wants to compete in today's Ms. Olympia. If you want that look, I probably don't have the information you'll need.

But if you want to train for this type of body, or something close to it, I can help you. (This is one of my clients).

I don't, however, want to turn this into a "How to Train a Figure Competitor" article. And I don't want to blow smoke up your butt and tell you that I can make you look like Heidi Klum if your skeletal structure and biochemistry aren't on par with hers.

Nevertheless, I want to lay out a plan for all you ladies who want to embrace resistance training without worrying about packing on too much muscle in the wrong places. Plus, I'll tell you what nutritional plan to follow in order to strip away that extra layer of fat that's probably forced you to hide behind your beach blanket.

Here goes!

First and foremost, you must get your nutritional plan in place. Unless you want to train for 4-5 hours each day, you'll need to balance out your macronutrients and rev up your metabolism with effective nutritional strategies in order to really transform your physique.

The first four steps that you must get in place are the four that I've found have the greatest impact on boosting your metabolism:

1) Eat 6 times per day.

2) Consume one gram of protein per pound of lean body mass per day.

3) Consume one gram of omega-3s for every 10 pounds of lean body mass per day.

4) Consume adequate calories every day on the order of lean body mass (LBM) x 12.

Let's use the example with a 140 pound female who has 22% body fat. Her LBM is her total weight minus her fat weight. In this case her LBM is 109 pounds (140-31=109). Here's how steps 2-4 will look for her nutritional plan:

Protein: 109 grams per day

Omega-3s: 11 grams per day

Calories: 1308 per day

Of course, step #1 is to divide that up over six meals per day. The simplest method would be to take each of the above numbers and divide it by six to equal the amount of protein, fish oil, and calories that you should consume with each meal. Unfortunately, it's not quite that simple.

Let me explain. You see, most people find it easiest to consume three larger meals each day along with a few snacks. That's fine, and it can work. I understand that not everyone has the luxury to cook and prepare six meals per day. After all, this article is based on how you can develop a sexy, lean physique while still managing a family, business, etc. So the plan that works well for most girls looks like this:

Meal 1: Breakfast

Meal 2: Snack

Meal 3: Lunch

Meal 4: Snack

Meal 5: Dinner

Meal 6: Snack

With regard to protein, it's usually not too difficult to find an adequate protein source at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Snacks can be much trickier since most people want a readily available protein source because they don't want to cook while at work, etc.

The first thing I do is calculate 65% of the total protein requirements per day. In this case, that equals 71 grams (109 x .65 = 71). I'll take that 71 grams and divide it up over the three largest meals per day (breakfast, lunch, dinner). Each of those three meals will require 24 grams of protein in the form of eggs, lean beef, chicken, turkey, fish, etc.

The other 35% (38 grams) is divided up between the three snacks. So each snack will require approximately 13 grams of protein in the form nuts, hard boiled eggs, cottage cheese, etc. Of course, you can also get your snack protein from the same sources that I recommend for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

I'm stressing the importance of protein first because I've found, time and time again, that most women don't consume enough high quality protein. You must make protein a priority each day. Find the sources that you like and stick with them.

The next step is omega-3 consumption. I like to spread the omega-3s over the last four meals of the day, but three meals can work just as well depending on how much fish oil you should be taking per day. Since I'm using a 140-pound female, the total amount per day is obviously much lower than is required for a 200-pound male.

So the number we came up with is 11 grams per day. I only use two omega-3 products with my clients: Biotest's Flameout and Carlson's liquid fish oil. Each teaspoon of Carlson's fish oil contains 1.6 grams of omega-3s; each capsule of Flameout contains 1.125 grams of omega-3s. So I'll make it easy and prescribe four teaspoons of Carlson's (6.4 grams) along with four Flameout capsules (4.6 grams), thus equaling 11 grams.

I'm not going to tell you exactly how to divide up that 11 grams, I'll just say that your last three meals should be as equal as possible. A good example would be:

Meal 4: Two teaspoons Carlson's oil (3.2 grams)

Meal 5: Four Flameout capsules (4.6 grams)

Meal 6: Two teaspoons Carlson's oil (3.2 grams)

There ya go, you've got your 11-gram requirement.

Okay, let's recap what we've talked about so far for the hypothetical 140-pound female with 22% body fat. Here's how her daily nutritional plan looks so far:

Meal 1: 24 grams protein

Meal 2: 13 grams protein

Meal 3: 24 grams protein

Meal 4: 13 grams protein; two teaspoons Carlson's oil

Meal 5: 24 grams protein; four Flameout capsules

Meal 6: 13 grams protein; two teaspoons Carlson's oil

Now we must figure out how many calories we have thus far. Here's how it breaks down:

Protein = 4 calories per gram

Carlson's oil = 40 calories per teaspoon

Flameout = 52 calories per four capsules

After a few calculations, the total protein and omega-3 equal 648 calories (436 + 160 + 52). Subtract that from the total calories per day (1308) and 660 calories remain. Those 660 calories will come from carbohydrates and fat.

Before I move onto the carbohydrate recommendations, I need to finish up with the fat calories. I like to use a 33/33/33 caloric balance of carbs, protein, and fat for the purposes of fat loss. So our girl who's consuming 1308 calories per day should be getting 436 calories from each of the three macronutrients.

With the omega-3-dominated fat sources, we've covered 212 of those calories. That leaves us with 224 additional fat calories. Since each gram of fat equals 9 calories, we're left with 25 grams of fat. Those fat calories should primarily come from mono- and polyunsaturated fats such as olive oil, nuts, and natural peanut butter. Some of the fat calories, though, will come from saturated fat in meats. That's fine, just be sure to focus on mono- and polyunsaturated fats; the rest will fall into place.

Onward to carbohydrates!

For fat loss and recovery I prefer that one-third of the total calories come from carbohydrates. Since one-third of 1308 is 436 calories, and since each gram of carbohydrate equals four calories, that gives us 109 grams of carbs per day to work with.

The 109 grams of carbs will only come from vegetables, fruit, and a workout drink. I'm going to make this easy on you by not giving you many choices. After all, when you have few options, it's much easier to make a choice. Here are the carbs you should be getting your calories from:

Vegetables: spinach, lettuce, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, and asparagus

Fruits: tomatoes (yes, it's a fruit), apples, plums, and berries

Workout powder: Surge Recovery

Why the limited carb sources, you ask? Because each of those sources provides a very high nutrient bang for your buck. This is especially true with the fruit and vegetable choices. First, the carbs have a high nutrient-to-calorie ratio (they have lots of antioxidants and phytochemicals with minimal calories).

Second, the fruits and vegetables are alkaline in nature. This is important since protein produces an acid load on your body. (For more info on the importance of consuming alkaline foods, refer to Dr. John Berardi's Covering Your Nutritional Acids and Bases.)

Basically speaking (no pun intended), alkaline foods will help maintain thyroid function and anabolic hormones while minimizing stress on your kidneys. Trust me, your body will thank you once you reduce the acid load on your system.

I recommend Surge since it's inexpensive and provides plenty of fast-acting carbs and protein, along with a healthy dose of branched-chain amino acids. It's important to note that on the days you weight-train, Surge will take the place of one of your six meals.

Is your head spinning yet? Okay, I'll offer an olive branch and do what I despise — I'll devise a sample eating plan. Why do I despise them? Because there are many foods that you can choose, you aren't relegated to the exact meals that I outline. I can't stress enough that the following sample is just... well, a sample. Use the foods that best fit your tastes and schedule, as long as they fall within the 33/33/33 guideline.

Calories: 1308
Macronutrient caloric ratio: 33/33/33
Carbohydrates: 109 grams
Protein: 109 grams
Fat: 48 grams
Meals: 6

Meal 1 (breakfast)

1 whole egg, 5 egg whites

1 large apple

carbs=24g, protein=22g, fat=8g

Meal 2 (snack)

1/2 cup low-fat (2%) cottage cheese

1/2 cup blackberries

1 celery stalk spread with 1 teaspoon natural peanut butter

carbs=14g, protein=13g, fat=8g

Meal 3 (lunch)

3 ounces chicken breast

1 cup spinach drizzled with 2 teaspoons Carlson's oil, topped with a few dried plums and one small diced tomato

carbs=24g, protein=21g, fat=8g

Meal 4 (workout drink)

1 scoop Surge 5-15 minutes before training

1 scoop Surge directly after training with 5g of micronized creatine

carbs=30g, protein=16g, fat=1g

Meal 5 (dinner)

3 ounces lean beef

1 cup broccoli

1 cup fresh strawberries

4 Flameout capsules

carbs=12g, protein=20g, fat=12g

Meal 6 (snack)

3 ounces turkey breast

1/4 cup blueberries

1 cup lettuce drizzled with 2 teaspoons Carlson's fish oil

carbs=5g, protein=17g, fat=11g

I can't stress enough that the sample eating plan can be changed to meet your own choices. Also, you'll notice that I wrote out the sample with a weight-training workout, thus meal #4 is Surge. Since Surge has a good dose of carbs, I had to alter my other meals to fit the 33/33/33 requirement. On days that you don't weight train, you won't need to make that adjustment.

