bigdave1967’s BodyBlog

I WAS AT THE GYM YESTERDAY AFTERNOON, TRAINING A CLIENT, WHEN IT HAPPENED.  I WAS FINISHING UP WITH MY CLIENT’S SESSION WHEN A WAGER TOOK PLACE THAT INTRIGUED ME.  "B"–A TWENTY=ONE YEAR OLD, 250 LB BODYBUILDER WHO TRAINS AT THE CLUB–WAS TRAINING HIS BACK MUSCLES, DOING THE LOW-CABLE ROW, PRETTY HEAVY.  "A"–THE FORTY-TWO YEAR-OLD OWNER OF THE GYM–STARTED BAITING HIM, SAYING: "I’LL GIVE YOU A FREE BOX OF (MEAL-REPLACEMENT POWDER) IF YOU STACK IT OUT FOR FIFTEEN REPS." B SAID, "I’LL TAKE THAT BET", AND SET THE PIN ON THE FULL 300 POUND STACK.

BEFORE HE BEGAN HIS SET, A’S CLIENT PIPED UP: "DO IT TWENTY-FIVE TIMES AND I’LL GIVE YOU A HUNDRED BUCKS." B WAS MOTIVATED, AND STRAPPED IN TO BEGIN HIS SET. FIFTEEN WASN’T A PROBLEM, SO HE EARNED HIS MRP, BUT HAD TO PAUSE WITHOUT UNSTRAPPING BEFORE TRYING FOR MORE.  I DON’T KNOW WHY–HE COULDN’T EXPLAIN IT EITHER–BUT HE QUIT AT TWENTY-ONE, UNSTRAPPING AND ENDING THE SET.  NO MONEY.

A STARTED BAITING ME, SAYING,"COME ON DAVE, SHOW HIM HOW IT’S DONE." OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, AND HIS CLIENT STARTED SAYING THE SAME. WHEN I BALKED–I HAD DONE HEAVY STIFF-LEGGED DEADS A FEW HOURS EARLIER AS PART OF MY HAMS-AND-CALVES DAY–A JUMPED ON THE MACHINE TO GIVE IT A WHIRL. HE GOT TO EIGHTEEN, AND HAD TO STOP (PRETTY IMPRESSIVE FOR A GUY WHO WEIGHS LESS THAN 180 LBS). NOW TO UNDERSTAND MY RESPONSE, YOU HAVE TO REALIZE I’VE KNOWN A FOR SIX YEARS, AND I’VE ALWAYS BEEN BIGGER AND STRONGER THAN HIM, BUT HIS ENDURANCE IS UNBELIEVABLE, AND WITH AN EQUAL PERCENTAGE OF OUR BODYWEIGHTS, HE CAN ALWAYS OUT-REP ME. ALSO, HE HAS A WAY OF GETTING UNDER MY SKIN AND MOTIVATING ME TO DO THINGS I WOULDN’T NORMALLY ATTEMPT. HE STARTED: "COME ON DAVE, STAND UP FOR THE OLD GUYS." HIS CLIENT STARTED EGGING ME ON, SO WHEN MY CLIENT SAID "GO AHEAD, I’LL WAIT", I STRAPPED IN, AND BEGAN MY SET.

I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT MY FORM WAS LIKE ON THE LAST EIGHT REPS, BUT APPARENTLY IT WAS ENOUGH TO WARRANT A CONGRATULATORY HANDSHAKE FROM A, DISAPPOINTED CONGATS FROM B (WHO STILL CAN’T EXPLAIN WHY HE STOPPED EARLY), AND A CRISP $100 DOLLAR BILL IN MY POCKET FROM A’S CLIENT, WHO REALLY WAS GOOD FOR IT.

I WANTED TO TELL HIM TO SAVE HIS MONEY–IT WASN’T ABOUT THAT–BUT I THANKED HIM, AND TOOK MY WIFE OUT THAT NIGHT TO CELEBRATE.

