BuckSpin - A Year Of Change

Under my Forums avatar is a series of what appear to be random numbers:

848|88 & 10410|1010

Its not the da Vinci code or anything, but they do stand for something. The 848|88 is for Straight Leg Dead Lifts. The 10410|1010 is for Rack Deadlifts.

The numbers mean "8 plates for (get it? "for") 8 reps by August 8th" & "10 plates for 10 reps by October 10th."

10410 is history. Last Thursday it went down.

On my favorite training day (Back Day) my Rack Pulls progressed like this (bar just below knees):

Warm Up: Bar x 10 WU, 225×10 WO, 295×5, 365×5, 425×5

The last WU set felt good. I usually do 3. Did 5. I was scheduled for a working set of 485 in that I had opened with 475×10 last time. But I felt good, Metallica was blarin’, so I went for it.

Got 11. 10411! 495×11!

Felt awesome.

Finished up with 515×5 & 535×2 (a new PR for me)

One down, one to go.

And on the 848 a week ago I finally pulled (after working sets of 365×8 & 385×4) 405×1. First time I have been able to lock out 8 plates straight leg.

So the chase for 848 is on.

I’m already thinking that 12412|1212 sounds cool….

A good BB Friend of mine is going thru his Peak Week right now, a Peak Week unlike any other:

My Friend

If you get a chance, swing by his Bodyspace and send some good Mojo his way as he heads off to Nationals

In that I have had a few people at the fitness center mention that they thought I had gotten noticeably bigger since January, I took some measurements for the 1st time in a while today. I always do these 1st thing on a Sunday in that this is typically when I am at my "tightest", if you will.

To say I was stunned is an understatement. All measurements done via the BB protocol (same as last time):

To keep things in the big picture, I’m inlcuding my 1st measurements from last June 1st in ( ) when I started weight training:

Weight: 215lbs! (195.5") - Got as low as 186.5 last November. I’ve gained almost 30lbs since Thanksgiving!
BF: 15% - Got an electrostatic BMI & added 7% for variance
Chest: 45" (40.75") - Going on 10 months of 100% incline work
Arms: 16"!  (14.5") I have been at 15" FOREVER!!!! WOOHOO!!!
Hips: 37" (38.5") - This got as low as 34.5" last year, but this new booty can’t be denied!
Waist: 36" (34.75") - This got as low as 33.5" last year. Gotta have a lil’ fat to make gains
Thighs: 24" (22.25") - Hopefully these will go up big time soon
Calves: 17.25" (16") - They say these should be 1:1 with arms…I wish!
Forearms: 12" (9.75") - Ab wheel & planks
Shoulders: 51" (47.5") - Finally getting a lil’ width
Neck: 17" (14.75) - Shrugs? I dunno

This has really helped to re-ignite that fire that has been embers lately!

One of the 1st things I learned about bodybuilding is that, to me, the physical aspect (training) is by far the easiest aspect. Its the mental & spiritual that are by far the hardest on one’s self. That muscle between your ears & the inner energy/force residing in that one beating in your chest are, regardless of how you train, worked to failure over & over & over & over, day after day after day.

I am currently running on fumes spiritually. It happens from time to time. I often think of myself as an inspirational junkie, running from stories to movies to tunes, etc, to get a quick "fix" to get me thru that day’s training, that week’s efforts, etc. And, just like any other stimulant, you start to get acclimated to it & need bigger, stronger "doses", if you will.

So, what do you do to replenish the inner batteries, to keep the mind sharp & spirit soaring, to break a "plateau" of inspiration?

I debated over adding this to my online Workout Journal. But a good BB friend told me to “be myself”. This is me. If you are looking for reps, weights & sets, skip reading this.

I’m a very private person. I keep to myself. But every now & then something happens that I feel warrants sharing.

Last Saturday, after my 3rd training session in a row, I was driving to work afterwards. I had already awoken much earlier than I usually do on a Saturday to get everything done that was going to need to get done in order to allow me to train, clean up & change, eat & get to work by 9:30am.

I had just finished a huge Back Day. After 2 rough sessions I was still able to set a new PR for a weight lifted. I was physically beat up & tired, mentally worn down, sore all over, hungry & a lil’ anxious to keep ahead of the clock as I drove off.

I’m not sure if you believe in a higher presence, a guiding force, etc, or for that matter in angels. Not necessarily the halo/winged kind, but someone/something watching over you. I have come to, and whomever/whatever they are/were, they knew I needed a lil’ help at that moment.

Not a few seconds on the road this song came on. I channel flip a lot. The odds of my hitting this song just as it started at that moment….who knows.

But it hit me like a tidal wave. Time stood still. The lyrics just overwhelmed me. They summed up the past year of my life so eloquently, so deeply, so painfully. The beginning of the weight loss, all the effort, shame, hard work, sweat, it all came back. The rebirth, the start of a new life, the even harder work, focusing toward a goal of trading over 3 years of my life for 120 seconds on a stage.

I don’t remember the drive to work at all. All I know is that I got there & the song was over and I was a different person than I was a few minutes earlier.

These are the lyrics. I am sure he was singing about something other that what I went thru & what I am doing, but it summed up my journey so well:

Then the rainstorm came over me
And I felt my spirit break
I had lost all of my belief you see
And realize my mistake
But time threw a prayer to me
And all around me became still

Through the rainstorm came sanctuary
And I felt my spirit fly
I had found all of my reality
I realize what it takes  

Here is the official video. I can’t find it on YouTube.

http://www.mtv.com/videos/seal/33701/loves-divine.jhtml

1 year ago today (February 4th, 2008) this was me. A burger shy of 270lbs and 43% BF built up over 2 decades of apathy:

This is my 1st "Rebirthday". I will celebrate this day every year. Thanks to all my BB Friends for all the help over the past year.

I started a workout journal in the O35:

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=113167271

Goal is to update it every session for the next 3 years, when I (hopefully) will have worked hard enough to not embarrass myself competing.

No, nothing to do with Optimus Prime…

I’ve started a BodyGroup dedicated to those who have either undergone, are undergoing, or are ready to undertake total life transformations from fat to fit.

If you have undergone a life changing transformation and are willing to help others do the same, or if you are in the process of, please come join us.

If you are READY to begin a transformation, change your lifestyle and seize your life back, read this carefully:

If you can keep up with & contribute to the strength of the pack, you are welcome to join us.

Its been an interesting, very introspective 24 hours. A public "Thanks" to those I spoke with in private.

In case anyone is wondering, I made public on the O35 Forum the worst kept secret on BB:

I WILL begin training to compete. Its just a matter of when I compete.

My gut (and brain) tell me to heed the example of one of the bodybuilding idols of my youth - "The Shadow" (if you don’t know who that is that is your Google for today)…so I’m gonna go disappear into what excuse of a "Dungeon" I can find in the Midcoast and just "Eat, Lift, Sleep & Repeat". I’ll find a Training Partner (gender not important) who understands the effort & intensity it takes to make oneself physically nauseous from a properly executed set of curls to total concentric & eccentric failure, that knows that tears DO taste a lot different than sweat when forced together.

I WILL be that one Novice who gets the Open guys attention when I do come out into the sun to "play"… …in 2011.

Goals For 2009:

• I WILL earn my NCSA CPT certificate
• I WILL be able to provide for my family & my passion with the above
• I WILL positively impact at least one life as a CPT like mine was
• I WILL weigh 200lbs after my annual cut…and look it

A good BB Friend of mine continuely reminds me to “enjoy the journey”. I am in no hurry to get to that stage. I am looking forward to earning my right to even consider that honor and everything along the way it entails. Its not the destination, but the journey. That journey will begin in 2009 and, if I work hard & focus harder with my eyes on the prize, end sometime late in 2011.
1000 days out…..

“game on”