Week 14, Day 3- Are we Mother F'n done yet?!!

Sorry of the heading today.  Just one of the many thoughts that run through my head at this point in training.  I had to ask my wife yesterday if she remembers me having such a hard time in the past.  She said that I’m usually a jerk during the last few weeks.  So at least I’m consistent and on track I guess.  The difficult part is not starving because if you’ve seen my daily diet, I eat a lot and am constantly eating but the combination of limited carbs, extended workouts (esspecially cardio) with the fight to resist cravings everyday just gets tiring.  Some would think that the physcial fatigue is the worst part but for me, and I’m sure I’m not alone, it’s the mental fatigue.  I’m just so friggin mentally drained!!!!!!  It affects me physically.  I’ve noticed that I am really touchy and edgy at certain points of the day.  While in the gym I’m not the person to stop and chat with right now, cause I’m fighting not to say,”leave me the hell alone.”  jk but not really.  Some one asked me the other day if I felt like it’s worth it and I don’t know what the actual intention was, which was probably an innocent question, but in my mind I took it as,”Why the hell would you want to do this to yourself, it’s stupid.”  And I wanted to punch them in the throat.  Of course I didn’t, I just replied as kindly as possible,”No it’s not worth it I hate my life right now so come back and ask me in 2 weeks.”  Haha  If I can just get my mind off of things and have fun then I am not so bad but it’s getting harder and harder to fight each day.  1 and a half weeks away!  I can’t wait for it to be over.  Is it worth it??? Yes, I’m in the best shape of my life.  I look at it as, there is a very small % of people in our society that have enough dicipline and/or desire to do what I’ve done.  Sure the pain right now is HELL but I love conquering it! 

So if you run into me and you think,” wow that guys a jerk!” please understand I’m normally a very personable fellow who loves to spend time talking and having fun with friends and family.  Just get back to me in a few weeks.  :  )

Week 13, Day 6- 2 weeks away!!

It’s been a minutes since my last post.  I’ve just been physically and mentally tired and haven’t found the energy at the end of the day to sit down and put my thoughts in writing.  So many things go through my mind during the period of my training.  Most of the struggle is mental which affects my physical as well.  I do look back at day 1 Jan 3rd and even though I’ve trained like this before it still amazes me what the body is capable of if the mind is in control.  I’ve got 2 more weeks of his hell and I can get back to living normal.  I constantly have to remind myself that when I look back after I’m done this is my favorite part of training. The last 4 weeks of training always come down to a decision each day.  Keep going or quit?  I find myself saying pretty frequently “I’m sick of this sh..!!!”  Then as cliche as it sounds I do think of others who are training just as hard if not harder than me.  When I started competing I never did it with the intention of pursuing a career in bodybuilding but I still have a competetive nature.  I don’t want to be outworked by anyone so I’ve got to suck it up and keep going.  I thrive on the pain of the last few reps of each set or the final minutes on the treadmill or running stairs.  The food cravings are stronger than ever and I can’t stop thinking about my first post contest meal!  I need to stop doing that though, because it makes time go by so much slower!!! lol.  Anyways 2 weeks away and all the work will pay off.  I don’t care about winning at this point I just want to know that I’ve done my best!

Heres a flyer of the event.  You can also see more info and buy tickets at:  abautah.com

Week 13, Day 4

I’m 3 ½ weeks away now till show time.  I’ve just changed my workout’s like I mentioned in my last post from heavier less reps to lighter more reps.  The change has been great for the additional development.  Mentally I’m still in it but it’s getting more and more challenging each day.  I do look forward still, to the gym every morning because I can see the results from all the work I’ve put in.  I know that sounds vain but it’s true, I like seeing the results I’ve been working so hard to achieve.  Since this isn’t the first time to compete for me, mentally the challenge isn’t as difficult as before because I know that if I push past a certain point the results will happen. Something I noticed that keeps a lot of people from continuing to pursue their fitness goals is that they stop before the results begin to show.  This was one of the greatest challenges for me when I first decided to compete a few years ago.  I wasn’t seeing the results immediately like I wanted.  It’s common to hear someone say I did this and lost so much in 1 week!  Or I’ve been working out for a month and nothing!  I hate to be a pessimist but this drives me nuts.  Obviously my perspective maybe different, at this point, than many others but the bottom line is it takes work.  After that first week of dropping so much what happens when you plateau at 4-6 weeks?  Or after the 30 days of no results what happens after the next 30 days?  Some never find out because it ends there.  I hear radio commercials about take this and change nothing else and you’ll be “High School Skinny”… If you know what this product is then you know my position on gimmicks like it.  It takes diligence, dedication, and determination.  QUIT LOOKING FOR AN EASY WAY BECAUSE THERE ISN’T ONE!!!  The only easy solution that I’ve found is finding something I love.  Be it weight training, yoga, etc.  Find what motivates you and do it!!!  Change your life by making better decisions and don’t let the success and results of others determine your progress because everyone is different and your results will be too.

 Ok, off my soap box now.  I’ve reduced my fat intake on my meals to about ½ a teaspoon-1 tsp. of peanut butter or almond butter.  Or 5-6 almonds and I’ve reduced my Carb intake on Carb load days to ½ cup of oatmeal and about 1 cup of sweet potato.  I’ll reduce a little more each week until show time.  I’ve started to eat a little more steak (top sirloin) just because I crave it so much!  I love RED meat!  Workouts are going great like I said earlier.  I’ve my cardio has been a challenge.  I’ve started my HIIT this week and some days I feel great and some days are tough as hell!  Today fortunately was a good day.  I like to do speed intervals for the full 45 minutes.  For the extra development in my legs I’ll do stairs on Monday’s and Saturdays for about 30 min then finish with a 15 min run.  I’m almost to the home stretch and can’t friggin wait to cross the finish line!  As much as this period of the training/dieting sucks I try to keep in mind overcoming the mental challenge is my favorite part, once it’s all said and done.

Week 12, Day 7- 4 weeks away!

4 weeks away today.  I went to watch the Utah NGA last night and it was a pretty good show.  If I had to gauge myself against what I saw I definitely am going to need to buckle down.

day1 Jan 3

  I took some pics to compare to my day one and if I didn’t have to step on stage in a few weeks I’d be pretty happy but I’ve got a lot of work to do.  These next 4 weeks my workout’s will be focusing on really refining and definition.  This week I’ll focus on 3-4 sets and up to 15 reps on each lift.  I really need to kill my cardio now as well.  I’ll start in incorporate my HIIT cardio tomorrow and up the time to 45 min or even an hour if I need to next week or the week after.

4 weeks out 207 lbs. Apr 10

  I weighed in Saturday morning at 207.5 lbs. and measured my body fat at 6.2% on Friday.  I need to get down as far as I can in the next weeks so loss of muscle mass at this point isn’t a huge concern anymore, I need to shred up and dry out.  My meals I’ll cut my fat intake again and also my carb intake on carb load days.  These last 4 weeks are vital to maximize my results.  The food cravings are killing me right now.  I normally don’t go crazy even though I love food but I’m wanna

4 weeks out 207 lbs. front Double Bi, Apr 10

eat every which kinda different food I see now!  Oreo’s how I miss you so much!  Lol  Anyways I’m anxious to get in the gym tomorrow cause last night’s show really has me on edge to get ready.  My diets gotta stay in check.  I’m still at 7 meals a day sometimes 8 with a 3^rd shake at night if I’m feeling hungry.  I keep my protein and greens intake the same or higher mostly to keep myself fed but also to fuel and cleanse my body. 

Here are pics comparing to day 1.  Jan 3 to April 10. Come show time with a little better lighting, some more color, and some shine I’ll look a lot tighter haha but hey no air brushing right here at least.  Do work.

4 weeks out 207 lbs. abs, Apr 10

At this point I don’t give a dam how I do I just want to eat a cheeseburger!!!

