It’s been a couple weeks now since the Arnolds and I have had some food, some fun and it’s about time now to get back to the real world. I dieted for about 18 weeks altogether from the start of my FLEX Pro prep to the end of the Arnold and it was really nice to get back to normal life for a bit. Most people think it’s the food we all miss and yes that’s part of it, I mean who doesn’t like a good Blizzard or nice slice of pizza but that wasn’t all of it. The things I missed the most was just hanging out with my girlfriend, my friends and my family.
It was nice after the ASC to just go out for dinner with my girl and not worry about ordering properly or it was cool to just go hang out with my boys, BBQ and see my friend’s new baby (that I hadn’t seen in a month or so). My girl’s B-day just passed and luckily I wasn’t dieting so I took her to Buffalo where we did some shopping and hit the Cheesecake Factory! I breakdown the day for you: Shopping, shopping, shopping, Mile High Chocolate Cake….and that’s about it…lol. It was a fun day for sure and those are the things you miss most when you’re dieting for a show.
Okay, so let’s get into some of the meat and potatoes. 2011 isn’t over, it’s just begun and the first part of the contest season is in the bag. It was bitter sweet for me since I did exactly what I wanted to do at the FLEX but then my body just couldn’t pull it together for the bigger more important ASC. I’ve dealt with it and now its time to put it all behind me and move on to the next goal.
People have been asking me what my competition plans are and to be honest I’m really unsure; it may depend slightly on sponsorship. I currently am looking for a supplement contract and that could mean competing in a couple more small shows, competing only at the ‘O’ or even taking another year off to get over that hump from the 2nd tier to the 1st tier. Since waiting to figure it all out is not an option, I am training right now as if the ‘O’ is the show I am getting ready for.
You know what that means…MORE SIZE! I have it targeted, not just more size anywhere. Hany and I have decided a little more in the legs, but mainly arms and shoulders to match my chest and back. I think another inch on my arms and legs would really make me even more complete and help me break into the upper echelon of the IFBB.
So how are we doing it you ask? Well I’ve devised some new plans for this off-season. First I’ve decided cardio will be part of my regimen all year, something I have never done before. Secondly, I have decided that seven meals a day really made my body look different so I will be doing seven instead of six meals all year. I guess that ties into the first part since without the cardio I don’t think I would have the appetite. Lastly I have changed my split to emphasize my weak points (arms, hams) even more than in the past to really bring out that change.
Along with this I have added a new training technique that so far has felt pretty good, resistance bands. Powerlifters use chains and power bands to get stronger in their lifts employing constant and increased tension to their lifts. I think that the strength will actually be secondary benefit while the constant tension is more of what I am looking for. It’s not something you can use on all exercises but so far I have used it on the leg press and military press and really felt a difference through the range of motion.
Keep an eye on FLEXONLINE.COM – I will be posting some videos of some of the exercise I do with the bands. Lots in the works for 2011 and I’m excited to see how it all pans out in the next few months. I’m excited at the idea that by the end of this year my physique could be at the next level and I could be a top ten Olympian…who knows maybe even top six if things go according to plan… Sacrifice Without Regret, Fouad ‘Hoss’ Abiad
