Kevin Frasard's Battle For The Overall, With The Help From BEAST

[MASSMADETOLAST]

First off, I would just like to say HAPPY NEW YEAR to each and everyone of you!!! Hope everybody had a safe and enjoyable holiday week...Well 2012 is here, and it's time to succeed in accomplishing a major goal that I've been wanting to achieve for a very long time...and that is to win the overall title at the NPC Natural Michigan this July. Last year was a hell of a good 1st run at competing as a bodybuilder...My debut contest was the 2011 NPC Novice Michigan and not only did I take 1st in the light-heavyweight division at that show, but also won the overall that night. I will never forget that for as long as I live! After getting that taste of what it's like to be up on that stage in front of all of those people and doing what you love more than anything, it was a no-brainer to get set for another show. This is where I competed against Derek and a bunch of other very great competitors on July 16th, 2011 @ the NPC Natural Michigan. At that contest, I finished 2nd place out of 11 other light-heavyweights. I was very happy with 2nd, but just like any other competitor who has the heart and determination of a champion I wanted number one!!! This is where Beast's help comes in...I was very excited for him when he won the weight class and we became very good friends that day. Now with his help and my determination to be my absolute best this year, I can't be more enthusiastic about getting back on that stage and doing battle!!! These next few months that I have left for the off-season is where I'm going to be focusing on making improvements and of course, pushing around that heavy iron. Feel free to follow along in here as I spend the next 7+ months developing a bigger and better version of myself for that 3rd upcoming contest.


So here are a few current off-season photos to go with this first post:












As of right now, my bodyweight is hovering between 208-212 lbs. I'm really looking forward to working with Derek over these next several months!! I also would like to make note of a few highlights on my big 3 compound exercises over the past two weeks...on my final set of Reverse Band Squats I was able to hit 605 for a double, a double on a final working set of Reverse Band Deadlifts with 725(Derek, you were there), and then yesterday evening I managed to hit 315x3 reps on Barbell Bench Press. I feel a bit banged up and achy from training, but after 12+ years of bodybuilding...yeah you're gonna feel it lol!!! Anyway, if you guys have any questions, comments, concerns, etc. feel free to leave them all right here. TRAIN HARD!!!!!!!


Macros:

Protein-252g
Carbs-270g
Fats-75g

[whatnow5]

Dang man! I'm going to follow you journey!

[Beast]

I see an overall in your future

We have a couple more months of bulking (the benefit of staying lean) before we have to start cutting. It is on!

[tonsti]

Im down for the journey.I remember your great logs from your max ot days!!do it!

[RUBICON19]

SUPER strong Kevin! Best of luck with this journey!

[MASSMADETOLAST]

I see an overall in your future

We have a couple more months of bulking (the benefit of staying lean) before we have to start cutting. It is on!

It's happening bro! I'm dying to see my best physique come out, and with your help it's going to make that a reality. Lets do this!!!

[MASSMADETOLAST]

Well after experiencing a few signs of overtraining gradually sinking in over the past couple of weeks and me being hard-headed by not giving myself the time off necessary to actually recover, it has REALLY hit me!!! Tendons, elbows, joints, neck, back, left shoulder, rotator cuff, ALL are just wrecked!!! Also have been VERY lethargic!! Being on a really big painting job which involved a lot of stilt/high ladder work didn't help any either. I've been going at it hard in the gym for the past 12 weeks or so and have hit some really great numbers for myself on most of the big lifts, so I can't really complain or question why I'm so beat up. Some of my PR's over the past few months:


Yoke Bar Squats: 600x4/585x5(Reverse Band Traditional Squat)
Stiff-Leg Deads: 505x4
Reverse Band Deadlifts: 725x2
Rack Pull: 905x2
Barbell Rows: 385x8(455x6 Reverse Band)
Barbell Bench: 315x3(415x4 Reverse Band)
One-Arm Dumbbell Row: 150x30


So now that my body is playing that extra defense and telling me to chill the eff out for a bit, I'm gonna be smart about it and just give into taking actual time off. I did it 3 months ago where I took an entire 2 weeks off from any kind of training. and for as hard as that was to do it made all the difference in the world. Once this time passes, I'll be a brand new, hungrier than ever dude!!