Week 12, Day 2

Today was my last heavy leg day and I gotta say I’m relieved.  Leg workouts kill me but I do enjoy getting them done.  My cardio sessions are getting easier but I’ll be increasing that to 45 min next week and I’ll start my HIIT.  I’m not excited for that part but I’m really pumped to get into my next phase of training.  These last 2 to 4 weeks my body will start to make some drastic changes.  It is important that I remain focused and on track as far as my diet.  This will help to ensure I get the best results possible.  Next week through contest time it’s all about refining.  I can already see a lot of definition and separation in my muscle development now so the next few weeks should really shred me up.  I’m excited!  Both for the show and to just be done with all the dieting and training already!  May 7^th is just around the corner!!!
5:30 am            Meal 1: Protein shake + 5 grams BCAAs + 1 tsp. peanut butter
6:00 am            Workout: Legs (6 sets of 6 reps each lift)
                        Squats
                        Straight leg dead lift
                        Leg curl
                        Leg press
                        Leg extension
                        Standing calf raise
                        Seated calf raise
                        Lying leg lifts + scissor kick leg lifts
                        Cable crunches + cable core rotations
8:30 am            Meal 2: 6 egg whites, 1 yoke, 1 cups broccoli, and 1 tsp. peanut butter
11:00 am          Meal 3: 6 oz. chicken breast, 1 cups broccoli, and 8 almonds
12:30 pm          1 Ripped Freak
1:00 pm            Meal 4: 4-5 oz. salmon, 1 cups broccoli, and 8 almonds
2:30 pm            Workout: 40 min cardio
3:30 pm            Meal 5: Protein shake + 5 grams glutamine, and 8 almonds
5:30 pm            Meal 6: 4-5 oz. salmon, 1 cups broccoli, and 6 almonds
8:00 pm            Meal 7: 5-6 oz. Top sirloin steak, 1 cups, 6 almonds

Week 11, Day 6

I didn’t blog last night so I’m posting this today before conference.  I’m now under 5 weeks away and I can’t friggin wait to be done!  This point in my training is so dam hard mentally!  The cravings get stronger and stronger every day!  I love food!  People ask me if I’m starving but if you notice I eat quite a bit still and very frequently.  The cravings of all the goodies are what get to me.  Mmmm Oreo’s… haha..  Anyways, I’ve been doing my best to avoid pitfalls but lately I have a peanut butter and jam sandwich a time or 2.  I try to use 100% whole wheat, natural peanut butter and sugar free preserves.  That’s just me trying to justify but I need to suck it up.  This coming week is the last week of heavy weights and low reps.  The last 4 weeks I’ll start to increase my reps back up and drop my sets to start to really refine my muscles.  Going in to the last 2 weeks I’ll drop the weight and sets again and increase the reps even more to really tone and shred myself down.  I feel some much more developed at this point in my training than in the past so I’m excited to see what the next 5 weeks will bring.

Yesterday’s (Saturday) meals and workout
5:30 am           Meal 1: Protein shake + 5 grams BCAAs + 1 tsp. peanut butter (during working workout)
6:00 am           Workout: Shoulders and abs (all lifts heavy 6 sets 6 reps)
                        Dumbbell press w/ no back support
                        Dumbbell front raise
                        Dumbbell lateral raise
                        Dumbbell rear lateral raise
                        Calf raise seated
                        Calf raises standing
                        Abs: I superset my abs in during rest periods between sets.
                        Leg raises
                        Crunches
8:00 am           Meal 2: 6 egg whites, 1 yoke, 1 cups broccoli, 1 tsp. almond butter
11:00 am         Meal 3: 4-5 oz. salmon, 1 cups broccoli, and 8 almonds
12:30 pm         Meal 4: Protein shake + 5 grams glutamine + 1 tsp. almond butter
2:30 pm           Meal 5: 6 oz. chicken, 1 cups broccoli, and 1 tsp. almond butter
5:30 pm           Meal 6: 6 oz. chicken, 1 cups broccoli, and 8 almonds
8:00 pm           Meal 7: 4-5 oz. salmon, 1 cups broccoli, and 1 tsp. almond butter
10:00 pm         Meal 8: Protein shake, 1 tsp. all natural peanut butter
Monday’s workout: Chest (heavy, 6 sets 6 reps)
Incline bench press
Bench press
Flat back dumbbell flys
Abs: cable crunches + leg lifts + core rotations
40 min cardio