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- Cut Fat Without Killing Your Drive With a 3‐Day Carb Cycling Plan
Cut Fat Without Killing Your Drive With a 3‐Day Carb Cycling Plan
Records are falling as Samantha Rice hauls a historic 297.5‐kg deadlift and Kristy Hawkins stacks 720 kg of raw power while Kevin Levrone rewrites his own past with some cardio and introspection.
Tired of feeling flat on low carbs? This three‑day cycle alternates high, moderate, and low‑carb days to match your training demands and keep fat loss humming. High‑carb days land on intense sessions like legs, fueling growth with 45–55% carbs and 25–30% protein. Moderate days drop to 30–40% carbs for arm or shoulder work, while low‑carb days (10–15% carbs) coincide with rest or active recovery to tighten the calorie deficit. A sample bro‑split shows how to pair chest/back and legs with high carbs, arms and shoulders with moderate carbs, and weekends off with low‑carb meals. The result is a balanced schedule that feeds performance without the metabolic whiplash of crash dieting. [Cycle Smarter Here!]
Rising star Sam Sulek is prepping for the 2026 Arnold Classic with a surprisingly modest 2,541‑calorie menu. He kicks off with 2.5 oz of lean ground beef and two rice cakes smothered in sugar‑free sauces, then follows with an 8-oz beef and peach oatmeal combo for breakfast. Later meals repeat the beef‑and‑rice‑cake theme before switching to turkey breast and oatmeal, and he caps the day with rice cakes and a touch of nut butter. Sulek admits he overestimates fats to stay in a deficit and tweaks his macros whenever the scale stalls, shooting for 249 g protein, 303 g carbs, and just 37 g fat across the day. He’s eyeing both the Ohio and UK editions of the 2026 Arnold, proving that discipline starts on the plate. [See His Full Menu!]
Bodybuilding chatter hit a fever pitch when whispers of Derek Lunsford using PMMA injections surfaced after his second Mr. Olympia win. Coach Chris Aceto quickly stamped out the gossip, pointing out that Lunsford tore his pec four weeks before the contest, suffered a panic attack onstage, and still out‑posed the field. Aceto insists there’s no evidence of site injections and calls the accusations baseless keyboard warfare. He also says Lunsford will skip the 2026 Arnold Classic—even if a seven‑figure purse were offered—to focus on defending his Olympia crown because repeating is harder than chasing the first title. In other words, the champ is betting on patience, not shortcuts. [Get the Coach’s Take]
The Women’s Physique stage hasn’t cooled since Natalia Abraham Coelho’s 2025 Olympia victory, and now coaches are sparring over whether she enhanced her hamstrings with site oil. Veteran Chris Cormier says her legs looked too round and blurred, a telltale sign of synthol, and warns that injections blur the line between muscle and “balloon.” Olympia judge Terrick El Guindy fires back, noting he watched Coelho up close and would have penalized any obvious enhancements. Their debate highlights an uncomfortable truth: roundness is rewarded, but how round is too round? As women’s divisions grow more competitive, expect more conversations about the grey zone between training and trickery. [See the Heated Debate]
Once known for brutal 16‑set body‑part sessions and a willingness to live in a “dark place,” Kevin Levrone is rewriting his narrative. In a candid interview, the former IFBB star explains how losing both parents to cancer fueled his steroid use and obsessive training during the ’90s and early 2000s. He now rejects that mindset, focusing on running, conditioning, and functional movements instead of heavy squats and survival‑mode workouts. Levrone admits those old training habits were fueled by grief and insecurity, not self‑care, and he wants younger lifters to avoid the same trap. It’s a rare look at a legend choosing longevity over ego. [Hear His Story]
Back day feeling stale? Lee Priest has your fix. The bodybuilding icon says most lifters pull with their biceps and traps, so he starts each rep by shrugging his lats down and out to activate the back. He recommends using a lighter weight, slowing the movement, and thinking of your hands as hooks while you pull your elbows back and squeeze the lats. Priest warns that swinging the torso or chasing ego‑weights kills the pump; the goal is to feel the muscle doing the work, not to pile on plates. His old‑school cues are a reminder that the mind‑muscle connection beats momentum every time. [Unlock the Pump Secrets]
Alessandro Antonicelli, a 26‑year‑old Italian fitness influencer and aspiring Paralympian, spent two years battling a rare bone cancer that eventually claimed his life. Surgeons removed his femur, knee, hip joints, and part of his quadriceps to combat chondroblastic osteosarcoma, and the cancer later spread to his lower back and clavicle. Despite the trauma, he became a beacon of resilience: he trained at Gold’s Gym Venice, competed in a Paralympic weightlifting meet, and sold “Fu** Cancer” apparel to raise awareness. Supporters donated more than $215,000 to research, and his family plans to continue his advocacy work. His story is a sobering reminder that strength isn’t just about muscles. [Read His Inspiring Story]
Powerlifting powerhouse Kristy Hawkins entered the 82.5 kg class, weighing 76.6 kg, and left the King & Queen of the Platform with two all‑time world records. She crushed a 290‑kg (639.3‑lb) raw squat for a new benchmark and later assembled a 720‑kg total with a 160‑kg bench and 270‑kg deadlift. Those lifts earned her $10,000, her 20th win in 24 sanctioned meets, and an astronomical DOTS score. Hawkins’ combination of leverage, technique, and grit has taken women’s strength sports to a new level. It’s performances like this that make powerlifting a must‑watch. [See the Record‑Setting Lifts]
Samantha Rice didn’t just win the 90 kg class at King & Queen 5; she rewrote the record book. The 35‑year‑old squatted 282.5 kg, bench‑pressed 163 kg, and pulled a jaw‑dropping 297.5 kg—the heaviest deadlift ever recorded in women’s powerlifting. Those numbers added up to a 743‑kg raw total, another world record, while keeping her undefeated competition streak alive. Rice credits consistency and an unshakeable belief in her limits, proving that longevity and peak performance can coexist. Watching her lift feels like witnessing history in real time. [Relive Her Epic Performance]
If you’ve ever guessed your maintenance calories, this tool eliminates the guesswork. Using the Mifflin–St Jeor equation, it asks for your age, weight, height, gender, and activity level, then spits out your total daily energy expenditure plus a weekly calorie budget. The calculator goes beyond calories: it offers ideal weight ranges, BMI, macronutrient splits for maintenance, cutting, and bulking, and even suggests macro breakdowns for training versus rest days. Step‑by‑step instructions make the process simple, and the article reminds you to recalculate as your weight or activity changes because TDEE is a moving target. Consider it your nutrition GPS. [Find Your Daily Energy Needs]
Mike Sommerfeld’s latest posing routine isn’t just a flex; it’s a heartfelt salute to Cedric McMillan, blending artful muscle control with a nod to the fallen champ’s graceful style📹💪
Advanced Training Tip of the Day: Contrast Rest
Smart lifters know that rest can shape a workout as much as sets and reps. “Contrast rest” pairs long breaks with heavy strength efforts and shorter rests with lighter, high‑rep work to trigger both neural and metabolic adaptation. For example, you might rest 3–5 minutes between heavy squats, then cut rest down to 45–60 seconds when you switch to lunges or leg presses. This variation keeps energy high for big lifts while creating the burn needed for hypertrophy and conditioning. Rotate contrast rest into one or two exercises per session and watch fatigue management and gains improve.
The Strength Bulletin
The 2025 Asian Championships Pro crowned six winners—Ching Chieh Lin (212), Juseong Seo (Classic Physique), Yoon Sung Lee (Men’s Physique), Jennifer Zienert (Figure), Sally‑Anne Kato (Bikini), and Yingchen Liu (Wellness)—securing early 2026 Mr. Olympia tickets in Kaohsiung. [Check out the full results]
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