[GetHugeBrah]

Very nice physique

[MASSMADETOLAST]

Well, just a few more days left until this short getaway is over with and I can go back to doing what I love most...lifting the weights. This time off to recover was completely worth it and I know that as soon as I pick up that first barbell and start repping, I'll be like a kid in a candy store again!! First workout will be this sunday and with none other than the Beast himself. Game time!!!

[MASSMADETOLAST]

Here are a few shots from last year's contests, 1st three pics are from the debut show(Novice):












Today's macros:

Protein- 254g
Carbs- 206g
Fats- 74g
Total Calories- 2416

[MASSMADETOLAST]

Thank God, back to the gym!!! So yeah, today was the first day back and kicked things off with leg training with the Beast. I'm still getting a feel for the routine, a feel with my new barefoot shoes(Adidas AdiPURE Trainer), and not getting too far ahead of myself with pushing the super heavy iron just yet. I've had a sinus bug hanging around for the past few days and after Derek and I were finished training, I really thought that it was turning into something worse...like possibly the flu. I was very dizzy and my body was getting that warm/chill feeling, but the cold/damp air in the gym this morning didn't make things any better either. As I write this entry and eat my post-workout meal, I do feel a bit better so maybe I just over-did it this first day back. Who knows...but anyhow, great to be back in business and look forward to the weeks coming and inching my way closer to the stage date.

[EndingLife]

Hey man,

I have two questions for you.

As you have progressed over the years, how much of a role do you think coordination plays in gaining size/strength and have you ever tried jumping rope? If so, what did you think of it?

[a-dog]

what gym are you at these days? I live over in macomb township (right around the corner from where you are).

[MASSMADETOLAST]

what gym are you at these days? I live over in macomb township (right around the corner from where you are).

I train over @ Powerhouse in Clinton Township mostly, but I do still go over and train @ Metro Fitness with my girlfriend sometimes too. If Metro didn't have such a big piece of my heart, I would never venture in there to work out. The place is such a dump now compared to what it used to be, but it's where bodybuilding all started for me back when I was 16 years old. How about you, where do you train at?

[a-dog]

I train over @ Powerhouse in Clinton Township mostly, but I do still go over and train @ Metro Fitness with my girlfriend sometimes too. If Metro didn't have such a big piece of my heart, I would never venture in there to work out. The place is such a dump now compared to what it used to be, but it's where bodybuilding all started for me back when I was 16 years old. How about you, where do you train at?

I'm not hardcore so I train at the macomb township rec center (it's literally 5 minutes from my house, they have a power rack and some decent equipment) but I have been known to venture down to powerhouse or the brickhouse (espcially back in the weight station days) from time to tome. I have not been in metro since it used to be a Worlds...way back in like 95, they had some great stuff in there and it was such a big place, I loved training there. I have no idea what it's like now.

I'll be watching this thread, you're max-ot journal was fantastic, in fact I was just reading it the other day for some motivation (srs).

[MASSMADETOLAST]

Oh man...yesterday had me worried for a minute...thought I had a potentially serious injury in my Iliacus muscle!! When I woke up yesterday morning I was actually limping throughout the house and couldn't even bend all the way down to tie my shoes. I hopped around at work all day and my job requires standing for extended periods of time, which made it a living hell!!! Something bad but kinda good at the same time happened at work with our equipment, which in turn caused me to have an early day. So I immediately headed over to the gym to get on our stretch machine and hung upside down for a few 30 second durations. This gave me the opportunity to catch my massage therapist and see what I could do until she scheduled me in to get worked on. She showed me a great stretch and I did that for most of the day yesterday. Woke up today feeling MUCH better, so it had to of helped. It felt almost as if it never even happend. But it is far from gone, so I'm gonna stay with it and keep stretching it out/taking care of it to be safe. This all started the very first day back, when Beast and I trained legs this past Sunday. We were on our 3rd warm-up set of Squats...I walked up to the front desk to ask a question, and while I was walking back out to the area where we were at I felt something weird...like a pull and it caused me to start a slight limp for a few steps. From then on, the next few days were on the funny side in the quad department.

