Just how dark do you mean???

So this is me last year. Note the dumb face.
People always say man, you look dark- but onstage i'm just as dark as everyone else (and we're some of the lighter guys relatively speaking).

It's when you see me with 'civilians' that it really gets funny.

Here I am between a white dude and a Filipino dude (that's big medium john btw) chillin at mike's house before the night show. It's sorta dramatic how dark I am.


But the real fun


Is here:

LOL
Mom's a ghost, and damn.... Im brown

and i plan to be darker this year.

Carboverload

Today John sent me this picture, which is what he's calling his post contest gluttony food overload.

It takes me back to last year when a few nights before the show I went to safeway and spent about 80 bucks on carbs and whatnot.
And even set it up all pretty for me to come how and demolish!
I've started to accumulate a few things. Picked up a few boxes of cereal and grabbed some salty snacks around the workplace, but the pizza and vegas and the resulting refeed with john in the days following will probably hold me over.

We'll see though...

14

Today I stepped of my 75 minutes of stair stepping which commemorated a momentous occasion:
I have 14 cardio sessions left.
That's 17.5 hours
or
1050 minutes
or
63000 seconds.

I can live with that.

50 Ways To Feed Your Muscles

This is a cool article I found on how to prep the rather dull chicken breast.

Enjoy!

Food Pr0n (JOHN! Beware!!! DELICIOUS ALERT!!!)

In my most depleted home stretch here I think the delirium of no more cheat meals and not even fats I've become masochistic- my hobbies include watching the food network, daydreaming about food, and taking pictures of food with my phone and sending them to john.

in a strange way, this makes me feel a lil better, i dont know why.
So here's so more gems...

80 degrees in Emeryville...

So we checked the iPhone tab all week, and sure enough, it was time for 80+ degrees and fun in the sun. Hey, I needed to work on the ol tan anyways...

I figure since I'm so out and about in my posing trunk on this site, I'd put this shot...

Carrie was embarrassed for about 10 minutes, but then got over it. I guess I can't blame her, but at least I sorta got the goods to back it up, and am not flabby and covered in hair.
And yes, the ball and chain (see bottom of pic) comes with us everywhere we go. There's no reason you can't be on the ball and in the sun! That's a yellow fork with tuna, tastes much better by the pool!

Week 14 Progress Pics

After this weekend, one more update then showtime! I dont know that from here on out there'll be much change, but true to my word, here we go...

Front Relaxed:
Rear Relaxed:Front Double Bicep: I'm a lot happier with this shot, the sweep on my left leg is there and looks better than I've ever seen it.Rear Double Biceps: My "back abs" as jeremy calls them, more detail, day by day, cardio session by cardio session, carbless meal by carbless meal...Side Tricep: Trying a different leg position, I think it allows me to show my back calves better, and brings out more detail in the front leg, need to twist more.Abs/Thigh: Looking tighter, and there's even lower pec tie-in...Most Musculars: By bending at the waist and more bowing then hunching over, I keep the wrinkles on the stomach from showing, as well as making the chest look fuller.


Still some annoying skin on the lower ab, but there u go...

"When you want something badly enough...

all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it."
-Paulo Coelho

I'm dead tired. My body knows it. Today my alarm went off and I hit the snooze more often than I usually do.
"Oh hell naw said Mr. Right calf" and that badboy cramped up like I owed it money!
"You will be awake, said the calf! And you will do cardio! You've come too far to fail me now" he said to me... Ugh..

Shux, 2 more weeks (13 days of cardio left) I guess I'll truck along...

Why even more tired lately?
So I've been on a high protein, moderate fat, extremely low carbohydrate diet.
Now heading to week 14, I'm having to cycle the consumption of fats- it started with 2 days with fats, 2 days without. Then it became 3 days without fats, 1 day with. Now it's 6 off 1 on as the goal is to get that last stubborn bit of fat out of the mix. (Side note, the gym fat calculator said i was 9.2% body fat, +/- 3%, pre dieat i was about 15%)



It's interesting how perception of luxuries can be shifted.
I sit and eat sushi with Carrie and she tosses the white rice aside, as I stare at my pile of sashimi.
I ate fat every day for the first part of my diet, but longed for my cheat meals.
Then the cheat meals went away.
As did the fats- which to me are now like a cheat, peanut butter is my crack rock!

When prepping for the fresno show, I ditched the salting of my food in order to help drop water.
Boy please believe that the next day I was all over that salt, and didnt care that there were no fats! Spicy mustard on turkey patties became my new crack rock.

I think this is true for life- we often raise the bar on our happiness.
I'll be happy with that BMW, or I'll be happy when I lose 10 lbs, or when he finally proposes, or when we have kids, or grand kids


Be happy today. Every day above ground is a good one.
(BTW are you gonna eat that grissel?)

Rice

I came across this article about rice shortage...

It moved me in a particular way because here I am, eating my lion's share of food day in and day out. I sometimes joke that I eat more before 9am than most people eat all day.

In a world view, I likely eat more before 9am than some people eat all week.

That's a real sobering thought. Here I am, trying to get my ribs to show to impress some judges. In other parts of the world, ribs are showing because hunger is real. Damn.


Take pause today to appreciate the gifts you have. If you're sitting at a computer reading this, you're already 95% richer, and 95% less hungry than the rest of this world.

What losing 25 lbs does to your back

Starting weight: 184.5
Week 13 Weight: 159.6
Total Lost: 24.9 Lbs

Look at the difference, that's just so crazy to me...

Then:
Now:

Cheat Meal Makeup post 3

On march 22-23 weekend we went home and hung out with the fam, grandma, aunts, and a friend of the family's dog.
Moms and company cooked up schnitzel, burp salad, fried chicken, bbq tri tip and assorted carbs...

SCHNITZEL!!!

Grandmoms showing off the vascularity- sorry people it IS genetics hahaha

Wait...

Wait long enough and people will surprise and impress you.
When you're pissed off at somebody and angry with them,
you just haven't given them enough time.
Just give them a little more time and they'll almost always impress you.

-John Snoddy as told to Randy Pausch

Week 13 Progress Pics

Well last week we had the Fresno debacle, but this week we're back with the regular updates.

Front Relaxed: The skin tone is a lil blotchy, but the darkness definitely enhances the lines. The front right lat looks like it wants to finally say hello.

Rear Relaxed: Details details details. The cardio seems to be paying off in this shot, in fact, even the hams are coming to peek and say hello.

Front Double Bicep: Is it just me or did my legs come out a lot vs. the last time we took these photos? My biceps are rubbing off to be a lil white (no thanks to you pro tan.) But there's good separation in the legs, and hopefully in the next 2 weeks I cant chisel out even more.

Rear Double Bicep: Always has been, always probably will be my strongest shot. The skin looks nice and thin, allowing all the details to come out. And again hams are there.

Side Tricep: Dear Mr. Waist- where did you go? How rude of you to leave without saying goodbye! Lines galore!

Abs/Thighs: Much tighter than weeks previous, yet I think i'm just destined to have a bit of skin on the lower abs, no matter how much fat I drop. But I won't stop till I know it's gone, or week 16 is here, whichever comes last!

Most Muscular:

Nuff said.