Fat Loss – Body Transformation – Advanced Nutrition

Hey everyone,

I’ve been watching the footage of what has happened in Moore, Oklahoma and I am absolutely shocked to see what our neighbors 400 miles north are going through and I feel like I simply have to do something about it.

I’ve decided to rent a UHaul, load it with as much stuff as I can, and drive it to Moore on Thursday night. I don’t know the logistics, I don’t have a specific plan. All I know is that I am going to do this and would appreciate as much help as I can get.

How can you help? First, help me spread the word. Also, I’m sure that they need water, blankets, clothes, food, toiletries, etc. The best way I can think to get those things to me is to either call me at 210.391.1454 and I’ll come get them OR bring them to my studio at 16613 Huebner Road in San Antonio. IF you live between San Antonio and Oklahoma City, I will be on my way sometime on Thursday evening/Friday morning (I’ll nail that down as it gets closer). LET ME KNOW.

I’m going to get on Social Media and see what I can do, as well as contact my influential friends, clients, and associates to get the word out and donate whatever they may be able to.

If you can give, please do. If all you can do is offer your prayers and well wishes, that works too.

Help me spread the word, please! Let these people know that we have not forgotten them!

Boyd

Hey everyone,

I am the first to admit that my services are not inexpensive. I take pride in being the very damn best at what I do, and I expect great things from my clients – If they perceive it, it will become a reality.

But let me make something perfectly clear:

If you think hiring a professional personal trainer is expensive, wait until you hire an amateur personal trainer.

I watch some of the things that other personal trainers in big gyms do and I think to myself “Wow, someone is paying for that?” I hear some of the “expert” advice some trainers give out and I’m astonished that they even believe what they are saying. I watch videos of Crossfit instructors that spend a weekend becoming level 1 Crossfit certified and then having total amateurs performing ballistic movements that do little more than make chiropractors, orthos, and massage therapists a lot of money.

To me, time is the most valuable asset I have, so I never want to waste it. I watch people come and go in gyms for months, even years at a time, training with their trainer, and making no noticeable progress. Even the most inexpensive personal training tab will add up over a period of months or years.

As my clientele of figure competitors and bodybuilders began to increase, I noticed one common thread amongst the many that have competed and trained with an “expert” (or a “team” clique that works with the masses): Metabolic Damage. Their trainers have them eating so little and focusing on doing so much cardio that, while they may have initially lost weight, they have utterly destroyed their body’s metabolism. There’s no quick nor easy fix for this. Yet, most (yes, MOST) personal trainers are prescribing this recipe that will lead to months, if not years of wasted time training and dieting.

Like most things that you’d consider hiring a professional to help you with, don’t look for a quick, cheap fix. More times than not, it’ll end up costing you more money and/or time in the long run.

Hey San Antonio and beyond!

While reading my Twitter timeline this morning before crawling out of bed, I noticed a few people that I follow talking about “feeling tired” and frustrated with their fitness progress.

I understand it: training and eating right can be quite daunting, and the sweat, sacrifices, time and effort sometimes doesn’t feel comensurate with results. In a society where gratifcation is everything, we sometimes expect our reward up front before the work is done.

But before you quit, remember how hard you have worked. Remember your WHY. Remember what it was that made you say “I’m going to get there, no matter what”.

Do NOT give up – you don’t have “I can’t” in you!

Hey all,

Been hammering away for the last few weeks! Oh, the adventures of business ownership.

Anyway, here’s a quick Q&A from readers emails, tweets, and Facebook messages.

Boyd: How would you recommend a quick UFC-style dehydration/weight loss for a week to get ready for a high school reunion in a few weeks?

I absolutely wouldn’t recommend that. No matter how much “weight” you lose, you’re only going to lose a minimal amount of body fat. UFC fighters don’t cut weight for visual purposes, they do it to get into a particular weight class (weigh-ins the day before) and they fight the next day at an elevated weight.

Messing with extreme dehydration is flat-out dangerous, and shouldn’t be used for drastic weight loss by someone who doesn’t have complete understanding and experience of how it works.

Boyd: which form of dieting do you prefer – low carb or intermittent fasting?

The mechanism behind any diet is the same regardless: controlling the total caloric count and creating a caloric deficit. To be honest, I’m for whatever people find they can live with day to day, get the proper macronutrient breakdowns and still train optimally. Most people who are just wanting to get/stay relatively lean and live a healthy lifestyle don’t really have to completely obsess about counting macros, but those who want to take their body to the next level (or maybe those who have hit a plateau) do need to measure/count. If you’re not making progress, it’s time to start counting. I know it sucks, but it’s absolutely necessary if you’re not getting where you want to get.

