Reflect, relax, recuperate, rejuvenate: That sums up the reprieve from the daily grind of training and dieting, and that is Andre Ferguson’s off-season. And by the sounds of the 2019 Olympia Physique runner-up’s post-O Vegas celebration, Ferguson could’ve possibly added another R to his repertoire: regurgitate.

“We went to this Italian restaurant at the Encore—me, some of my sponsors, and my homies. My bill alone came close to, like, $600. No alcohol. Just food. Octopus was the main course, and then everything else was pasta.”

Now that the 2020 season is upon Ferguson, his massive refueling session is coming to a close, and luckily so. “I got up to 210 pounds,” he says, laughing. “Normally I can wear a size large in most things. This year, I had to bump up to an XL. I have two sets of clothes—off-season clothes and in-season clothes.”

The two-time Arnold Classic physique champion is back in full force, working on a new set of 2020 goals, which are quite similar to his goals of the year prior: winning another Arnold Classic and then dethroning champion Raymont Edmonds and earning his first Olympia Physique title.

“Besides the Olympia, we’re only doing two shows this year: I’m going for the Arnold threepeat. Plus, they finally added a men’s physique to Arnold Australia. So it’s going to be two weekends of Arnold, then I’m sitting until the Olympia.”

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Sitting a little longer this season may do a bit of good for Ferguson, especially his injured shoulders. While looking full and thick on the outside—thanks to his tried-and-true shoulder routine (on the following slides)—Ferguson suffers from a torn labrum following a car accident several years ago.

“I’ve been going to physical therapy,” he says. “I got into a car accident around 2007 or 2008.

After seeing a physical therapist, I found out it was fully torn. They told me the partial tear might heal by itself, but it never did, and now it’s fully torn. But I was told that as long as I keep everything around it strong, it shouldn’t be a problem. But once I stop bodybuilding, I’m going to have to go get surgery or else I’ll have arthritis in the joint.”

Whatever his 2020 results may be, and as long as his shoulders treat him well, Ferguson will keep pressing until he reaches Olympia gold.

“It’s still fun,” he says. “I’m 35, and I can go to 40—I’m still really good. George Brown’s 38 and he’s No. 9 in the world. I’m 35 and I’m No. 2. So I know I have at least till I’m 38 to be at the top.”

Fit man stretching his shoulder and chest against gym machine

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