I’VE BEEN DIETING FOR SEVERAL WEEKS NOW, AND IF YOU’VE BEEN PAYING ATTENTION TO THE STATS POSTED, MY WEIGHT AND BODYFAT ARE DECREASING DRAMATICALLY.  AT WORK AND AT THE GYM I WORK OUT AT I’VE GOT PEOPLE ASKING "WHEN’S THE SHOW?" NOT SURE ABOUT THAT, BUT I’VE BEEN CURIOUS IF, AT 41, AFTER A THREE YEAR LAY-OFF FROM COMPETITION, I COULD GET BACK INTO THAT KIND OF SHAPE AGAIN, ALTHOUGH SLIGHTLY–AND ONLY SLIGHTLY– SMALLER THAN BEFORE. 

I’VE BEEN TRAINING MY ASS OFF, PUSHING THE WEIGHTS IN EVERY EXERCISE, AND DOING HIGH-INTENSITY CARDIO FOR 20, 25 MINUTES PER DAY.  I TELL PEOPLE: "THIS BODY’S NOT BUILT FOR RUNNING, JUST LIFTING HEAVY THINGS", BUT IF I’M GOING TO DO CARDIO AT ALL, I’M GOING TO GET THE MOST I CAN OUT OF IT!

SHAVED DOWN A COUPLE WEEKS AGO, AND IT’S AMAZING HOW PEOPLE NOTICE THE SHAPE I’M IN, AS IF IT HAPPENED OVERNIGHT! GIVE ME A BREAK! I’M A BODYBUILDER FOR GOD’S SAKE, AND I’VE BEEN WORKING OUT FOR TWENTY-FIVE YEARS. IF I CAN’T GET IN SHAPE LIKE BEFORE I MAY AS WELL JUST QUIT (AND THAT’S NOT HAPPENING!)

ANYWAY, ENOUGH OF THE RANT. I’M MOTIVATED, I’M ON TARGET, AND I’M BACK!

THIS IS ONLY MY SECOND POST, AND NOT MUCH NEW TO REPORT.  THESE DAYS, TRAINING EVERY BODYPART ONCE PER WEEK, AND DOING CARDIO FOR TWENTY MINUTES AT A SHOT (HIT TRAINING) FOUR OR FIVE DAYS PER WEEK.  BODYWEIGHT CURRENTLY 216.5 LBS, AND APPROX. 10% BODYFAT BY SKINDEX READING.

DIET IS RELATIVELY CLEAN, EATING FIVE TIMES PER DAY, ROUGHLY EVERY THREE HOURS AS MY SCHEDULE ALLOWS.  DINNER (MY FINAL MEAL) MAY INCLUDE A LITTLE JUNK, BUT EVERY OTHER MEAL IS OATS, PROTEIN POWDER OR MRP, CHICKEN OR FISH, STEAMED VEGGIES AND COMPLEX CARBS (RICE, POTATO, ETC.).  CALORIES ARE KEPT AT 3000 OR SO PER DAY, AND I FIND MYSELF STAYING JUST THIS SIDE OF HUNGRY.

MONDAY IS CHEST AND TRAPS, FOUR EXERCISES FOR CHEST (2 WORK SETS EACH), TWO FOR TRAPS (AGAIN, EXCEPT AS WHERE OTHERWISE NOTED, 2 WORK SETS OF EACH EXERCISE).  A LITTLE CORE TRAINING (ABS AND LOW BACK), AND THEN CARDIO.

TUESDAY IS QUAD DAY, AND THAT’S MY FUN DAY!  I NEVER SQUAT FIRST IN MY WORKOUT, BUT I ALWAYS SQUAT.  I’LL BEGIN WITH EXTENSIONS TO WARM UP MY KNEES, THREE OR FOUR SETS, PROGRESSIVELY HEAVIER.  THE GYM I WORK OUT AT HAS A HAMMER STRENGTH SQUAT MACHINE, LIKE A HACK SQUAT, AND THAT IS NEXT, FOR TWO WORK SETS.  SINGLE-LEG PRESSES ARE NEXT, SAME SETS, FOLLOWED BY HEAVY BARBELL SQUATS.  FINAL EXERCISE IS EITHER FRONT SQUATS ON A SMITH MACHINE OR HORIZONTAL LEG PRESSES.  ONCE THAT’S DONE, MORE CARDIO IS NEXT.

