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Mission Grand Prix: 108 Days to Go – Why I Am Doing This

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Motivation

I have been asked several times during Mission Grand Prix: Why are you doing this? I have come up with 3 reasons and I share them with you today.

  1. I want to finish a goal I set 6 years ago. 6 years ago is when I joined the group shred hosted by Adam Waters. I was extremely serious about losing the fat. My problem was more about the methods I used at the time. I now want to hit 8% body fat and be in the absolute best shape of my life.
  2. I want to inspire others. I am a 47 year old guy who used to be totally out of shape. I know that if I can accomplish the goals I have set for myself, anyone can. I want to be an inspiration to others.
  3. I want to feel good about myself again. Being overweight is no fun at all. I am tired of it. I want to look at myself and feel good about what is looking back at me.
  4. I have placed positive pressure on myself. One thing the group shred taught me is the importance of positive pressure. I have told the entire world that I am stepping on stage on April 14, 2012. That means I am doing it no matter how I look. That is plenty of motivation to get into great shape.

You will note that all 3 reasons are about me and only me. This is because I have made this about myself. I am not doing this for anyone else. If I was, it would probably wind up failing. I have to approach the next 15 weeks like my life depends upon it. In a way, it does.

If I fail over these next 15 weeks I will have let myself down by not finishing the goal I set 6 years ago.

If I fail over these next 15 weeks I will have failed to inspire anyone.

If I fail over these next 15 weeks I will not be happy with myself.

If I fail over these next 15 weeks the entire world will know because I will step on stage completely out of shape.

I am not scared because I have focus. What about your journey scares you? Please share with us in the comments.

[pro-player width='530′ height='253′ type='video']http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhbuWEL_6Sk[/pro-player]

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12 Tips for Avoiding Holiday Weight Gain

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Avoid Holiday Weight GainHere is a list of 12 tips that will help you avoid holiday weight gain. Remember, it is all about having a strategy and these 12 tips will help you with that right away.

Remember that you don’t have to wait until New Years Day to have a “new beginning.” Each morning is a brand new day and you can wake up and determine that on this day you will eat clean!

  1. Sneak in workouts when you can. Go pick up your family from the airport and go on a walk with your sister. You know she could use the exercise and fresh air too.
  2. Make time for the gym. It will rid you of your stress to pound it out there.
  3. Consider whether or not you really need that second helping of food. There’s a pretty good chance if you stay in your seat and you enjoy the company of your family you will find that you aren’t really hungry. Savor every bite you take of the first plate.
  4. Avoid alcohol. What are you going to do, get drunk with your family at the dinner table? What’s the point?
  5. Stay away from anything on a menu that says “creamy, fried, or crispy.”
  6. Chug a bottle of water before you sit down to eat. It will make your stomach feel full.
  7. If you are dying to bake goodies, give them away.
  8. Get an accountability partner. Tell them you want them to be difficult and hold you accountable for what you eat, drink and how much you workout.
  9. When you think you should keep eating, take a look at a photo of someone who’s body you would like to have. When I’m sitting on the couch mindlessly eating I am usually online, and I’ll go to the Victoria’s Secret website and I will then put down whatever it is I’m munching on.
  10. Try circuit training with cardio between sets. For ideas here check out my previous blog “Fun with circuits and heart rate.” It’s a way to get an entire workout done quicker and if you keep your heart rate up the entire time you will burn more fat!
  11. Grab a quick snack before going out. If you are shopping bring a protein bar so you can have something to keep your metabolism up. you need to eat every 2–3 hours. If you eat a chocolate protein bar it will keep you from being tempted by the chocolate chip cookies. And if you have an apple with peanut butter you will not be tempted by finger food at cocktail parties.

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Mission Grand Prix: 117 Days to Go — Deload Week

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Deload WeekThis week is a deload week for me. This is a very important part of the strategy for contest preparation. It gives my body some time to recover before we put it through the rigorous training that will start on January 1, 2012.

Cardio Training

Today was a cardio only day. While I am not fond of cardio, I am motivated to get it done because I want to be as lean as I possibly can. It is at times like this that I am thankful I have a trainer. Chris has told me not to over do the cardio. He specifically dialed back the amount of time I spend doing cardio. Had I been preparing on my own I am sure I'd have gone in the other direction.

