kinkoshinkai’s BodyBlog

Went north 4 1/2 hours to SLC for the Utah NPC Open.  I actually saw more muscle in the audience than on stage!  There were a few REALLY strong bodybuilders.  A huge 19 year-old that won the teen division.  The middle and heavy winners, as well as the over-all winner and runner-up were superb.  The figure competition had some really qualified ladies.  Last year, my home town girl that won and qualified for nationals did well there, placing 5th in her division (shout out to Janae Stewart!).  I think the class winners this year were splendid as well.

But the highlight, by far, was that Jay "Cuts" Cutler, aka Mr. "O" was the guest poser!!  He hasn’t been to Utah as a guest poser since 2001, and after being on the road every weekend all year so far, his stop in Utah sported the largest crowd he’s visited all year!  He looked great, and I got to meet him earlier in the day at the Gold’s Gym that sponsored the show.  HE’S HUGE!!!  He really put on a show that night, and made it well worth the long drive.  I got to take my 15 year-old son, too, for his first show, and a photo with Mr. "O".  A pretty cool day, all in all.  The coolest part about Jay being there was that he actually was a "fill-in" for the guy who was originally scheduled, but cancelled.  Jay had an opening and accepted the gig!  On what could be considered short notice, to "fill in", and be so gracious, in shape and such a gentleman speaks volumes to who he is as a representative of the sport!

I just measured my arms!!  Haven’t worked out today.  Just lounging around watching the NCAA games I’d taped yesterday.  Got the urge to check.  I’ve been adding an exercise for my triceps and biceps with only my left arm, since it is smaller.  I’ve concentrated a bit more on hammer curls and cambered bar curls to hit the brachialis on the side of my arms for more thickness, too.  And I’ve been trying to break the plateau in arm size I seemed to have hit. 

Today’s measurement, unpumped and in the morning - 16.75 on BOTH ARMS!!! Of course, that’s flexed.  They are also up to 16 inches JUST HANGING RELAXED!!

Yea!!!!!

The first week of my new split routing is under my belt.  It felt pretty good.  I backed off on a few things in order to keep my 20-25 sets in about an hour pace, not overtrain, be able to recover, etc.  But I hit each thing pretty hard still.  Chest feels pretty good.  I really hope I get some significant growth out of the next 12 weeks. 

It feels wierd to not go to the gym today, but I may go down on the Bowflex and my ab/pull-up rack and do something just to keep the metabolism kicking.  I’ll probably hit 5 or six sets of high rep leg extensions, some knee raises and resisted crunches while I watch the basketball games.  Kentucky’s game (my home state) having been postponed due to the Georgia storm weather is today.  BYU, my alma mater, is on.  And if Kentucky wins, a second game tonight.  If I’m training during the games, evel lightly, that’ll be better than sitting around eating ‘game day’ snacks.  

Weighed in at 220 with 16% BF yesterday, so I’m feeling pretty good.  Today is cheat day (movie popcorn w/o butter) usually, so if I train a bit, keep the progress going as it has been, I feel pretty good with that.

OK, my chest just has not been getting thicker like I’d like it to, and my bench is not improving substantially.  In my ongoing search for knowledge, I read the magazines, blogs, and web-sites.  Notably, of course, bodybuilding.com and Flex. All good information.  Flex obviously must be adjusted to the amateur, and caution to see which training protocols are for pre-contest, bulking, conditioning, whatever.  Trying to train like the pro’s without the professional diet, pharmaceuticals, etc. is counterproductive.  But, by the same token, there’s a lot to be learned from anyone who can get that big.  SO…..

I’m switching from a 5 day a week split, one body part per day, to a 4 day a week, 2 bodyparts, and hitting chest twice.  Mon - Chest/back,  Tues - Delts, traps/tri’s, Wed - legs(quads, hams, calves), Thurs - rest, Fri, Chest/biceps.  The protocol calls for abs, too, on chest days, but with limited gym time (I still try to keep it at around an hour) I hit abs as the mood hits and can do them at home anytime, or with cardio.  I still try to keep the intensity up, hitting 20 sets or so within the hour, but with the split this way, that also means fewer set per bodypart, so I have to hit each set extra hard!!  I plan a program for each day, but when I reach the hour mark (provided I haven’t lost focus, socialized, or otherwise slacked my intensity) I cut out rather than overtrain.  Gotta remember I’m not a 20 year old chippy who can eat pizza at will.

So, in 13 weeks, focusing on chest growth, we’ll see what I can achieve.