(YOU’LL NOTICE READING THIS I DON’T TALK NUMBERS.  THAT’S NOT BECAUSE THEIR UNIMPRESSIVE, BUT BECAUSE THEY ARE IRRELLEVANT TO BODYBUILDING.  THE ONLY NUMBER THAT COUNTS IN BODYBUILDING IS # 1!)

WEDNESDAY IS SHOULDERS, TRICEPS AND SOMETIMES ABS.  HAMMER STRENGTH DELT PRESS, REAR DELT LATERALS ON AN INCLINE BENCH, SIDE LATERALS AND HIGH PULLS.  CLOSE-GRIP BENCH PRESS, ONE-ARM DUMBELL EXTENSIONS AND PUSHDOWNS FOR TRICEPS.  CORE AND CARDIO NEXT.

THURSDAY IS BACK AND BICEPS:  HEAVY T-BAR ROWS, WEIGHTED PULL-UPS, PULLDOWNS AND MID-BACK MACHINE FLYES.  CARDIO IS NEXT.

FRIDAY IS FOR HAMSTRINGS AND CALVES:  ROMANIAN (STIFF-LEGGED) DEADLIFTS, LYING LEG CURL AND SEATED OR STANDING ONE-LEG CURL, ABDUCTOR MACHINE FOLLOWED BY TOE PRESSES AND SEATED CALF RAISES.  LAST, BUT NOT LEAST, CARDIO.

 AS A QUICK ACKNOWLEDGEMENT, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK MY WIFE, KRISTEN, FOR HER PATIENCE AND UNDERSTANDING DURING MY JOURNEY THROUGH BODYBUILDING.  EVERYTHING I’VE ACCOMPLISHED IN MY COMPETITIVE CAREER, MY PROFESSION AND MY PERSONAL LIFE ARE A DIRECT RESULT OF HER SUPPORT AND ENCOURAGEMENT.  THANK YOU, KRISTEN.  I LOVE YOU.

I BEGAN BODYBUILDING WEIGHT TRAINING IN 1983, AS A SOPHOMORE IN HIGH SCHOOL.  IN 1994, AFTER 11 YEARS OF NATURAL TRAINING, I ENTERED MY FIRST SHOW, THE ANBC GOLD’S CLASSIC IN SOMERSET, MA.  I WON MY CLASS (MEN’S OPEN MEDIUM HEIGHT) AND THE OVERALL, AND I WAS HOOKED!  ONE WEEK LATER, I WON MY CLASS AGAIN, AT THE ANBC RHODE ISLAND CHAMPIONSHIP (BEATING OUT CURRENT IFBB PRO GREG RANDO, WHO WAS COMING OFF A JUNIOR CLASS WIN THE PREVIOUS YEAR AT THE ANBC U.S. NATURALS), AND I DIDN’T LOOK BACK FOR TEN YEARS.

IN 1995, AFTER A SECOND-PLACE FINISH AT THE ANBC COLONIAL CLASSIC, AND AN OVERALL AND CLASS WIN AT THE NABF GOLD’S CLASSIC, I MADE THE SWITCH TO OPEN (UNTESTED) COMPETITION.  MY INITIAL FORAY INTO THIS AREA WAS UNSUCCESSFUL, TO PUT IT NICELY, MAINLY BECAUSE I PREPARED FOR THE 1995 NPC NEW ENGLANDS LIKE I HAD FOR MY PREVIOUS SHOWS, NOT REALIZING THE JUDGING CRITERIA WERE DIFFERENT.  I REMEMBER THE HEAD JUDGE DURING THE COMPETITIOR’S MEETING SAYING:  "THIS IS A BODYBUILDING SHOW, SO IF YOU DON’T HAVE LARGE MUSCLES TO GO WITH YOUR DEFINITION, YOU’RE IN THE WRONG SHOW."

