View Full Version : The Final Nine
never_2_big
07-31-10, 12:21 am
Here it is... It's been nearly six years in the making and i finally took that big red permanent marker and circled a day to finally step on stage and let people see what and who i have become.
The day is October 9: The contest is the ANB Queensland Championships.
The game plan is simple!
I'm currently half way through my 18 week prep but i thought i would log the second half so that i can reflect on my training and diet for next time around.
My stats: 5' 11" @ 225ish, BF is unknown however it has been steadily decreasing over the last 9 weeks.
Diet: My diet for the first half of my prep was simply a high protein/moderate carb/low fat regime... However it's time to start carb cycling to shock the body into letting go of those last few lbs of fat.
Training: Training has been tough. I'm keeping the weight sessions as heavy as possible training every body part once per week with 16-20 sets for large muscle groups and 12-16 for the smaller ones. I use a 4 set pyramid scheme that starts at ~12 reps and finishing with ~6 reps. Abs and calves are hit twice most weeks and every fortnight I'll do an extra shoulder session to help with their development.
Cardio: Cardio is a bitch but it needs to be done. I try for at least an hour a day on training days, on non-training days I ramp it up to 2-3 hours. I stick to low intensity stuff ie. incline treadmill or cybex cross trainers. On Sundays I head to the local water tower to hit some stairs to really get the metabolism to burn some extra calories. I also play some park soccer every other Saturday which is a good break from the treadmill.
Supplements: During my diet thus far I've stuck to the basics. Pak, Flex, Pump and Nitro have made up the bulk of my regime. I'm also using Cuts and Liquid Carnitine for fat burning, however this will be my last cycle of cuts due to it recently being added to the banned substance list here in Australia. There are a few extra things I take that include Green Tea Extract for appetite suppression and Forskohlii for improved thyroid activity.
So join me as I fight my way through the final 9 to uncover my inner animal and make some ripples in the water of the local bodybuilding scene.
Stay Animal
naturalguy
07-31-10, 8:48 am
Awesome bro, doing your first show will be a great accomplishment. You will learn a great deal about yourself during this process and even though you will only be on stage for a few minutes, it will be worth all that blood, sweat and tears.
never_2_big
07-31-10, 10:40 am
Awesome bro, doing your first show will be a great accomplishment. You will learn a great deal about yourself during this process and even though you will only be on stage for a few minutes, it will be worth all that blood, sweat and tears.
Thanks NG, that few minutes on would be worth a lifetime of blood, sweat and tears. Life is all about the accumulation of knowledge, the fact that i'll be in a position to use it later on is a bonus.
never_2_big
07-31-10, 7:44 pm
Here is the carb cycling plan that i will be following... I will be making adjustments as time passes but this is where I'll be starting.
The carb rotation looks like this...
M - Low
T - Low
W - High
T - Low
F - Low
S - High
S - Low
A low day looks like this... This day contains 2600 calories with just under 350g protein, 175g of carbs and 60g of fat.
Meal 1
90g of polenta
2 cups of egg whites
Meal 2
80g oats
2.5 scoops of ultra whey pro
Meal 3
175g sweet potato
225g steak
Meal 4
225g chicken breast
75g spinach salad
2 tbsp slivered almonds
Meal 5
225g chicken breast
175g zucchini
2 tbsp slivered almonds
Meal 6
225g steak
75g spinach salad
1/2 tbsp olive oil
The high days look like this... It contains 3500ish calories with 255 grams of protein, 566g of carbs and 20g of fat.
Meal 1
120g polenta
1 1/4 cup of egg whites
Meal 2
80g oats
1 1/2 scoops ultra whey pro
Meal 3
450g sweet potato
115g chicken breast
175g zucchini
Meal 4
1 1/2 scoop ultra whey pro
120g polenta
Meal 5
350g brown rice
115g chicken breast
175g zucchini
Meal 6
450g sweet potato
115g chicken breast
175g zucchini
Meal 7
350g brown rice
1 1/4 cup of egg whites
never_2_big
07-31-10, 10:51 pm
I forgot to mention that on some days I am unable to eat a whole food meal at the time of Meal 4. In this situation I substitute in 2 1/2 scoops of Ultra Whey Pro and a handful of raw almonds or macadamia nuts.
never_2_big
08-01-10, 10:28 am
Just a cardio day today... one hour at 11am and another hour at 11pm... Good sessions, not too intense but enough to get my heart pounding and to burn the fat away.
All the meals were on time, even the ones I had to eat at the football game I went to today. The Brisbane Broncos beat the top of the table team the St. George Dragons 10-6.
Time for some sleep, chest and biceps tomorrow as well as another 60-90 minutes of cardio.
Stay Animal
never_2_big
08-01-10, 10:22 pm
Chest and Biceps
Incline smith press - 4 straight sets and a final drop set
Incline DB flyes - 4 straight sets @ 24kg
Pin Loaded chest press - 4 sets @ 82/96/110/124kg
Pec Deck Flyes - 4 sets @ finishing weight of 61kg
Barbell Curls - 4 sets @ 40/45kg
Seated Alt. DB Curl - 4 sets @ 18kg
Pinwheel Curls - 3 sets @ 20kg
Cardio
30 minutes on the treadmill - 5.5km/h @ Max Incline...
Real good start to the week... Went a little lighter on the presses today so I could hit a few more reps and really concentrate on the connection. Shoulder has been a little bit sore over the weekend so it worked out well going a little lighter.
never_2_big
08-02-10, 1:42 pm
Finished work at 2am... 45 minutes cardio finished and its now 335am... 4 and a half hourd sleep and its time to do it all over again.
I love this lifestyle
Stay Animal
never_2_big
08-02-10, 10:24 pm
Back and Triceps
Wide Grip pulldowns - 4 sets @ 54/61/68/75kg for 20 reps
Smith Barbell Row - 4 sets @ 40/60/70/80kg for 20 reps
Corner T-bar Rows - 4 sets @ 3 plates for 20 reps
Pin loaded row - 4 sets @ 68kg for 20 reps
Hyperextensions - 3 sets @ 15kg for 15 reps
Rope pressdowns - 4 sets @ 26kg
Dip machine - 4 sets @ 47/47/54/61kg
One arm cable pressdown - 4 sets @ ~8kg
Cardio
30 minutes on the treadmill - 5.5km/h @ Max Incline...
Real big day today. Decided to up the reps and really get a good squeeze in the back. Weights were still heavier than I expected... The next heavy back day is gonna have to be bumped up ALOT. Thank heavens for MD magazine... Half an hour on the treadmill goes pretty fast when you've got something to read.
Stay Animal
never_2_big
08-05-10, 8:47 am
Today was a massive day. Due to my study timetable I needed to train after work at 3am. This was the delts, hamstring and calves session and this is how it went down.
Delts, Hamstrings and Calves
Smith Shoulder Press 4 sets @ 30/40/50/60kg
Seated Front Raises 4 sets @ 12kg for 12 reps
Standing Lateral Raises 4 sets @ 16kg for 12-15 reps
Machine Shrugs 4 sets @ 160/200kg for 15-12 reps
Seated Hamstring Curl 4 sets @ 47-61kg for 20 reps
Steill Leg DB Deadlifts 4 sets @ 22kg for 15 reps
BW one Leg calf Raise 3 sets @ 50 reps each leg.
Workout was good. I usually struggle a little durimg this session, but this week I checked myself and dropped the weights a little to ensure a good mind-muscle connection and a good workout. I never thought the gym would be so busy at 3am though!!
Headed home for a some food, i had a couple of hours sleep and had top wake up to head back to uni. I hit the gym again at about 10:30, this time at the uni gym. I did some extra work on my chest, a few sets for my bi's but i also got to catch up on some cardio.
Chest and Biceps
Decline DB Press 4 sets @ 27.5kg for 12-8 reps
Pec Flyes 4 sets @ 40kg for 15 reps
DB Pullovers 4 sets @ 30-40kg for 12-10 reps
Machine Chest Press 4 sets @ ? for 12-8 reps
Standing Alt. DB Curl 3 sets @ 17.5-22.5 for 12 reps
Cardio
30 minutes on the treadmill. 5.5km/h @ 12 degree incline.
This was a pretty good session. The short turn around from the early morning workout didn't effect me too much. Was definately feeling tired after the session though. But I headed to m,y classes ate my meals and now I'm feeling pretty good. Rest of the night off to amp up for the leg workout tomorrow.
Stay Animal
never_2_big
08-09-10, 9:34 am
Had a busy weekend this weekend and got behind in my logs... I'll post them now!
Friday August 6
Quads and Abs
Leg Extensions - 4 sets @ ~61kg for 15 reps
Leg Press - 8 sets @ 80/120/160/200/240/280/320/360kg
Smith Machine Bench Lunges - 4 sets @ 40/50/60/80kg
45 degree Machine Squat - 4 sets @ 200/240kg
Abs consisted of 3 exercises for 4 sets each.
Saturday August 7
My training partner wanted to hit a session on Saturday night. We decided to hit some more delt work.
Delts
Seated DB Press - 4 sets @ 22-30kg
BB Front Raises - 4 sets
Arnold Presses - 4 sets @ 14kg
Smith Machine Upright Rows - 4 sets
The weekend was good, I knocked over a heap of cardio, probably about 5-6 hours total. I found a place here in OZ that has a few cans of the new cuts formula so i picked them up... 70 bucks a pop... bit of a shock!
I'll post Mondays workout in the morning!
Stay Animal