BuckSpin - A Year Of Change

TGIF everyone & happy Halloween.

Is there any other holiday that allows both kids AND adults to have as much fun at their respective stages in life than Halloween? What kid doesn’t like getting to pretend they are someone/thing else and get obscene amounts of candy? What adult doesn’t like the opportunity to, for one day, pretend they are a kid again and get….well…..you know….."treats".

Its great to be a dad on Halloween in that you get to live vicariously thru your kids. This year the boys are going as a clown and a ghost. Should be a lot of fun. And no, I’m not the classic "Hmmmmm they won’t miss this treat bag raider"!

Speaking of treats, its time again for "Bad Hair Daze". In honor of today’s theme I thought I would offer up a great 80’s hair tune featuring ol’ Dracula’s favorite snack. These favorite sons of the Baltimore music scene were said to be the inspiration for Poison’s persona and stage presence, especially in that Poison frontman Bret Michaels was catching them whenever he could prior to his relocating from Pennsylvania to LA. Formed in 1981, their biggest success came in 1988 with their "Blow My Fuse" album, which generated (bad joke) a number of FM & MTV hits, including the controversial ballad "Don’t Close Your Eyes". But rockin’ hard live was them at their best, and this video captures that. Watch at the 2:22 mark for some neat choreography.

I know none of the ladies of BB would have been inspirations for this song’s theme, right? (aka "boys have a name for girls like that!!")

This would definitely be on Dracula’s iPod. So enjoy some "Cold Blood"   from KIX:

I am sooooooooooooo gonna miss you over the next month…

I love this stuff. I graze on it like livestock graze on grass (bad comparison). I know the seeds are sterile, but I swear that whatever chemical causes "the munchies" is not only still very much active but amplified! I CANNOT stop eating this. I eat pounds and pounds of it weekly. I am sure my local natural food co-op is the district leader in its bulk bin sales because of me.

I finished the last of mine this morning. No need to restock. *sigh*

In time, friend, in time.

As part of the In & Out Challenge I’m participating in, I picked up and read a book that I’ve had for too long without opening. If nothing else comes of my participation, the hours inside the pages of "Another Season" by Gene Stallings & Sally Cook was worth it.

Some of you may recognize Gene Stallings as the former head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide, Arizona Cardinals, Texas A&M and also as one of Paul "Bear" Bryant’s infamous "Junction Boys". The last time the Tide won the National Championship Coach Stallings was their coach.

Gene Stallings, as tough a player/coach as there is & was, a man’s man if you will, provides a very personal and moving tribute to his unintentional hero - his son John Mark who was born with Down Syndrome. Its amazing where true strength, courage, dedication and inspiration live and can be not only found but shared. John Mark Stallings epitomizes all of those and then some.

I am really hesitant to just share what I found. Its the journey, not the destination, and if you are a sports fan and looking for a good dose of perspective, this would be a good choice.

When I decided to dedicate an entire year of my life to doing everything I could to obtain "that body" that I always wanted but was too afraid to try to earn, I vastly underestimated the mental & spiritual toll required. The training is by far the easiest aspect.

That said, I feel that in 7 days that everything I’ve gone through to this point will be child’s play compared to what I’m taking on.

I had a goal in mind when I started, a build. A look. In short, I want to look like "one of the Greg(g)s"….either Plitt or Avedon….from the neck down. There are no lifts to spot target ugly mugs. (sorry honey!)

So I knew I would need to be at a level of body fat that was in the single digits and have some nice muscle mass. And there is one way to get there.

Earn it. The HARD way.

So, with my amazing nutritionist & coach we have planned & worked to get me there by my self-imposed target date of Valentine’s Day 09′. I’ve added 1000’s of calories to my daily nutrition (appox. 2800ish non-training, 3200ish training days) and steadily tweeked my macros to where they are now (approx mid-high 40s carbs, mid-high 30s protein and high teens-20 fat). Its a sweet spot in that I’ve added almost 10lbs of good mass since this summer, but yet continued to slowly (and I mean slowly) lean out at the same time. The best of both words.

I guess I’m "culking", and doing well at it.

But in order to really hit that mark, I am going to need to "cut". So I will be going thru a 21 day cut as a "test run" to see just how my body reacts. I’ll cycle off of it just in time for Thanksgiving and then just go back to my old numbers thru the middle of January, at which point it will be "game on"….for real.

So, knowing where I am now, this will be my November:

• 11/3-9: Daily cap at 2000 cals, 180g carb, target of 200g protein, eating every 2hrs
• 11/10-16: Daily cap at 1800 cals, 150g carbs, target of 200g protein, eating every 2hrs
• 11/17-23: Daily cap at 1600 cals, 125g carbs, target of 200g protein, eating every 2hrs
• 11/24: Back up to 2nd week level
• 11/25: Back up to 1st week level
• 11/26: Back to where I am currently

Now this includes my Sweet Potato Pie Smoothie PWO Shakes in that I will be training status quo throughout. I know each one has about 40g of carbs in just sweet potatoes, and I drink 2 of these each training session.

That is not leaving a lot for the rest of the day, man.

Now I’ve seen pictures of my coach competition ready. Its not everyone who can say they have a Natural National Champion bodybuilder as their coach, let alone that she also is a multi-time Maine state champion powerlifter in her class. She just doesn’t have the letters behind the name, she has walked the walk and talked the talk.

So, 21 days…..

If it was easy, everyone would look "like that". This is what it gonna take to see "that".

I am competing against that guy in the mirror. Its not gonna be easy, but I will do this. My reward will hopefully be a peek at "that body", the mental toughness gained, maybe a mild sense of achievement, and some valuable experience.

I plan to Blog daily, so if you have been considering this please feel free to follow along and even send me some good Mojo via comments & PMs.

I can do this. No, I WILL do this.

Game on in 7 days…..

This is dedicated to all those of the O35…

Last night I went grocery shopping after work. I like going grocery shopping. If that makes me an rarity for the male gender so be it. It was dusk in Maine and the light from what was left of the sun was low and dramatic. Being unusually warm for late October, I did not need a coat, which is saying something given my now pathetic excuse of an subcutaneous R Value.

I was wearing what I had worn to work - a pair of boot cut jeans and a buttonless, longsleeve black, waffle-weave shirt. The shirt is looking better and better in that what matters underneath it has gotten steadily bigger and bigger. If I say so myself, I look good in it.

Anyway, as I was locking the van to head into the grocery a young couple was leaving the store. Probably in their mid-20s, their body language just screamed "married for just long enough that there are no real reasons anymore to try to impress you".

She was blonde, attractive, in good shape. He was pushing the cart and apparently somewhere else in that he was talking very animatedly and looking God knows where. In short he was taken for granted the pretty lady walking next to him.

I checked my cell phone and while repocketing it just noticed them out of the corner of my eye as we passed.

Now, I’m no male model, but I look a helluva lot better than I used to. I take a lil’ pride in my appearance now. But what I saw about made me drop the phone.

She SCOPED me. Scoped me while WALKING RIGHT NEXT TO HER GUY! For a LONG glance.

Now, I have to say this just does NOT happen to me. Heck, its NEVER happened to me.

Made my year, er, night….

I’m a quote/saying junkie. I collect em’. Love em’. They help me to think clearly and make decisions. One of my favorites is this one. I’m sure there are subtle variations, but it basically goes:

"Experience is the toughest teacher in that it gives the test 1st, lesson 2nd"

I just finished up a great 6 week training cycle that not only yielded nice physical & strength gains but got me back on track from a bout with overtraining that I lost by unanimous decision. I trained fewer times (3x/week) and those sessions were parred to just 2/3s (9 lifts maximum) of what I had been doing as far as exercises/sets as well as addressing certain grips & lifts to allow me to just go balls to the wall gonzo. I trained much harder and more intensely as a result. I rested more (it was perhaps the major focus of this cycle) and it all worked out very well. I even adjusted my ab/core sessions to shorter yet more intense sessions with the same results.

But this last week was rough. I felt tired and had trouble getting jacked up to train. My shoulders, while doing MUCH better, started to ache a lil’ longer between sessions. My legs are still not 100% recovered from my last Training Day From Hell. My sleep quality slowly started to suffer. So, I’m listening to my body and drawing on those lessons learned of going for months and months with no breaks and taking my first planned & scheduled "down time" to rest and heal for a week.

I need to re-evaluate my current sessions. I know I must split Back & Legs into 2 seperate sessions (its just getting to be too much) and work on targeting different areas. I’ll probably end up going back to 4 days a week with Tue & Thur being shortened (4-5 lifts max) yet insane days devoted to either Back or Legs. A few lifts will be shuffled around between sessions, all the sessions will have their lift orders changed, and a few new lifts will either be coming back or tried for the first time.

And today I’m just not ready physically, mentally, preparedly and even a lil’ spiritually. I need to "lay my burden down" and refuel all of those to be ready for what will undoubtedly be the most difficult cycle I’ve undertaken yet…the next one.

Starting Monday, November 3rd, I will undergoing a "trial run" of what is basically a 21 day pre-contest cut to see how my body responds. I got the final details the other night from my coach. This is NOT going to be easy, but if it was then everyone would "look like that", right?

I read all the time how people "fall off the wagon" and cheat on their nutrition, miss workouts, etc. I just don’t do that. So, I view this week as a "reward week" for 6 weeks of busting my @$$, doing every training session to the best of my abilities, eating clean 24/7, etc. I get to just chill, detox, relax, reset, plan, reinspire, etc.

And, as you will read later, I am going to need every ounce of it and have my body, mind & soul 100% recharged for this exciting yet admittedly intimidating challenge I will be undertaking.

With a title like that you’d think this was ShanBL’s blog….LOL

Funny thing is, I know EVERYONE reading this has done this. Yup…

Its weigh-in time. You strip down, check out things in the mirror, then get out the scale. "You put your right foot in…" etc…

You see the number. Step off the scale. Then, "You put your left foot in…"

You see the number again. So now you move the scale a lil’ bit to the side. "You put your right foot in…"

And so on.

