Contest prep, from the team that builds pros.
Plenty of prep coaches have competed themselves. Far fewer have taken other athletes to a pro card. Founder and head coach Amer Kamra has taken athletes to IFBB pro cards and overall titles since 2012 — with a method that gets you to the stage in condition, on time, without destroying what you spent years building.
Why it matters who preps you
Anyone can put you in a deficit.
That isn't prep.
Prep coaching has a low barrier to entry. Compete once, buy a spreadsheet, start selling plans. The results look identical for the first eight weeks, because almost any deficit produces visible change on a lean athlete.
The difference shows up in the last six weeks, and on stage. That's when the decisions get hard — when weight stalls with four weeks left, when a client is flat and depleted and the show is Saturday, when conditioning is there but fullness isn't. A template has nothing to say at that point.
What you're actually hiring is judgement under pressure.
Knowing when to hold, when to cut, and when the right call is to add food back — and being able to look at a physique eight days out and know what it needs. That comes from having stood on stage yourself and having walked other athletes through it, repeatedly.
Amer Kamra is the founder and head coach of Hammer Fitness. He has taken athletes to IFBB pro cards and overall titles since 2012, and completed a Masters in Resistance Training under Tom Purvis — the highest level of movement education available to a coach. He isn't a pro competitor himself, and doesn't claim to be. What he has is a record of taking other people there, which is the credential that actually matters when it's your prep.
He heads a coaching team that includes Lindsay Martens, an IFBB Fit Model Pro — an athlete competing at the level our clients are working toward. Every plan is written by hand, from scratch. Nothing on this roster comes out of an app.
The process
What a real prep actually looks like
Timelines vary by starting condition and division. This is the shape of it.
Assessment and off-season
We start with where you actually are — current condition, training history, previous preps and how they went, what your maintenance looks like, and what your division rewards. If you're not lean enough to start, or your metabolism is sitting too low from a previous prep, we build first.
Starting a prep from the wrong place is the single most common reason athletes arrive on stage flat, small, or both.
Prep begins
Nutrition is built around your foods, your schedule and your training. Training shifts to preserve every gram of muscle through the deficit — load held, volume managed against falling recovery capacity. Cardio is introduced as a lever, not as the plan.
The rate is set deliberately. Faster looks better on the scale and worse on stage.
Check-ins and adjustments
Photos, weight, measurements, training performance, sleep, hunger, digestion. Adjustments come from the trend, not from a single number — and from what your physique is actually doing rather than what the plan predicted.
Every revised plan you receive highlights exactly what changed from the last one, so you're never guessing which numbers moved.
Peak week
Where preps are won and lost. Carbohydrate, sodium, water and training are manipulated to bring you in full and dry — and the protocol is built for you, based on how you've responded all prep, not copied from someone else's peak week.
You get your sheet in advance, in writing, with every day mapped out. No improvising on the Thursday before a Saturday show.
The part most coaches skip
Post-show is where athletes get hurt. Contact goes quiet, the athlete rebounds hard, and arrives at the next off-season heavier and metabolically worse off than before.
We reverse diet you back deliberately — calories stepped up, training rebuilt, condition held long enough to actually use the photos. It's part of the coaching, not an upsell.
On stage
Where the work shows up
Twenty weeks of decisions, judged in ninety seconds under stage lights.
Divisions
Who we prep
Every division rewards something different, and a plan that wins Bikini will lose Physique. Conditioning targets, shape priorities, posing and peak week all change with the category you're standing in.
We work with first-time competitors and returning athletes chasing a pro card, across IFBB, CPA and OPA cards as well as natural and tested federations. Masters athletes are a significant part of this roster — recovery, hormones and training tolerance all behave differently past 35, and a prep written for a 22-year-old will bury you.
How we work together
In person in Toronto, or online anywhere
Train at the studio
Private, appointment-only sessions at 21 Progress Ave in Scarborough, on a floor of rare imported machines chosen for engineering rather than price. Hands-on coaching, posing practice, and a coach who sees your physique every week rather than in photos.
Coached from anywhere
Full nutrition and training plans, weekly check-ins with photo and data review, peak week protocol delivered in writing, and direct access to your coach. Athletes prep with us from across Canada and internationally.
- Nutrition written by hand. Built from foods you'll actually eat, with portion sizes given for every item — not a macro target and good luck.
- Training programmed for the phase. Load held to protect muscle, volume and frequency managed against falling recovery.
- Weekly check-ins with a real response. Reviewed by your coach, not auto-generated from an app.
- Peak week in writing, in advance. Day by day, built on how you responded all prep.
- Posing and stage presentation. Conditioning you can't present is conditioning you wasted.
- Post-show reverse diet. Included, planned, and started before the show rather than after the damage.
Straight answers
What we don't do
Worth saying plainly, because it's the question every athlete has and most coaching pages avoid.
We coach training, nutrition, cardio, peak week and stage presentation. Decisions about anything pharmacological sit with a physician who can examine you, run bloodwork and monitor you properly — not with a coach, and not with the internet. That's the honest boundary and we hold it with every athlete on the roster.
We also won't take a prep that shouldn't happen. If your timeline is too short, your starting condition is too far out, or you're coming off a prep that left you metabolically flat, we'll tell you that on the call and give you the honest version of what it would take. Sometimes the right answer is a longer runway and a later show.
A prep that goes badly costs you more than the entry fee.
It costs muscle you spent years building, a metabolism that takes months to repair, and often the appetite to compete again. We'd rather turn down a bad prep than take your money for one.
Questions
Contest prep FAQ
How far out should I start prep?
Most athletes need 16 to 20 weeks, but it depends entirely on starting condition. Someone already lean may need 12; someone further out may need 24 or a longer build first. Anyone who quotes you a timeline before seeing where you're at is guessing.
Can you prep me if I've never competed before?
Yes, and first-time competitors are a large part of what we do. You'll be walked through division selection, federation choice, registration, tanning, suit, posing and what show day actually involves — none of which is obvious the first time.
Do you offer online contest prep?
Yes. Full nutrition and training plans, weekly check-ins with photo and data review, peak week delivered in writing, and direct access to your coach. Athletes prep with us from across Canada and internationally.
Do you advise on performance-enhancing drugs?
No. We coach training, nutrition, cardio, peak week and presentation. Anything pharmacological belongs with a physician who can examine you and monitor bloodwork. We coach athletes in tested and natural federations as well as open classes, and the boundary is the same either way.
What happens after the show?
A structured reverse diet, planned before the show rather than after it. Calories stepped back up deliberately, training rebuilt, and condition held long enough to get proper photos. Post-show is where most athletes get hurt, and it's included in the coaching rather than sold separately.
Which divisions and federations do you work with?
Bikini, Wellness, Figure, Women's Physique, Fitness, Men's Physique, Classic Physique and Bodybuilding, including Masters classes. We work across IFBB, CPA and OPA as well as natural and tested federations.
What does contest prep coaching cost?
It depends on the length of the prep, whether you're training in person or online, and how much support you need through peak week. The consultation is free and carries no obligation — we'll give you a straight number once we know what the prep actually requires.
I've had a bad prep before. Can you fix it?
Often, yes — but usually not by starting another prep immediately. Coming off a prep that ran too aggressive, we'd typically build first: restore intake, rebuild training capacity, then prep from a stronger starting point. Tell us what happened and we'll be honest about the timeline.
Free — no commitment
Tell us about your show.
Where you're at, what you're competing in, and when. We'll tell you honestly whether the timeline works and what the prep would involve — including if the answer is that you should wait for a later show.
Prefer to call? 416 298-7997
Contest preparation involves sustained calorie restriction and demanding training, and is intended for healthy adults competing in physique sport. Hammer Fitness provides coaching in training, nutrition and stage presentation only. We do not prescribe, supply or advise on any medication or supplement requiring a prescription — those decisions belong with a licensed physician who can assess and monitor you. Individual results vary and no placing or outcome is guaranteed.
