First off, I am sending my deepest sympathy and my good thoughts to all the people in Japan and to the rest of the world who have been affected by the catastrophic Japan quake. I have high hopes they will have a quick and smooth recovery. It’s a devastating event to say the least and it really does put into perspective just how unimportant my bodybuilding endeavors truly are. I feel very fortunate that my wife and I are safe and secure.  I do not take for granted that at any moment that all can be swept away in a heartbeat.

This blog just seems to have very little importance today in the face of this tragic event, but I happened to write about my week’s journey before the devastation even took place.  I was very apprehensive whether I should even post it. Obviously I did, but I have mixed feelings about it. On one hand, I feel some guilt because I am talking about bodybuilding during an unfortunate time. On the other hand, if my blog helps a few people to escape from this bad reality for even a couple of minutes than it is worthwhile.   

Below is my original blog prior to yesterday’s tragic event.

To say my motivation has sky rocketed would be true. With each passing week my desire to improve has rapidly increased and I’m highly motivated. Before writing about my progress, I reflected back on my last few posts and it really hit me how depressed I really was. The stress of everyday life, loan modifications, unemployment, my physical limitations in the gym and the inability to get a grasp with this year’s prep was getting the best of me. So it has been a positive turnaround the past couple of weeks and it feels great. Today is a good day and nothing and no one will influence me otherwise. The word ‘enthusiastic’ comes to mind as the perfect way to describe the way I’m feeling right now.

Bodyweight
Starting Weight 12/06/10 – 206.5
Current Weight 03/10/11 – 185.4
Goal Weight – 160
*Note – Might post up some pics once I hit 180, but don’t hold your breath LOL! Gotta see what I look like first :)

Nutrition
Still the same numbers:
180p/300c/40f Normal Days
180p/500c/40f Refeed Day (fancy way of saying to eat more LOL!) which is on Saturdays

I’ve been eating roughly a 90% clean bodybuilding diet, but lately I have been hooked on “No Pudge Brownies”. Original and mint flavors are awesome and they also have Cappucino, which I have yet to try…but I plan on it. The brownies are so easy to make and they are totally fat free.  Just mix in non-fat vanilla yogurt, stir, bake and you are good to go. After some experimentation, I created what I call “Brownie Goo” and it is sooo friggin delicious! Below is my quick recipe if anyone is interested and the macros are tailored for my needs, but you can always adjust the recipe to fit yours.



Brownie Goo
In a small bowl combine:

  • 2 servings No Fudge Brownie Mix (64g)
  • 1 tbsp Non-Fat Vanilla Yogurt

Stir until completely mixed (be patient as it is kind of hard to mix). Microwave for 1-1 ½ minutes.

In a separate small bowl combine:

  • 1 serving Chocolate Whey Protein (30g) *I use Optimum Nutrition, but I would imagine other brands and flavors would be good too!
  • ½ serving Sunflower Butter or Reduced Fat Peanut Butter (16g) *You can get Sunflower butter from Trader Joe’s
  • 1-2 ounces water (you may need more or less depending on how you like the consistency)

Stir until creamy and pour contents over No Pudge Brownie. Top with Fat Free Cool Whip (9g) and enjoy!

Macros – 66 carbs, 33 protein, 9 fat

Cardio
2 – 45 minute LISS sessions on the recumbent bike so far this week. While riding I’ve read 2 more chapters on John Wooden’s book titled “Wooden on Leadership”.  It’s a tremendous book with many inspirational quotes that I refer to quite regularly. One of my favorites,
“Success is not in a destination, it is the journey.”
 -John Wooden  



Since 2006, this principle has been the way in which I approach contest prep and it truly does keep things in the right perspective for me.  

Weight Training
As I mentioned in my last blog, I’m training two days per week on Tuesdays and Fridays to assist my recovery and to improve performance. On Tuesday, I had my best upper body workout in quite some time. Last week’s deload along with the extra days rest in between workouts have been a very successful adjustment so far. My overall strength is still not at previous levels, but I’m not overly concerned with strength gains right now.  My main focus is to apply enough tension and intensity to maintain muscle size. I’m a lot more concerned with the pain level in my joints and that has dramatically decreased which is a huge bonus. In hindsight, I guess I was allowing a small portion of my ego to dictate my workouts by pushing through the joint pain and sticking to what I planned out on paper. I just needed to slap that little ego maniac upside his head. It was a good fight, but I knocked his a** out LOL! I might have gotten a black eye, but I am still on my feet and fighting on. You are probably thinking I just watched Rocky LOL! But you know what? I might just go ahead and watch Rocky Balboa tonight…love that movie especially since I am an aging athlete myself…I can relate to it pretty well and it always gets me amped.



03/08/11 Tuesday – Upper Body Workout
15 Degree Incline DB Press – 80 x 10/9 *So excited to use dumbbells again without the intense pain.
30 Degree Incline DB Press – 80 x 7
Pec Dec – 70 x 7
One Arm Rows – 110 x 10
Smith Rows (starting below knee level) – 205 x 10
Seated Cable Rows – 170 x 8
Lat Pulldowns (Palms Up) – 170 x 10
Military Press (Standing) – 135 x 5/5/5 *I did not go remotely close to failure to avoid shoulder pain.
Smith Upright Rows – 115 x 8
Rear Flys (Pec Dec) – 60 x 7
Tricep Pressdowns – 110 x 6/5
Barbell Curls – 95 x 9/8
Rope Hammer Curls – 60 x 9

On most exercises I performed 1 set and on some I did 2 sets with the exception of the Military Press, as I did 3 sets. I was able to keep my rep speed at normal pace, but on occasion, I had to really slow things down a bit to try and avoid shoulder pain. Also, I shot footage of the workout and I put together a highlight video to give a small peek into my workout and also for a little fun. I hope you enjoy! The video is dedicated to my wife’s grandmother who is now well on her way to a successful recovery! Love you GigiBu!


As you might have noticed I am really enjoying this crazy bodybuilding process again. It took me a little while to find my groove this year, but each preparation has its own unique road blocks. It requires patience to figure out how to get around them, but it seems as though I am on the right track. As long as I stay true to myself and do not let my ego impede with my recovery, I will more than likely enjoy steady progress in terms of my physical and mental well being. When I feel good…life is good and when I don’t…life sucks. Same applies to my training. When I feel good…I have good workouts and when I don’t…crappy workouts. It's common sense when I stop and think about it.

Until my next blog keep training hard, smart and naturally!