Step Beyond’s BodyBlog

This is my first crack at a blog and I am hoping to make it a regular weekly occurrence and use this as a venue to share my experiences and knowledge with who ever may be interested.  Hopefully there will be a few who will follow my writings and I will do my best to maintain your interest.
Since this is my first entry, I think it is vital that you first understand who I am and where I am coming from in terms of my own fitness levels and experiences.    
Like many before me, I had quite simply got tired of looking at myself in the mirror and not liking the guy I saw staring back at me.  I had always been active and reasonably healthy.  Since I was a child I had always played organized sport, whether it was hockey, baseball, football, rowing or golf.  You name it and I played it.  I maintained a very active lifestyle until I completed university; then ‘real life’ kicked in.  A busy work schedule and too much socializing got in the way and started me on a pathway which was not a desirable one in terms of my health.  I made many efforts to get back into shape, but none of them ever stuck.  I participated in recreational baseball and hockey leagues, but of course that was always followed by a trip to the local tavern where any positive effects of the activity were quickly erased.  I also was a gym owners dream – I would gladly renew my gym membership and never use it.  I may have used the gym for two or three weeks, but then disappear for 6 months, then come back and repeat the cycle all over again.  I also had no idea as to what ‘healthy’ eating was.  Like most in a similar situation I thought starving myself was the key to weight loss.  So, on one of my cyclical tours through the gym I would starve myself for two or three weeks, but then things would get tough and I would fall off the wagon and binge on food once again and stop going to the gym.  I continued this cycle for many years, all the while not happy with my appearance or the way I felt about myself.
Years passed and I was lucky enough to marry a wonderful lady named Kim and together we share two wonderful boys; Jakob who is five and Zackary who is one and a half.  It was shortly after my 36^th birthday in September 2007 that I decided I had to change, not only for myself but for my family.  I wanted to be healthier for them, so that I could enjoy my recreational time with them and not be fatigued.  I also wanted to set a good example for my two young sons and provide them with the information and tools so that they could learn about healthy living and hopefully make positive choices as they grow up. 
Once again I embarked on a trip to the gym and renewed my membership on October 1, 2007 – the first day of my transformation.  I also started trying to eat healthier, although at this point in time I still didn’t have much idea as to what that was.  Essentially, it came down to eating a lot of salad and chicken and not much else.  After a month I had made some pretty good progress and I was pleased that I had stuck with things for this long.  However, I could feel myself teetering and decided I needed a long term goal to maintain my focus.  I was aware that there was a bodybuilding show every April very close to where I lived.  Without much thought of what I was getting into, I decided that to compete in that show was my goal.  I had five and half months to get ready.  That is plenty of time isn’t it??  After all, how tough could it be??  I had no idea!!!!
Immediately after setting my goal I sought out some much needed help.  I tracked down a personal trainer at my gym.  I explained my objectives and we got right to business.  The knowledge, support and experience were fantastic.  I trained twice a week with my trainer and received some much needed help with my diet, which was key to my success.  Along with my own self education, I finally began to understand the ‘science’ behind what I was doing.  I was like a sponge and just wanted to learn and read more about dieting, different exercise programs, and sought out opinions and feedback on the forums.  In particular, I have become great fans of Layne Norton and Derek Charlebois and have found their articles and information to be extremely beneficial and inspirational.
Fast forward to April 19, 2008 and I am about to step on the stage and compete in my very first bodybuilding show; the 2008 Caribbean Grand Prix, an INBF show in the Cayman Islands.  I had started out in October 2007 at 240 pounds and 25%BF.  Here I was six and a half months later at 175 pounds and 3.5%BF.  Due to lack of participants at the show, they had to combine a few of the classes together.  They didn’t have a Novice Class, so I had to compete in the Open Heavyweight Class (in this case heavyweight was anything above 173 pounds).  I had an absolute blast at the show.  I was so proud to be up on stage.  I couldn’t have cared how I placed, but I was able to come in 4^th. 
Chapter One of my journey was complete.  It wasn’t easy and many times I wanted to give up.  Oftentimes I would wonder why I was spending so much time in the gym, doing cardio, practicing my posing, preparing meals for the next day, sacrificing time away from my wife and kids, but in the end it was all worth it.  The feeling of being on stage was incredible and to see my son in the audience holding up a sign saying “Go Daddy Go” and listening to him cheer me on almost choked me up. My kids and wife have been so supportive through this journey.  I certainly could not have done it without them. 
I am very happy to say that the bodybuilding lifestyle has become more of a routine in our house as we are all eating cleaner and trying to be more active outside of the gym.  Now that the show is over we have our little indulgences, but moderation has become key.  I plan on competing in the same show in April 2009 and will focus now on putting on size so that I can be a bit more competitive on the stage.  My wife is even thinking about competing as well, which would be a first for her too.  I really hope she does it, but even if she doesn’t, we are all better off and all on a path towards a healthier lifestyle that we will be able to pass on to our kids.
In the process of my transformation I have re-kindled my passion for health and fitness and desperately want to share my experience and knowledge with as many people as I can.  I have found something that excites me and drives me – a feeling I have not felt in a long time.  I am in the process of completing my PT certification and already training new clients both online and at various fitness facilities.  I am also currently in the process of developing a website so that I can better deliver online support and programs to who ever needs help to achieve their goals.  Many of us have a fair grasp as to what it takes to succeed in the realm of fitness, but many more do not.  I find myself now in apposition to help those that need it in this capacity and allow them to Step Beyond their current state and achieve their goals and ambitions as it pertains to their personal health.
So, there you have it – me and my history in a nut shell.  Hopefully, I have intrigued a few of you enough to check back in next week when I’ll post a second blog on a yet to be determined topic.  So, please, provide me some feedback if you have a moment and if you have any topics or questions you would like addressed let me know and I’ll do my best to help where I can.
Have a great day and remember to eat clean, lift hard and continue to Step Beyond!!!!

This entry was posted on Monday, August 4th, 2008 at 12:54 pm and is filed under Training. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.