Well, the holidays are now officially over. I haven't stopped eating from Dec. 21st right up until yesterday at dinner. A nice 6lbs gain in bodyweight and it was awesome! Turkey, ham, potatoes, turnip, caesar salad, stuffing, cranberries, pie, cake, cookies, sugar, fat, lard etc etc....
A large portion of the food I inhaled wasn't really a healthy choice... but I didn't care. 95% of my meals are tuna, brown rice, broccolli, baby spinach, whole wheat this & that, veggie dogs, eggs and egg whites, oatmeal, water and green tea.
I eat these things for my performance in my workouts and competitions so when the holidays come around AND I don't have to go to my full-time job for a few days, I will enjoy it the best I can. I don't even feel guilty about it. You will see all the guilty minds when you go to the gym in the next few weeks. After every Christmas and New Year's celebration, thousands of people run out and grab gym memberships to fulfill empty New Year's Resolutions. After a couple months people realize that reaching your goal isn't easy. Sometimes you need to put some hard work into what you do. Just think about all your previous resolutions. Failure! Why is this year any different? Why do you need a New Year's Resolution to lose some turkey around your waist? Here's a hint.....stop waiting for next New Year's and do something the other 364 days of the year. Make healthy choices all year long and exercise! The more often you choose healthier things in life through the WHOLE year, you might even enjoy it. It becomes a lifestyle and you won't need to feel guilty over each holiday.
Oh yeah....for those who are getting a 'temporary' membership for the gym for your Resolution, STOP DOING CURLS IN THE SQUAT RACK.
So I finished up my 'top secret' program on Sunday and was scheduled to head to Roseneath to find my new deadlift max. Due to a snow storm I was unable to drive out there since it's about an hour away. Although I would have loved to have my coach Bob Griffiths with me, there was no way I was missing my max effort day. It was -12 in my non-heated garage. I had a candle to warm-up the bar since it hurt to hold on to. It probably wasn't one of my best ideas but Ben & Ashley showed up so there was no turning back. Now my previous best was about 525lbs on my deadlift. When Bob designed this program he also changed my stance to maximize my strength. Apparently I have weak hips so we worked on that which will help me in my strongman events like Farmer's Walk and the Car deadlift. So I hit my max at Bob's 6 weeks ago with this new stance and could only pull up 455lbs. Not great at all, especially in the strongman world. So I hit my weaknesses hard for the next 6 weeks which brought me to yesterday. Due to the cold my mind wasn't really into it at first. It took so long to warm-up and I had doubts for the first few sets. I gradually worked up and hit 455lbs. It felt heavy. I then thought "Bob would be yelling at me now!" and away I went. Screw it, I'm hittin' 500lbs. So......I cinched up my belt and smashed it. My new max is 500lbs. Still a long, long way to go. But I'm willing to put in the work. I trusted Bob and it paid off.
500lbs......great number for the average Joe but weak in the strongman world. Are the injuries, constant aches and pains, personal sacrifices (boring, bland food...no alcohol) worth it??
OH HELL YEAH!!!!!! And I won't stop until my body gives up on me.
Thank you to Bob Griffiths of RedDog Hardcore Gym in Roseneath (moving soon to Colborne/Brighton area), Blue Star Nutraceuticals ( best quality supplements around), BodySystems Nutrition, Trenton Integrated Health Centre ( need a good chiropractor? Ask for Dr. Dave Gendron ) , Quinte Exterior Building Supplies ( need siding or eavestrough? watch for my future blogs with pics of my new siding on my house).
As always, I like to hear feedback on what everyone wants to see in my blogs!!
richmachell@yahoo.ca
LATER!
No comments:
Post a Comment