Let’s just say that I found out that I’m going on a beach vacation in exactly 1 week. I already have good muscle tone and not much body fat. But I want the best body possible for the beach. I have 1 week to work with. What do you recommend that I do?
Use sunscreen and wear a large-brimmed hat.
Since you can’t lose a perceptual loss of fat in a week without sacrificing muscle and you can’t expect to gain muscle mass in a week’s time, there’s not much you can do. You can use a sunless tanner do make you look more defined and pump up like crazy immediately before hitting the beach. That’s about it.
The first sentence should read " a perceptual amount of fat.
Well, power lifters will generally try to become dehydrated before a big compitition so their muscles show nicely.
I’m not sure how they do this, but I seem to recall something about eating nothing but lean protein and taking diuretics.
I’m not sure I would recommend this exactly - perhaps a body-builder will come along to get the specifics correct for you.
Go with a bunch of computer nerds & gaming geeks. Stand next to them.
If you want the best body you can get in a week, call Sacramento to see if Arnold is available.
Good idea. It’s all relative, huh?
Yep. You’ll look like a bronzed god in comparison. Or goddess, if that’s the case.
Powerlifters don’t care about looks at all, just performance, and being dehydrated tends to dip into performance.
OP, try this.
Cut out sodium
Cut out carbs
Eat a lean protein diet.
This is short term prep for a bodybuilder who needs to look shredded prior to a show.
Carbs, and sodium = water = bloating/lack of def.
It’s absolutely not true that you can’t change your physical appearence to look better inside of one week. You won’t be able to lose real body fat in any substantial amount, but if you do some basic weight-lifting and cardio every day, taking great care not to overtrain, combined with not eating a lot in general and eating only healthy food low in carbs and grease, you will look better, just a tiny bit but enough to make a difference. It’s do-able. Be sure to go to a tanning bed also (if you’ve never done it before just do 5 minutes, wait a day and then do 10.)
A tan can take 5 lbs off your frame.
You could do alot to reduce water/bloating, which does affect appearance.
“An hour in the sun is worth two in the gym.” 
<nitpick>I think you mean <em>bodybuilders</em>. Powerlifting is a completely different sport (as is weightlifting). Bodybuilders lift weights and do other physical activities to get very large muscles in certain areas, with the goal of presenting an idealized, physically attractive body. Think of it as extreme body sculpting. Huge shoulders, arms, and chest; muscular but thin abdomen and waist, huge quads and hamstrings, huge calves.
Bodybuilders do the low-carb high-protein thing regularly, and also dehydrate before a competition in order to emphasis muscles.
Powerlifters and weightlifters train to lift very large weights. The difference between the two sports is in the types of lifts they do. I can’t remember the differences offhand, alas. In both disciplines, the participant develops muscles as a side-effect of lifting a particular weight. Body aesthetics are completely unimportant. The participants look big <em>all over</em>. Think of offensive linemen in pro football: 300 lbs of mean-looking meat. There was in the 1980s an Olympic champion superheavyweight weightlifter from the USSR who, in competition, looked as if he’d swallowed a pig, whole. Part of that was the effect of weightlifting on his spine, but another part was that he didn’t care what he looked like as long as he could win.
One week to look in better shape? Get plenty of sleep, and get a tan.
I have found that if you don’t have much body fat, you can make your muscles look better in a very short time if you try hard enough. You don’t build much muscle in that time but what you have becomes more firm and tighter looking. I usually see it on my arms and legs first. Other areas of the body like abs are harder to tell.
A good body is like good grades.
You have to start at the beginning of the smester/quarter and learn all of the material as you go. When exam (beach trip) comes you are ready to go.
If you haven’t learned the course material through the semester, you sure can’t learn it in one week! Nor is it possible to get in shape in one week.
BTW: There is a machine advertised to give you a full daily work out in just four (4) minutes. Cost only $15,000. ??? No link, it is just another scam for the rich dude looking for a quick fix for the growing pot belly.
Judging by what you have already said…I’d go hit the tanning beds so you aren’t so white…Err…this is making the assumption you are caucasian…excuse me. If so however, my advice stands.
Actually I’m not Caucasian. I’m Indian. But my skin is light enough that a tan affects me the same as it would a white person.
If you stay in the sun long enough you can probably burn off another five pounds of skin as well, too. Of course, the after effects are a bit tough.