BWelch's 2011 Contest Prep Journal

[PaC-mAn8]

Awesome, Awesome...and Awesome!

You're the man Britt.

So happy for you dude.

[wrkoutfrq]

great writeup bro, you deserved every second of the spotlight

you weren't kidding when you said you had a solid support team in your family! i'm relatively certain that there's enough of them to have mobbed the judging table if the decision didn't go your way

[extremenergy3]

Dude... You're an inspiration. Congratz on the pro card. You absolutely deserved it!

[BaFtub]

Hell. Yes. Mother. Phucker.

Grats Britt, got word of this last night and that sir is one hell of a job well done! Epic write up as well. So happy to see you finally accomplish what was set out, the only question is....what is next?

[Slovation]

Great write up. You have a way with words. You really put things in perspective. Big congrats again and enjoy that post show blowout lol

[juliacheh]

Awesome write up, Britt. You have a way with words.
Please consider writing a book.

[mivi320]

Dude, so happy for you. Man what an experience, eh? Great write up!!

[wheathins]

'yyyeeeaaaaaa Britty!!' dude I got goosebumps watching the final pose down and trophy ceremony video! That is so freaking awesome, you did one hell of a job! Congrats!!@!!

'Decide what to be and be it'... you certainly lived up to that quote in your sig, bro, you're a big inspiration. Job well fuking done, Britt!

[OoFaP]

Great write up...glad everything worked out well for you. It's so weird finishing prep and feeling normal again. I felt like I was let out of prison and able to see the real world for the first time in months. I walked around with my parents yesterday, took them out for dinner to thank them for putting up with me, had a burrito, then got ice cream, and pizza. (It wasn't as bad as it sounds, I didn't really eat much all day besides this). It's such a good feeling to be able to enjoy these things like this. Other people who didn't suffer like us will never get to experience it. My glutes are still striated, I'm watery but not too spilled so I'm good at least for now. How's your spillage going?

[StaticZ]

2011 SNBF SC Classic Overall Champion and new SNBF Professional Natural Bodybuilder!


full recap tomorrow...time for sushi

CONGRATS!!! Nobody is more deserving! I hope you enjoyed that sushi brotha!

[bwelch1985]

AMAZING BRITT!!!!!!

The work ethnic, sound mound and determination paid off and you totally earned it !!!!

Now I get to train with a PRO PRO PRO PROOOOOOOOO BODYBUILDER!!!!!!!

Thank you David! Looking forward to it bro!

Sick Britt, I think you totally blew away the competition, and that's not me just nuthugging, your conditoin was far superior.

Also the guy on your right was a bit

Thank you sir. I definately didn't blow anyone away, but I brought my best package to the stage and I can't complain about that!

Awesome work!

Dominating stage presence as well, way to own it.

Thank you sir!

congrats man!

Thanks!

Aaaaaaawwwwww YEA!!!!!!! . So happy for you, my man!!! You are a class act and an inspiration. Outstanding work ethic. Really outstanding. You struggled in the midst of prep and didn't stop. You kept WORKING for what you wanted and GOT iT!!!!!! Such a positive example. Enjoy this Britt!

Thanks a lot Sean. You already know how highly I think of you as a bodybuilder and how much of a role model you are for me. But it's b/c you're such a good person that I truly hold you in such high regard. Enjoy that WNBF Pro card and take it easy on Whitacre when you see him up on stage!

Hey Britt, Congrats on everything man. Been popping into your thread from time to time. It see,ed like thngs got rough but you really turned it into a positive outcome! You looked great and its very impressive you did all that on your own. Way to go!

Thanks man! It definately got a little dark for me at times during this journey, but the lows have only served to make the highs feel that much higher!

damn that gave me serious chills when you looked up (to the big guy) and they called your name.....just damn! Your whole family there! That is something! So happy for you Mr Pro.

p.s. You can tell this show was down south by the music hahaha. They had some legit rap for the posing LOL

LOL Thanks Big Coz! I had such an incredible show of support from my family at this show. There were like 15 of them there! Yeh, they had all kinds of good beats going on throughout the show. Motivation by Kelly Rowland was another one. Perfect beat to pose to imo.

btw, is someone wearing vibrams on stage? wtf?

we all bert stared hard at that dude...