Listen, no one, and I really mean no one, likes to count calories. But there's really no way around the issue during the initial stages. Sure, it sucks to count calories, but once you do it for a few weeks you'll develop a good understanding of the macronutrient breakdowns of typical foods. I've counted calories so often that I can basically look at a plate of food and tell you how many macronutrients are sitting on the plate. That's a very valuable tool to have in your arsenal.

Some excellent coaches recommend that you don't count calories. That's fine provided that you have a professional coach who'll devise your eating plan. But if you want to learn the trade yourself, you've gotta learn the macronutrient values of the foods you'll consume.

Read over the nutritional principles a few times so you'll grasp the key principles. Then, go to a bookstore or health food store and pick up a nutrition almanac that breaks down the calories, carbs, protein, and fat of the foods that make up this plan. The sad truth is that you'll never get the calories perfect each day since two apples will both have different amounts of carbs, for example. But you must try to keep your nutrients dialed in as precise as you can.

Time for the workouts!

Awhile back I wrote an article called Sexy Female Training. To say it was controversial is like saying Dale Carnegie was a decent businessman. Amidst the name-calling and penis- and panty-waving, I learned something valuable: most coaches don't know how to properly train females to get that Rachel McLish, Hillary Swank, or Jennifer Garner look.

I can say this with utmost certainty because no article of mine subsequently led to so many emails from top coaches around the world. World-renowned trainers — trainers who I figured didn't even know my name — contacted me to say that "Sexy Female Training" drastically altered the way they approach the training of females. And that's not hyperbole.

Most programs are designed with men in mind, and most people believe that females should do a zillion reps to "tone up." Both of those facts leave most women with a physique that they don't want — big traps, big thighs, big arms, and a thick midsection.

T-Nation and Muscle With Attitude are a place for hardcore training information. I like that. But "hardcore" shouldn't mean that women must train the same way men do. I believe that "hardcore" should mean the hardcore truth.

Listen up, my female buddies: you can and will build muscle. So if you don't want to build a muscle group, don't train it with tons of reps, and don't train it multiple sets of heavy movements.

As a gross generalization, most women should focus their efforts on the shoulders, glutes, and outer thighs. Those muscle groups help develop the hourglass figure. Just as importantly, training the muscles such as the abdominals and obliques should be minimized because a thick midsection will offset the hourglass figure.

Don't get me wrong, all the major muscle groups can and should be trained in order to build structural integrity. Nevertheless, the volume and frequency of those other muscle groups such as the upper back, traps, abs, obliques, calves, upper arms, inner thighs, etc. should be minimal.

Here's the plan that will develop the kind of physique that I'm talking about.

The Female Figure Program

Circuit Training

Circuits: 6

Reps per movement: 5 (that's 5 reps on each side for single limb movements)

Load: Use the heaviest you can manage with perfect form for all sets. Don't add extra load to the bodyweight movements.

Rest: 30s (s = seconds) (A1, rest 30s, A2, rest 30s, A3, etc.)

A1. Single-leg dumbbell deadlift

Description: Stand on one leg. Tighten your abs, push your hips back while keeping your lower back tight and arched. Lower until the dumbbells are at mid-shin level. Perform five reps on the left leg, don't rest, and then perform five reps on the right leg.

A2. Push-up plus with dumbbells

Note: Keep your abs tight and don't let your stomach/hips protrude forward as you lower your body. Push your shoulder blades as far forward as possible at the top of the movement.

Note: If the knees-up version is too difficult, use the knees-down version.

A3. Lunge with external rotation

Description: From a standing position with your feet shoulder-width apart, hold a dumbbell in your left hand with your elbow and shoulder at 90 degrees. Step forward with your right leg into a partial lunge as you reach across and down with your left arm while twisting your arm until your thumb faces down.

With your front leg, push yourself back to the starting position as you pull (externally rotate) your arm back to the starting position. Perform six reps with your right leg/left arm, don't rest, and then perform six reps with your left leg/right arm.

A4. Overhead triceps extension with dumbbell

Description: Hold a dumbbell overhead with both hands. Lower the dumbbell behind your head until it touches your upper back. Keep your elbows pointing up and keep your arms close to the side of your head.

A5. Deep wide-out drop

Description: From a standing position with your feet together and arms held out in front, jump your legs wide out as you push your hips back and down. From the bottom position, jump back up to the starting position.

After finishing A5, rest 30s and repeat the entire circuit five more times in the same fashion.

