My goal is a single minded one. National Champion Grand Masters 2011. The contest held in Pittsburgh on July 22. That gives me 10 1/2 months to prepare. Changes need to be made in my life. Bottom line; I've got to get serious or give up. In the pictures above you can see what I look like today on the left. On the right is the reigning 2010 Grand Masters National Champ, Randy Rettitenger. The obvious difference: LEGS!

I would like to say that I took my bodybuilding serious in 2010, but reflecting back it wasn't planned out carefully at all. To compete and win at the highest level takes careful planning and execution of the plan to perfection.

In all honesty, I really haven't had enough experience in this game to understand what it takes to develop a total package. I have had a tough life. Fair enough, but I also now realized that I have used that as a crutch. I have bad knees, yep, for sure, 10 knee operations constitutes bad knees. I have a torn rotators cuff and a rear delt tear. Yep, crashing down mountains cycling, dislocating your shoulders several times is rough. However, given all that and you still decide you want to compete in bodybuilding, you have to put that crap aside and move on. You must adapt to your circumstances not succumb to them.

Is it impossible to develop sweeping quads when the bones and tendons in your leg have been cut in half? Are you going to have the required symmetry in both legs when one has a knee cap dislocated? All good questions, and no one can answer these questions other than myself. I'm about as tough of a son of a bitch as you're going to meet. The problem may be that I have been relying too much on my intestinal fortitude and not relying enough on my cerebral capacity to reason and calculate circumstance.

I really got a wake up call this past weekend competing in the Power Shack Classic when I got an assessment of my showing from Russ Mess, my sponsor for the event. I asked what he thought and he told me nothing I didn't already know. "Your upper body competes with just about anyone up there. You need more lower quad size and a tighter lower back." But his most profound comment was, "Why are you competing, do you have a goal or do you just like to compete?" The answer is emblazoned in my brain, I shot back, "I want to be the National Grand Masters Champion." Apparently he was ready for that answer. "Then why are you competing in all these local shows when you have glaring weak points that need to be brought up?" Get into your off season prep, strategically pick one show to qualify and then get on stage in Pittsburgh.

I got to say this made me feel pretty stupid. This is a painfully obvious solution to my goal and I wasn't paying attention to the trees in the forest. Part of the problem with the ego of a bodybuilder is we like how we look in contest prep. It's very gratifying to look in the mirror and see the reflection of a 55 year old man with 20" arms and a shredded physique. Who cares about symmetry, look at my arms and my abs!

Ok, I'm not going to beat myself up over this mishap. I'm going to learn from it and I'm as we speak formulating a plan to be the champion I spout off that I want to be. One thing I realize is that to be a champion you can't just will it so, it has to be carefully and meticulously calculated and planned out to the smallest details.

Below is a small sampling of notes that I am using to design my training schemes that I will be working on for the next few months. This is basically Dante's DC Training notes. I am adapting this towards a style more adaptive for a 55 year old heavy weight. So you will see some things in my upcoming training schemes that differ slightly but all in all will be very similar to this concept.


DC Training Notes

Chest:
incline smythe press (11-15rp)
hammer strength press (11-15rp)
decline barbell press (11-15rp)

Backwidth:
front rack chins (11-20rp)
close grip pulldowns (11-15rp)
front pulldowns (11-15rp)

Backthickness: (back thickness exercises and quad exercises arent rest paused due to safety reasons of fatigue and loss of form)
deadlifts straight sets (6-9reps) + (9-12reps)
T-bar rows straight set (10-12 reps)
rack deadlifts (6-9reps) + (9-12reps)

Shoulders:
military presses (11-20rp)
hammer strength presses (11-15rp)
upright rows (11-20rp)

Quads: (quads are done again with no rest pause because of safety reasons, but after progressive warmups there is a heavy set and then what I call a "widowmaker set" for 20 reps with a still heavy, but lighter weight)

free squats (6-10 rep straight set) 3-5 minute rest and then (20 rep widowmaker)
hack squats (as above)
leg press (as above)

Hamstrings:
lying leg curls (15-30rp)
seated leg curls (15-30rp)
sumo press leg press (pressing with heels only- straight set of 15-25 reps)

Biceps:
preacher curls (11-20rp)
barbell drag curls (11-20rp)
dumbell curls (11-20rp)

Forearms:
pinwheel curls (straight set 10-20 reps)
hammer curls (straight set 10-20 reps)
reverse grip one arm cable curls (straight set 10-20 reps)

Triceps:
reverse grip bench presses (11-20rp)
close grip bench presses (11-20rp)
EZ bar tricep extentions (15-30rp) (elbow safety)

Calves: (all calves are done with an enhanced negative, meaning up on big toe, 5 seconds lowering down to full stretch and then a brutal 10-15 seconds in the stretched position and then back up on the big toe again. It really separates the mice and the men--this is an all straight set)
leg press toe press (10-12 reps)
hack squat toe press/sled (10-12 reps)
seated calf raises (10-12 reps)

Stretching
CHEST: Flat bench 90lb dumbbells chest high--lungs full of air-- I drop down into the deepest flye I can for the first 10 seconds or so with my lungs full of air and chest out---then staying there I arch my back slightly and try to press my sternum upward --this is absolutely excruciating--the rest of the 60 seconds I try to concentrate on dropping my elbows even farther down (I try to but I don’t think they are going any lower--LOL)---the last 15 seconds I’m pretty much shaking like a leaf, I have tears in my eyes and I think about dropping bodybuilding and becoming a tap dancer on Broadway (ok that parts not true)--My opinion is people should use dumbbells that are a little over half of what your heaviest set of 6-8 reps would be. I cant state this enough--extreme stretching royally sucks!!! Its painful. But I have seen amazing things with people -especially in the quads.

TRICEPS: Seated on a flat bench-my back up against the barbell---75lb dumbell in my hand behind my head(like in an overhead dumbell extension)--sink dumbell down into position for the first 10 seconds and then an agonizing 50 seconds slightly leaning back and pushing the dumbell down with the back of my head I like one arm at a time in the bottom position of a dumbell triceps extension----going to the extreme stretch and then slightly pushing on the dumbell with the back of my head.

SHOULDERS: This one is tough to describe--put a barbell in the squat rack shoulder height--face away from it and reach back and grab it palms up (hands on bottom of bar)---walk yourself outward until you are on your heels and the stretch gets painful--then roll your shoulders downward and hold for 60 seconds.

BICEPS: Olympic bar in a power rack or squat rack about neck high---face away from it and reach back and put both hands over the bar gripping it----now either sink down with one leg forward/one leg back or better yet squat down and try (I say try because its absolutely excruciating) to kneel. Go down to the stretch that is almost unbearable and then hold that for 45 to 60 seconds. Your own bodyweight is the load. What I do is put the bar at a place on the squat rack in which I can kneel at a severe stretch and then try to sink my ass down to touch my feet. If its too easy I put the bar up to the next rung.


BACK: Honestly for about 3 years my training partner and I would hang a 100lb dumbell from our waist and hung on the widest chin-up bar (with wrist straps) to see who could get closest to 3 minutes--I never made it--I think 2 minutes 27 seconds was my record--but my back width is by far my best body part--I pull on a doorknob or stationary equipment with a rounded back now and its way too hard too explain here--just try it and get your feel for it.

HAMSTRINGS: Either leg up on a high barbell holding my toe and trying to force my leg straight with my free hand for an excruciating painful 60 seconds or another exercise I could only show people and not type here.

QUADS: Facing a barbell in a power rack about hip high --grip it and simultaneously sink down and throw your knees under the barbell and do a sissy squat underneath it while going up on your toes. then straighten your arms and lean as far back as you can---60 seconds and if this one doesn't make you hate my guts and bring tears to your eyes nothing will---do this one faithfully and tell me in 4 weeks if your quads don’t look a lot different than they used to.

CALVES: my weak body part that I couldn’t get up too par until 2 years ago when I finally thought it out and figured out how to make them grow (with only one set twice a week too) I don’t need to stretch calves after because when I do calves I explode on the positive and take 5 seconds to get back to full stretch and then 15 seconds at the very bottom "one one thousand, two one thousand, three one thousand etc" --15 seconds stretching at the bottom thinking and trying to flex my toes toward my shin--it is absolutely unbearable and you will most likely be shaking and want to give up at about 7 reps (I always go for 12reps with maximum weights)--do this on a hack squat or a leg press--my calves have finally taken off due to this. "

REP RANGE:
shoulders=12 to 20RP (15rp is again what i shoot for and is the most common)

triceps 12rp to 20 rp

back width-12rp to 20rp

back thickness-(depends on exercise--if its rack deadlifts or bent over rows Ill do 12 to 15 reps rest paused. If its deadlifts from the floor Ill do a straight set 12 to 20 heavy)

biceps-15 to 20 reps restpaused

forearms/brachilias-depends on movement

calves (described earlier on this thread)

hamstrings-15 to 20 restpaused

quads-a straight 15 to 50 reps heavy as I can possibly go (usually its 20 reps)

for shoulders, i like about 20 reps. so it would look roughly like this, first set 8-9 reps, 15 breaths, 5-6 reps, 15 breaths, 2-3 reps. set done. stretch
same for triceps.
i like about 25 reps for biceps so you do the sets the same way, but use a weight that allows a few more reps per mini set.
back width is done the same way for 15-20 reps
back thickness is not rest paused. do one set of 6-8 rest for 2 minutes and then another heavier set of 4-6
calves is a stright set of 15-20. do a rep, when you get to the bottom of the rep, just stretch the hell out of your calf for 15 seconds. do that on every rep. these hurt like hell and you wont be able to go very heavy
quads is a heavy set of 6-8 and then a set of 20 for as heavy as you can go.
ham are straight setted for 15 to 20 reps.
make sure to add either reps or weight on every exercise every time. if you get to many reps. add more weight next time.

Training Splits
Monday Quads / Lower Back
Tuesday Fasting Cardio /Chest Delts / Tris
Wednesday Hams / Back (deads and chins)
Thursday Fasting Cardio/ Abs / Calves / Bis
Friday Quads / Lower Back
Saturday Hams / Abs / Opt. Cardio
Sunday Rest / Cardio