You are a marvellous poser....congrats!

Thanks brah!

Dude! Phucking AWESOME!!! Very proud of you brother

Thank you Billy!

watching the video of the overall pose down. The one guy to your right looked at you to see what a side serratus was. just something i caught haha.

You owned it dude. seriously sick

lol Thanks man!

[img]http://www.signumfas.com/random/awww-yeah.jpg[img]

DUDE!!!!!! Sooooooo happy for you. You EARNED every bit of success this go around. You straight up DOMINATED and OWNED that stage. The second your class came out and stood there in the front relaxed it was already over. You made it easy for the judges. Truly inspirational. I think my next go around Im going to go at it solo SOLEY due to the fact that you did. Must be THAT much more rewarding. Congrats again dude, enjoy the good eats and time with the family.

Thanks a million Steve! I try to hit my strong poses as forcefully as I can...front relaxed, rear relaxed...gotta get in those quick and stay in them for a long time (b/c my other shots aren't that great haha).

It's definitely satisfying to go through it on your own. I don't know if it's any MORE satisfying, but it makes the entire process more meaningful to me and gives me a better understanding of what it takes to get back here and push it even further in the future.

OH, I just remembered something.

I prepped myself with MODERATELY SUCCESSFUL RESULTS

LMAO.

Britt, congrats again, stoked for you, you deserved it 100%.

haha Thanks Julia!

Congratulations!! Well deserved!

Thanks Matt!

Congrats man! You looked to be the clear cut winner! No second guessing there!

Thanks Cole!

A big CONGRATS bro! Been lurking and hardly post...but great example of staying level headed and just down right getting the job done. YOu deserve every bit of that win!

Thank you Cota! I lurk every single day in your thread. So much information and discussion on training and diet in there, I hate to miss even a single post! I'll start chiming in more often though now that I'm not so focused on myself lol!

Congrats dude! Just saw this...let's just say I'm not surprised.

Thanks Adam!

You did an amazing job! Seriously dude, you got some goals accomplished to say the least.

Thank you Alberto! (as usual, not just for this post, but for everything you've done for me over the years) It was a helluva season, that's for sure. Couldn't ask for a better way to wrap up 30 weeks of dieting!

[bwelch1985]

1) Dude amazing posing and hella congrats on the Pro win!

2) Ya Britty!!!!

3) LOL @ dude in blues hamstring pose in the overall showdown.

4) Ya Britty!!!!

5) Amazing lat spreads, seriously great shape.

6) YA BRITTY!!!

lolol thanks dude! Yeh, my family are a bunch of weirdo's (unlike me, who's perfectly normal and well adjusted)...but they love me so I guess I can't complain too much!

Total destruction on that stage man. It's like you're built to wreck havoc on fools next to you

Your front relaxed is LIGHTS OUT and your stage presence has something special that sets you apart.. Posing is unique and straight bad ass. Pure dominance homie... Cannot tell you how much respect you've earned for knowing your body and taking this journey SOLO. You, of all people deserve to take this next step in the bodybuilding ranks man. Saying I'm proud of you would be an understatement. Enjoy your off season man and thanks for everything you've taught me this season about the sport and the lifestyle.. and the dedication, determination and perseverance it takes to make it to the top..

Thanks a ton Chris! You've provided an incredible amount of much needed honesty and support around here lately! You are an extremely valuable member of these forums and I feel lucky to have you post in here brah.

congrats! Well deserved

Thanks Russ!

Holy sh*t that's awesome!!!!! I watched all the vids and I may have teared up a bit for you. So proud of you man! And damn, your conditioning was just phenomenal dude.

Thank you Drew! I thought the vids were fantastic as well...really so cool to be able to relive those moments.

sorry I just watched the videos again and I had to

YEAH BRITTY!

Hey Britt....Ive been watching from the background and I cant say enough how proud I am of you!At age 43 im 5 weeks from my 1st ever show and Im nervous as hell.But watching your journey has been great motivation and I thank you for that.Its already been said but you truly are a class act and I wish you the best.