AFTER A FEW MORE ATTEMPTS AT THE LOCAL AND STATE LEVEL, I FINALLY GOT IT RIGHT WHEN I WON THE LIGHT-HEAVY CLASS AT THE 1997 RHODE ISLAND MUSCLE CLASSIC!  I ENTERED AS A "DARK HORSE"–NOBODY BUT MY WIFE KNEW I WAS PLANNING ON ENTERING, BUT EVERYONE KNEW I WAS THERE!  MY WIFE TOLD ME SHE HEARD COMMENTS DURING THE PRE-JUDGING FROM OTHER AUDIENCE MEMBERS THAT I LOOKED TOO BIG FOR THE LIGHT-HEAVY CLASS, AND THE SHOW MUST HAVE BEEN FIXED.  NOT SO, SINCE NONE OF THE JUDGES KNEW ME OR KNEW I WAS ENTERING BEFORE THE DAY OF THE SHOW, AND I HAD NO PROBLEM MAKING THE WEIGHT CUT-OFF!

IN 1998 AND ‘99, I STEPPED UP TO THE NPC SOUTHERN STATES IN FT. LAUDERDALE, FL, PLACING 3RD AND 5TH, AND REALIZING MY BODY NEEDED A BREAK FROM COMPETITION.  FOR THE NEXT TWO YEARS, I CONCENTRATED ON MY BUSINESS–PERSONAL TRAINING AND HEALTH CLUB MANAGEMENT–AND  FAMILY LIFE, AND TRAINED FOR GROWTH.

1N 2002, AFTER MOVING BACK TO NEW ENGLAND, I ENTERED THE 2002 NEW ENGLANDS, PLACING THIRD.  THAT FALL I ENTERED THE NORTHEAST TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS, WINNING MY CLASS AND THE OVERALL.

THE FOLLOWING YEAR, 2003, WAS ANOTHER "LEARNING EXPERIENCE", WHICH NETTED ME A 5TH PLACE FINISH AT THE NPC EASTERN USA IN NEW YORK CITY.  LET ME TELL YOU, BEV FRANCIS, HER HUSBAND STEVE W, AND STEVE STONE PUT ON A CLASS "A" SHOW!

2004 WAS MY YEAR, AT LEAST IN BODYBUILDING, AS I ENTERED, AND WON MY CLASS AT THE NPC JUNIOR USA BODYBUILDING CHAMPIONSHIP, HELD THAT YEAR IN NEW HAVEN, CT, AND PROMOTED BY MIKE KATZ (OF "PUMPING IRON" FAME) AND COMPANY.  MAYBE MY OPINION IS COLORED BY THE FACT THAT I WAS PRETTY SUCCESSFUL THAT NIGHT, BUT I THOUGHT THIS WAS A WELL-RUN SHOW.  THE FACT THAT I PLACED AHEAD OF COMPETITORS LIKE CHRIS CAUDY (WHO HAD ALREADY BEEN SUCCESSFUL AT THIS LEVEL OF COMPETITION)  MADE ME FEEL PRETTY GOOD ABOUT MY ACCOMPLISHMENTS.

THE LAST FEW YEARS HAVE BEEN SPENT CONCENTRATING ON FAMILY AND BUSINESS AGAIN, AS THESE THINGS ALWAYS SEEM TO TAKE A BACK SEAT WHEN CONTEST TIME ROLES AROUND.  I HAVE NOTICED LATELY, HOWEVER, THAT I’M GETTING ITCHY TO GET BACK ON STAGE.  WHO KNOWS, MAYBE I’LL DO AN NPC NATURAL SHOW IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS…