Attachment 29410 Attachment 29411
And a few of Ange!
Printable View
Attachment 29410 Attachment 29411
And a few of Ange!
Ange took OVERALL!!! WOOO!
I took 2nd in my class to Keiva, the best competitor I've had to compete against in a class ever. I love competition and as I always said, I'd rather come 2nd in a class of great guys than come 1st against no one. He had the fuller physique of the day which put him over the edge.
This has been an awesome event, and I was proud to be able to be backstage to give my hunny a big hug when she came off stage with that kick ass trophy!! Winning provincials against 30+ figure girls in what would have been the largest provincial show competitor wise she's ever done. SO proud I will say it again. A lifetime bye to nationals is icing on the cake! we will post pics, as soon as we can get a couple, although I honestly don't think we have too much of the show! There is a bunch posted on a few links in facebook and muscle insider, but I am sure a few will be posted up sooner or later on facebook and what not.
Here's a quick one of me just before hitting the stage for prejudging....Attachment 29415
Congrats to both of you...great work!
Just want to add a special thanks for taking the time all along to post when you have many competing interests....you allowed us all to come into your (both of you) prep and hear your trials and tribulations, the sleep issues, the injuries and so on....
Awesome work guys!!!!! congratulations
muscle-insider.com/galleries
Congrats to both of you. Way to go Ange!!! :welldone
That's fantastic!
CONGRATS to you both!!!!
Congrats Ang and Steve!
Awesome congrats Steve and Angela!
Eric
congratulations to both of you... you both looked fantastic... followed your log all along.. was very motivating!!!
Great attitude Steve has. Hell take the overall in his next provincials count on it. Steve at 176 will be unbeatable.
I plan on bringing a fuller physique to the Atlantics. I am pretty sure Keiva will not be there, but I think me being a little fuller, and a tad less dry will suit me nicely. An earlier carb up, and a little bit more experimenting with sodium etc, it should be a fun weekend!! I had debated skipping out on the Atlantics since it will be a little trickier this weekend being out of the city, and without my parents to stay at home with the little ones.
But after thinking about it a little more on sunday, I decided this is the perfect time to just do the show even if I don't put 100% effort this last week I still will be as lean as last week, and probably look even better. nothing can happen drastically in 1 week, to me its just making sure no crazy rebound happens, and making sure I can drop water on friday. this is the least rebound i've ever had in fact. And look just as good today as I have all week. I am excited for these last workouts this week as I have tuns of energy from our post show celebration. It involved a boat load of nachos, bacon cheesburgers, diet soda, and much needed water.
Sunday both ange and I passed out late in the afternoon. I tried my hardest to keep my eyes open to entertain my son. He was playing the wii, and couldn't pass a level, and here I was trying to play with him watching my guy fall off the screen over and over as I continued to fall asleep. First time I felt like that in ages. Usually sleep is almost difficult! Of course that meant he was up till near midnight with us because once I fell asleep, he fell asleep - and you simply can't have a 3 year old sleep 2 hours in the late afternoon and expect him to fall asleep before midnight...haha
Anyway, I'll try to post a few candid shots of us from this past weekend once I get a chance. I wish I didn't need to work this week though! I'd love to just be hanging out in the gym right now! I never looked better, and I have to hide behind a computer screen?! I want to be in front of a mirror at the gym!
Geez....where to begin.
First thanks to Steve and all my family for their support leading into this show. I am still in shock I think. I finally caught up on some sleep last night and the reality is sinking in. Can't believe I now have a lifetime qualification to Nationals! I didn't even think of it until stuffing my face with nacho's after the show and Greg brought it up, lol.
I was thinking of backing out of Atlantics but I think more experience on stage can't hurt. I am excited and much more relaxed going into this show. We are bringing the whole family and spending Sunday at Crystal Palace. Can't wait!