My cardio training is now the high intensity cardio format. I am not doing intervals as much. I will be throwing them in after weight training workouts, but will not use them during dedicated cardio sessions such as the one I did today.

 

Cardio After Weights

One new wrinkle is that Chris has me doing cardio after my weight training. It is a very short (10 minutes) session of intervals, but it is designed to help us maximize my fat burning potential. After all the glycogen has been expended through a tough weight training session, this interval cardio has the potential to burn a tremendous amount of fat. This is another strategy that we are using for contest preparation.

Nutrition

Today was a banner day. I ate nothing but chicken, beef, sweet potato, spinach and water. The focus that was there before is getting even more laser guided. I can feel the difference. The anticipation of the start of 2012 has me bearing down more than before. I can see major changes in the pictures I posted on Saturday and I am looking forward to the pictures to come on this Saturday.

I'd love it if you would share with me your thoughts on getting lean. What has worked for you and what has not that you thought would?

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Mission Grand Prix: 118 Days to Go – Shoulder Training

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Shoulder Training

Shoulder Training

With the show 118 days to go and the mass building program in place, my shoulder workout today was a great one. I was unable to train with my trainer, Chris Albert, so I hit the gym by myself and blasted those shoulders. The feeling was gone in my shoulders in no time. Just a pair of numb shoulders was all I was left with!

DB Overhead Press 35 lbs. x 15; 40 lbs. x 15; 50 lbs. x 15
DB Side Laterals
{ss
DB Front Laterals		 15 lbs. x 15 x 3

10 lbs. x 15 x 3
Upright rows 35 lbs. x 15; 45 lbs. x 15; 55 lbs. x 15
DB Bent Laterals 10 lbs. x 15 x 3
Overhead press with log 165 lbs. x 8; 165 lbs. x 8

This workout hits all angles of the shoulders and aims to build mass and a balanced appearance.

My Impressions

It struck me tonight that I should be journaling this entire experience in addition to blogging about it. Thus, I am going to start journaling my personal thoughts and may share those in some form at some time in the future. My impressions are varied. I see things from so many different angles. I am enjoying the process even though it is hard work. My biggest downfall so far has been not focusing on the cardio enough, but I have fixed that this week. I have even added a very short 10-minute HIIT session after my weight training. I average about 110 calories burned in each of those sessions, so I am burning an additional 440 calories a week at this point. In addition, I am hitting my longer sessions as well using High Intensity Cardio. I’ve become a big believer in varying the cardio training and this fits right in with that mindset.

What are your biggest cardio challenges? Share with us by leaving a comment below.

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Mission Grand Prix: 119 Days to Go – Back Training

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Back Workout

Back Training

With 119 days to go until the NPC Amateur Grand Prix, I spent the morning at Metroflex Long Beach training my back muscles. I completed a nice workout that consisted of the following:

Snatch Grip Deadlifts 115 lbs. x 10; 165 lbs. x 10; 185 lbs. x 10
Wide Grip Pull Downs 90 lbs. x 10; 120 lbs. x 10; 150 lbs. x 10
Bent Over Rows 115 lbs. x 15; 135 lbs. x 15; 155 lbs. x 15
Close Grip Cable Rows 120 lbs. x 15; 150 lbs. x 15; 180 lbs. x 15
T-Bar Rows 90 lbs. x 10 x 5

This workout was designed to build some width in my entire back area.

Family Time

Today was also the day for our annual family Christmas lunch where I get to see my niece and her children as well as my brother. We drove to Santa Monica (1 hour drive). The entire family had a blast. We laughed and told stories. It was over too quickly.

Planning Ahead

In the interest of planning ahead, my trainer sent over my new nutrition plan that will begin January 1, 2012. This is the plan for the first 2 weeks of my contest preparation and will get altered as we assess my progress. He also listed out the supplements he’d like me taking during this time. I spent some time on the True Nutrition website putting together an order. I was amazed at how many combinations I could put together to customize my order. I was able to add Stevia as a sweetener, add flavoring, etc. I highly recommend True Nutrition for your supplement needs. They have a large selection, have an easy to navigate site and allow you to customize your selections. The only downfall was their checkout and payment process. It was very slow because of how they assembled the steps.

Today I’d love for you to tell us about your planning issues and how you deal with planning in general.

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