"AustrianOakJr": Sean Campbell Getting Some Pro Bodybuilding DONE.

[AustrianOakJr]

Just curious- If you switched all your meat to grass fed, and all your chicken/eggs to free range...How much extra do you think you'd spend weekly? I'm very interested in trying to make the switch over, but the cost is obviously a huge detternce. Obviously my own health should be numero uno, but it's easier said than done.
I know you've mentioned that you gradually added these in...are you full on now or is it still only a perecentage of what you consume?

I am pretty much "full-on" now. My fruits veggies are not organic but all of our meat has been either "natural, humane", "grass fed", etc. All the terminology can be very misleading so i am still learning a lot. But I havent bought CAFO meat in about 3 months. I have eased into the cost because I got a freezer full of venison that I have been eating along with progressively buying more meat from the grocery. I have also replaced the large quantity of chicken I used to eat with fish. Its pretty hard to treat fish poorly on their way to the slaughter, but I know there are other issues surround fishing (or overfishing). I think fish is a great middle ground between quality and cost. I also find that 93/7 grass fed ground beef is cheaper than the 99 FF turkey I was buying all the time. I just adjust the fat elsewhere in my diet. The eggs are probably the biggest killer. They are 3.69 a dozen as opposed to 1.29. That adds up quick. I have gone to a "medium" size cage free egg rather than the "large" mass produced eggs.....the mediums are 2.69 a dozen and again, I just adjust the macros elsewhere in my diet. Of course, increasing the amount of whey protein helps out a bit too. The short answer is I dont know exactly how much more its costing me, but I do know that I dont have a lot of money at all and im making it work. Americans spend less money on food than any other country in the world, yet we have the worst health. I think its more important to focus on quality of the food we eat than on the quantity.......IMOP food is a smart place to spend your money.

I will agree with you on food quality having a lot to do with overall health, long term. In terms of overall body composition, well obviously that will come down to a macronutrient breakdown, versus micronutrients. I also can't stand how most factory farms operate and treat their animals. After dating Sarah for 4 years, since she's vegan, she has opened up my eyes to a lot of things that most Americans don't even know about. I will admit that I buy sh**y meats and regular eggs (when I know I should be choosing grass fed beef, cage free/fair trade, etc.), but I am more conscious of what goes on now. I definitely eat a lot less more animal product now. That's for sure.
cliffs
-my gf is vegan
-I don't take bodybuilding seriously.
- lucky charms > oatmeal

I love your cliff notes. Dont get me wrong....I love me some sugar cereal mixed with protein and candy. And I think its totally fine in moderation. And I also think you can take your physique pretty far eating whatever the heck you want (within a calorie/macro goal). But I also think that it is certainly possible (and IMOP, likely) that greater physique gains can be had in a shorter time frame if we focus not only on calories, macros but also on micronutrients. Micronutrients allow the body to run optimally. I like "optimal".

The science of nutrition is in its relative infancy. There are micronutrients, phytonutrients, antioxidants, etc that science has not even discovered, let alone studied enough to supplement processed foods with. I think if more emphasis is placed on quality foods containing the biggest micronutrient profile for the "caloric buck", we will be better able to achieve the most optimal physique.

And, yes....I am a "bro". Perhaps even a "brah".

And I am still really just a fat guy that likes Buffalo wings. A lot.

[jpfaherty]

Thought you might think this was cool...not too much going on yet, but they are starting their journey (2 friends of mine, organic related)

http://organicfarmseverywhere.com/

[AustrianOakJr]

Thought you might think this was cool...not too much going on yet, but they are starting their journey (2 friends of mine, organic related)

http://organicfarmseverywhere.com/

That seems like a pretty cool trip! Would be cool if they drove a vegetable oil powered bus or something to add to the granola-effect of the whole thing. Seriously, though....pretty cool. One of these summers I want to do a cross country road trip with my family. Just set out with the camper hooked up and DRIVE.

