Ideal Proportions

So Carrie snapped this pic while I sipped on a delicious coffee at Starbucks.

I think my pythons have swallowed a pig...

I've read that Steve Reeves said that the ideal body has biceps, calves, and neck that are all in the same size in circumference. This is said to be pleasing to the eye.

I dont know but this angle looks ridiculous. I havent measured because I dont want to be disappointed, or labeled "not pelasing to the eye."

But damn! While most bodybuilders walk around with bigorexia, it's nice to have shots like this surface every once in a while!

Gun show anyone?
I got tickets...

Buffalo wings?

For breakfast?

I'm working from home today and I'm pretty sick of eggs, so I'm having a few of these microwaved gems. Don't judge, just get your protein in!

Strength in Numbers

Where's Waldo? Can you find Vernon and I?
Taken at this years Annual Big Brother Big Sister's Picnic.
We had a "Bigs" vs. "Littles" "Touch football" game.

Touch football has been given "quotations" because one of the bigger "littles" managed to break one of the Bigs collarbone. I saw it sticking through his skin- it was pretty raw.

"I did it, I broke his collarbone-- my bad..."

Dude in the red is the bonesetters son...

The only thing holding you back is yourself...

True... True...

CHANGE

and the original, in the good ol days when Democrats ruled the earth...

Running, man!

1,000,000,000 running enthusiasts can't be wrong, can they?

Im in my mid to late twenties. These are the first days of the summer of my life.

Strange things are starting to happen to the people our age.

People are having babies.
People are getting hitched.
People are dying (the longer we live, the more people we know that will die- a morbid reality.)

People are running. For fun.

To me "running for fun" is as oxymoronic as "root canal for fun," or "argue with your spouse for fun," or "credit card debt for fun."

I've heard that you get "runner's high" and of course there's the cardiovascular health benefits, but man I'd rather be flayed alive than run when I dont have to. I dont even like to walk fast.
Whenever I'm driving around and I see a runner, it takes the force of my entire being to refrain from rolling my window down and yelling "Hey you, what are you running from?" Ask Carrie, she'll tell you.

I'm hearing of more and more people putting the rubber to the road, running marathons, half marathons, 10Ks etc.
I played basketball for many years so I know all about sprinting as a means to achieve a desired result. Running fast increased my odds of winning. But unless you're Kenyan, you're not going to win--and the Kenyans show up to all races, big and smal. And the Kenyans win every time. Probably without even trying.

If you see these guys, you're done, son!

So why would you enter a contest you can't possibly win? Why would you run just to run, without aim?

As we enter our quarter life crises, we need something to break the monotony, so we start doing things they've never done before. Make a baby. Marry a spouse. Some people start clubbing, some people start lifting weights, some people start running.

Your quarter-life crisis is like a creepy guy at the bar- you can turn your back on him but he'll still be there when you turn around. Drink up ladies!

When I was in the midst of my contest prep diet, people would ask me- why are you doing this?
For the challenge I suppose.
As young people our lives were filled with hurdles. Middle school. SATs. Graduate from High School. Finish College. Find a career. In our late 20's we've plateaued. We've hurdled the hurdles. Mediocrity meanders in. We concede to complacency.

I had to put this in the perspective of the Iron Game. I'm sure that entering a sweaty gym filled with the sounds of clanging metal plates and grunting is strange to some people. Lift the weight, put it down, lift it up again, put it down again, rinse, repeat. When you think about it, it is actually pretty weird.
But I feel most alive when I step foot in my arena. For an hour or so I'm completely alive, completely present, engaged. I'm making a difference in my own being. I am a gladiator facing the challenge. ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED! You will feel alive when you are moving weight that you once considered immovable. You are exhilarated when you've racked the weight after the 20th vertigo-inducing rep on squats that's left you near death.


It may not be my idea of a good time, but I suppose runners do it for the same reason.

