Ryno's First Competition Thread

Training
41

Thanks, Tim! I looked it up but I haven’t watched it yet. Hopefully it sorts out a LOT of my posing questions.

Monday A.K.A. International Chest Day.

Chest & Biceps.

I got to the gym a little later than I had anticipated and I wasn’t able to warm up much as a result.

A) Bench Press (elbows flared):
135x15x2
225x12
275x6
275x8
315x2, horrible haha

B) Incline DB Press:
85x12
100x12
110x8

C1) Incline Hammer Strength Press:
135x10
135x8
135x6…90x8

C2) Deficit, Feet-Elevated Push-Ups:
BWx15x3

C3) Incline DB Fly:
60x10
60x10
60x8

D1) BB Curl:
85x12x2
105x10
115x8

D2) Rope Hammer Curl:
90x15
110x12
120x12x2

D3) BB Pullover:
95x12
115x10
135x6

E1) Pec Dec:
170x12
210x10
230x10
250x6…210x6…170x6

E2) Machine Preacher Curl:
110x10
110x10
120x8

I was the only one that did this, one of my partners took me to try this out.
F) One-Arm Hammer Strength Press:
70x15
45x15x2
25x15
No rest, just switch sides, drop weight, and repeat.
Done seated perpendicular to the seat and press to get a great contraction.

Stretched throughout. About 1.5 hours later and my chest is cramping, if I contract even the slightest.
Longer than usual workout, but a good one.

This was the first time in a while that I haven’t had any BCAAs during my workout and I could feel that I was missing them. Recovery was down just a bit, but it could also be from a long past weekend and no warm-up today. Also, my throat is a bit sore today since I slept at my parents last night and I was on a waterbed that wasn’t quite warm enough.I didn’t notice until I felt fatigued and I thought, “I’m never this tired between sets.” So it could be a lot of things, but I’m going to ask Shelby if I can keep the BCAAs during my workout instead of just water.

Feeling good about my diet and looking a bit leaner. I think that we’ll up my cals after this week since I appear to be losing a fair amount of fat. Strength is still up, despite a little less recovery between sets. I don’t get too hungry between meals, and I feel like I’m eating plenty, not starved.

Tomorrow is leg day and I’m excited!

42

I’ll update my bodyweight tomorrow morning along with some more pictures. I’m going to the doctor to get some blood work done in order to see where everything is. I’ve never gotten a full set done, but I’ve not needed to before. But 1) it’s good to know and 2) Shelby asked to get it done.

43

From one ginger to another, good luck!

Awesome proportions and gives me a good kick in the ass considering you are a whole year younger than me!

44

I’m waiting at the doctor’s office and it’s taking forever so I figured I’d update my weight and pictures for everyone.
I weighed in at 181.8 lbs. That is down about 3 lbs from Saturday. No surprise really since I’m eating less, but I think that shelby will have to raise my food. I don’t feel hungry all the time or anything, but that is some fast weight drop. I appear to be noticeably leaner in the mirror.

EDIT: I also found out that I am 5’ 7.5" not 5’ 8.5" while at the doctor today! haha

45

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FDB
I took these just after waking and I wanted to get to the gym for cardio so I didn’t retake any for optimal posing conditions. It also looks like the camera was angled to the side, skewing my proportions lol.

46

BDB

I need to focus more on flexing my legs in all of these poses.

47

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Rear Relaxed.

I’m going to watch a video seminar on posing today to make sure that I am focusing on the correct muscles for each pose.

48

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Front relaxed.
I need to bring my chest higher and not crunch my abs haha and of course… Actually flex my legs.

49

Shelby took out the BCAA’s during workout?

50

[quote]timmcbride00 wrote:
Shelby took out the BCAA’s during workout?

[/quote]

Yes. I asked him about keeping them in or taking them out and he told me to save them for the offseason and only use water during my workouts. Kind of sucks since I JUST ordered some highly branched cyclic dextrin for my workouts, I guess that I’ll have a nice stockpile post-contest. haha

I’m a little hesitant in taking out the BCAAs since I’m in a caloric deficit, but he’s my coach and I’m going to trust what he tells me.

51

[quote]Alderslodge wrote:

[quote]timmcbride00 wrote:
Shelby took out the BCAA’s during workout?

[/quote]

Yes. I asked him about keeping them in or taking them out and he told me to save them for the offseason and only use water during my workouts. Kind of sucks since I JUST ordered some highly branched cyclic dextrin for my workouts, I guess that I’ll have a nice stockpile post-contest. haha

I’m a little hesitant in taking out the BCAAs since I’m in a caloric deficit, but he’s my coach and I’m going to trust what he tells me. [/quote]

he’s very minimalist…easy on your wallet

52

Tuesday, April 16th, 2013.

I got to the gym and began to warm-up for legs when I was informed that the plans had changed to back.

