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4 weeks out from the competition!

I’m into my final weeks of preparation for my upcoming bodybuilding competition so I’m beginning to spend a lot of time posing.  When you practice your posing, it’s like doing another training session; it’s physically exhausting.  After each training session I’m trying to spend about 20 minutes going through the mandatory/compulsory poses.  I’ve been doing this by myself which has been difficult.

What I’ve learned over time is many people say they’re a bodybuilder but when it comes down to the fine details of what makes a bodybuilder a bodybuilder, they’re clueless.  A prime example of this is posing.  I’ve found very few people who can pose properly.  Every person has their own spin on it and each one conflicts with what someone else says.  When you try to point something out about they’re posing they get defensive and say, “This is the way it’s supposed to be done.”

People tend to overlook the posing aspect of bodybuilding, which is very shocking to me because posing is the culmination of all the hard work in the gym and in the kitchen.   All the months of lifting heavy, eating an abundance of calories, then the dieting, repeated cardio sessions, tanning, shaving, etc…  Some folks go on stage and have a great looking physique and mess everything up because they don’t know how to pose.  What ends up happening is someone walks away with a bad taste in their mouth and talks about how the judges are messed up.  Granted, sometimes there is controversy in competition and politics can come into play, but at the amateur levels many people miss the boat on how important posing is.  The bottomline is, you have to be able to effectively display what you have and capitalize on your strengths.

My current dilemma: I’m at a disadvantage right now because I’m currently living in New Orleans , LA and my team (Team Body Tech) and Coach (Tim Gardner) is in Tampa, FL.  What we’ve come to rely on over the past few months are photos, emails, phone conversations and text messages.  In a perfect world, I’d be there where they are, training together, attending the team meetings, posing together, allowing my coach to have eyes on me all the time so fine tune adjustsments can be made.  Well, this isn’t the perfect world and I’m not able to do that right now so I have to be clear in my mind what I’m supposed to be doing because there are so many outside influences.

What I’ve been doing over time is listening to what people say, carefully observing their posing, making critiques in my head of what I shouldn’t be doing.  In a sense, I’m watching others to observe their flaws to make sure I’m aware of how bad it looks so I don’t make those same mistakes.  That seems kind of bad but it’s what helps me put everything into perspective.  When my coach tells me not to do something and I see others do it, it becomes very clear to me.  I’m a very observant person and when it comes to bodybuilding, I’m locked on like a laser beam because this is my passion and I want to be the best at it.

Since my show is nearing I’m in the process of putting my music together.   I’ve never done this before so I’m watching videos and listening to various soundtracks to determine what will best suit me.  This is my first show and I plan to keep it simple.  I’ll be going into this show with confidence and an extremely shredded physique so I want to use that to my advantage.  I don’t want to make everything more difficult than it has to be with trying to put a dancing routine together with my music – too much at this stage.  That will come with time, and I’m definitely looking forward to it.

To all the amateurs out there, don’t let the outside influences overwhelm you.  Get a clear picture of what you’re trying to do and stick with it.  If you don’t have a coach, do your research and homework.  Communicate with other people and watch them for weaknesses and flaws.  This will help give you a mental picture of what not to do because you’ll remember firsthand how bad it looks.

Trying to dial it in for the 2009 All Forces Classic!

I’m inside of 8 weeks for the All Forces Classic in Tampa, FL. Training and diet is beginning to intensify. For novice competitors this is where things start to get challenging because the final 8 weeks, or so, are all about dialing it in and making sure you peak at the right time for the show. I’m relying on my coach to make sure I’m on the mark since this will be my first show.

As a member of Team Body Tech, I’m under the tutelage of Tim Gardner (aka…the Architect.) I began working with Tim in March 2009 and this learning experience has been priceless. Most of the knowledge I’ve gained in the sport has all been self taught and I’ve learned a lot through experience. I thought I knew a lot but when I started working with Tim I realized how much I didn’t know, specifically training and diet.

Right now I’m on a strict diet and supplement plan coupled with an intense training program. Since I’m in New Oreans, LA and Tim is in Tampa, FL, he relies on me sending him photos every Monday morning, first thing. He assesses the photos and makes adjustments to my diet and training where needed so things are constantly changing, which is good. The constant change helps keep the workouts exciting, not boring, but also doesn’t let my body’s muscles get use to a constant routine.

I didn’t have a coach when I was training to compete in 2001 (which didn’t happen) and having a coach now, I see a number of mistakes I made in my diet, supplementation (timing) and training. Some examples of mistakes I made were 1) not taking enough amino acids throughout the day and in my diet, 2) not getting enough variety of lean, solid proteins throughout the day, and 3) overtraining, to name a few. The way I feel right now, even though somewhat carb depleted, I can tell a huge difference because my strength isn’t falling nor is the muscle mass I’m holding. Instead, my bodyfat is decreasing and my striations and seperations are beginning to show more and more.

I’m a tall guy so I have to carry a lot of muscle mass to be competitive. Since I don’t carry the huge amount of mass to overshadow the other competitors right now we’re relying on my symmetry and conditioning to bring home a win. I forgot to mention Tim is also an NPC and IFBB judge so he knows what to look for in a bodybuilder, which is an added benefit for me.

For those of you who are unsure about what you’re doing, it may behoove you to invest in getting a coach, at least initially. It will be a great learning experience and will help you build on what you already know. Tim tells me, “I’m driving this train, you just do what I tell you to and we’ll win the show.” That in itself is a great confidence booster.