Aussie Bodybuilder

Day 379

My Day

I’m sure Adam won’t mind me telling you that I have been helping him with the Shreddersphere 2.0 web site. All I can reveal that it is going to be absolutely awesome! Adam and I have spent most of the weekend working on it and I’m just so pumped about it all because I know it will be THE MOST EXCITING thing to have happened since the group’s inception. Those looking for more group interaction will definitely not be disappointed. The web site has many features and will encourage interactivity. You thought Group Shred 2.0 was good!

Have also spent some time thinking about our trip to UK/Europe. It’s finally looking like it will happen. You may recall we were thinking of going this year, but we postponed. Looks like we’ll be heading to the UK mid-June 2009 and spending about 4 weeks visiting family and seeing the sights. We’ll be trying to get to France and spend a few days in Paris and Disneyland. Kids are very keen on this. I’ll let you know more about what we are planning as we get deeper into the planning.

Day 378

My Day

Today I was busy working on a couple of websites. Spent most of the day putting one website in particular together. Man, I’m so excited about this particular website because I know it is going to be huge. More on this later.

Rested up today. Didn’t do any cardio. Will probably go for a good walk tomorrow though.

Day 377

My Day

Another reasonably quiet day at work. Had a fairly steady morning doing some equipment setups. We had a couple of external groups using the campus facilities for workshops so I had to get equipment set up for their presentations etc. Apart from that not much else to report.

Headed to my sister’s house for my niece’s official birthday party. Her birthday was last week, but due to other events and circumstances she had to wait for the official celebration. It’s her 10th birthday, so a big happy birthday Kaitlin (she doesn’t read this blog, but it’s the thought that counts).

Day 376

My Day

Today was reasonably quiet at work. It’s exam time for the university so the students are either home studying or on campus stressing! I’ve been fairly busy with two of my staff away on leave. I really like this time of the year. We will be moving to a new area of the campus, probably in December. We’ll have new computing facilities for students and new office space. It will be much more comfortable than where we are situated at the moment.

Did you see that Vince DelMonte posted some questions to Brad Pilon regarding Eat Stop Eat? Check it out here.

Day 375

My Day

Something snapped today! I’ve realised that I have not been putting everything I can into my physique transformation. Sure, I’ve done okay since starting this blog, but I’ve kind of slowed down now. Why? I don’t really know. Those who know me, know that I’m constantly looking for something different. “What are you doing this week?” or “I give up trying to work out what you are eating” are things I often hear. I’ll try a new way of eating, get bored after two days and try something else. How many ebooks have I purchased relating to eating? Quite a few. In fact, I know what to do, so why am so easily lead off the path to success? Time to take control and get on with it! No unnecessary changes from now on. Stick to the simple approach.

Training I’m a little better at, although I still get bored after a few weeks of the same regime.

I did 60 minutes of cardio after work.

Day 374

My Day - Tuesday 11th November 2008

Everything is in place to make this a great 28 53 day self-challenge. Yes, I’ve changed my mind and decided my “Individual Shred Challenge” will take me right through to December 31st 2008. Mindset is in place, nutrition plan in place, training plan in place. All I need do is execute. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? Why then, do we make it so difficult? Why do we complicate it so much? I’ve gone back to basics now, with nutrition and training. Nutrition is more about calories than macronutrient breakdown. I still like to keep my protein up a bit, but I’ve decided not to stress over percentages.

My training partner, Carlos, has asked me to do 45 minutes of cardio every day to help my 28 53 day shred. I will do this as best I can. Unfortunately today I had other commitments (arranged before the request) so I could not complete my 45 minutes. However I will, as much as possible, attempt to get this cardio in.

Expect BIG changes over the next few weeks! Now that I have my nutrition back on track and well planned, a great training partner to keep my training intense and in check AND the mindset of a champion! I know that I will top the year out in my best shape ever.

Day 373

My Day - Monday 10th November 2008

I was reading on Tom Venuto’s Bodybuilding Secrets web site an interview he did with Hugo Rivera. This was the final of 3 parts that were posted. At the very end of the interview Tom asked Hugo if he had any parting words of advice and one of these bits of advice was something Adam was talking about the other day and that was about trying to be perfect. Here’s what Hugo said:

“If you fall off the wagon, lift yourself up and get back on it! Too many bodybuilders focus on perfection. Therefore, if they miss a workout, a meal, or cheat on their diet, they get all frustrated and toss the whole program. As my good colleague and worldwide nutrition expert Keith Klein says: “That is the equivalent of getting a flat tire and puncturing the other three plus the spare!” Remember, this game is won through consistency of execution, not through perfection.”

Had a great day nutritionally and stuck to my chicken and rice meals. This provided adequate fuel for my HIT workout which I blasted out tonight. I had an awesome workout and lifted like a mad man possessed. Still tinkering with a couple of exercises, but would say I’ve got the intensity where I need it. Squats left me gasping for breath after forcing myself to go for the required 20 reps. I was ready to stop after 14 reps, but I imagined my training partner, Carlos, yelling at me to get another rep, then another. It took me a good FEW minutes to recover enough to move on to the next exercise! My deadlifts today were much better. Using the same weight as my last workout, I easily got the 10 reps, it was a lot easier than last Thursday’s effort.

The thing I like about HIT training is that you only get one shot at a good set. If you mess it up (by not getting the intensity by stopping short or not having the correct amount of weight) that’s it, it’s over. You have to wait until the next workout to fix it. So I put everything I can into each set, I want to get it right!

Day 373 - HIT Training Log

Day 372

My Day - Sunday 9th November 2008

Today starts my “28 Day Individual Shred”. I missed the group shred due to illness, so I’ve decided to do my own. As you can see in today’s picture I will go back to the comparison shot. Congratulations to everyone who took part in the Group Shred 2.0, you’ve all done extremely well.

Today was a fasting day for me, which fits in very well with my weekly plans. I have prepared all my meals for tomorrow, which makes it so much easier for me. I have laid out my meal plan for Monday to Sunday and I will stick to it.

I’m looking forward to my HIT workout tomorrow and will post my training log (hopefully showing some heavier lifts than my previous log).

Day 371

My Day - Saturday 8th November 2008

Who knows who that is on my t-shirt from yesterday’s post!? It’s a tee that I got for $5 at some store in the city. Michael Hutchence might be a good guess though!

Who saw Adam’s visualisation pic on Tom Venuto’s blog today? I was reading Tom’s entry today where he was talking about the importance of visualisation and who should happen to tbe the example used?

Rested up again today and finalised my eating plan for the week. I’m really trying to focus on getting good calories around my HIT days. I really like Eat Stop Eat and will be using this twice per week. This is an excellent way to keep my weekly caloric intake balanced for the week.

Since I missed the Group Shred 2.0. I’m going to do my individual 28 day shred. Now that I’m over my illness I want to do this. I’m starting tomorrow (Sunday) and will do a before picture and then will put up a comparison pics each day for the 28 days.

Spent the afternoon working on a couple of computers. I’m helping a friend get his PC sorted out and reloading the OS etc. I’ve been dragging my heels on it, so decided this weekend I should make a real effort and get it done. I also went to my brother-in-laws place later in the afternoon to help him build a new computer. He’s got all the bits but needed help putting it all together.

Might go for a walk tomorrow (weather permitting).