So to Mike, Noemy, Patra, Jen, Christine, Lorna, and all my other friends who are out there getting their run on, I salute you*!

*But still, running? Agree to disagree. haha.

Teacher! Teacher

A funny chat today:

John: is it rude to shake my protein shaker while students are taking a quiz?

me: Absolutely not, and what, catabolize?

John: that's right, fuck that

For those of you who don't know, Big (medium) John teaches college math at Monterey Peninsula College. Can you picture your prof, pacing around the room, shaking his ice filled protein shaker to stave off catabolism while his disciples scribble away nervously?

Shake on John! Shake on...

Shameless Plug

I swear I should carry this so I can get my steady stream of amino acids when im stuck in lab for hours on end.

WWW.TRUEPROTEIN.COM
Discount Code RYK888 (saves u 5% off your order total.)
You can save a lump of cash buying your supplements in big raw bulk. In times like these you need every penny you can save.

People listen...

Even when you think they aren't.

On Friday I shot out a quick email when I stumbled upon the Tabata method as a means to burn fat in a short amount of time. I sent it to three different groups of friends. Friday night I went to dinner with some of those email recipients and conversations were abuzz about the new fitness fad.

Then on Saturday night I went to Seaside for John's Bday party and a few of my partners there were talking about it too. Even Rick who is pretty much anti-weights wanted to give it a go. Carrie had her taste and she's still sore.

All of a sudden I felt like people wanted to hear what I had to say. I guess when the guy who bodybuilds speaks training for the masses, people are interested. It was indeed strange because most of the time I feel like the guy who's writing only to his blog, throwing his thoughts into a black hole. I gotta be careful about what advice I give from here on out...

It also reared it's head that same night when we played a game that asks you a bunch of random questions and my brother was asked what's the best piece of advice he'd ever been given.

He replied:

"Don't be me, be better than me..."

When I heard that I had to look away because it caught me so off guard that I got a little choked up. It's something I told him some years back, when he was still a young lad in high school. I've heard of sibling rivalry, but never really understood it;but I truly want the best for my dude. But when you're a sibling saying something to a teenager, you dont feel like it's really soaking in. Most teens know it all already.

Boy, am I ever glad that I was wrong.

How to split 25 lbs of raw protein

In a word: slowly.

What a delicious mistake

Bodybuilders rejoice!

a bodybuilders dream, and it happened near me, how did i miss this?!!
"Run honey, stuff as many breasts in your pocket as you can!!!!"

here:

How to safeguard your study binder

Put a bodybuilder on it.

Most folks would rather touch a binder smeared in dog poo than one with a "Gross Bodybuilder" on it.

BTW This is the sickest magazine cover, ever!

Here Comes Trouble...

My idea of a good time...

To know where you're going you have to know where you've been... That's why all those who are serious about making changes to their physique should keep a log book. If I'm not lifting more weights or doing more reps than last time, then I'm not progressing. Simple.

So I was thinking this weekend, man, I haven't squatted in a while. So I check my logbook and confirm- September 8th, 2008, is the last time I did the barbell squat. Thanks to the cruise and trips to Monterey and life, I'm a month removed.

Here comes trouble...

Childhood Friend turned Olympian

In my continuing Olympia coverage, I had to add this- A few years ago I was going through some contest pics and came across a picture of an old elementary/middle school classmate who in her adult life took up a career as a figure competitor. I was just getting into bodybuilding so it was exciting to see a physique competitor hailing from my hometown that I actually knew!

Huong Ho (now Huong Arcinas) was in my first grade class and had a twin brother Thien who I was cool with for a long time. My mom used to remark at how tiny the siblings were, small in stature body composition. She's married and has a beautiful family.

Last month she qualified and placed 13th in her Olympia Debut. Congrats! I'm proud of you, way to represent Seaside!!!!