Energy Systems Training (HIIT)

Bike sprints: Pedal at a moderate intensity for 45s while seated on an exercise bike. Then, turn up the resistance as high as possible and sprint from a "standing" position for 10s. This constitutes a single, one-minute cycle (the extra 5s periods are used to alter the resistance of the bike and your body position).

Duration: 10 minutes

Off

Circuit Training

Circuits: 4

Reps: 8

Load: Use the heaviest you can handle for all sets. Use ankle weights for the reverse crunch if the bodyweight version is too easy.

Rest: 30s (A1, rest 30s, A2, rest 30s, A3, etc.)

A1. Partial split squat

Description: Assume a deep forward lunge position with your back knee on the ground. Push through your forward heel to lift your body up 6 inches. Lower and repeat for all reps with your right leg forward, don't rest, repeat with the left leg forward. Keep your torso as vertical as possible throughout the movement.

A2. Single-arm bent over dumbbell row

Description: Assume a bent over position with your lower back tight and arched. Place one hand behind your back as the other arm holds the dumbbell with a neutral grip. Pull the dumbbell up to your chest while maintaining the original bent over position. Keep your elbow close to your side. Don't rest between arms.

A3. Lunge with shoulder press

Description: Assume a standing position with your arms bent so the dumbbells are at shoulder height. Step forward into a lunge as you simultaneously press the dumbbells overhead. Lower the dumbbells as you push back with your front leg, through your heel, to the starting position. Alternate legs with each rep for a total of 8 on each side.

A4 Single-leg glute bridge.

Description: Lay on your back with your right leg bent at 90 degrees. Cross your left leg over your right. Lift your front of your right foot (flex the ankle joint) so your heel is the only portion of your foot touching the ground. Bridge up as high as possible by pushing through your heel. Hold the top position for 2s before lowering. Don't let your hips rest on the floor when you lower. Do all 8 reps with the right, don't rest, repeat with the left leg.

A5 Modified dumbbell snatch.

Description: Assume a wide stance with your feet slightly angled out. Place your left hand behind your back and hold a dumbbell in your right hand with your arm hanging down in front of you in the hang position. Squeeze the glutes and thrust the hips forward as you pull the dumbbell overhead, keeping your right arm straight. Perform 8 reps with your right arm, don't rest, repeat with the left arm holding the dumbbell.

A6 Reverse crunch.

Description: Lay on your back with your legs straight. Pull your knees into your chest as you roll the hips up off the floor. Push your legs back to the starting position and repeat.

Rest 30s and repeat the circuit three more times in the same fashion.

Off

Rope jumping

Description: Set a stopwatch for 10 minutes and perform as many rope jumping revolutions as possible. Rest for 10-15s whenever you need it, but strive to jump for as long as you can. Eventually, you should be able to jump rope for 10 minutes straight without stopping.

Wall sit

Description: Place your back against a wall and squat down until your knee joint is approximately 110 degrees. Hold that position for as long as possible and time yourself. Rest for 90s and repeat twice more with 90s rest between each attempt. Once you can perform all three holds for at least 2 minutes each, switch to the single leg version and do the same. There's no time limit for the single leg version.

Off

Repeat cycle

Circuits

Week 2: Add one rep to half your circuits. So by week 2, the day 1 circuit will be 6x5,6,5,6,5,6.

Week 3: Add one rep to the other circuits, thus making the day 1 workout 6x6.

Week 4: Increase the load of all loaded movements by 5 pounds or 2%, and drop back to the original number of reps per set.

Week 5: Add one rep to half your circuits. So by week 5, the day 1 circuit will be 6x5,6,5,6,5,6 with a heavier load.

Week 6: Add one rep to the other circuits, thus making the day 1 workout 6x6 with a heavier load.

Note: Keep in mind, the above progression plan applies to both circuits during the week.

Add one minute to the bike sprints each week for 5 weeks.

This program, first and foremost, is designed to develop the body that most of my female clients desire. If that's not you, no problem.

I write my articles based on what I know and what I have the most experience with. As such, this program is what works to develop key feminine muscles, with minimal development of muscles that take away from the hourglass figure. I can say this with complete confidence because these are the type of workouts that my female clients perform.

I certainly hope you'll give this plan a try, even if it doesn't initially appear to be what you're after. If you're a female, you can't go wrong with this plan. And if you're a husband, boyfriend, or brother to a girl who needs some help with her training, print out this article for her. It'll be one of the most valuable gifts she'll ever receive.

Let me know how it works for you!

Note: You can pick up a copy of Chad's book, Muscle Revolution, for even more info!

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