Hi B: How many calories below my BMR should I eat to lose fat?

BMR is the amount of calories it takes to keep you alive while doing absolutely nothing – under NO circumstance should you be eating below your BMR. You need to figure your actual total caloric expenditure (BMR + Calories expended due to activity), and from there reduce it 10-20% (I prefer the lower end, but in some extreme cases, 20% is necessary).

Hey Boyd, from your experience, how much does a typical figure competitor weigh? My girlfriend went to the Ronnie Coleman Classic this weekend and was trying to tell me that the girls were all at least 180-200lbs. That sounds ridiculous to me!

It is ridiculous. People look much larger when they are lean. Of course, the shorter classes are naturally going to be lighter – I’ve had shorter ladies compete at anywhere from 100-125, and taller from 115-140 depending on their height and build.

Remember, heavyweight bodybuilders are 198lbs and above and they dwarf the female competitors. Up close, you’d be surprised at how petite many figure competitors are.

Time to get back to training, but always keep them coming!

“That which does not kill us makes us stronger.”

-Friedrich Nietsche

I am sure a majority of you have heard or read this quote, and it’s completely true.

Whether it’s tough times that we are going through emotionally, mentally, or physically, we come out on the other end of it stronger.

But please understand: doing nothing, being complacent, eating terribly – those things are all killing you. Focusing on changing your body and losing fat will make your stronger and improve your life in absolutely every way.

Make the decision to start living or, simply put, start dying!

Funny I have to do this, but she deserves the attention!

Today, one of my long time clients, Chelsey Young, (due to her job) was a witness for the defense in the Jody Arias trial that, apparently (I typically don’t pay attention to stuff like this) has been a hot topic in the news of late.

Of course, I trained Chelsey for four different NPC Figure Competitions last year. Anyway, I’m one of the first pages that comes up when you Google Chelsey Young San Antonio (or anything related).

Now, my blog is getting a lot of hits due to her appearance on multiple television networks today and I appreciate it (she’s known as the BUFF chick in the Jodi Arias trial, the GUN show, etc) because people are searching for her. While I definitely love the traffic to my blog, I want to make sure that people find her.

Chelsey’s competitor Facebook Page can be found HERE.

I appreciate everyone’s comments about how amazing she looked today, so go to her page and tell her and wish her luck for her upcoming show!

Great job today, Chelsey – hopefully your testimony will put that wacko lady away forever :)

Hey all,

Every few months, there’s a new supplement that pops up and takes the world by storm. By taking the world by storm, I mean that the guys that curl in the squat rack and flex in the mirror between sets think of them as the holy grail.

Why do so many people fall into the hype?

I’ve often said that anything that provides steroid type gains is typically going to be a controlled substance, thus, illegal. Truth is, very few things actually provide “steroid like” gains. So, if you can get it at GNC, it’s more than likely bs.

The exception to that would be the occasional pro-hormones that pop up in supplement stores. The knock on those? They aren’t as effective and typically more dangerous (and also banned by most drug testing organizations). I’m not advocating steroid use, I’m simply pointing out that although these things are on the shelf at your favorite stores doesn’t mean that they’re safe.

My favorite realm of supplements is myostatin blockers. What is myostatin? Myostatin is believed to inhibit muscle growth in order to keep it within a certain limit. It’s not hard to see where the ability to “block” the myostatin gene would be a huge find in the science of gaining muscle (and IMO, enlarged heart and other organs).

I can say that without a shadow of a doubt, these supplements do not work. Not to say that the Chinese aren’t actively pursuing them as hard as they can to get an advantage in international competition, but as it stands, anything that markets itself as a myostatin blocker is trash.

What about fat burners?

First let me qualify that trying to increase fat burning while not eating toward that goal is a big waste of time, but that isn’t the theme of this post.

The last really effective supplements that actually had a direct effect on fat burning was those that contained the ephedra/caffeine/aspirin stack. After misuse by a few and over-reaching by our wonderful government, it was quickly yanked from the shelves. What has followed has been a mixture of “proprietary blends” full of nothing but a witch’s brew of stimulants unchecked for safety (and amounts). Much of this is the reason why when people ask me what is the “best” thing on the market, I hesitate to answer. Most of what is out there is garbage that may provide you a little jolt, but nothing more than a marginal improvement over any measurable time of usage.