Aside from that, here is a clip from today's training where I hit 315x3 reps on my 2nd set of Reverse Band Barbell Overhead Presses. The final set I was able to hit a triple as well with 325, but it got a little more congested with people so there's no video of that. Feel pretty good so far . The last clip is a set of Seated Wide Grip Cable Rows(to the chest).




All in all, it feels so good to be back in business and the off-season diet is doing wonders for me!!

[MASSMADETOLAST]

I'm not hardcore so I train at the macomb township rec center (it's literally 5 minutes from my house, they have a power rack and some decent equipment) but I have been known to venture down to powerhouse or the brickhouse (espcially back in the weight station days) from time to tome. I have not been in metro since it used to be a Worlds...way back in like 95, they had some great stuff in there and it was such a big place, I loved training there. I have no idea what it's like now.

I'll be watching this thread, you're max-ot journal was fantastic, in fact I was just reading it the other day for some motivation (srs).

Oh right on, I've heard a little about that place. You're not missing anything with Metro man, it's friggin' SAD what that place has become!!! It used to be the most badazz place you could possilby go to train. Now...yeeeeeek!!!

I really appreciate you taking the time to come venture in my thread, and also in the past Max-OT one that I had going for a while. I hit a lot PR's in the past during that routine and though I still do prefer to train on the heavy side, I now listen to my body and recognize when it's time to chill out or refrain from possibly doing something self-destructive. Awesome to have you here following along, and I will do my best to deliver that same motivation up in this thread.

[BipolarBrah]

The threat of an injury always seems to humble a person. It sounds like you're approaching the problem proactively and with care. I hope this thing isn't too serious!

man.. how do you stay so lean in the off season? the vascularity in your back is insane! what were your macros for the day?

[MASSMADETOLAST]

The threat of an injury always seems to humble a person. It sounds like you're approaching the problem proactively and with care. I hope this thing isn't too serious!

man.. how do you stay so lean in the off season? the vascularity in your back is insane! what were your macros for the day?

It does indeed! And when you have enough of them along the way, it makes you stop and look at things from a whole new perspective. I used to just train right through them or block them out, no matter how much pain they caused me. That's one thing that I inherited from my dad...being hard-headed with things. My leg was just doing some weird crap while I was jamming on my guitar, but I keep stretching it constantly.

Thanks a lot bro! It's my metabolism, genetics, how hard I train, activity level outside of working out, etc. Plus I don't drink alcohol/party or anything like that to add in those unwanted garbage calories. My macros for the day: 252g protein, 270g carbs, 75g fat

[Beast]

Solid upper body workout buddy! Form looked great on both military press and cable rows.

[a-dog]

Oh right on, I've heard a little about that place. You're not missing anything with Metro man, it's friggin' SAD what that place has become!!! It used to be the most badazz place you could possilby go to train. Now...yeeeeeek!!!

I really appreciate you taking the time to come venture in my thread, and also in the past Max-OT one that I had going for a while. I hit a lot PR's in the past during that routine and though I still do prefer to train on the heavy side, I now listen to my body and recognize when it's time to chill out or refrain from possibly doing something self-destructive. Awesome to have you here following along, and I will do my best to deliver that same motivation up in this thread.

as you get older you get more intuned to your body. I trained max-ot for awhile and I really enjoyed it, I got strong as hell (I wasn't handling the poundages you were in your journal but I wasn't that far off in alot of things). I switched over to DC and it's great.

I noticed you train with those crazy shoes (they're nore like socks, right?) How do you like those? especially for calves....I just don't think I could get used to them.

[Vytis]

Man you're carrying a lot of mass....it'll be fun to see your contest season unfold....