Tony

Thanks Tony and good luck at your show! The nerves will be gone the second you step on stage into the spotlight, I guarantee it!

Great write up man. I'm super pumped for my contest now! Just gotta wait 6 more days. Once again, congratulations man, it was more than well deserved.

On a side note these ice cream cone pics make me cry.... btw pics from today's food fest?

Dude, you are going to wreck shop at your show. Incredible size and shape on you AND you've got it dialed all the way in! Absolute freak man! You've inspired the hell out of me to make this a productive ass offseason!

Yeh, I was too busy stuffing my face w/ all varieties of cakes, pies and ice creams to take any pictures yesterday. It got pretty ugly though and I was PAINFULLY full for the entire day afterwards

Awesome, Awesome...and Awesome!

You're the man Britt.

So happy for you dude.

Thank you man!

great writeup bro, you deserved every second of the spotlight

you weren't kidding when you said you had a solid support team in your family! i'm relatively certain that there's enough of them to have mobbed the judging table if the decision didn't go your way

haha It really made the whole thing that much more special having them all there. I couldn't have scripted it any better!

Dude... You're an inspiration. Congratz on the pro card. You absolutely deserved it!

Thank you Tim! I'm inspired by all of you as well. This is a special place, and I seriously treasure every single one of you that posts in here!

Hell. Yes. Mother. Phucker.

Grats Britt, got word of this last night and that sir is one hell of a job well done! Epic write up as well. So happy to see you finally accomplish what was set out, the only question is....what is next?

Thank you Brett! I know you'll be dropping people soon on pro stages across this side of the country so I've got my work cut out for me! I'll be starting up a new offseason program and reverse dieting for now. I want to stay pretty lean and have a detailed, controlled offseason for once as opposed to just letting loose essentially. Hopefully I can make some improvements and start hitting up some high level INBF and OCB stages in 2013!

Great write up. You have a way with words. You really put things in perspective. Big congrats again and enjoy that post show blowout lol

Thanks again Steve! I enjoyed it waaaaay too much, but I'm back on the wagon today and ready for a long offseason!

Awesome write up, Britt. You have a way with words.
Please consider writing a book.

lol Thanks Julia, I just like writing these show recaps for my own enjoyment and to have something to look back on once the memories have faded. It's so cool to re-read a write-up a year or two later and relive these moments.

Dude, so happy for you. Man what an experience, eh? Great write up!!

Thanks Mike! Twas quite the experience, that is for sure!

'yyyeeeaaaaaa Britty!!' dude I got goosebumps watching the final pose down and trophy ceremony video! That is so freaking awesome, you did one hell of a job! Congrats!!@!!

'Decide what to be and be it'... you certainly lived up to that quote in your sig, bro, you're a big inspiration. Job well fuking done, Britt!

Thanks man! I love those videos so much. It's just so cool to be able to watch those moments unfold again!

I'm glad I could provide some inspiration, b/c I TAKE more than I give around here and I will always feel indebted to this board and all it's members for years of motivation and support. This place is the reason I'm a bodybuilder in the first place.

Great write up...glad everything worked out well for you. It's so weird finishing prep and feeling normal again. I felt like I was let out of prison and able to see the real world for the first time in months. I walked around with my parents yesterday, took them out for dinner to thank them for putting up with me, had a burrito, then got ice cream, and pizza. (It wasn't as bad as it sounds, I didn't really eat much all day besides this). It's such a good feeling to be able to enjoy these things like this. Other people who didn't suffer like us will never get to experience it. My glutes are still striated, I'm watery but not too spilled so I'm good at least for now. How's your spillage going?

I know exactly what you mean brah. It's incredibly liberating just having the freedom to do things w/out worrying about food, gym, cardio, etc. It also feels good knowing that I went through months of strict dieting and weeks of pretty intense suffering to arrive here. I don't think my prep was extremely efficient, but I found my way towards the end and I feel like I'll be able to parlay this knowledge into a much smoother journey next time around.