A) Bent Over Rows:
225x10
275x10x4

B) Trap Bar Deadlift:
225x10
315x10
405x10
405x9

C1) Wide Grip Pulldown:
210x12
250x12
280x8
280x7…210x8…170x12

C2) One Arm DB Row:
150x12
150x12
150x12
150x12…100x12…50x12
Full stretch at bottom.

D) Seated Cable Pulldown with Thoracic Contraction (pronated grip to neutral grip at contraction):
3 sets of 10-12, ramping weight.
I had to be held down for the second two sets because I don’t weigh enough. lol

E) Various Pull-Ups with Isometrics:
4 sets of 6-12

Awesome workout! I am glad that we did back today instead of legs, I wasn’t completely feeling legs earlier, but I got more into the mood for them as the workout got closer.

Again, I weighed 181.8 lbs this morning. A little lighter than I would like, but Shelby will adjust as needed at the end of the week with how I look compared to last week’s pictures.

I’m excited to see the results of my blood work. I’ve never done any tests, but it’ll be nice to see where I am at and where I change throughout the contest prep.

53

[quote]

he’s very minimalist…easy on your wallet[/quote]

Even though I was planning on spending a fair amount of money (as everyone says you do) I will be happy to save money haha.

54

[quote]GrindOverMatter wrote:

[quote]Alderslodge wrote:
Yes. I asked him about keeping them in or taking them out and he told me to save them for the offseason and only use water during my workouts. Kind of sucks since I JUST ordered some highly branched cyclic dextrin for my workouts, I guess that I’ll have a nice stockpile post-contest. haha

I’m a little hesitant in taking out the BCAAs since I’m in a caloric deficit, but he’s my coach and I’m going to trust what he tells me. [/quote]

he’s very minimalist…easy on your wallet[/quote]

Nice work putting a positive spin on it. :slight_smile:

I honestly can’t see a problem with BCAA’s, plenty of science that supports their usage and nothing that I know of that would be detrimental during a contest prep phase.

55

[quote]timmcbride00 wrote:

[quote]GrindOverMatter wrote:

[quote]Alderslodge wrote:
Yes. I asked him about keeping them in or taking them out and he told me to save them for the offseason and only use water during my workouts. Kind of sucks since I JUST ordered some highly branched cyclic dextrin for my workouts, I guess that I’ll have a nice stockpile post-contest. haha

I’m a little hesitant in taking out the BCAAs since I’m in a caloric deficit, but he’s my coach and I’m going to trust what he tells me. [/quote]

he’s very minimalist…easy on your wallet[/quote]

Nice work putting a positive spin on it. :slight_smile:

I honestly can’t see a problem with BCAA’s, plenty of science that supports their usage and nothing that I know of that would be detrimental during a contest prep phase.[/quote]

he definitely does some stuff you may not expect- for example he wont put more carbs around the workout window–he’ll spread them out evenly through out the day- i remember hearing a Q and A segment with Dave palumbo (who holds a lot of the same beleifs as shelby) and he said during pre contest does the same thing. really need to find that again to see the exact reason why

56

[quote]GrindOverMatter wrote:

[quote]timmcbride00 wrote:

[quote]GrindOverMatter wrote:

[quote]Alderslodge wrote:
Yes. I asked him about keeping them in or taking them out and he told me to save them for the offseason and only use water during my workouts. Kind of sucks since I JUST ordered some highly branched cyclic dextrin for my workouts, I guess that I’ll have a nice stockpile post-contest. haha

I’m a little hesitant in taking out the BCAAs since I’m in a caloric deficit, but he’s my coach and I’m going to trust what he tells me. [/quote]

he’s very minimalist…easy on your wallet[/quote]

Nice work putting a positive spin on it. :slight_smile:

I honestly can’t see a problem with BCAA’s, plenty of science that supports their usage and nothing that I know of that would be detrimental during a contest prep phase.[/quote]

he definitely does some stuff you may not expect- for example he wont put more carbs around the workout window–he’ll spread them out evenly through out the day- i remember hearing a Q and A segment with Dave palumbo (who holds a lot of the same beleifs as shelby) and he said during pre contest does the same thing. really need to find that again to see the exact reason why
[/quote]

I like being able to have carbs throughout the day instead of piling them in all around a 2-3 hour window. I think that I am adapting to not have 40-80g of carbs pre/peri-workout because today during my leg workout, I was able to push through pretty strongly despite being a little under the weather.