I know, while it isn’t as sexy as the latest “skin busting pump”, “steroid like gains”, “get shredded fast” supps, but the data supports creatine monohydrate, BCAAs, fish oils, and wait for it, eating for your goals (whatever they may be) are going to provide you with the most sustainable results. There are other things that you can use in support of different goals, but typically the more outrageous the claims, the more BS and less science is behind a particular product.

As long as people remember that supplement means “in addition to a whole part”, they’ll be better off in their search for the next amazing supp.

Hey San Antonio,

Yesterday, I saw a guy in the gym that had a shirt on that said “I Live Paleo”. It’s hard to put into typing how hard I’m rolling my eyes right now.

So, you really live Paleo, eh? I don’t doubt that you TRY to eat a Paleo style diet (although most Paleo style dieters spend a lot of time justifying why they can eat pretty much anything and use a lot of miracle logic to convince themselves that a particular food is “Paleo”).

If you’re really going to live Paleo, here’s what needs to be done.

-The gym I was at was in the middle of nowhere, I didn’t see any horses, mules, etc outside. The caveman didn’t have a car nor a bicycle and I don’t think you walked or ran. So no, you’re not Paleo.

-The caveman didn’t have Under Armour. Nor polyester. You’re not Paleo. Fig leaves only.

-Love the toe shoes. Not Paleo, though.

-Air conditioner in the gym. Damn sure not Paleo.

-Shower after your workout? Are you too good for the creek? Not Paleo.

-Beautiful girlfriend. Doesn’t look like you drug her around by her hair enough. Not Paleo.

-Shake bottle? Not Paleo.

-It was really cold last night. Did you turn your heater on? Not Paleo. Oh you built a fire? Use a lighter to start it? Not Paleo. Two sticks rubbed together, only.

-I’m pretty certain that the caveman didn’t write, so your shirt makes even less sense. Not Paleo. And stop speaking. Grunting only, since you “live” Paleo.

Ahhhhhhhhhh, my point? Stop looking for an excuse to be faddish. Of course, as close to natural eating is incredible, but the shirts, the justifications, the flow charts, the Facebook posts, etc aren’t going to be enough to get you in shape – Paleo is the current fad, and if you’re not paying attention to input versus output and intense training, Paleo is about as useful as your Tony Little Gazelle and that Tae Bo Black Belt!

Hey everyone,

A picture is worth a thousand words, so I’m not going to say as much as I normally do. This is my client Angel:

A couple of things to note about this change:
-The “before” pics were taken right after she had run the Las Vegas marathon. Re-read that… For those of you that think cardio is the holy grail of fat loss, understand that her before pic is after training for a cardio-based event.

-This was a period of less than 4 months.

-Angel’s training consisted mostly of weight training with no distance/endurance/heart rate training cardio. In fact, her “cardio” consisted of running 10-12 sprints 2-3 times per week.

-No fad dieting. She simply followed the macronutrient numbers that I gave her to a “T” and we made adjustments every 7-10 days based on her body’s response. No paleo. No fasting. No starvation. No ketosis.

-No crazy miracle supplement. In fact, she consumed minimal stimulants at this time. I’m not anti-stimulant, she just didn’t use any of the so-called “fat burners” on the market.

-She is a nurse that works a crazy schedule.

-She is also a student working on her Master’s Degree.

-During this period, she trained before 7am, in the middle of the day, as late as 8pm, and every time in between. Meaning she didn’t use “I don’t have enough time” as an excuse. She made time. Sometimes it meant getting up early, staying up a bit later, or working out when she absolutely did not feel like it.

-Absolutely, positively, no “performance enhancing” drug usage. No thyroid, clenbuterol, anavar, hcg, growth hormone, or anything else people use to lose fat.

-She resisted the urge to punch me numerous times during the process :)

I know people each and everyday that can come up with a myriad of excuses as to why they can’t make a change. I’m telling you, if anyone had an excuse to throw their hands in the air and give up because they were overwhelmed, it was Angel.

I’m telling the whole world this: it is not easy. It’s called “working” out for a reason. Sacrifices have to be made. There will be doubts, ups and downs and there will be “reasons” where you think you need to give up. The difference in those who have awesome transformation pics like this one and who only have pics fully clothed at good angles are the ones that make the change didn’t quit when things got tough.

I’m extremely proud of Angel’s transformation, and I’m looking forward to see her take her body to the next level!

Hey all,

I had started writing this last week, but with everything I had going on with my client competing this weekend, I never finished it. Of course, it timed out and I lost half it. Annoying, but I’ll live. :)

When I do a Personal Trainer Q&A, I really try to avoid the same old same questions that are asked regularly, you know, the:

-What exercises can I use to tone my stomach/arms/butt?

-What do you think about Zone Dieting? Low carb dieting?

-What supplements are best for fat loss?

-Should I do P90X, CrossFit, Zumba, etc?

99% of those questions aren’t questions, but an attempt to get someone to confirm that what people want to do or are already doing is the right thing.

I don’t like to do that.

I do, however, like to:

-Motivate.

-Educate.

-Support.

-Help clients think outside of the box.

-Bust myths.

-Help clients kick ass.

-Bring the best results.

My intention today was to answer the questions that I’ve recently received but for the most part, they’re the same old same.

So, I’ll answer one question, and then give some answers to questions that really matter from a fitness, fat loss, training and nutrition standpoint.

The main question:

Boyd: I know you’re a fighting fan. From a motivation standpoint, which movie do you like better – any of the Rocky saga or Fighter?

Great question. I love the Rocky movies, as I grew up in the 80s. But Fighter (Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale) is absolutely amazing and the boxing looked a heck of a lot more convincing than what was in Rocky 1-200 or whatever. Plus, Fighter was true and Stallone is one of the worst actors ever. Sorry to my generation, but I have to go with Fighter, and to mention a movie that didn’t have the star power that I like even more than fighter along the same lines is Warrior (MMA based). Great story that has made me tear up the few times that I’ve watched it.

Ok, enough with that craziness.

-I’m hearing some crazy numbers in regards to what people are using in their dieting calculations. I had a 215 pound guy tell me yesterday that he diets on roughly 1500 calories. That isn’t dieting, it’s dying of starvation and makes absolutely no sense from a practical or scientific standpoint.

How do you determine a good caloric starting point as it pertains to dieting?

Well, stop being lazy is the first thing.

First and foremost, you must know your basal metabolic rate. There are 2000000 aps and websites that do these calculations. BMR is the amount of calories your body burns to stay alive if you were to stay in bed all day. This is not the point of which you base your caloric restrictions from, as you’re leaving out a pretty important factor: how many calories you burn from activity.

At some point, it is important to make an effort to get an idea of how many calories you burn on a given day – that includes working, working out, standing, walking, running, etc. Whether you use calculations or actually use a device that measures expenditure, it is necessary to have a rough idea if you’re serious about being as precise as possible.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with using estimates if you know what you’re doing. Before I come up with any numbers for a client, I want to have a feel for their daily activity levels so that over a period of time (a week or so), they are using the appropriate caloric deficit for their specific goals.

Yeah, but those calculations don’t work for me and I have to diet on a hardcore deficit. Now what, genius?

Now what? What as in “I’m neurotic and unlike any human on earth that has ever lived”?

At no point should you be dieting at or below your BMR. Ever, never. But when people feel that they need to go way below their total expenditure, it’s one of two things:

1. They are way over estimating how many calories they burn in a day. I’ll elaborate below, but working out just to reach a certain calorie count is not the reason to workout. But most importantly, believing what you read on most elliptical machines, treadmills, bikes, etc are far fetched and completely wrong.

2. They aren’t properly measuring their caloric intake. Many people let hidden calories get away: condiments, drinks, alcohol, serving size, improperly measuring, just not being honest with themselves, etc.

The best way to ensure you’re getting what you’re supposed to be getting? Prepare and measure it yourself – most lean people don’t eat out on a regular basis and drink even less. Sorry, but there’s a reason it’s called a “beer gut”.

I’m trying to figure out where the world came up with the hardcore rule that if you eat carbs after 5:42pm that they’ll convert to fat. Okay, maybe the rumor is 6, 7, 8pm but whatever, you get the point.

Well, sorry to all of the scientist personal trainers that keep living by this fact of nothing, but it’s completely false. As long as you’re keeping in the proper macronutrient ratios and not creating a caloric surplus, you can eat them whenever you want.

I prefer clients to bracket their workouts with a majority of their carb intake. As far as the rest of what I may prescribe, I really do not care when they consume them as long as they stay within the ranges I suggest.

You know, you MUST eat 5-7 times per day to lose fat. It keeps your metabolism up, keeps your from craving, etc, etc, etc.

Another bro-science myth. I know high end competitors that eat less than 4 times per day and they stay incredibly lean. I will say that regular meals may stabilize energy better for most. Outside of that, science shows that the fewer times per day you consume carbs, the less you crave them. On top of that, you will adjust to eating fewer times just as you have eating more regularly.

The key? Keep it within the proper macros. I know most people want to know what their proper macros are, but that’s a very user specific thing depending on activities and goals (that’s what I get paid to decide). There is absolutely no one size fits all…

My trainer makes me live off of sweet potatoes, oats, boiled chicken, steamed long grain rice, broccoli and asparagus. Are you saying that isn’t necessary?

I’m saying your trainer is an idiot. Let them know a) you’re reading my blog and b) they’re welcome to discuss it with me.

Look, some foods work better for some people. There are a LOT of food allergies. But if you’re consuming high quality proteins (for the proper amino acid profile) and focus on healthy fats, it’s so ridiculously over-exaggerated what foods you “must” eat. I personally recommend/prefer avoiding highly processed foods. Whether it is due to the high sodium content or lower food quality, take your pick. I just don’t like them. With that being said, can you get ripped to shreds if you’re not eating like the idiot trainer suggested? Yep, you can. From a contest standpoint? I want to keep it simple for competitors by not having them eat a bunch of trash – I don’t have to overthink sodium issues, water retention, etc. AND let’s face it, the crappier the quality of food, the easier it is to overeat (funny how that works).

“Cardio roll call! Fasted cardio for an hour! Gotta get ripped!”

~Some random Twitter/Facebook update…

Ok, I’ve beat this poor dead horse beyond senseless, but I haven’t reached everyone in the world yet. Back to my never-ending lists:

-Cardio is terrible for fat loss.

-Fasted cardio is by far the catabolic thing you can do. Catabolic means “breaking muscle down”.

-The primary catalysts for fat loss is intensity (training) and proper nutrition. Slow, fasted cardio is a muscle killer!!!! Intensity is key. Simply look at cardio athletes versus intensity athletes (sprints).

AGAIN: CARDIO IS NOT THE HOLY GRAIL FOR FAT LOSS. I get so annoyed at “coaches”, “trainers”, etc telling clients how important cardio is for fat loss. It’s not, it’s not, it’s not.

Go to my “Must Read/Getting Started” section over there —> – I explain all of it.

Have you ever done _____________ ? It’s HARD!

A lot of things are challenging. There has to be a definite reason for why you’re doing what you’re doing. You can randomly pick random numbers for sets/reps and exercises and it can suck, but that doesn’t mean it’s effective.

1. Make a plan.
2. Stick to it.
3. Revise/modify when necessary.
4. Kick ass.

I have more to write, but want to get this published! I have a lot of updates to make!

15 Things To Give Up

1. Doubting yourself.

2. Negative thinking.

3. Fear of failure.

4. Destructive relationships.

5. Gossiping.

6. Criticizing yourself and others.

7. Anger.

8. Comfort Eating.

9. Laziness.

10. Negative self talk.

11. Procrastination.

12. Fear of success.

13. Anything in excess.

14. People pleasing.

15. Putting the needs of others before your own.

This isn’t necessarily a fitness topic, but a life topic.

You must believe!

It is definitely competition season. Not just figure, bikini and bodybuilding either – I have athletes getting ready for marathons, football, basketball, triathalons, and more. I do not only train athletes, but this is the busiest time of year for competition based clients.

But those individuals aren’t the target of this post.

It seems that no matter what an individual is preparing for, they have naysayers somewhere: critiquing them, judging them, asking them “why” and maybe even degrading them for making the decision to “put themselves out there”. Hell, my client Nick Novak trained two times per day for a couple of years trying to get back into the NFL, long after most people would’ve given up. Most people thought he was crazy. Then, he started getting calls – long story short, he is going into his third year as the kicker for the San Diego Chargers, all because HE didn’t give up, no matter how many people told him it was time to “move on”.

I get it: if individuals don’t have that passion about something, whether it be a figure competition, marathon or whatever, they just can’t understand how you CAN feel a certain way about seeing a goal through.

They’ll be the first to doubt you – because they doubt themselves.

They’ll let you know they have too much going on: like you don’t have a family, job, school, etc.

