Vytis Chapter II - The Realization of a Dream

[Vytis]

I think it's time for a fresh new start, so I decided to create a new journal for the second part of my bodybuilding journey. First though, I think it would be smart to take a look back at where I came from.

I joined BB.com in March of 2008 with the following stats:

Weight - 180 lbs
Body fat - 9.4%
Quads - 22
Arms (flexed) - 15.5
Shoulders - 48
Chest - 42.5
Waist - 32

And here's what that looked like:



I began a "bulking" program, and was really focused on gaining some serious size. Well needless to say, I gained some serious weight, but a lot of it was fat. By November 2008 my body had certainly changed:

Weight - 215 lbs
Body fat -16+ %
Quads - 25.25
Arms (flexed) 17
Shoulders - 52.5
Chest - 45.5
Waist - 34

Looks like pretty good progress huh? Unfortunately it looked like this:



I was disappointed and honestly a little disgusted at how my body had transformed. In November of 2008 I also attended my first BB show and afterwards told my wife that I would be on stage myself in one year. That was a bold statement, and probably more of a pipe dream than anything. But right then and there I decided that a change needed to be made, and I switched gears into cutting mode. Weeks turned into months, and my progress was SLOW. At many points in time I was ready to throw my hands in the air and give up. I was ready to go back to my vegetarian and whittle myself back down to 175lbs and skinny.

I knew that wouldn't satisfy me, so I persevered, kept trying new approaches and soon began to learn how my body worked. But only when I made a personal commitment to entering my 1st competition in November of 2009 did my transformation really crank into high gear. I dieted and trained very hard for close to 6 months, but I think that the hard work paid off as I got myself into the best shape of my life:

Weight - 176 lbs
Body fat - 6.4%
Quads - 22.5
Arms (flexed) - 15.5
Shoulders - 48
Chest - 43.5
Waist - 31





So that takes us to the present. Here are some of the goals that I'm setting for myself:

Short Term
1. Place 1st in the current OBF competition (Dec 2009)
2. Make my current physique look skinny

Long Term
1. Place 1st in a Men's Novice Heavyweight Class (2010)
2. Place top 5 in a Men's Open Heavyweight Class (2010)
3. Be a legitimate contender for a Pro Card (By 2012)
4. Win a Masters Pro Card (2012)

So this is it guys, where my new chapter begins. There have been a lot of people from these forums that have been there for support and motivation, and to them I owe them my thanks.

Ultimately I couldn't have done any of this without my wife Jennifer and 14 week old Nathan:





Who's with me?

[Tifflex]

Subscribed!

I saw your pics in Jaime's journal and you looked amazing.

[stayfit2008]

Welcome to the O35 forum Buddy!!

[2nd_chance]

He who is not with you is against you!! I'm with you. Let's blow this place up!!!

Subb'd.

[Vytis]

Subscribed!

I saw your pics in Jaime's journal and you looked amazing.

Thanks very much and welcome.

Welcome to the O35 forum Buddy!!

I'm excited to join this forum, thanks!

He who is not with you is against you!! I'm with you. Let's blow this place up!!!

Subb'd.

I love it. Time to get to work!

After 4 days off from the weights, I felt the need to lift some iron. And what better way than to get back to my old program, what I used before my contest prep, Dr Hatfield's Hardcore Bodybuilding program. Here's some info on it:

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...light=hatfield

Today's workouts looked like this:

AM Cardio - 64 min LISS

PM Weights
Back (A), Chest (A) & Biceps (A)
Rack Deads 225 - 10 sets of 10
Chest Press 190 - 12 sets of 10
EZ Bar Curls 75 - 10 sets of 10

This first workout felt great. We'll see how the legs hold up tomorrow....they are still sore from contest day. Have a great night all.





http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...light=hatfield

[Vytis]

3rd day after my contest and my body feels back to normal. I am really looking forward to hitting the weight with full force tonight. So far I plugged out an easy 64 min of LISS this morning, and may do a light session PWO. Considering I got up to 2.5 hours during contest prep (darn stubborn fat) this is a cake walk. Mmmmm cake....forget I said that...

[2nd_chance]

Interesting read on Hatfield. How long have you used the program?

[Tifflex]

How long will you be doing 60+ mins of cardio?

[2nd_chance]

How long will you be doing 60+ mins of cardio?

20 minutes of it is proxy for me LOL.

[Vytis]

Interesting read on Hatfield. How long have you used the program?

