Rich's Road to the NPC Ohio State and INBF National's: Controlled Labs Sponsored

[rich55]

I did 35 minutes of cardio first thing yesterday morning and then took the rest of the afternoon off to recharge. I experienced some pretty severe hunger pains kickstarted by AM cardio and eating less on a non-weight day.

BUT, I have dropped down to 172 lbs (down 2 lbs) and my waist measured 29.25" (down 1/4") since last week. That makes it all worth it!

I carbed-up last night, which was much needed. I am pulling my calories and carbs down further tomorrow to get rid of the last bit of fat.

[rich55]

Less than 3 weeks to Go!!

Alright baby it is crunch time!!! Let's get it on. This is where I really dive into the my training and prep full steam. Posing becomes an increased focus as well.

Posing & Arms 8/25:

Afternoon Posing-
Posing was brutal. Davies kicked are ass.....and then kicked it some more. He has been especially hard on me this time around, but I welcome the criticism. He did say I looked a lot better this week. I did carb-up the night before as well, haha. I did 25 minutes of walking on an incline after.

Evening Arms-
I took a nap and came in fired up to smash my arms!!

A1- Dip Machine 340 x 8 x 7 x 7
A2- Barbell Curls 110 x 6 x 6, 75 for 8 after last set
B1- Decline DB Extensions 37.5 x 9, 37.75 x 7
B2- Seated DB Curls 45 x 9, 47.5 x 6
C1- Reverse-Grip Pushdowns 120 x 11, 130 x 10, close-grip pushups after
C2- Reverse EZ-Bar Curls 90 x 9 x 8, inside hammer curls after with 20's
D1- Behind-Back Wrist Curls 115 x 12 x 10
D2- Reverse Wrist Curls 40 x 11 x 10

And a few pix from the workout...

[rich55]

New Diet and Still Getting Stronger

NEW DIET
This is the get shredded diet for this time around:

Upon Waking- Red Acid, Yohimbine, Hoodia, BCAA's, Glutamine
Meal 1- 1/2 grapefruit, 1 T green phyto foods, 1 scoop Muscle Provider, 1 whole egg & 4 whites, 2 super epa, 1 sesaglow
Meal 2- 8 oz 4% lean beef, 1 c broccoli, 2 super epa
Meal 3- 8 oz chicken, 1 c asparagus, 1 T Newman's, 1 sesaglow, Red Acid, Yohimbine, Hoodia
Meal 4- 2 scoops Muscle Provider
Pre and During Workout- White Flood, Green Magnitude, Blue Up, Purple Wraath, Glutamine and Glycergrow
Postworkout- 2 scoops Muscle Provider and 1/2 grapefruit
Meal 6- 8 oz cod, 2 c spinach, 2 super epa
Meal 7- 2 scoops Ultimate Muscle Protein, 1/2 T almond butter & 1 sesaglow

Every 3-4 days I will carb up before bed with 1 c veggies, 1 T butter, 1 c oatmeal, 1 banana, 1 medium sweet potato, r-ALA and Super Enzymes.

Strength Gains Continue

Low-Carb Legs 8/26:
I lightened up on my squats, but still crushed it!! With my first day of low carb and no waxy maize starch preworkout I was feeling it, but nothing is gonna hold me back.

Squats 315 x 12, 325 x 8
Barbell Lunges 160 x 12, 165 x 10, leg extensions after 140 x 8
Seated Leg Curls 140 x 6 x 6, hammie feeling a little tweak but all good
1-Leg Curl Machine 70 x 11, 75 x 9
Hanging Leg Raises, Reverse Crunches, Twisting Crunches till it hurt so bad

Vengeful Shoulders 8/27:
I am officially back on the dating market. The chick couldn't relate to my passion and found it to be self-absorbed. This workout was dedicated to giving more in the gym than she could ever imagine. PAIN IS WEAKNESS LEAVING THE BODY!!