I hit a milestone this AM. I saw "THAT 2" again.

For those of you reading my blog for the 1st time (probably due to my Shannonesque title) you might not be aware of my history. Check out my Bodyspace for more info on my transformation. But let’s just say seeing "THE 1" on the left hand side of the scale for the 1st time since it was on the left hand side of my age was my "Grail". I chased that digit with a fervor. And I got it.

Now, I’m doing everything in my power to GET RID OF IT. And its working. I’m creeping up on adding 10 lbs of muscle since this summer. Still, I admit I had grown very fond of seeing "1". It was my own personal "Fat Badge Of Courage". It was cool. I worked soooooooooooooooooooooooooooo hard to see it.

But its all good. I’m cool with it. Ironically, I am sure I will see it again…..very soon. My meeting with my coach yesterday went great! We made it a working lunch and did our own brown rice sushi (mine was salmon & avocado). We mapped out until my "Target Day" of Valentine’s Day 09′.

I’ve said all along I want to look like "one of the Greg(g)s" (at least from the neck down…sorry Mrs. BuckSpin) so………………..

As of Monday, November 3rd, I will be doing my 1st "cut". Good bye carbs for 21 days. This will be a test run to see how I respond prior to the main one I will do prior to Valentine’s Day.

So I am fairly confident I will see "1" again very soon, and will be "putting my left foot in" on a regular basis for 3 weeks.

I’m excited (and nervous) about finally seeing if 10 months of 4am wakeups, training harder than I’ve ever worked in my life (and not ONE cheat meal) will allow me to sneak a peek at "that body".

I’ll cycle off it just in time for Thanksgiving, at which point I’ll probably be giving thanks for carbs!

Stay tuned…

TGIF everyone. Its kinda a special one for me in that it will mark the end of my latest 6 week cycle. Due to real life I ended up doing Legs & Back yesterday instead of Wednesday. And even by own sadistic standards it was….surreal. Moved a LOT of weight. Spent a few HOURS in my “happy place” afterwards….insane. Somewhere NinjaBill was grinnin’ for reasons unknown to him…

Tomorrow I meet with my “coach” & nutritionist. She is DA BOMB. I always leave our post & pre cycle meetings just stoked. She is amazing. I have zero doubt I would not be where I am today physically without her. She is a Godsend to me. We will review what I’ve accomplished and plan not only the next cycle but also map out the next three plus months, including my first “cut”. I am excited and nervous beyond description to see what will transpire over that as perhaps I will FINALLY get a tiny glimpse at “the body” I’ve been chasing for over 9 months.

But for today I’ll volunteer at my boy’s school (art program) this afternoon, then come home and hit it hard. Send a good cycle out on a high (and LOUD) note. And with that very creative segue….

Its time for this week’s “Bad Hair Daze” tune. This one is a real classic, and probably not as obscure as the other ones I’ve featured. This band, featuring 2 original members of Cinderella, was not a one hit wonder but is definitely best known for this song. And its worth noting that this video was a full 10 YEARS BEFORE another “Britney” utilized the same “Catholic girl school” theme in her video!

For those of you under the age of 30, that “thing” the girl is listening to at the beginning of the video is called a Walkman. Think of it as an antique MP3 player that required *gasp* cassette tapes to work and whose “shuffle” feature was guessing how long to hold the FF or REW buttons down! Anyway, watch the wall behind the blackboard when the teacher cuts the earphones….its a really cool effect.

I somehow get the feeling a number of the O35 women of BB were like this “in that day”! Forgive me in that YouTube has disabled the embedding of this, but its WORTH the click to kick back & enjoy Britny Fox’s 1988 classic Girls School

In reply to the now infamous “bow chicka bow bow” Donkey Calf Raise workout of resident BB wisecracker ShanBL I offer the workout tunes to it:

Fo’ shizzle no fizzle….

BuckSpin: (enters kitchen all sweaty after doing "Blackjack" ab/core workout, sans shirt) "This is the best part of the workout" (points to abs all pumped & definitely more separated than 20 minutes prior)

Mrs. BuckSpin: (sitting at kitchen table on barstool chatting with her BFF via laptop, missing said ab pointing & just looking up) "Umhum, your chest is looking good."

BuckSpin: (surprised) "But I didn’t do chest. I did abs."

Mrs. BuckSpin: (eyebrows furrow) "Oh….but your chest is all pumped up from exercising."

BuckSpin: (glances down at said questioned pectorals) "Um, no…its not. Its not all pumped. See?" (takes her hand & extends pointer finger)

Mrs. Buckspin: (poking non-pumped pecs): *poke, poke, poke* "Oh. (slight look of surprise) "OK." (returns to chatting to BFF)

BuckSpin: (wickedly smiling ear to ear) *soft kiss on Mrs. BuckSpin’s cheek* "You just made my week!"

:)