Craig Titus: mass and conditioning strategy

Craig Titus was a bodybuilder whose plan revolved around two things: off-season mass and pre-contest conditioning. Here is the old Titus strategy in plainer language, with all the key numbers.

Why did Craig Titus build mass in the off-season?

In the off-season, Titus’s first goal was simple: build as much size as possible. All year round, Titus stayed within about 15 extra pounds of contest weight, so that they could step onto the stage in shape as a guest poser if needed. Before the Mr. Olympia diet, Titus weighed 275 pounds (124kg) with visible abdominal muscles, and then began the 12-week pre-contest period.

In training, this meant going back to heavy basic exercises. Squats, bench press and other strength-demanding lifts were the foundation of Titus’s mass. Machines were convenient, but by Titus’s logic they were no substitute for hard work with barbells and dumbbells.

Having trained with Dorian Yates, Craig talked a lot about intensity. Every rep and every set had to be done with a clear purpose. Not just moving weight up and down, but deliberately loading the muscle fibers, followed by food and rest. A simple truth: if a rep isn’t done with 100% commitment, the result can’t be 100% either.

How did Craig Titus structure their training?

In the off-season, Titus did no cardio. The reason was practical: calories had to be kept for building muscle. Titus didn’t train abs separately at that time either, since they were already well developed. The worry was that the extra work might actually thicken the waist.

• Train for two days and take one off, then train for three days and take one off.
• Day 1: chest and biceps.
• Day 2: back and traps.
• Day 3: shoulders and triceps.
• Day 4: legs.
• Training in the morning, at around 10 a.m., suited Titus, because it left the whole rest of the day for resting and eating.

Nutrition in the mass phase was just as straightforward. Titus ate 65-80g of protein per meal, five times a day. Carbohydrates weren’t counted much in the off-season, since the goal was simply to eat enough. At 3 a.m., a ready-made protein shake with 10g of glutamine waited by the bed. It sounds harsh, but that was the rhythm.

Sunday was a “cheat day”. That didn’t mean uncontrolled eating or drinking. It was more a couple of meals where Titus allowed whatever the heart desired. In the off-season, Titus didn’t count the calories of these “cheat meals”.

Contest diet: what did Craig Titus change?

Contest preparation began 12 weeks before stepping on stage. The first two weeks were for adjustment. Instead of five meals, Titus now ate 6-7 times a day, and sugar, sweets, cakes and other lower-quality foods disappeared from the menu. After that, 10 weeks before the contest, what was essentially a training camp began.

During the diet, Titus mostly dropped protein drinks, apart from the night-time protein shake at three. The main protein sources were meat, fish, chicken and egg whites. In contest prep, Titus took in about 500g of protein a day from these foods.

Carbohydrates came mainly from white rice. At first the amount was about 400g of carbohydrates a day for the first two weeks. Then Titus lowered it by 50g every week or two, until the daily amount was 150g. Four or two weeks before stepping on stage, carbohydrates were cycled in three-day periods: 150g for two days, then 400g for three days, and then the same cycle again. Most carbohydrates came earlier in the day, and in the evening the plate held mostly protein and low-carbohydrate vegetables. This continued until 5-6 days before the contest.

As supplements, Titus used L-glutamine: 10g after training and another 10g at 3 a.m. On top of that came multivitamins, 100mg of B-complex vitamins with breakfast, and 3000mg of vitamin C split into three doses across the day. Water intake was two gallons a day.

Meal times were strictly fixed: 8:00, 11:00, 14:00, 17:00, 20:00 and 23:00. At three in the morning, an alarm clock woke Titus. The ready-made protein and L-glutamine shake was drunk quickly, and then it was back to sleep.

Practical lessons from Craig Titus’s plan

What can today’s lifter take from this? First, that Titus’s plan was very extreme. It suited an elite-level bodybuilder, not someone who does a couple of solid workouts a week at the gym after work. But the principles are clear: heavy basic training, enough food, a fixed rhythm and recovery.

In the pre-contest period, the workouts stayed in the same spirit, but the intensity went up. Rest breaks were shorter and Titus used forced reps. At the same time, rest was sacred. For two hours in the afternoon it was nap time in Titus’s house. It wasn’t worth calling or dropping by then.

Cardio was added 10 weeks before the contest: 1h a day before breakfast. Eight weeks out, he did 1h of cardio before breakfast and a second hour in the evening. Two hours a day worked best for him. It was said of his conditioning that you should have seen him four weeks before the contest.

He had his own system for carb loading, too. Previously he had added carbohydrates only the day before the contest and, by his own account, looked flat and sluggish. The new plan started on Monday, with the contest on the weekend. Where his baseline had been 150g a day, Monday was 200g, Tuesday 400g, Wednesday 500g, Thursday 500g and Friday 600g. On Saturday he ate as much as it took to look full, strong and tight, with hard muscles.

Sodium was depleted a week before the contest. Titus ate a burrito to replace some of the lost sodium and help fill out the cells. On contest day, water was limited to one pint, just enough to help him eat and digest his food. At the 2002 Mr. Olympia he placed 11th, with a contest weight of 255 pounds.

FAQ

Is Craig Titus’s plan suitable for a recreational lifter?

Not in full. It was a professional bodybuilder’s contest plan, in which food, sleep and training were at the center of the entire day. A recreational lifter can take on the principles, but not the whole extreme routine.

Why didn’t he do cardio in the off-season?

Titus wanted to save calories for muscle growth. His goal at that point wasn’t maximum leanness but dense, quality mass.

What was the most important idea behind this strategy?

Consistency. His day was built around training, eating and rest. Without recovery, he didn’t consider growth possible.

Author: joker

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