Let's see....each cycle is a month long, and I think I got through 4 or 5 cycles. It is a high volume program, and I was doing a double-split to get all the weights in. When I started my prep I couldn't devote that much time to the weights, as my cardio had to increase, so I switch my program. I'm excited to get back to it!

How long will you be doing 60+ mins of cardio?

I don't know. During my last month of prep I got up to 2.5 hours of cardio a day. Now that I'm in my off season I want to taper that down. I don't know how much I'll be able to do that by or how long it will take. I want to start gaining some muscle, but not too much fat. Something that I've had problems with in the past.

20 minutes of it is proxy for me LOL.

I remember when that seemed like a lot to me....

[2nd_chance]

So you're going heavyweight? How much do you have to weigh? Is it easier to be at the top end of the weight class below or the bottom of the weight class above? All other things (e.g., bf %) being fairly equal.

[TwoWalks]

I am with you - Congratulations on learning how your body works (I am still trying to figure this one out for myself) and looking amazing.

There is one place I got lost in the mist

Short Term
1. Place 1st in the current OBF competition (Dec 2009)
2. Make my current physique look skinny

was number 2 above for the contest december 2009? Never heard anyone doing bodybuilding say they wanted to look skinny ... could you explain?

[runninmom]

I'll be following along...sounds like you have made some great accomplishments so far, congrats!!!

[Vytis]

So you're going heavyweight? How much do you have to weigh? Is it easier to be at the top end of the weight class below or the bottom of the weight class above? All other things (e.g., bf %) being fairly equal.

In the federation that I plan on competing in for a while, the IDFA, they split the novice groups into 2 classes only - lightweight & heavyweight, the cutoff being 165lbs, so there I'm definitely a heavyweight. In the open they have a middleweight class that is 175 & under. Even at my present weight I would still be a heavyweight. Because of this I will add muscle and get more competitive with the other heavyweights.

All being equal it's better to be at the top end of your class. That's where I'm heading in the heavyweights.

I am with you - Congratulations on learning how your body works (I am still trying to figure this one out for myself) and looking amazing.

There is one place I got lost in the mist


was number 2 above for the contest december 2009? Never heard anyone doing bodybuilding say they wanted to look skinny ... could you explain?

Thanks and welcome. I should have wrtitten:
2. Gain muscle to make my current physique look skinny. Meaning that I'll be bigger and more muscular than I am right now.

I'll be following along...sounds like you have made some great accomplishments so far, congrats!!!

Thanks very much. I'm very excited about the future.

[ArchAngel'73]

in
subbed
5 stars
welcome back
reps
and all that jazz

I remember you very well, and you look nothing like you used to. I have mad respect for you and your transormation.
Congrats on all this work you just did and seeking out the guidance to get you on stage.

You have some very realistic goals and I have no doubt you'll meet them!

[TwoWalks]

Thanks and welcome. I should have wrtitten:
2. Gain muscle to make my current physique look skinny. Meaning that I'll be bigger and more muscular than I am right now.

Now that makes sense to me. Skinny always bring to mind the guy with about 5% body fat and 98#'s of lean muscle. Adding mass while remaining cut A+

[Vytis]

in
subbed
5 stars
welcome back
reps
and all that jazz

I remember you very well, and you look nothing like you used to. I have mad respect for you and your transormation.
Congrats on all this work you just did and seeking out the guidance to get you on stage.

You have some very realistic goals and I have no doubt you'll meet them!

Right back at you 10 fold. I know we now appreciate the amount of work, sacrifice and determination it takes to get on stage. So great work...let's both do it again in 2010!

Now that makes sense to me. Skinny always bring to mind the guy with about 5% body fat and 98#'s of lean muscle. Adding mass while remaining cut A+

That's the plan.....I need some size on this frame!

[2nd_chance]

So what's the diet strategy to put the mass on?

Great looking family BTW.

[Vytis]

So what's the diet strategy to put the mass on?

Great looking family BTW.

Thanks, I am a blessed man.

In terms of the diet, I am going to very slowly scale back on the cardfio and add calories to the diet, mostly in the form of PWO carbs. It took me 6 months to take off the fat, I don't want to gain any of it back.

Tonight I trained shoulders and arms. The weights still feel rather heavy. Hopefully I'll be pushing my usual, pre contest weights soon.

[Vytis]

Today was a cardio only day (did 50 min of LISS this morning), and I also threw in some abs and calves for fun. Compared to an average prep day this felt like an off day. Back to the weights tomorrow - shoulders and triceps.

Have a great night everyone!

[2nd_chance]

Abs and calves are always fun (well at least calves).

[Vytis]

Abs and calves are always fun (well at least calves).

You're right...I have to force myself to do abs. But I need to make them pop more, so weighted crunches it is....

This morning I did pre and post WO cardio, for a total of 34min. I also trained shoulders, Hatfield's C workout:

Giant set comprised of:
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Side Laterals - 12 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Side Laterals - 12 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Upright Rows - 40 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Side Laterals - 12 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Upright Rows - 40 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets

I did a total of 2 giant sets. Yeah, my shoulders are fried.

Have a great Friday everyone!

[Tifflex]

You're right...I have to force myself to do abs. But I need to make them pop more, so weighted crunches it is....

This morning I did pre and post WO cardio, for a total of 34min. I also trained shoulders, Hatfield's C workout:

Giant set comprised of:
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Side Laterals - 12 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Side Laterals - 12 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Upright Rows - 40 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Side Laterals - 12 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Upright Rows - 40 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets

I did a total of 2 giant sets. Yeah, my shoulders are fried.

Have a great Friday everyone!

Holy delts! Great workout.

[rockeo]

whoa v-man is over here - cool deal brutha - happy friday - good to see ya

[2nd_chance]

Hey V. Weighted crunches are my punishment of choice as well. Tiff is right... Holy Delts! Great work.

You're right...I have to force myself to do abs. But I need to make them pop more, so weighted crunches it is....

This morning I did pre and post WO cardio, for a total of 34min. I also trained shoulders, Hatfield's C workout:

Giant set comprised of:
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Side Laterals - 12 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Side Laterals - 12 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Upright Rows - 40 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Side Laterals - 12 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets
Upright Rows - 40 reps
Shoulder Press - 5 sets

I did a total of 2 giant sets. Yeah, my shoulders are fried.

Have a great Friday everyone!

[stayfit2008]

Good Work here V-man! Ya know with those glasses on My nickname for ya is Clark,..Thats as in Clark Kent,......aka Superman!!!

[Vytis]

Holy delts! Great workout.

I did it again for my triceps...

whoa v-man is over here - cool deal brutha - happy friday - good to see ya

Hey Rock. I thought I'd get in with the cool Over 35 crowd.

Hey V. Weighted crunches are my punishment of choice as well. Tiff is right... Holy Delts! Great work.

Thanks - these C workouts are killer!

Good Work here V-man! Ya know with those glasses on My nickname for ya is Clark,..Thats as in Clark Kent,......aka Superman!!!

I laughed hard when you first made the reference - and I'll definitely take it as a compliment! I followed your preps very closly and was happy to see you get your pro card. You have now made it a goal of mine to follow in your footsteps and go for that Masters Pro Card myself. You are a great inspiration!


So since they are so fun, and you guys seem to enjoy it, I did another C workout tonight. This time it was triceps:

Giant set of:
CG Bench - 5 reps
Overhead Extentions - 12 reps
CG Bench - 5 reps
Overhead Extentions - 12 reps
CG Bench - 5 reps
Triceps Pressdowns - 40 reps
CG Bench - 5 reps
Overhead Extentions - 12 reps
CG Bench - 5 reps
Triceps Pressdowns - 40 reps
CG Bench - 5 reps

2 total sets

I also did a total of 32 min of LISS around this workout. Have a great night everyone. I'll be watching Julie and Julia tonight....

[stayfit2008]

Excellent Work Clark,..When is your next Comp???

[Vytis]

Excellent Work Clark,..When is your next Comp???

I have some dates in mind for next year. Actually I could use your input as to which ones I should focus on. Right now I'm eyeing the following dates: May, July, August & November? Is it possible to shoot for all 4 or should I choose 2 or 3. I could use your advice....

[Vytis]

Here's tonight's session:

Chest (C)
Giant set of:
Bench Press - 5 reps
Incline Press - 12 reps
Bench Press - 5 reps
Incline Press - 12 reps
Bench Press - 5 reps
Crossovers - 40 reps
Bench Press - 5 reps
Incline Press - 12 reps
Bench Press - 5 reps
Crossovers - 40 reps
Bench Press - 5 reps

PWO Cardio - 18 min LISS

Free UFC tonight on tv, Couture vs Vera - should be a great fight. Anybody watching???