57

[quote]Alderslodge wrote:

[quote]GrindOverMatter wrote:

[quote]timmcbride00 wrote:

[quote]GrindOverMatter wrote:

[quote]Alderslodge wrote:
Yes. I asked him about keeping them in or taking them out and he told me to save them for the offseason and only use water during my workouts. Kind of sucks since I JUST ordered some highly branched cyclic dextrin for my workouts, I guess that I’ll have a nice stockpile post-contest. haha

I’m a little hesitant in taking out the BCAAs since I’m in a caloric deficit, but he’s my coach and I’m going to trust what he tells me. [/quote]

he’s very minimalist…easy on your wallet[/quote]

Nice work putting a positive spin on it. :slight_smile:

I honestly can’t see a problem with BCAA’s, plenty of science that supports their usage and nothing that I know of that would be detrimental during a contest prep phase.[/quote]

he definitely does some stuff you may not expect- for example he wont put more carbs around the workout window–he’ll spread them out evenly through out the day- i remember hearing a Q and A segment with Dave palumbo (who holds a lot of the same beleifs as shelby) and he said during pre contest does the same thing. really need to find that again to see the exact reason why
[/quote]

I like being able to have carbs throughout the day instead of piling them in all around a 2-3 hour window. I think that I am adapting to not have 40-80g of carbs pre/peri-workout because today during my leg workout, I was able to push through pretty strongly despite being a little under the weather. [/quote]

yeah man, for pre contest traning i think spreading carbs is a legit strategy—for off season when carb intake is higher it can be a good idea to put more carbs around that window, but at the end of the day i dont think it makes a large difference.

58

Wednesday, April 17th, 2012.

Day of Legs.

My favorite day! Call me crazy, but this is the day to really push myself to the limits and to see what I can achieve.

Warm-up for about 12 minutes.
Foam rolling.
Stretching.
KB Swings & Box jumps.

A) 3/4 Back Squat:
135x12
225x12
315x14-15?
405x7
I could feel a little pressure on my quad where I pulled it a few months ago during my set with 405 so I was hesitant, but focused more on my left (uninjured) leg to take some pressure off of my right leg.

Giant Set 1

B1) Sled Leg Press:
8 pps x12
10 pps x12
11 pps x12 +5 partials

B2) DB Jump Squats:
50lb DBs x15x3
Flex through quads at the top and touch ground with DBs on each rep.

B3) Hack Squats:
3pps x15x3

Super Set 1

C1) BB Lunge:
75x30-40 steps
95x30-40 steps
115x30-40 steps

C2) Butt Blastaaa! (No idea what to call this) Kneeling Leg Extension?
15x15x3

D) Leg Extension:
255 (stack)x12x3
255x12…180x12…135x12…90xfailure
Each drop was to failure, but I listed 12 because that is about where I failed.

Stretched throughout the workout. Drank water throughout as well.
It was very hot in the gym today and very few of the fans were circulating air so I was drenched after all of this. Overall it was a great workout!
Legs are a bit more vascular throughout the day and I could see more definition in my legs after my workouts despite the pump that I had. My navel area is leaning up, but my lower obliques and lower back are still fairly stubborn. However, I do think those area are leaner as well. Definitely leaner in my calves, there are several veins running down and around them.

I have a conditioning workout tomorrow and a shoulder/triceps session on Friday to round off the week. I think that I will do something on Saturday…probably calves and abs. I try to hit my calve 2-3x per week and the same with my abs.

Diet is going great. I’m still missing a few of the supplements that Shelby wants me to be using. They are on the way but shipping is taking 7-9 days for some reason, it usually arrives in 4 or fewer days. A tad bit annoying, but there is nothing that I can do except for wait. =)

59

Thursday, April 18th, 2013.
LOW TEST!

I woke up at 5:30am and headed to the gym for my 30 minutes of LISS cardio.

At 1:00 pm, I returned to the gym for a conditioning workout.

4 rounds.

A) Hammer Slams on Tire:
16lb hammer, 15 reps each arm

B) Side-to-Side Single-Leg Box Hops:
~28 inches, 15 reps each leg

C) Burpee to Pull-Up:
10 reps

D) Box Jumps:
28 in for 10 reps

E) KB Swing:
60lb for 12 reps

F) Med Ball Squat to Throw:
20lb for 12 reps

G) Battle Ropes:
45-60 seconds

H) Sled Drag:
55lbs for 40 yards. Worst sled ever, it was hopping instead of dragging…

As you can see it was TONS of fun. haha A lot of work, and definitely able to tell that the weather was warming up here in Georgia.

I got some blood test results back today and I’m going to pick up a copy next week. Thyroid levels were good, estradiol (estrogen) was low (12.9 pg/mL), cholesterol was INCREDIBLE, liver was good (except one test was slightly elevated?). Everything checked out as I had planned…except for one. My testosterone was LOW at 111.59 ng/dl. So I’ll either be getting in contact with an endocrinologist that my doctor or Shelby recommends to see what we can do about that. That was really surprising to me since I am able to gain muscle easier than most and cut fat easier than most, so I can’t imagine what a slight increase would do?

Has anyone here been diagnosed with low test, either slightly low or very low like me?

We’ll see where this goes!

60

Not saying you shouldn’t get your abnormal liver test checked out, but thought you might want to know that weightlifting can cause elevations in liver enzyme studies: