Absportsandfit's Journey Back to the Stage

[absportsandfit]

Hey guys,

I figured I would start up my own journal on my journey back to the stage this season. This could be a big help for me and could also help a lot of you and it will give me something to keep myself occupied through these tough stages of prep. A little background on me: I am a natural competitive junior bodybuilder (20 years old) and have one show already under my belt. I competed in November of 2014 having just turned 19 years old during that prep and placed 4th in the junior men's category in a non drug tested show. I took a good solid year and a bit off to really attack my weak points and grow to fill out this 6'5" frame of mine. Fast forward to this prep and I was 245 lbs at the start and am currently sitting at 205 lbs 1.5 weeks out of my first show of this 2016 season. I plan on competing in 3 shows this year (1 in May and 2 in June) and figured I would document it all here. My first show is a natural provincial qualifier in 1 and a half weeks, the second show planned is that natural provincial show I am trying to qualify for and the third show is a non drug tested show way up north. I am confident in myself doing well in the natural shows and plan on qualifying for the Canadian Drug Tested Nationals known as the CBBF World Qualifier in 2017. I will attach a few photos of where I stand right now 10 days out of show #1!

Feel free to follow along with my journey here and any feedback at all is greatly appreciated. I will post updates on a weekly basis and recap the shows for you as well as touch on my plans going forward!

[absportsandfit]

Also feel free to follow my journey on youtube guys! I go more in depth into my prep in my youtube series such as training, nutrition, the good and the bad, etc. Ill post the link to my latest video here

[NaturalPursuit]

Will be following brother

[absportsandfit]

Will be following brother

Thank you bro!

[absportsandfit]

5 days out guys! Today was the first real 'depletion' workout of peak week and lemme tell you I was absolutely gassed. I mean i experienced loss of strength towards the end of my last prep but damn today hit me like a rock. I was literally a zombie walking machine to machine. Still feeling motivated as ever though despite my body telling me to have a burger lol. I trained back today and kept it more so 'pump' oriented so everything kind of quick little bit lighter and really focusing on that stretch and squeeze targeting my lats. I started off with some machine assisted pullups, than some hammer strength lat pulldowns, than to a low row machine, reverse grip pulldowns with a wider grip, dumbbell lat pulldowns really focusing on stretching, some hyperextensions for low back than finished off with a few exercises for traps and some cardio.

My coach has upped my fats a little pretty much just with breakfast I am now having 4 whole eggs and 4 oz steak with a little bit of oats. We started peak week off with almost no carb and my body really reacted and i dropped a few pounds... Being right on the brink of light heavy and heavyweight (200 lbs and cut off for light heavies is 198) we quickly added some carbs back in.

5 days out from the first show of the season! If you guys want to a see a little more in depth what my peak week is looking like check out my latest youtube video.

[absportsandfit]

Just finished my first of three shows this season yesterday guys and it went very well! Ended up taking first in the Junior Men's class and 3rd in the Heavyweight Men's Open. This also qualified me to compete in both categories at the provincial championship show (next tier up) in 4 weeks!

All in all I was very pleased with the package I brought to the stage this time around and couldn't be happier with how things turned out.
I put on a solid 10 pounds of show weight in the year and a half since my first show, and improved my placing from 4th to 1st.

The plan now: taking today to just relax and enjoy myself, eat a good dinner with the family and have some of the snacks and goodies I bought for after show but starting tomorrow its back to prep mode for this provincial championship show in 4 weeks. My coach has emailed me my diet plan going into this show already and I am feeling motivated as ever having a win under my belt.

Here are some of the photos! Lemme know what you guys think! I'm the tall guy number 2 in the blue trunks (not the best quality still waiting on photographer photos)

[absportsandfit]

What's up guys,

So it's been a minute since I wrote in the journal here so I'd like to just explain how things have been going since the last show and where I am at now.

How I feel: A zombified shell of a human. 4 weeks in between shows has proven to be the hardest challenge I have ever faced mentally and of course physically. I would not recommend doing this unless you REALLY want it. That national qualification is the only thing getting me through this and causing me to keep pushing through. Keeping your body fat level at contest condition for 4 weeks without spilling over or causing serious harm and while working 30 hours a week and going to school has been brutal. I am 4 days out from the provincial championship show and I am currently weighing 4 lbs lighter than my show 4 weeks ago. I had originally planned to do a third show 2 weeks after this one coming up but I ended up dropping the show because of my current situation. My body is in some sort of spiralling rapid fat burning state and it is screaming at me for a rebound and some damn food. The crazy thing is I am eating alot more than I was before my last show but my body is literally running through everything like a furnace. This is how I know its time to shut it down after this next show because my good health is possibly at stake here.

The plan moving forward: The plan is to win the junior class, and place in the men's open class and qualify for drug tested nationals. Your qualification is good for 2 competing years so I will be able to skip out on the one coming up and instead take a much needed solid year off to put on some more size and jump into the 2017 nationals! I feel that it is also necessary to drop the third show for this reason. If I want to do well against the best in the country I need all the time in between that i possibly can to build.

Always put health first guys, there is more to life than competing. I personally can't wait to have proper balance in my life again. Especially at my age there are alot of other important things i need to invest adequate time into! I will obviously still be taking everything serious and more serious than ever since I want to do the nationals next year, but I will also be taking it easy in a sense as well.

All in all, its important to always listen to your body. Good health is much more important than any trophy you will ever have, sometimes it's easy for us to forget this. That being said, it's time to defend my junior title!!!

And I cant frickin wait to have a burger.

[absportsandfit]

Well guys I had my second and last show of the season last saturday, the drug tested Provincial Championships. I ended up taking third in both the Junior Men's and the Open Men's Heavyweight classes. I don't agree with how the junior class was judged however, I felt the judges totally overlooked me. I feel I should have placed second but that's bodybuilding sometimes. You just never really know what the judges are looking for. That being said I also looked much better 4 weeks ago at my last show. All in all though I am very happy with the results as I qualified for the Canadian drug tested Nationals in both classes. I will attach some stage shots below, let me know what you guys think! When you qualify for Nationals you are awarded a 2 year qualification so I have decided to skip this years Nationals, take a long much needed offseason and jump into the 2017 Nationals. The best part about competing is you get to see where you need to work on and improve the most. In the last year I have brought up my chest and legs considerably, but there is still a ton of work that needs to be done if I want to hang with some of the guys on the National stage next year. My chest needs the most work still, so that will be at the top of my priority list going forward.

OFFSEASON PLAN:
Diet:
A few weeks before my last show I stumbled across an article on Flexonline written by Chris Aceto about the 'post contest rebound'. It was basically about how to optimize your diet and training after a competition when muscle gains are most prevalent. With this article I devised a reverse diet for the first stages of my offseason. Basically this week and next I have upped my carbs by 100-150g, my fats by 50g and lowered my protein to about 1g per lb of bodyweight. In another week I will up my carbs again by another 100-150g, my fats by about 10-15g and my protein by about 25g. After about 6 weeks I will be at my desired caloric surplus and macronutrient ratio. I will allow for 1-2 'cheat' meals a week.
Here is the link to the article: http://www.flexonline.com/nutrition/rebound-effect

Training:
I ended up taking a few days off after my show to really recover physically and mentally. I went back to training this Wednesday and just did some light arms and then capped off the week with a 3 day legs, push, pull routine. Starting tomorrow (Monday) I will be beginning John Meadow's "reactive pump hypertrophy" routine. It is a 5 day a week - 12 week program that i'm hoping will really take advantage of these 'post show gains'. I have done a John Meadows program before and saw tremendous results and also enjoyed it thoroughly. In another couple of weeks I will add another leg day which will put me at 6 training days a week with 1 day of rest.
Here is the link to the program: https://www.t-nation.com/workouts/re...mp-hypertrophy

Cardio:
I am planning on keeping cardio as part of my routine in the offseason to minimize fat gains. I will be tapering it back considerably though from what I was doing during prep (for obvious reasons). My plan is for next week to continue what I have been doing this week which is 15 mins stairmaster post workout. In another week I will taper it back to 10 mins stairmaster post workout and than 2 weeks after that and beyond I will switch to 10-15 mins on the bike post workout.

If you guys have any comments on my offseason plan going forward please put them down below. I am always open to trying new methods and ideas! Any feedback is greatly appreciated!
Edit: (I'm the tall guy with the purple trunks)

[absportsandfit]

[absportsandfit]

3rd week post show:

Diet: I traveled with my buddy up north for his first ever competition this past weekend, so the diet wasn't exactly the best (tons of cheat meals and goodies to celebrate). This week I am back to a regular routine, I upped the carbs by another 115g, fats by 10g and protein by 25g. This sits me at about 3200 calories a day.

Training: I am now on week 2 of John Meadows 'Reactive Pump Hypertrophy' program and am absolutely loving it! I have a whole new fire under me for training and am excited to hit the gym everyday again.

Cardio: I have tapered back my cardio again from 20 minutes stair-master post workout to 15 minutes on the bike post workout

Misc: My friend's show was a great one and he looked awesome for his first showing ever. This was the third show I was going to do this year but later decided not to, but still wanted to come to support my buddy and make sure his first show was the best it could be. Damn were there some good bodybuilders in it! They also had the X-man Toney Freeman guest posing and it was amazing getting to meet and talk to him. He is one of the most humble pro bbers in the game. Also as a tall bodybuilder I have always looked up to and aspired to have a physique like him!

I will attach some photos below!

[absportsandfit]

3rd week Post Show:

Arm Day (plus calves)

Exercise 1: cable tricep pulldowns w/rope supersetted with db bicep curls
Sets: 4 / 4 (8 total)
Reps: 15 / 15

Exercise 2: weighted tricep dips supersetted with bb bicep curl
Sets: 4 / 4
Reps: 8 / 8

Exercise 3: bb incline skullcrushers supersetted with db hammer curls (one arm at a time)
Sets: 4 / 4
Reps: 15 / 15

Exercise 4: seated calf raises
Sets: 4
Reps: 15

Cardio: 15 min stairmaster post workout

Misc: I am now 3 weeks post show and everything has been going very well. Slowly getting my energy back and am able to function a little more normally. I am on about 3200 calories a day at the moment (approx. 75f, 350c and 240p) and will be upping it to around 3450-3500 cals in another week. I am still only training 5 days a week using John Meadows 'Reactive Pump Hypertrophy' program but will be adding a second leg day in about 2 weeks totalling 6 training days. I am sitting at about 210 lbs right now and still staying fairly lean. I will attach some current update pics below! No filter, no bs

[IK9]

Looks like this is a good bodyfat set point right now!

[absportsandfit]

Looks like this is a good bodyfat set point right now!

thanks man, i think so too. Gonna try to keep it alot tighter this time around

[absportsandfit]

[absportsandfit]

Officially my 7th week post show. Man time flies....

Training:
I am starting week 6 of John Meadows Reactive Pump Hypertrophy program tonight. Today (Monday) is legs and this is the last week of only 1 leg day (will be adding a second leg day each week starting next week). Today's leg workout will go as follows...

Leg curl - 3x8 (drop set on final set)
Chain squat - 4x3
Leg Press - 1 work set - 32 reps total (4 sets of 8 and its all drop setted - this is absolutely brutal)
Leg extension - 2x10
Dumbbell stiff leg deadlift - 3x8
Standing calf raise supersetted with dorsiflexion - 3x30 (holding for 10 seconds on every 10th rep)
... I can hardly wait!

Cardio: I am continuing my routine of 10 minutes fasted morning cardio every training day on the elliptical trainer or stair master.

Diet: Starting today i have upped my calories to 3800 per day (approx 240p, 100f, 440c).

Misc: I got back from a trip to my cabin yesterday night. Had a blast with my gf, family and some family friends this weekend. Good people, good times, and not tracking a thing aka having a good time and living like a normal 20 year old. Now we are back however and its time to get back to being not so normal 8)

Here's my newest youtube video/offseason update!

[absportsandfit]

Offseason Mountain Dog Leg Workout:

Exercise: Leg curl - 1.25 reps (1 full ROM rep followed by 1 quarter rep = 1 rep)
Sets: 4
Reps: 10

Exercise: Squats (with heavy chains each side)
Sets: 4
Reps: 4

Exercise: Leg Press
Sets: 3
Reps: 8

Exercise: Bulgarian Split Squats
Sets: 3
Reps: 15 per leg + 30 second quad stretch

Exercise: Barbell Stiff Leg Deadlifts (with chains)
Sets: 2
Reps: to failure

Exercise: Seated Calf Raise
Sets: 4
Reps: 20

MISC: This was a crazy good leg workout, best part was I didn't finish until 2am. My gym is 24 hours now and I am loving being able to get it in at anytime no matter how busy I am! Also its my 21st birthday on Monday!

I'll link some pictures from the leg workout below... Hate not seeing the cuts in my legs anymore :'(

[absportsandfit]

Whats up guys, been a rough week for me but still going strong 10 weeks now post show.

Today's leg workout

Exercise 1: Leg Curl
Sets: 4
Reps: Pyramid 15, 10, 8, 6

Exercise 2: Stiff leg Deadlift
Sets: 4
Reps: Pyramid 10, 8, 6, 6

Exercise 3: Leg Press / Sissy squats
Sets: 4 / 4
Reps: Pyramid 20, 15, 10, 8 / 15

Exercise 4: Wide stance leg press / Sissy squats
Sets: 4 / 4
Reps: 10 / 15

Exercise 5: Walking lunge
Sets: 3
Reps: 10 paces per leg

Exercise 6: Seated Calf raises
Sets: 4
Reps: 20

Legs were TOAST after this...

MISC: I'm still recovering from a stomach virus I got a few days ago, it was some crazy fever type thing I got (legs were almost temporarily paralyzed etc). I lost about 6-7 lbs in the last few days but I'm starting back strong once again! I also got a look at some of my competition coming up next year for the nationals, and lets just say I have a lot of work to do if I want to do well against some of these guys... Im going to post a few photos down below here guys first one was from last week after a solid chest/shoulders workout in my chitty school gym and the other very depleted after todays leg sesh and the crazy random fever bug. Mirin' shirt? Geek/10

[absportsandfit]

Today's Arm Workout:

Exercise: v-bar pushdowns / barbell curls
Sets: 4 / 4
Reps: 20 / 8

Exercise: rope hammer curls / dips
Sets: 4 / 4
Reps: 10 / 12

Exercise: bent over tricep extensions / preacher dumbbell curls
Sets: 4 / 4
Reps: 10 + 5 partials / 10

Exercise: Alternating Dumbbell Curls
Sets: 3
Reps: 16 (8 each arm)

MISC: Went down to the good ol' US of A the other day with my buddy to see the Seahawks vs Vikings down in Seattle. This was my first time watching an NFL game live and I had a great time. I also got my new offseason supplement stack in the mail the other day, pics down below!! These supps are staples for me in my offseason

[absportsandfit]

14 weeks have already gone by since my last show.. I have completed John Meadows 12 week program and will be starting a 6 day push, pull legs routine Monday. A few days ago I met up with one of my buddies from youtube and we trained back at golds gym, here is how it looked.

Back Workout:

Exercise: Pullups
Sets: 4
Reps: 8

Exercise: Bent Over Rows
Sets: 3 working sets
Reps: 8-10

Exercise: Machine Pullovers
Sets: 4
Reps: 15-20

Exercise: Seated Cable Rows
Sets: 3
Reps: 12

Exercise: Hammer Strength Low Rows
Sets: 3
Reps: 8

Exercise: Hammer Strength Lat Pulldowns
Sets: 3
Reps: 10-12

Exercise: Hyperextensions
Sets: 3
Reps: 12

MISC: I often identify and relate myself with previous generations (80's/90's) and often speak negatively about a lot of things in todays society, but there is something special about being able to connect with likeminded people you would have otherwise never met. This is why I love youtube and bodybuilding.com forums!


VIDEO:

[absportsandfit]

Whats up guys,

So it's been a little while since I wrote here but I thought i'd update you guys on how things are going! I'm at about 5 months post show now man time flies... I am sitting at about 240 lbs right now and strength is final getting back up to where it once was. I am really happy with the progress I have made so far this offseason - At this weight last offseason I was carrying way more fat, I am so much tighter this time around and my shape is way better too. Best part is.... I Haven't tracked a single macro for weeks! Its so nice to take a break from all the attention to detail and just focus on lifting, eating and resting.

Here's how my back looks right now at 240 lbs photos taken yesterday!