[rich55]

Well, thanks Rich. You thought id be a real fatty, eh? Ive been working pretty hard to stay lean and I kind of feel like I should have done better making your show a definite. We'll see how things go but I definitely need to do whatever I can to bring my best yet.

Yeah a real porker haha. Not with looming pro debut of course. I'm prepping some of what I consider to be freaks for April and all I know is you are sitting better than most. You know I'll be cheerleading to an early finish haha.

[jked4life]

I am pretty much "full-on" now. My fruits veggies are not organic but all of our meat has been either "natural, humane", "grass fed", etc. All the terminology can be very misleading so i am still learning a lot. But I havent bought CAFO meat in about 3 months. I have eased into the cost because I got a freezer full of venison that I have been eating along with progressively buying more meat from the grocery. I have also replaced the large quantity of chicken I used to eat with fish. Its pretty hard to treat fish poorly on their way to the slaughter, but I know there are other issues surround fishing (or overfishing). I think fish is a great middle ground between quality and cost. I also find that 93/7 grass fed ground beef is cheaper than the 99 FF turkey I was buying all the time. I just adjust the fat elsewhere in my diet. The eggs are probably the biggest killer. They are 3.69 a dozen as opposed to 1.29. That adds up quick. I have gone to a "medium" size cage free egg rather than the "large" mass produced eggs.....the mediums are 2.69 a dozen and again, I just adjust the macros elsewhere in my diet. Of course, increasing the amount of whey protein helps out a bit too. The short answer is I dont know exactly how much more its costing me, but I do know that I dont have a lot of money at all and im making it work. Americans spend less money on food than any other country in the world, yet we have the worst health. I think its more important to focus on quality of the food we eat than on the quantity.......IMOP food is a smart place to spend your money.





I love your cliff notes. Dont get me wrong....I love me some sugar cereal mixed with protein and candy. And I think its totally fine in moderation. And I also think you can take your physique pretty far eating whatever the heck you want (within a calorie/macro goal). But I also think that it is certainly possible (and IMOP, likely) that greater physique gains can be had in a shorter time frame if we focus not only on calories, macros but also on micronutrients. Micronutrients allow the body to run optimally. I like "optimal".

The science of nutrition is in its relative infancy. There are micronutrients, phytonutrients, antioxidants, etc that science has not even discovered, let alone studied enough to supplement processed foods with. I think if more emphasis is placed on quality foods containing the biggest micronutrient profile for the "caloric buck", we will be better able to achieve the most optimal physique.

And, yes....I am a "bro". Perhaps even a "brah".

And I am still really just a fat guy that likes Buffalo wings. A lot.

Wow Sean, some big changes. I think we're on the same wave length, but I think you've evolved a little further. I agree in every way, I just haven't made as much progress. The baby at home has been a huge focus over the past few months, but now we're on a routine and I'm feeling more able (and awake) to focus on these other things in life that I feel are important. I'd love to pick your brain on lots of that stuff. Perhaps on a 6 hour drive to Columbus

I agree with you on the infancy of science in nutrition. I believe there's a lot more out there than is currently understood, especially when you focus on micro nutrients and the energy that food gives you. I believe science will find a link between the way an animal or plant lived/was treated and the life energy it transmits to you. I think we have the beginnings of it, but I predict the rabbit hole will go much deeper. Perhaps we'll get back to the wisdom that indigenous cultures knew thousands of years ago, lol.

[AustrianOakJr]

Yeah a real porker haha. Not with looming pro debut of course. I'm prepping some of what I consider to be freaks for April and all I know is you are sitting better than most. You know I'll be cheerleading to an early finish haha.

Well, I appreciate the confidence you have in me. But I tend to move the fat pretty slowly. I am gonna keep clipping away at my current pace. If the stars line up and I drop a good 10 lbs before your show, i will be a happy man......and a late entry. I will certainly push for it because I really want to go.