New Mr. Olympia

Last month I gave a quick preview of the Mr. Olympia, then I headed off to Cabo for Jimmy's Bachelor Party. I was at sea when September 29th came and went a new Mr. Olympia. The anticipation was excruciating as I had to wait until we reached port to check my phone to see who won.

I was up till 3:30 on the last night of our cruise, but at 6AM I felt the boat shift as it docked and I immediately woke up and turned my phone on. Then my jaw hit the floor as I saw on MD's site: "DEXTER WINS!"

His win is significant because this show for the last 10-15 years has been dominated by the "mass monsters" those ranging in the 260-300lb on stage weight. It's also big because Jay cutler, though way off, was expected to win simply because he was the incumbent. Now it has revitalized and restored credibility to the Mr. O.

Dexter started his bodybuilding amateur career as a bantamweight (145 lbs.) and now competes at over 230 pounds. He's been competing for over 10 years and he has become the 12th Mr. Olympia defeating the incumbent Jay Cutler! Congrats!

Top 10:

1. Dexter Jackson
2. Jay Cutler
3. Phil Heath
4. Dennis Wolf
5. Toney Freeman
6. Melvin Anthony
7. Silvio Samuel
8. Dennis James
9. Moe Elmoussawi
10. Gustavo Badell
    

Happy Birthday Big (medium) John!

10/9/81 my main man was put on this Earth.


Though we're born from different mothers, we're brothers till the end! 143!

The Worst Health Foods

From yahoo:

Inappropriate Flexing: Vernon Edition

He's catching up to me, and even mom wants a squeeze!

This last weekend we celebrated Vernon's 12th bday, and for the first 10 minutes we hung out, he wanted to show me how vascular he was, and he rolled up his sleeve, squeezing his arm like he's donating blood. It was cool to see him pump and squeeze his arm in earnest to gain my approval.

He's already got it...

The kids got good genetics- he does Kai Greene posing routine impressions for fun and his abs are better now than mine could ever be. He's bugging me as to when he can start weight training, and I tell him, "when you're happy with what height you are, because you dont want to be 4 foot 11 for the rest of your life do you?"

Good thing I'll be long retired from the stage when he hits his peak!

P90X

I am of the mind that simple is usually better.
Lift heavy weight.
Eat Protein.
Limit bad carbs.

Grow.

I'm also of the mind that if you stick to any program designed by someone with half a credential it will work.

With that said, I was at the gym yesterday, and I see this cat huddled in the corner over his laptop. (Keep in mind I train at a corporate gym, so I've actually seen people click-clacking away between sets. ) He then grabs a white plyometrics stand and puts his laptop on it.

And it begins.

He starts staring at the screen like a man possessed, locked in. He starts going through these gyrating motions. It sorta looks like jazzercise meets tae bo meets I dont know what. I take off my headphones and hear a little voice cheering the guy on.
Then I see the P90X box on his bag and I understand what he's doing.

But it's still funny to see someone using their laptop as their personal trainer. I didnt have the heart to tell him that it's usually meant to be done at home so he doesn't look like a complete fool. But hey, if it gets him in shape, who am I to judge.

I put my ipod back on and watch him gyrate to death metal. That was fun.

BTW I did a lil reasearch and found this rather inspiring video made by this everyday joe. Pretty dope.



I'd rather someone just get in the gym and pump iron the old school way, but like I said, most programs work if you stick to it to a T. If u wanted to download it, and save yourself 3 easy payments of 39.95, click here:

Sdrawkcab raewrednu

So last week I got back from Cabo, and boy am I paying the price.
I have a poster due next week, 2 studies spanning 2 weekends, among other things.

A manifestation of my absentmindedness, I wore my underwear backwards today. TRBL.

Boston Loyd, the 6 y/o Bodybuilder

WAR- THE MOVIE

Ok, so this is the last WAR reference I'm going to make- I've beaten this horse long enough, but a co-worker of mine has sent video of it. Unfortunately you can't hear my screaming, but perhaps that is for the best...

updated, youtube version: