The Art of Holistic Bodybuilding

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of bodybuilding? As an avid reader of the WARKITCHEN, you might imagine the Golden Age; where icons Arnold and Frank Zane ruled supreme. Or perhaps not. Perhaps all that comes to mind is the distorted, unaesthetic “bubble gut” physiques of today’s bodybuilders.Despite the rise of Classic Physique spearheaded by the likes of Chris Bumstead, modern bodybuilding has strayed from its true, classical roots — the artistry, the unique personalities... they seem to have become extinct. Just watch the posing routines of Lee Lebrada and Bob Paris from the 80s. They were performances — timeless pieces of art in of themselves, embodying the true spirit of bodybuilding. The discipline of bodybuilding is as much of an art as it is science, especially when you trace its origins back to ancient Greece. While it was only formally recognized in the late 19th century, initially termed “physical culture”, the true spirit of bodybuilding is more than just the act of building muscle. It’s art.

My Bodybuilding Journey

It was this holistic, artistic approach that got me into bodybuilding in the first place. I competed for the very first time when I was 21, at a natural show in 2017. Through the journey of getting ridiculously shredded and performing on stage, I learned so much about my body and mind. I experienced a world of change, both from within and how people perceived me. It also led me to change my dietary habits and I experienced first hand the benefits that came from eating a clean diet consisting of whole foods. This got me hooked to the journey of self improvement; of sculpting the best version of myself — I was hungry to continuously get better. I found myself reading up on the history of strength training and bodybuilding. I discovered Eugen Sandow, Bob Hoffmann and all the other founders, along with institutions like York Barbell. I read about Ancient Greece, the gymnasiums they used to have, as well as their ideals for beauty. And of course, the Italian Renaissance was a huge influence on me as well. This all culminated in a fervent desire to want to compete again — but to do it even better. To make up for my shortcomings the last time, and truly hone in on the artistic side of bodybuilding that’s sorely missed today. I was thrilled at the prospect of being both canvas and artist, embodying the Greek ideal of Kalokagathia and echoing the legacy of the great figures from history.

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The Goal Was Set

I had been contemplating for too long without taking action. So early this year, I made the commitment and signed up for a show in Switzerland on October 28th and another just a week later in southern Germany, near Starnbergersee. They were both natural competitions within the WNBF (World Natural Bodybuilding Federation) set in stunning locations — ideal for beauty contests, with vast seas and majestic mountains as backdrops.

Preparing For the Show

After years of intuitive eating, I decided to go on a strict diet this past summer to get myself stage-ready. I gave myself 14 weeks for the first show, during which I lost 13kg/29lbs, dropping from 93kg/205lbs to a lean 80kg/176lbs. You might wonder how I got so shredded so quickly. Did I eat chicken and rice with hours of cardio on end? Well, I did the opposite. I traveled, enjoyed classical Italian pizza at Lake Como and even ate out with friends at a traditional Vietnamese restaurant just 2 weeks before the show. I even enjoyed the occasional glass of wine! 

I share this not to boast, but to show you that there’s more than one approach with a “bodybuilding diet”. It was always a goal of mine to curate a diet that still allowed me to live, and to not lock myself in a room like many others do by subscribing to all the modern bodybuilding cliches. I share this to demonstrate that it is possible to get in great bodybuilding shape while still living fully. You just need to be smart about it.

Day-to-Day Diet

Think about it. If it’s possible to maintain such a lifestyle even while preparing for a show, what’s stopping you in your day-to-day? It’s certainly an achievable aspiration to live a good life and still get in shape. When I’m not competing (which is most of the time), I’m able to maintain a pretty lean physique year round. I eat good and clean, with a key emphasis on protein intake on top of leading an active lifestyle. I don’t shy away from indulging in nutrient dense foods like dark chocolate or dates. Nothing is holding me back from enjoying a buttery cake every now and then. It’s a misconception that you have to completely avoid these foods to get and stay lean.

Getting Peeled 

Getting down below 10% body fat is no joke, especially if you do it the natural route without any performance enhancing drugs. This is the one avenue where I deviated from the ideals of traditional, old school bodybuilding. During the times when Steve Reeves competed (the last era of popular natural bodybuilders) no one got as shredded as we do now for a show. And there was good reason for this. For the competition my initial goal was to get from 93kg to about 85kg. It’s a healthy weight for me, where I’m not too shredded and at a body fat percentage where my hormones aren’t completely crushed. Because that’s what happens when you venture near the 6-5% body fat range. Your body goes into starvation mode, and it shuts everything down that isn’t crucial. Your body’s main goal is to survive, and your libido and testosterone gets sacrificed for everything else. So why did my plans change? Well, I dropped weight pretty quick on higher calories. My competitive mindset kicked in, and so I decided I could get even leaner. I saw that it was possible and I wanted to be the most peeled person on that stage. Pushing my body to its very limits. I did this all with my meals being pretty basic, and it actually got even more simple towards the end (with the occasional exception and deviation from the meal plan). 

Holistic Bodybuilding Nutrition

Now, let me explain my approach to nutrition in greater detail. Even before preparing for the show, I already had a good diet in place and would typically have 3-4 meals a day. The changes I made for the show was to: cut down on the toppings, watch out for my fat intake and I started plugging everything into MyFitnesspal. In every meal I always have protein included. ALWAYS! That’s the main focus, and carbs and fats were spread around it. I made sure to prioritize whole foods first. This is quite a different approach from most modern day bodybuilders, who rely on all kinds of sweetener powders, rice puddings and protein bars filled with artificial ingredients. You see it a lot these days. Fitness influencers who present an entire day of eating that consists only of supplements filled with sweeteners and thickening agents that wreak havoc on their gut lining. And then they wonder why they experience skin and digestive problems... This is why I believe it’s crucial to focus on getting whole foods in, which I’m able to get at any supermarket in the western world. I kept fats high to support hormones (eating whole eggs, not egg whites) and I didn’t even need to have a protein shake. It’s also important to chew food well for better satiety and increased absorption of nutrients.

Breakfast

Breakfast was oatmeal with raw cacao powder, a banana and cottage cheese. In the latter stages of prep, I switched from oatmeal to oatmeal, reducing my carb intake and increasing fats. I almost always had a bunch of ceylon cinnamon to help with appetite suppression. Spices are a great tool and they actually achieve what many modern supplements are marketed to do. Nature truly has the solution for everything and civilizations of old already knew. Just think about black seed oil!

Lunch

Lunch typically consists of a quick and satisfying protein bowl: German Magerquark (similar to Skyr or low fat Greek yogurt) combined with a sliced apple, cinnamon, raw cacao and fresh berries from the farmer’s market. In the first few weeks I included raisins but cut them out in the latter stages to save on calories. As you get leaner your body saves up on energy and your metabolism will slow down. Normally (outside of prep), I prefer whole fat dairy over Magerquark for its ease of digestion and richer nutrient content, as many vitamins are fat soluble. However, to get really shredded you have to look at a few more details and I already get enough fats from meat and eggs.

Post Workout

Coconut water is essential after workouts to replenish electrolytes. I usually have rice cakes for quick carbs and a lean, high protein salt cheese in German Harzer Käse, an Olomouc cheese. It even continues to mature after you buy it so the taste actually changes depending on how long you keep it in your fridge. Harzer Käse also replenishes electrolytes with it’s high salt content. Calcium is an important electrolyte too, which you might not be aware of. Drinking milk is actually more hydrating than water. This was, and still is my replacement for protein shakes. Many people don’t like it, but that’s because their taste buds are just heavily adapted to unnaturally sweet products. If you fast or diet for long enough, you’ll notice the difference in how foods taste and you will develop new cravings. You’ll discover how good “plain” natural foods can taste. I only started enjoying this cheese from my first bodybuilding diet, which fundamentally altered my taste buds. Meal timing is also something that becomes more important the leaner you get. Your energy stores are empty, and so is your stomach. Digestion and nutrient uptake is incredibly quick, and sensitive.

Dinner

Dinner is where I switch things up more frequently. I usually have grass fed steak, ground beef, or chicken as my protein source. I pick the red meat up from my butcher next door and the chicken from the farmer’s market. All my vegetables are also from there, and I enjoy the fruits they have in season. I try to source everything locally. The food is grown for longer and thus store more nutrients. You’ll notice that through the richer taste. And this is crucial if you want a lean body. Having enough nutrients allows hormones to flourish and it kept mine up for long enough, allowing me to get so shredded while mostly feeling good. I very much enjoy my diet throughout the preparation process because it all tastes so amazing. I could snack on tomatoes and raw broccoli forever.

Other Tips

I also added things like fresh pineapple and raw sauerkraut to aid digestion through their enzyme content. I had to skip on the raw milk towards the latter stages due to it being too calorie dense. While many opted for fast food post comp, raw milk was the first thing I had after as my treat. 

For added volume, I usually had potatoes, rice and always vegetables or a salad on the side. Early on in the diet, I enjoyed having the potatoes roasted with olive oil for a richer taste. But later on, I just cooked them and had some butter, to reduce fats while increasing food volume. One thing I always had though was ketchup. But I made sure to get real ketchup that was made with cane sugar and vinegar. Just 3 ingredients, how it should be!

Tracking Calories

Contrary to what you might expect, I didn’t meticulously track every calorie. I freely used raw cacao powder and ketchup without measuring them. It was the same with coconut water. I estimated a lot of things too. This approach kept me sane and in the flow, providing flexibility and allowing me to listen to my body. I monitored my progress and made slight adjustments as needed.

Keeping these meals consistent allowed for great progress and the ability to include a meal out on occasion, or even a slice of cheesecake on my birthday. It’s also why I could enjoy pizza with a lake view, or take part in a wine tasting at a winery, surrounded by beautiful mountain scenery in the Alps. This approach helped manage my increasing appetite over time and saved significant time in shopping, cooking, and meal planning. Having a (flexible) structure is very much crucial for anyone that struggles to stay in shape. So yes, you can eat cake or pizza, but that’s not all your diet should consist of. Treat yourself occasionally, optimize for quality and that way you’ll enjoy it more.

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Diet on Travels

Whenever I traveled, I just kept it simple. I’d take a tomato-mozzarella salad with me, seasoned with Italian herbs, fresh basilico and balsamic vinegar. Other times, I chose cooked eggs with runny yolks accompanied by raw carrots, or a combination of low-fat cheese, Italian prosciutto (a natural deli meat preserved with salt), and rice cakes. Really anything that doesn’t need me to carry a bunch of Tupperware with me. Or in my case, glass containers. They can be quite heavy if you take too many with you. I did everything in this article, regardless of the location I was in. I made sure to book AirBnBs with kitchens and always found time to make quick stops at supermarkets. I remember being at Lake Como thinking I could fry myself a steak but the little store didn’t have any quality fresh meat. The highest quality protein source in there was cheese and prosciutto. So I got that with rice cakes and some tomatoes. I adjusted on the fly. I also always took my own body weight scale with me. If my body weight stalled for over a week, I would adjust my meals, cut about 100 calories out and go again. And I have to be honest, I was a bit autistic too by bringing my stainless steel pan with me wherever I went. It did make for a good conversation starter though, if you travel with new people. Highly recommend!

Managing Diet Stress

In the final weeks leading up to the competition, my appetite surged, and I often found myself missing that feeling of fullness. Even after the competition, it took time for my hormones, particularly leptin and ghrelin (the hunger hormones), to normalize. To manage my increasing appetite, I relied on drinking more coffee for its caffeine, having tea in the evenings, and using nicotine pouches to suppress my hunger. Staying active also played a crucial role; the gym became a place where I didn’t even think of food, spending more time focusing on my workouts. For recovery, sticking to the same principles helps too. Focusing on good fats. No, not only unsaturated. The saturated ones too! Your steroid hormones are made of cholesterol. This very much helped me have my satiety back as I write this article, just three weeks post-competition! It’s a process that can take months.

On Cardio

I didn’t do any cardio other than go for lindy walks, hikes, and keep my steps up. Initially, I attended boxing classes, but as my body became more fragile due to low body fat, diminished energy, and poor sleep, I had to stop going. I just focused on my four strength training sessions a week, following a lower/upper body split, which I have for years. 

Competition Day

As the competitions approached, my excitement grew. I dedicated myself to daily posing practice and immersed myself in bodybuilding content. I adjusted my training volume, reducing it, as fatigue accumulated. Emotions and feelings were on a rollercoaster throughout the day. My body stopped sweating in training, I got cold quicker, and even walking got difficult. But the goal was near. I knew what I did it for and I had friends and family supporting me and joining me on competition day. My posing trunks arrived shortly before, I had to send out my posing routine music in advance and it all was becoming real and I wanted to do my best. The goal was set: come at least into finals, which are the top six placings and able to present the posing routine. I knew competition is probably tough, there are some muscle freaks out there. But I did it, I took 5th place in both competitions.

More exciting than the placing was just the whole experience in of itself. Everything leading up to it, learning again about my body, meeting new people, making new connections and being able to share this experience with loved ones. Having it all on pictures and videos, always to look back at it.

I achieved my goal of embracing the journey without stress, living in the moment. This culminated in me creating my posing routine on the morning of my first competition. While spontaneous, it worked out well and you can see it here on my Instagram.

Now, I’m setting my sights on further improvement, to compete again, better than before, and continue the art of sculpting my physique.

This article was written by Marcel Schaar. If you’d like help with your own journey, there’s not many people who will help you get there with the dearth of knowledge Marcel has in bodybuilding and holistic nutrition. You can apply to work with him here.

This article was originally published in Issue 19 of the WARKITCHEN magazine. You can read it in its original form here. Every member on the list @ warkitchen.net gets first access to every release, right in their email inbox.

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