Wow Sean, some big changes. I think we're on the same wave length, but I think you've evolved a little further. I agree in every way, I just haven't made as much progress. The baby at home has been a huge focus over the past few months, but now we're on a routine and I'm feeling more able (and awake) to focus on these other things in life that I feel are important. I'd love to pick your brain on lots of that stuff. Perhaps on a 6 hour drive to Columbus

I agree with you on the infancy of science in nutrition. I believe there's a lot more out there than is currently understood, especially when you focus on micro nutrients and the energy that food gives you. I believe science will find a link between the way an animal or plant lived/was treated and the life energy it transmits to you. I think we have the beginnings of it, but I predict the rabbit hole will go much deeper. Perhaps we'll get back to the wisdom that indigenous cultures knew thousands of years ago, lol.

Yep, you and I must be reading the same books or something. This would be a great conversation to have on a long car ride. So lets try to make that happen. Ive already put the bug in my wife's ear. If we are gonna go we should get on reservations within the next week or so. So let me know and we'll iron out the details!

[AustrianOakJr]

This weekend has been a bit off schedule. Its my son's 7th birthday and we took him on a family trip to Niagara falls in place of a kiddy party. He really likes the indoor water park so we decided this would be a good birthday present......the kids loved it. And I had a blast too. This wave pool was way fun....I think I burned more calories in this pool than I did in my cardio session before we left. My wife was thoroughly embarassed because I was flailing around "like one of those kids who keeps splashing everyone who doesnt want to be splashed". WHATEVER! It was pretty funny to see the looks I was getting. I was just having fun playing like a big kid. They had a couple of pretty decent water slides for an indoor place too. They were enclosed and they looped outside and back in again. So we left on Friday morning (I skipped work....shhhh) and spent about 3 hrs in the park. The water park is inside the hotel so we just changed up, had dinner in the room and then took the kids to see the falls. We illegally parked along the side of the road and got out of our car to take this picture. We were along side about 6 other cars so when the cops pulled up to the first car in the group to write tickets, everyone scrambled back to the car and took off. THe kids loved that too. We took them into downtown Niagara to see the "mini vegas". Its pretty neat just to drive around and see all the tourist traps. We stopped in at the casino to do a little window shopping, got the kids some canadian chocolate, etc. Then we spent saturday night there and went to the hotel restaurant for breakfast yesterday morning. I did a little macro guessing, which was pretty easy with 2 eggs, ham, and two pieces of dry toast. It was Iain's actual birthday so we got him an ice cream crepe for desert and it came out with a big sparkler in place of a candle. He looked like it was the coolest thing hed ever seen. I snuck a couple bites of that and a cupcake with birthday dinner so I was a touch outside my macros for the day. But ill call it a wash with the extra 1500 calories of wrestle-mania in the wave pool. After breakfast we went back to the water park and played for another 3 hours before heading home. Man, we were ZONKED. I was so tired my wife drove home .....the kids and I were napping in the car within minutes of leaving. I had that feeling I used to get as a kid in the summer time......when you spend like ALL DAY in the pool......that waterlogged-totally sun-fried-ridiculously tired feeling. So, all in all.....a great time in Niagara Falls! Today we are driving to Syracuse to see the extended family. Crazy weekend.




^^Notice the solid 6 foot radius of no people......I had the ONLY six foot clear radius in the whole pool. Weird.

[jpfaherty]

haha you owned that pool! Great writeup, looks like you had a blast. I've never been to Niagara falls, def on the to do list!

[AustrianOakJr]

haha you owned that pool! Great writeup, looks like you had a blast. I've never been to Niagara falls, def on the to do list!

It was fun indeed. Unfortunately I think I picked up some kind of stomach bug from the water park. Man...Sunday night was NOT pleasant. I had about 600 calories left to finish in my last meal and I went to bed without it....I had a nasty fever.....shivering and shaking and I think the gas that was coming out of me could have been used by Saddam Hussein as chemical warfare. I never puked but I felt like I was on the verge all night. So let this be a lesson......keep the pool pee water out of your mouth. Im still not quite right but I think im gonna hit my deload workout today and go home and take it easy.

As for Niagara Falls....definitely worth the trip at least once. It is quite a site. The Canadian side is very touristy...pretty much like a mini Las Vegas. Lots of places to blow money and all kinds of night life. I actually prefer the New York side even though the view is not as nice. Its more of a park setting with hiking trails and still plenty to do.

[Slovation]

I love reading write ups like these. Shows the other, non bodybuilding side of the persons life. Looks like you have a great family there. Its nice to see someone thats father/husband/friend first and pro bodybuilder second.

[andyboi]

^ Me too!

I'm in utter awe of how well you handle prep + living life. Seriously, that's awesome. I know now, being 13 weeks 6 days out, I can't trust myself guestimating. It just plays with my mind. But you seem to have it under control and that's pretty cool.

Also loved the comment at the end regarding being a kid and having that fried feeling of being in the pool and sun ALL day. All too fond memories brother Keep doing what you do!

[AustrianOakJr]

I love reading write ups like these. Shows the other, non bodybuilding side of the persons life. Looks like you have a great family there. Its nice to see someone thats father/husband/friend first and pro bodybuilder second.

It is certainly an all-encompassing sport so it is hard to keep a balance. At 18 weeks out, its a bit easier. If I go away from home at 3 weeks out the anxiety raises quite a bit. Its hard to avoid so I have to be much more conscious of my efforts. But thank you for your compliments. This weekends project is building a loft bed for my son's room so maybe ill snap some pics of all the man-time cutting lumber in the basement. Oh yea.

^ Me too!

I'm in utter awe of how well you handle prep + living life. Seriously, that's awesome. I know now, being 13 weeks 6 days out, I can't trust myself guestimating. It just plays with my mind. But you seem to have it under control and that's pretty cool.

Also loved the comment at the end regarding being a kid and having that fried feeling of being in the pool and sun ALL day. All too fond memories brother Keep doing what you do!

Oh, I get the mind games. And if I am being truthful, I let the mind games get the best of me on many days. Ask Eric Helms who is really the only one besides my wife that really gets a glimpse into my brain. I think it takes another bodybuilder to understand what we are talking about. The mind games come as a result of a personality flaw. It happens to lend itself well to this particular sport so thats why you find a lot of like-minded individuals who compete. But what we regard as "mind games" is obsessive compulsive tendencies, really. Because when you step back and look at your actions logically they don't really make much sense when considering the bigger picture. YES, we need to be as consistent as possible so that adjustments can be made for continued progress. Absolutely. But the fact remains that there are sooooo many variables in the incredibly complex problem of contest prep dieting that narrowing your daily intake of carbs to a 1g window......and hitting THAT number everyday come hell or high water...... is really just an exercise in futility. And all it does is feed the obsessive compulsive part of our personality. So if I sit down to a breakfast at a restaurant every once in a while and my guesstimate is off by 50 calories.....or even 100 calories.....what difference does that make in the grand scheme of prep? Especially when you consider the fact that in this particular example everything else I did that day was anything but routine. Some people will regard this as a lack of discipline and say "oh the next guy hits his numbers everyday and is going to get that much more shredded...." Blah, blah, blah.....total BS. Perhaps an extra 50 calories allowed me to be a little more anabolic right when I needed it. Energy expenditure goes up and down every day and fluctuates a fair amount. I think its much more beneficial to cut yourself a little slack (every ONCE in a WHILE) in light of the fact that the alternative increase in anxiety only hurts your progress that much more.

So....theres my lecture on living life in balance. Sorry to blather on! But this is one area I am committed to get better and better at as we go on. Because in order to be able to be a true champion in this sport we have to be able to sustain the lifestyle for a long time to come.

[domingochavez]

Being a family man you have to find that balance, because life is always going to throw up unexpected twists, kids get sick, wife gets sick, you may have to skip meals etc..

I always found it funny people who were dead on about hitting their macros everyday, screw that would rather blow my brains out! Kids have a way of extracting extra cardio out of you also. During prep just lifting my daughter up to the change table was an effort.

Can't wait until mine are old enough for pool trips like that, looking forward to scaring off all the other parents with my aesthetics also :P

[wrkoutfrq]

this page = full of win. repped everyone i wasn't on spread with, because the points brought up here are some that every person serious about bodybuilding needs to wrap their minds around...

[AustrianOakJr]

Being a family man you have to find that balance, because life is always going to throw up unexpected twists, kids get sick, wife gets sick, you may have to skip meals etc..

I always found it funny people who were dead on about hitting their macros everyday, screw that would rather blow my brains out! Kids have a way of extracting extra cardio out of you also. During prep just lifting my daughter up to the change table was an effort.

Can't wait until mine are old enough for pool trips like that, looking forward to scaring off all the other parents with my aesthetics also :P

I hear you on all points. It is damn HARD to be able to be a good father/husband AND a bodybuilder at the end of prep. In the last few weeks I spend a lot of time 'acting' because I know that what im feeling inside is not normal and that my family is NOT an annoyance. They are same family that I enjoy when im fat and happy and the only thing that changes is my hormonal balance and hunger issues. So when i have a day where it feels like my feet are incased in cement I try my best to block that out and mimic my "normal" behaviour as best I can. Its all we can do in the depths of prep. Feeling is one thing......its what we do with those feelings of lethargy, depression, anxiety, etc that count.

YES, kids are fun at this age. I was not a big fan of the infant years....too much poop and not enough sleep. Yes, there are some really cool bonding times in the middle of the night, rocking them to sleep and what not. But rough housing in the pool or taking the kids sledding, etc = FUN STUFF.

this page = full of win. repped everyone i wasn't on spread with, because the points brought up here are some that every person serious about bodybuilding needs to wrap their minds around...

Yea man. You can only go so far being overly obsessed and neurotic. You may find yourself winning bodybuilding contests, but you will find yourself losing at life in general. Balance has to come into play or you will burn out real fast especially when you compete every year. You can be a champion bodybuilder AND have a life, its just a long learning curve to find the right balance. I know im still learning in my 9th show.

[domingochavez]

Wow acting is certainly the word that sums it up, bringing back a lot of memories of the last few weeks for me!

Next prep I need to take acting classes!!!

[LoganCL]

Nudes look great on the last page. Looks like prep is going well.

PS Shamu had nothing on you in that pool! BEAST MODE!

[AustrianOakJr]

Wow acting is certainly the word that sums it up, bringing back a lot of memories of the last few weeks for me!

Next prep I need to take acting classes!!!

But thats the part of this sport that is so cool. Its the main reason I liked to wrestle in high school......not many people have the will to just push in the face of adversity. Put your head down and plow. And in this sport, it can come down to who puts their head down and plows longer and harder. Of course, plowing "smart" is very helpful too.

Nudes look great on the last page. Looks like prep is going well.

PS Shamu had nothing on you in that pool! BEAST MODE!

Yea man.....actually, I think at that point in the pic I was a dolphin. But if shamu were there I would of kicked his ass too.

[AustrianOakJr]

My first v-log. What did I learn? TURN ON THE CAMERA LIGHTING! Its a little dark....probably better that way i dont scare anyone with my ugly mug. But this is the first installment of what I hope will be several v-logs as I go through prep.

[Eric-B]

Enjoyed the v-log man.. Sounds like you're in a great position for this prep. Would you be able to expand a little more in the unilateral leg work you've been doing? I'm working on some similar issues myself with hip mobility and minor imbalances.

[Bnizzle163]

Digging the v-log, Sean. Trust me that "bro" eating will likely change a TAD as you delve deeper into prep

[ehlisl]

Great VLog Sean!


....and don't worry I eat "Bro" too

[anti-steroids]

sweet v-log Sean.and yeah I can agree 100% light makes a worlds difference when doing videos(believe me I know as a good number of my old ones were very dark and poorly shot)lastly
I hear ya on the eating more" bro" being doing a lot of the same with my diet as of late so many micronutrients

[KYCSOLO51]

Who is that svelte looking gentleman standing to my left?

Whatsup buddy. I just subscribed to your journal.

[AustrianOakJr]

Enjoyed the v-log man.. Sounds like you're in a great position for this prep. Would you be able to expand a little more in the unilateral leg work you've been doing? I'm working on some similar issues myself with hip mobility and minor imbalances.

Well, I do believe that MOST of my low back and hip issues are due to overtraining but we (myself, my physical therapist and Eric Helms) are looking at the possibility that there are some muscle imbalance issues at play as well. So I have been doing mostly all unilateral work for my leg days. Makes for a longer workout but I have also cut the volume on ALL of my training considerably so it all works out. I have been running a 5/3/1 pyramid for the last 4 weeks and as most people know the four main exercises are squat, deadlift, bench, and military press. Well, the only one of those I ACTUALLY do is the military press. I have subbed in single leg romanian dead lifts and bulgarian split squats for legs. THen I do single leg extensions (occluded) and single leg ham curls as accessory work. I have been doing barbell glute bridges and normal leg presses as well. So far so good. I actually cant remember the last time I trained as free from pain in general. God is blessing me so far in this prep with great workouts and steady fat loss.

Digging the v-log, Sean. Trust me that "bro" eating will likely change a TAD as you delve deeper into prep

Well, I have a big sweet tooth......so dont think ive gone total granola on you. Last night I had Fro-yo with whey protein chocolate syrup and three Jellos with FF cool whip. I pretty much top off every night with a desert in front of the TV to help my sanity. But the rest of the day is straight up bro style. Im hoping to keep it that way. From a satiety stand point I like eating this way. The two items I have given up on for the most part is white potatos and cottage cheese. They were STAPLES of my last prep but I have found that they are the culprit in a lot digestion issues I was having.

Great VLog Sean!


....and don't worry I eat "Bro" too

Im hoping my brocolli and sweet potato is gonna help me deadlift a few dumptrucks like you!

sweet v-log Sean.and yeah I can agree 100% light makes a worlds difference when doing videos(believe me I know as a good number of my old ones were very dark and poorly shot)lastly
I hear ya on the eating more" bro" being doing a lot of the same with my diet as of late so many micronutrients

Next one will be better, I promise. Prolly gonna hire a whole stage crew and have script and stuff too.


Or maybe ill just turn the camera light on. Either one.

[
Who is that svelte looking gentleman standing to my left?

Whatsup buddy. I just subscribed to your journal.

Hey Kuang!! Whats up bud? That pic must have been from the Natural USA in 2009?? That was a fun show.....the one I wound up on the floor in the chinese restaurant afterward cause I cut all my sodium like an idiot! Learn a lesson at each one of these things, right?

So, which shows are you getting ready for? I know you like to hit them "world tour" style.

BTW, avatar has you looking SHREDDED!!!

[ErickStevens]

Ain't nothing wrong with eating like a "bro". I do it 90% of the time!

[Bnizzle163]

Interesting. White potatoes seem to give me trouble every now and again, as well. I still eat em though lol

[AustrianOakJr]

Ain't nothing wrong with eating like a "bro". I do it 90% of the time!

When I think of "bro", I think of "The six foods that work"......and that kind of mentality. A lot of guys eat the same foods day in and day out. IMOP, that is worse for you than filling half your diet with junk. We are meant to use a very wide variety of micronutrients. Especially the ones found in ice cream.

Interesting. White potatoes seem to give me trouble every now and again, as well. I still eat em though lol

Much better for me w/o the skins....

[andyboi]

V-logs all of a sudden coming from everywhere! haha Will check the v-log out after work for sure

[domingochavez]

V-logs all of a sudden coming from everywhere! haha Will check the v-log out after work for sure

Be warned his accent sounds different to ours :P