I ate like an animal yesterday and I'm up to 168lbs this morning. My abs are fat/watery as hell and even my obliques feel pretty soft, but my glutes are actually still in as well! haha And my quads are as lean and vascular as they've ever been! I seriously think I could binge for a week and end up w/ a beer belly but still have striated quads at this point! lol They just won't seem to spill.

I'm back on low day numbers for this week and I'll be keeping full 500kcal cardio sessions every day as well to try to rectify all the damage I've done. Once I get back to a good baseline I'll start slowly chipping away at the cardio and upping the calories. I definitely want to stay very lean this offseason.

CONGRATS!!! Nobody is more deserving! I hope you enjoyed that sushi brotha!

Oh man...I enjoyed it AND THEN SOME. Best sushi I've ever eaten brah!

[thepacman]

Woh pro card!?! Awesome job man. So happy for you!

[bwelch1985]

Woh pro card!?! Awesome job man. So happy for you!

Thanks Phil!

[SupaaJ]

Epic. Avi.

[bwelch1985]

I think I'm going to start up a really simple, bare bones offseason journal in the workout journals section. I don't want to take any attention away from the guys that are in the trenches and actually suffering through contest prep right now. They deserve as much support as possible so I'll be focused primarily on following along and trying to provide what advice and support I can.

BUT, while I'm still here, I did want to get you experienced guys to have a quick look over my offseason workout split. It's pretty simple. I just wanted to focus on squats and deads primarily. No power or hyper days, no pre-written progressions, not too much specificity in general. Just a basic template that I can follow that leaves me plenty of flexibility to pretty much do what I want in the gym each day. Too much structure always ends up making the gym feel like a job to me, so I just like to have a basic idea rather than specific numbers to hit or rep ranges to stay in.

Anyways, here's what I'm thinking...not too different from what I did throughout prep...the only difference being that now everything will be hit 2x/week rather than every 5 days. Volume will be moderated on a daily basis for the most part...but the #'s in parenthesis are the MINIMUM sets I'll likely hit each workout:

M: LOWER
-squat (4-6x)
-ham dominant (4-6x)
-volume-

T: UPPER
-press (4-6x)
-row (4-6x)
-dips/chins (volume)

W: Abs/Cardio

Th: LOWER
-deadlift (4-6x)
-quad dominant (4-6x)
-volume-

Fr: PUSH
-chest press (4-6x)
-chest iso (4x)
-triceps (4-6x)
-shoulders (4-6x)

Sa: PULL
-vertical pull (4-6x)
-horizontal pull (4-6x)
-shrug (4-6x)
-curl (4-6x)

Su: Abs/Cardio

[fltallpaul]

Congrats buddy...hard work pays off. Looking forward to seeing what the future holds for you.

[FB#35]

I think I'm going to start up a really simple, bare bones offseason journal in the workout journals section.

Do it bro! I plan to start up a journal there too, to try and keep me in check while I make an attempt at reverse dieting and my first real offseason of tracking what I eat. It will be good to see a familiar face!

As for the workout I know your more of a lower volume guy, but personally (and I know its an area you wanna bring up) would you be willing to add more volume on your chest/press days? I'm not sure if you've mentioned how you feel about additional volume for chest but I'd go as high as 8-10 sets on your 'upper' workout (for press) and maybe up the chest presses to 8-10 as well on the second day. Anyway just my thoughts keep in mind its coming from a guy who is used to doing 35+ sets of chest in a week.... not sure if I fall in the 'experienced' category though.

.... and speaking of chest thats what I'm off to train!

[PaC-mAn8]

Britt, IIRC - didn't you have good success with the 531 template? Why not give that a shot with off-season eats?

Doesn't get much more flexible/bare-bones than that.

I love your setup either way.

[bwelch1985]

Congrats buddy...hard work pays off. Looking forward to seeing what the future holds for you.

Thanks a lot Paul!

Do it bro! I plan to start up a journal there too, to try and keep me in check while I make an attempt at reverse dieting and my first real offseason of tracking what I eat. It will be good to see a familiar face!

As for the workout I know your more of a lower volume guy, but personally (and I know its an area you wanna bring up) would you be willing to add more volume on your chest/press days? I'm not sure if you've mentioned how you feel about additional volume for chest but I'd go as high as 8-10 sets on your 'upper' workout (for press) and maybe up the chest presses to 8-10 as well on the second day. Anyway just my thoughts keep in mind its coming from a guy who is used to doing 35+ sets of chest in a week.... not sure if I fall in the 'experienced' category though.

.... and speaking of chest thats what I'm off to train!

Cool! I'll see ya over in the Workout Journal section then. Make sure to post a link when you get it up.

I will up the volume. That sounds like a good idea. I'll probably have to work my way up to it, but I think 10+ sets of chest, 2x/week sounds pretty good. That'll total over 20 sets in the week, which is quite a lot for me, but that may be what it takes to stimulate some growf!

Britt, IIRC - didn't you have good success with the 531 template? Why not give that a shot with off-season eats?

Doesn't get much more flexible/bare-bones than that.

I love your setup either way.

I definitely like 5/3/1 and there's a good chance I'll run it again at some point deep in the offseason once my strength has bounced back...but for now I'm too weak and too far removed from the compounds to worry about following a periodized progression. I can just make linear gains for a good while I think.

[Flynn]

Congratulations Britt! Like others, the AVI is priceless and well earned !

[Stoner90]

Congrats on a job well done. Enjoy the success, and stick to that reverse diet as best as possible. That's my goal when done. You can do it! Proud of you bro.

[FrmrHoss]

I know I'm a little late to this one but work has really kept me from some of the jouranls I follow with regularity. Big congrats to you man, you really earned it and your persereverance and determination is pretty inspiring. Hopefully you got to see the Gamecocks repeat as national champions last night too .

Let me know if you've got any plans for the USC/ECU opener in Charlotte as you're more than welcome to join our tailgate!

[Agostage]

I leave you're an amateur, I come back you're pro? Man I must have missed something Congrats man!

[mattjansen]

Wanted to say congrats again on winning your card man and I really respect you for all the work that you put into your own prep, really says a lot!

I wanted to ask you about your experience with the SNBF and how you thought the show was run as a whole. I was with my buddy David (djkenny) for his show here in Ga and I thought it could have been run smoother but thats the risk you take with any show. Just kinda wanted to get your thoughts on how it went because i am still trying to finalize the shows I will be competing in this year. I do like that its a natural organization that is close to home so all of the travel costs wouldnt have to come into play with competing in the SNBF

[bwelch1985]

I believe the SNBF is a very high quality organization. They are obviously fairly small (only doing shows in the southeast), but they've been around for over 10 years I believe and have handed out pro cards to guys such as Brian Whitacre, Martin Daniels, Cleveland Thomas and Mick Winzeler.

The shows are run pretty smoothly from an athletes perspective and we were all treated incredibly well by the promoters (Bruce and Carol) as well as the expiditers backstage. Truly couldn't ask for better people running the show. They really care about the athletes and will do anything in their power to make the experience smoother for you.

The production value of the show itself is OK...but this is only the SNBF's second year in SC so they're still probably working out the kinks compared to their bigger shows in ATL and FLA.

Overall I believe it's a quality natural organization and I'd recommend it to anyone!

[ErickStevens]

Smolov Jr. for bench. Do it.

[Rsardinia]

Great ****in job dude. You looked like a pro up there. Way to work hard and stay focused on your goals.

[buckeye185]

Smolov Jr. for bench. Do it.

THIS! my chest is my far my worst muscle group genetically, but i do smolov jr about twice a year and it keeps everything nice and even. plus it's fun benching some really heavy weight (every time i do it, my bench goes up 30-40 lbs in a month).

and congrats on all your success

[TheNaturalOak]

Smolov Jr. for bench. Do it.

THIS! my chest is my far my worst muscle group genetically, but i do smolov jr about twice a year and it keeps everything nice and even. plus it's fun benching some really heavy weight (every time i do it, my bench goes up 30-40 lbs in a month).

and congrats on all your success

Can either of you two provide a link for the bench program? I too have a tiny chest looking to get stronger/bigger post contest!

Post here or PM me would be great, thanks