Rich's Mission: Natural Pro Card 2008

[Quelly]

1ST PLACE & WNBF PRO CARD!!!!

Wow, how surreal it is. And in other huge news, I proposed to my girlfriend on Thursday when we arrived in New York City and we are now engaged!!!

Full update coming tomorrow.

HOLY CRAP!!!!

THAT IS AWESOME BRO CONGRATS!!!!

[rich55]

LANDED THE WOMAN OF MY DREAMS & A PRO CARD IN NYC!

Peak week was a bit stressful. Calculated consumption of water, sodium and potassium rich foods changing each day. Tanning and posing practice coupled with coordinating travel plans that include lugging 3 days worth of food.

Add in shopping and purchasing an engagement ring, and then planning the proposal. If you know me at all, you know it is not just an ordinary ring or proposal either. Particularly for the woman of my dreams.

Thursday 9/18- Proposal Night

Our flight arrived in NYC around 1pm and we were exhausted. I trained clients till 10pm, packed and then headed over to Angie's at 1am. My power in my kitchen was still out, so I woke up at 6:30am at her pad to cook the rest of my food for our trip. So, when we arrived we basically just relaxed most of Thursday.

At 7pm we went to a special church service at CityLight Church, which was uplifting and set the tone for our weekend. We snuck out a little early as I had planned a CARRIAGE RIDE THROUGH CENTRAL PARK!! She was totally surprised and thought it was so romantic as she had always wanted to do such a thing.

Angie is a musician and singer. Since we first started dating 6 months ago, she has been begging me to sing to her. She has heard my voice here and there singing while I am driving, etc. I can "hold pitch" as she says. SO, 15 minutes into the ride I say to her, "If you think the carriage ride is romantic, hold on cuz I am also going to sing to you."

Song of choice: Justin Timberlake's "My Love". I had it on my phone and the park was quiet enough to blast it. As soon as I started singing, she began to weep as she knows that song reminds me of spending the rest of my life with her. When I sang, "The ring here represents my heart", I got down on one knee and expressed my love to her while displaying the ring. SHE SAID YES!!! This was preceded by an, "Oh my God!" reaction to the 2-carat princess cut ring with diamonds all around the engagement ring. The woman of my dreams, deserves the ring of her dreams.We then enjoyed the rest of the ride through Central Park listening to "My Love" on repeat.

Friday 9/19 - Getting Ready

My dad arrived in very early Friday morning, so we spent the day hanging with him. The Museum of Natural History was a blast as we were cracking jokes the whole time! Carbohydrate intake for the day totaled 500 g with about 1.25 gallons of water and no added salt. Sweet potatoes, rice *****, natural almond butter, lean beef, YUM!

My tanning appointment with Sundara at 7pm went awesome as they do a GREAT job! I simply brought my own Jan Tana Hi-Def solution and they applied 4 coats. Manscaping was done earlier in the afternoon, haha.

Afterwards, I headed back to our hotel and did a pump workout with bands and bodyweight as I would do pre-stage. I took Thursday off completely, so I wanted to force some of that glycogen into my muscles with a real light workout and posing. Downed some oats, High5 and natural almond butter before bed.

Saturday 9/20 - Game On!!!

I had some pan***** with molasses and cinnamon raisin PB for breakfast and then headed to MLK H.S. for check in at 9am. Weighed in at 163 lbs. Boy carbs make a difference as I weighed in at a flat 161 lbs on Wednesday!

The Mr. Fitness male modeling division was up first with open bodybuilding last. I didn't pump up too much or eat as many carbs pre-stage to save myself for the bodybuilding. It was kinda weird holding back, but I was moved around a lot and got good looks. I posed too much like a bodybuilder though. What can I say, I am a bodybuilder, haha. My quads were a little tired as they kept us in the relaxed front pose for a while. I tried to conserve some energy though for the main event.

Open Lightweight bodybuilding though, it was on!!! Angie was backstage to help me with oil and to keep me relaxed. It worked! Plus, it was fun for her to be right in the mix. Mick Winzeler who beat me last year by a point was back and a few other stacked and conditioned fellas. Mick & I were the only 2 left from the lightweight top 4 last year that didn't have pro cards yet. It was gonna be a battle!

I was first in the lineup and they moved me right to middle next Mick. There were only 6 guys in my class, but the top 4 were serious contenders! They went through the quarter turns twice and mandatories once, telling me that the judges made up there minds fairly quickly. Mick was ULTRA conditioned, but lagging a little in the legs. The other 2 guys had great overall packages as well. I felt confident after the prejudging, but you never know in bodybuilding.

During the break, I did an outdoor photoshoot with Mike from North American Bodies for about an hour. I was BEAT after this and headed to Starbucks to get a venti coffee with expresso after pounding more lean beef and sweet potato. Then, it was time to go right back to work.

I watched some of the figure gals in the finals then got prepped for the Mr. Fitness again holding back some. I placed 3rd in the Mr. Fitness short out of 10 and heard plenty of rumbles from the crowd in dismay. 1st and 2nd get cash. My bodybuilding presentation certainly held me back. Oh well, my pro card was what I really came to NYC for.

Open men's lightweight bodybuilding. I was first to pose, choosing R.E.D.'s "Breathe Into Me." My routine was spot on, but I could tell much of the crowd had left since it was the end of the finals. Then they brought us all back out and had us hit a few shots. Then, they called back out the top 5. 5th place was announced, then 4th, 3rd, down to Mick & I. "Runner-up goes to Mick Winzeler, and this year's Naturalmania Nationals Champion, Rich Lauro!"

My eyes teared up, I looked up to God throwing a fist in the air, and then looked out to Angie pointing, knowing how much she too endured during my precontest prep. I could not believe it. It is still so surreal to achieve something I set out 3 years ago to achieve. I am so thankful and blessed to have the woman of my dreams and a natural pro card!

Some pix:

[rich55]

Thanks Eric & Laurie!!!

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What is next?

My top priority is to my fiance, our upcoming wedding and beginning our life together. I need to bring more balance back to my life the the rigors of precontest prep have ended (and I am sure she is thrilled). She is a big supporter of my bodybuilding and she really enjoyed herself this past weekend being backstage, cheering me on and watching my dream come to fruition.

So, as required by earning my WNBF pro card, I must compete within 12 months of first earning the card. I am looking to do my first WNBF pro show in either August or September of 2009. I will decide after the new year.

Until then, I will be smashing weights hard and eating to grow, while enjoying life. Improvements I need to make include:

- Adding upper body thickness particularly to arms, my upper chest and shoulders.
- Continue to improve my conditioning. I achieved an all time personal best, but I know I can be harder yet still and will need to be for my pro debut. I plan on staying leaner than before this offseason to make this more easily attainable.
- Add more size to hamstrings and lower lats. They are good but could be better relative to my very strong quads and upper lats.

My offseason began today with legs!!

[bull.dogz]

What kinda music does your fiance sing/make?

[rich55]

What kinda music does your fiance sing/make?

Her previous group sang country and gospel. She is going out her own though and is looking to mix it up.



New Journal Begins!!