[MASSMADETOLAST]

Solid upper body workout buddy! Form looked great on both military press and cable rows.

Thanks bro, and yeah on those Military Presses I'm really focusing on bringing the weight down slowly and then being explosive when I drive it up. I'm a bit bummed about this sunday though, but I'm gonna work around it and we will be hitting the legs again very soon!

as you get older you get more intuned to your body. I trained max-ot for awhile and I really enjoyed it, I got strong as hell (I wasn't handling the poundages you were in your journal but I wasn't that far off in alot of things). I switched over to DC and it's great.

I noticed you train with those crazy shoes (they're nore like socks, right?) How do you like those? especially for calves....I just don't think I could get used to them.

Max-OT was by far the greatest routine for me, but it had a pretty hefty price tag to go with it. Part of that is my fault though for skipping out on taking a week off every 8-10 week run of the program. Either way, the program can be ultra brutal on the body. Are you referring to the barefoot shoes? I haven't shot any video yet with me wearing those, but they are really great shoes for things like calf raises, leg presses, cardio, and a few other exercises. I dunno how I feel about them on squatting yet...didn't like it the first time, but that may change.

[MASSMADETOLAST]

Man you're carrying a lot of mass....it'll be fun to see your contest season unfold....

Thank you! I'm very much looking forward to it. This is gonna be my year!!!

[simoun71]

Thank you! I'm very much looking forward to it. This is gonna be my year!!!

Strong as hellll lol I will be at the natural Michigan, good luck with everything bro!

[MASSMADETOLAST]

Strong as hellll lol I will be at the natural Michigan, good luck with everything bro!

Very cool, and thanks a lot

[a-dog]

Whats the reasoning behind the reverse band work? Sorry if you talked about this before but I've never really seen that, is it just for stability?

[MASSMADETOLAST]

Whats the reasoning behind the reverse band work? Sorry if you talked about this before but I've never really seen that, is it just for stability?

It helps build your lockout strength and holy crap does it give your muscles one heck of a contraction!! This technique has really come in handy with the bench press and deadlifts from the floor for me. My shoulders and arms overpower my chest by a mile(or even two miles), and incorporating the bands has really helped allow me to target my chest much more effectively. I absolutely love that exercise! On the deadlifts it allows me to overload the top half of the movement and also work around my little glute injury that is still kinda with me, while still reaping some of the benefit of working the lumbars/hamstrings. I just love pulling from the floor dude, it has such a nice ring to it when several hundred pounds comes crashing down on the floor!!!

[bassinyoface]

It helps build your lockout strength and holy crap does it give your muscles one heck of a contraction!! This technique has really come in handy with the bench press and deadlifts from the floor for me. My shoulders and arms overpower my chest by a mile(or even two miles), and incorporating the bands has really helped allow me to target my chest much more effectively. I absolutely love that exercise! On the deadlifts it allows me to overload the top half of the movement and also work around my little glute injury that is still kinda with me, while still reaping some of the benefit of working the lumbars/hamstrings. I just love pulling from the floor dude, it has such a nice ring to it when several hundred pounds comes crashing down on the floor!!!

thanks for that info I was wondering the same thing myself. I have seen the bands using by powerlifters all the time,but never in a bodybuilding scenario!

[MASSMADETOLAST]

1-22-11 Lower Body


Today's leg workout went amazingly amazing!!! I've been stretching my left leg and hanging upside down to stretch pretty much all week. Instead of using Plan B on this particular Sunday to just bypass the leg workout again, I just went into the gym and began slowly warming up on the squat rack and everything was feeling really good. So today I managed to work my way up to 455 on the Squats and buried it 5 times . Also managed to completely school last week's final working set on the Stiff-Legged Deadlifts by hitting 405x10 Reps. Not a PR, but after doing all of the working sets of squats, following it up with the Single-Leg Leg Pressing, and then jumping into this exercise...I was more than happy with it. Now I'm going to eat my victory post-workout meal and stretch the wheels out afterwards. Here is the video of that set of SLDL's. TRAIN HARD!!!!!!