Lateral Raise Machine 110 x 10 x 9 x 8, many breathing reps
Upright Rope Cable Rows 155 x 11, 160 x 8 x 8
Arnold DB Press 75 x 9, 80 x 6, very surprised at how much weight I could handle pre-exhausted!
A1- Machine Shrugs 450 x 8 x 7 x 6
A2- Bent-Over DB Laterals 35 x 10 x 9 x 8, moved up from last week
Seated Calf Raises 165 x 9 x 8 x 8
Leg Press Calf Raises Out/In/Straight 300 x 13/6/5, 310 x 11/5/4
30 minutes cardio on elliptical

[pu12en12g]

Insane !!!

[JOakman]

NEW DIET

Upon Waking- Red Acid, Yohimbine, Hoodia, BCAA's, Glutamine

Are you taking Red Acid 2? Just wondering, because the bottle says not to take Yohimbine with it.

[rich55]

Are you taking Red Acid 2? Just wondering, because the bottle says not to take Yohimbine with it.

Yes, I am and while drinking plenty of coffee as well. I'm not very sensitive to stims particularly right now, so it is not an issue for me. My appetite has been in check this way better than ever.

[rich55]

Fired Up!!

I do not think I have been this fired up to compete before. I am just SO focused right now and pushing VERY hard. Everything feels great, except for the typical low-carb lethargy. The workouts continue to go well though.

My conditioning continues to improve every few days and a little bit of fat remains in the lower abdominal area, hamstrings/glutes and back of my arms. I have been doing a little more cardio and next week I will do two-a-days.

Back Blast 8/29:
Deadlifts 415 x 9 x 6
Weighted Chins 30 x 8 x 7 x 6
Hammer Low Rows 170 x 9, 175 x 7
Wide-Grip Pulldowns 190 x 9 x 7
Hyperextensions and Weighted Crunches
30 minutes on elliptical

Chest 8/30:
Incline Bench 225 x 5 x 4 - this kinda sucked, but the rest kicked ass!
Incline Cable Flys 65 x 11, 70 x 8 x 7
Flat DB Press 90 x 8 x 7 x 7
Hammer Wide Chest 135 x 9 x 8, 90 drop x 5
Donkey Calf Raises 410 x 9, 420 x 8 x 7
Standing Calf Machine 190 x 11, 200 x 8
15 minute jog on treadmill, 15 minutes walking on incline

And some cool back shots...

[JOakman]

Sounds good.

Looking good man (no homo). Good luck.

[rich55]

Sounds good.

Looking good man (no homo). Good luck.

Thanks man! I get ya, haha.

---------------

I only got a little more than 6 hours of sleep last night and I typically need at least 7 hours. Today was rough with the lack of sleep, low-carb lethargy and split cardio sessions. 30 minutes of brisk walking on nothing but Purple Wraath and glutamine first thing in the morning and then back at it at 5pm for 30 minutes split between jogging and elliptical.

I weighed in at 171 lbs today and will measure my waist tomorrow right before morning cardio.

Today was an odd first session with a new client to talk competition. She is 2 weeks out from her first figure show (also the Ohio) and is in for a big-time crash course. Great physique, but not hard enough. Fortunately I was able to talk her into doing the NPC Natural Nothern in 5 weeks, but she was still all about the Ohio.

[rich55]

2 Weeks Out!!!

2 weeks out baby!!

My waist measured 29" this morning. This is the lowest it has measured and it will be interesting to see how the last little bit of body fat remaining on my lower abs, tris, hams and glutes will harden up. I have begun tanning every other day now.

AM Cardio and Arm Assault 9/1:

45 minutes of walking first thing in the morning, then I smashed arms later in the evening. Impressingly, my strength continues to increase!! Since arms are my weak point and I am scheduled to carb-up tonight anyway, I slammed some P-Slin and 60 g of WMS pre and during workout. I also treated myself to a full grapefruit PWO.

A1- Dip Machine 340 x 9, 350 x 6 x 6
A2- Barbell Curls 95 x 12, 100 x 9
B1- Seated DB Curls 47.5 x 8 x 8
B2- Decline DB Extensions 38.75 x 8 x 7
C1- Reverse EZ Bar Curls 90 x 11, 95 x 7, inside hammer curls after with 20's
C2- Reverse-Grip Pushdowns 130 x 11, 140 x 8, close-grip pushups after
D1- Behind-Back Bar Wrist Curls 115 x 13, 120 x 9
D2- Reverse Wrist Curls 40 x 13, 42.5 x 10

[rich55]

Today, was a good day in the gym. I trained 5 competitors/upcoming competitors and then had my last hard leg bashing. I certainly fill a little thicker than March and am harder in certain areas, but my backside is of slight concern.

Final Hard Leg Day 9/2:
My left hamstring/tendon has been feeling a little "tweaked" the last 2 weeks, so I had to change up some things for my hammies. This last few weeks I am extra sensitive to injury, but still blast away!

Squats 325 x 10 x 8
Barbell Lunges 165 x 11 x 6, I stopped short b/c of thigh ache
Leg Extension directly after Lunges 90 x 16
High Stance Leg Press 360 x 20, 450 x 16
DB Straight-Leg Deadlifts 100 x 16 x 15, lying leg curls 50 x 20 after

This workout took 1:15 minutes for the 3 of us and then we posed hard for 30 minutes. Keeping the legs tight after a leg workout is BRUTAL! No time for cardio afterwards and it would have beeb overkill at that point. I will make up the difference tomorrow.

[rich55]

Labor Day Chillin

Alright, so maybe not completely chilling due to heavy training. But, an extra day without work rocks and was certainly needed as I roll into my last weekend of heavy training.

Shoulders & Cardio 9/3:
Afternoon-
Lateral Raise Machine 110 x 9 x 8 x 8
Upright Rope Cable Rows 160 x 11, 165 x 9 x 8
Arnold DB Press 80 x 5, 70 x 12 x 10
A1- Hammer Shrugs 450 x 9 x 8 x 7
A2- Bent Over DB Laterals 35 x 11, 36.25 x 9 x 9
30 minutes elliptical/walking on an incline
Evening-
60 minutes brisk walk - legs were DEAD at this point!

I am looking quite flat and looking forward to carbing-up tomorrow night. Getting more shredded by the day!!

[rich55]

Today was kinda rough and it was VERY hard to get up early this morning and do cardio. I am quite depleted and looking forward to carbing up in 30 minutes after I pose. My feet feel like they are in cement blocks.

Morning cardio = 35 minute walk
Evening cardio = 40 minutes intense elliptical/walking on incline

[rich55]

My carb-up last night was delicious and I slammed a little more carbs than usual as I felt I needed. More oats and a bigger sweet potato. I am hardening up by the day and am looking forward to seeing what additional detail pops out over the next week.

Last Hard Back Day 9/5:
Morning-
30 minute brisk walk

Evening-
I cut out deads due to hamstring, glute and knee soreness. Hypers were done instead. I moved up on several lifts even at 10 days out! I was DEAD afterwards and felt like I could barely walk. No time for weakness!!

Weighted Hypers 25 x 9 x 8 x 7, drop set no weight after
Weighted Chins 30 x 9, 35 x 7 x 6
Hammer Low Rows 175 x 9, 180 x 8 x 7
Wide-Grip Pulldowns 190 x 9 x 8
30 minutes moderate jogging/moderate elliptical

[rich55]

Carb DEPLETION

Today started out good, but ended up pretty rough...

Carb Depletion Thurs 9/6:
Afternoon Abs & Cardio-
Did weighted crunches, twisting cruches and seated leg tucks
Followed it up with 30 minutes of moderate jogging/elliptical

Evening Chest & Cardio-
My wrist was KILLING me today and has been hurting the last few days. I wrapped it up tight and headed sluggishly to go lift some weights. I drew the line earlier than usual as I was simply exhausted and didn't want to risk injury.

Incline Bench 205 x 10 x 8
Incline Cable Flys 70 x 8 x 8
Flat DB Press 90 x 8 x 7 x 7
Hammer Wide Chest 135 x 8 x 7, 90 drop set
Seated Calves 170 x 9 x 8
Standing Calves 200 x 9 x 9
25 minutes of low intensity cardio, 3 minutes into this I had to begin giving myself pep talks as my legs felt like cement. I then had to train a few clients afterwards and I was absolutely dead.