All of these things, while sometimes feel like a fist to the face, aren’t really about you at all – while they hurt, that probably isn’t why they are spoken.

In fact, it isn’t because they doubt you: it is because they doubt themselves.

Misery loves company – and negative people would prefer bring you down to build themselves up. The biggest mistake of all? Letting those things influence you or determine whether you’re going to keep the fight alive.

Don’t let it slow you down, let it FUEL you.

For everyone that I train that is getting ready for that first show, next show, first/next race, first/next fight, next tryout, next meet, next game, or just next trip to the ocean or lake – you’ve learned a lot about yourself. While it’s pretty damn cool to look back at the journey and realize all you have learned about yourself and what you have accomplished, it’s even more cool to realize that sometimes you need to just savor the journey and the end result is just the culmination of the hard work and overcoming obstacles: those we cannot control, those that we have imposed upon ourselves by fear and insecurities, and those that others impose on themselves and subconsciously, on us.

I’ve lived in this world for a long time. I have people critiquing me on Youtube, Facebook and Twitter – whether I’m lifting world class weight in powerlifting and having some 16 year old judging form, or comparing me to another lifter, to having people that have never as much been to a bodybuilding show telling me that I should work more on my arms or whatever.

Funny, because if you take all of the people who have simply judged others while never competing in anything themselves? They have ZERO wins. No trophies.

Remember: they are judging you by your actions and results, while judging themselves on their intentions and skewed self-perceptions.

Keep it up: I promise you that you are inspiring many – and in a lot of cases, you may never know who those people are. But they will be eternally grateful.

Wanted to start keeping track of my workouts here over the next bit as I get ready to begin prep for my bodybuilding show in August!

Right now, my focus is still primarily muscle gain. Well, net muscle gain is always the goal, even during dieting, but that’s a conversation for another post on protein synthesis, etc.

Oh, and while I still have time to toy around, I’m going to wear a device that detects my caloric expenditure from my movement. Adding that to my resting metabolic rate will give me a decent idea of where I want to start with my calories and macro breakdowns. I have numerous calculations I use, but I think this will give me a closer to exact idea.

Monday’s Bench Press Festival

bench press
roughly 4-5 sets of warming up and acclimating
315x8repsx4sets
405x8x3
545x2x2
315x10x2

No reason why I bounced around so much later on in the sets – my workout partner was running late so I stayed at 315 for a bit, and that’s not a terribly bad thing because it forced me to get some reps in, and I was doing those sets VERY controlled (3 seconds down). Still, 11 sets of moderately heavy weight worked well.

decline bench press
405x8x5sets

Just one of my favorite exercises, and overall, a good tricep builder as well :)

flat db bench press
150lb dbs ea x 10-12×5 sets

If the gym I typically lifted at had 160-200lb db, I’d do db bench a lot more often but more than anything, I just get bored.

Lateral DB raises
My shoulders are definitely a strong point for me, so I keep direct shoulder volume light. Seems to have worked well, as a) I have nice shoulders and b) I have been able to stay shoulder injury free for years.

40x15x5s

DB Skull Crushers on a Decline Bench
An exercise I highly recommend if you’ve never done them. At the top, keep your palms facing. At the bottom, turn your hands to where you are looking at your palms.

40×12-15×6 sets

Overhead cable tricep extension
200×10-15×5 sets

Just wanted to finish off strong here.

Hey all,

I’m pretty open about my fitness goals – I’ve found that by letting people know my goals is a great way to keep me accountable and motivated. Ultimately, my personal goals are mine and I’m very self-motivated, but I’m human, and a big part of being human is our internal desire to please and to not let people down, and in a way, I feel that sharing goals kind of “puts me out there” to where I don’t want to let anyone down (if that makes any sense at all).

Nonetheless, having goals in the short, mid, and long term give us kind of a road map as to where we intend on going.

Last week or so, I shared that I’m competing in bodybuilding again in August. Actually, this past Sunday was exactly 5 months out. While I don’t actually start my hardcore prep for a few weeks, I have begun what I call Stage 1 and I’ll blog more about that later this week. Obviously, that’s my mid-range goal, and to get on stage, I have to focus on several short-term goals (following my exact plan of training and nutrition, getting plenty of rest, etc).

Most people aren’t surprised that I’m competing. I’m often asked about when I plan on getting back on stage, and those close to me know I toyed with it a lot last year.

It’s my long term goal that surprised a lot of people. During the early part of my military career, I spent a lot of time in martial arts training. Of course, that was several years ago and while I’ve focused on keeping my skills at least relevant, I haven’t put forth the complete dedication that I once did. Anyway, my goal after my show is to dedicate 12-18 months toward my martial arts skills (Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, and Tae Kwon Do) with the goal of fighting an amateur mixed martial arts fight before my 39th birthday (I turned 37 just over 2 weeks ago).

My life motto is this: Suffer from the pain of dedication or suffer from the pain of regret. Given the choice (which I do have a choice), I’m going to choose the former. I’ve been blessed with a healthy life and an intense work ethic, and I’d love to be able to say “I did that”.

But first things first… On August 31, 2013, I’ll be on stage at approximately 198lbs in the light heavyweight division of the NPC Sun City Bodybuilding Classic in El Paso, Texas. I’ve been very objective on my weaknesses and body parts I need to improve on to be competitive and will do absolutely everything in my power to make those improvements and be ready to put my best physique on stage come August. I’ll be documenting the whole process here on my blog, and as I mentioned, I’ll not only explain the “what”, but also the “why” and “how” – I like to share the entire process with anyone who takes the time to read my blog!

Let me say one final thing: thank you for letting me share my journey with you!

Get busy living or get busy dying!

Hey gang,

Last week I mentioned here, Facebook, and Twitter that I plan to return to the bodybuilding stage in August of this year, which led to several questions about my competition and prep. As many of you already know, as far as competing goes, my focus has been on my many figure clients. Well, this year, I’ll be sharing their agony!

When is the show you are doing?

August 31 in El Paso at the NPC Sun City Classic. Actually, it looks as if there will be several of us competing in the same show – as I’ll have friends, clients and family competing in figure, bikini, and bodybuilding. I’ve competed with a friend before, but never with a group of friends.

When will you start your competition prep?

Well, I never really quit training and eating at least a somewhat clean diet. I’ve started my “baseline” phase already, where I focus on eating my “prep” foods, just a lot more of them. I’m evaluating on a weekly basis to see exactly when I’ll start the countdown. As it stands now, my goal is to start the stretch run around Memorial Day.

How will your training split look as you prepare to compete?

Personally, I don’t train a traditional split. My training revolves around squatting, bench pressing or dead lifting. Sometimes two or all three of those movements or an alternate version of these lifts. However, the premise doesn’t change. I’ll also throw in work to focus on the groups that aren’t getting much direct work as well.

The biggest change will be the volume during each training session. As my calories become more restricted, I’ll lower training volume, but, more than likely, I’ll increase frequency.

How much cardio will you do?

Minimal. I mean, very minimal. More so, to get blood flowing on days I don’t weight train. All based on high intensity and low volume. No session will exceed 15-20 minutes, as my goal is to preserve absolutely every ounce of muscle that I can.

A few weeks ago, you discussed cost of competing for a female. Are there any differences in cost for a guy to compete?

No huge differences. We all have the same entry fees, same lodging, travel, etc. Posing trunks are MUCH cheaper than the posing suits that the females wear (typically no more than $60-85). Other than that, I personally eat a lot more food than most of my female competitors, and that adds up. But overall, it is much more inexpensive for a guy to compete.

What is the hardest thing for you to give up?

I’ve often said that my favorite food is simple: a good cheeseburger and french fries. If I were on death row, that’d be my final meal. But I don’t eat them often enough to say that I’ll miss them.

The thing that most people dislike that actually doesn’t bother me is the monotony. After a couple of weeks, I just become a robot and actually enjoy the constant routine. It’s probably easier for me to objectively assess a client than it is myself (I’m brutally hard on myself), so that’s a challenge, but I try to look at myself from the outside while listening to what my body needs (versus the peanut butter that it wants).

What’s the worst part about prep? What’s the worst part about the day of the show?

For me, the worst part about prep is the wait. I’m an intense person. Prep is a marathon, not a sprint. It’s a long grind.

The worst part about the day of the show is how long the day lasts. It’s a very long day. You’re up late the night before, the day starts very early and ends very late. Lots of standing around and waiting, lots of being herded like cattle. Mooooooooooo.

The actual getting on stage is the greatest feeling on earth. THAT is the fun part.

What song are you going to do your posing routine to?

Honestly hasn’t crossed my mind. Something will click into my head at some point between now and then. My 8 year old may pick it for me.

Thank you for your questions and support! I’m very grateful and appreciate all of it!