All went perfectly this past weekend, with the exception of finding out our credit card had been blocked due to fraudulent activity when trying to check into the hotel, lol. The look I presented I feel best suits my structure and body type. I wasn't as lean or hard as past shows but had a more feminine and athletic appearance which I could not be happier with. I was happy to just compete 8 months post baby 2, but to win the overall was out of this world! It was great to meet ne NS athletes and see old friends. The show went very smoothly, hat's off to the NSABBA executive, officials, volunteers, and all staff. I was very impressed at how well run the show was considering the large number of competitors.
Now, just an easy few days. Not doing anything drastic. The "real" show is behind me, this weekend is for experience and fun. Can't wait to meet more great east coast competitors!
This is freaking unbelievable, totally impressive!Quote:
Originally Posted by ange_d
Eric
CONGRATS to you both!!!
Ang you look absolutely stunning :) and yes totally impressive 8 months post baby 2, good for you!!!
Steve, your conditioning was fantastic!!
Really enjoyed following your log :)
Thanks everyone! So far this week is going great. I have cut cardio completely and using this time to fill out the best I can. I already feel as though I am going to look more impressive this weekend. I feel fuller in the gym, and just as tight. I am sure there is still a little glycogen left floating around from this weekends carb load, but I think I am pretty depleted. Weight this morning was where it was last week at this time, and absolutely no rebound water weight at all. This is the first time in the history of all my shows that I did not get an ounce of rebound water. I mean, sure, sunday I felt a little full and puffy - but I think the key was never cutting sodium out of the equation. I cut salt on friday only, and by cutting salt, I mean no longer adding salt and consuming soya sauce and high sodium garbage. I probably had 2-3g of sodium friday compared to 7-8 normal. On saturday I had a tun of salt throughout the day to ensure no more cramping. I suffered only 1 borderline scary cramp friday night when I hit the sack (quad), and another in the early morning (calf) but no where near what I experienced in past shows.
It was a success on that front. Each show is a learning experience and I've learned alot from this past weekend that I plan on fixing for atlantics. I believe weigh-ins are friday night, and I would guess I will weigh in 5 pounds heavier. This isn't 5 true pounds of muscle or anything, but the plan is to cut water later, and to carb up sooner... I dry up so fast, that it will be better for me to wait until the last minute to shed those last ounces of water. Worse case scenario is I am sharper at night then the morning, which is ok by me!
Today's workout I looked alot closer to what I was looking 3-4 weeks ago in terms of muscle fullness, but just as lean as last week. So already this is a good sign. Not heavier, just better able to get a pump. And this is the reason I've cut cardio and will be eating more all week and carbing up early. Crossing my fingers it all works as planned!!
Just catching up....Great job you two....Kudos to you both.....I love your attitude Steve.....Glad to have followed along, and look forward to your next journey...As you said, a little more fullness on your shredded bod will bring you over the top bro...Its all work in progress for you, and i think you will be up there real soon....
I just had a chance to see some pics of my class...I must say, I wonder why I would even chance doing anything different. I can't beleive what I looked like! I am going to have to put a little more thought into my plan for the next couple days. I know I mentioned doing things different, but after seeing what I look like, the whole phrase "if it aint broke, why fix it" comes to mind! When I get the pics myself, I will be sure to post some up. I was very very encouraged to see them to say the least!
If I can simply maintain and present the exact same package, I will be more then pleased. No matter what the plan, I know tomorrow will involve basically little carbs and lots of water... So it begins! one more time!
So go figure... BEst luck on the planet - thrusday night at 5:30pm I fell down the stairs the entire way down...Pretty bad spill and total impact on the elbow. Nothing broken, but I have a bad bump. I been icing it like crazy, but nothing can stop that sucker. Its a lot of weird fluid built up, and my guess is the bursa basically got busted. I am modifying my posed to accomodate, and hopefully the tan will cover up the shades of color i can only imagine it will be tomorrow!! I think it looks worse in person, but as long as it doesn't get worse looking than it already is, I suppose it wont be so bad...just sux last minute like this! trying to enjoy the carb up process and take care of the kids at crystal palace, but i seem to be only able to use my one arm!!
Attachment 29443Attachment 29444
WOW that sucks !!! Doesnt look that bad though just FYI , it could have been much worse , good luck !
Don't i know it! all i could think while falling...Close call...Quote:
Originally Posted by JMP
thats a hell of a elbow peak with cross striations lol. even with one arm you ll still win.
Morning show down, feel great about how I looked. Weight is roughly the same... give or take a few pounds, but I feel fuller, able to hold a better pump and pose harder. I didn't cramp at all this week, and I in fact cut sodium an entire day earlier and cut water a little earlier. Strange how the body works sometimes, but I feel as though I timed everything perfectly once again. Got some excellent feedback from everyone I talked to about my posing, and hardness. THere are a few pics on muscle insider again, so have a look if you get a chance
muscle-insider.com
actually just checked and looks like they just added some of anges classes. She looked amazing as per usual, but I think she really looked a million times better than ever before. We cut her water early (actually she never cut last week) and went for a drier look this week. Atlantics has tended to favor a leaner physique. As much as figure is soft, I think ange really pulls off the lean look best. about 3 pounds drier and stomach as tight as possible. Somewhat biased, but I have her winning both classes! Stiff competition though...over 12 in each of her classes (masters + figure tall) and in fact, the 2011 provincial champ is in her class too. Look forward to seeing the results tonight!
Wow, crazy couple of weeks for us!
These Maritimers sure bring it!
This show was my favorite show ever. I met so many great people and managed to pull off winning the masters (35 Nate not 40, lol) and tall figure classes! This was a big show with so many great athletes.
I dropped water this week and was 3 pounds lighter, Steve said it made a big difference. Thank godness I did dehydrate because they favoured the ripped girls in this show.
Congrats to all athletes (especially the NS ladies!)!
Steve won his class and was in the overall with Greg, I couldn't stay to watch the overall because we had the kids with us in Moncton but saw pic's and looks like they had a good time.
I guess that's it for another journal....until next time!
Thanks for all the support!
Echo everything Ange said. Even though the provincials was the main show we were prepping for, I loved competing at the atlantics and I felt more relaxed all weekend and enjoyed the show / competition a little more. Perhaps just a little more distracted from "competing" with the kids around and having a nice king suite at crystal palace (an indoor playground amusement part for those of you not around the east coast). I am feeling the swelling in my elbow now though...wow! I think being dehydrated prevented the inflammation from going out of control. Hopefully I can lay low on the carbs for a few days and try to normalize a bit. Its gonna be tough though...wow, I know its the day after, but things haven't tasted so good :)
All and all it has been an interesting journey to say the least. From the first week tweaking my back and being out for a few days...Which then likely caused the sciatic issues that eventually caused the ankle issues. And can't forget the speaker landing on my tow... the nail still only 25% grown back! It will definitely be good to start the off-season process and hopefully get back to lifting heavy weights! I will definitely be VERY week for the next little while as I recover from the last couple weeks. Curious to see how my elbow even works as I get back into the gym!! The fluid that has built up makes me really think I should take a good week off the gym. I typically train the week after a show since I always have enery to do so...but this time I probably need the rest. Not to mention, I am so busy at work and had to take a few days off work at probably the worst time...
So anyway...thanks for following along. I certainly accomplished what I set out to accomplish. I got as lean as I ever have been and weighed a good 10-12 pounds more than last show on stage. A 2nd and first place finish... A special thanks to Cygen labs as well - I know I'll be needing some decimate this week to keep my awake, lol...maybe not as a pre-workout, but I am not much of a coffee drinker, so it's gonna serve as my morning cup to get me to work :)
A word of caution about the elbow : A few years ago a buddy of mine fell directly on his elbow and it swelled up with fluid. He iced it and after a few days it went down. Then all he did was push himself to get up out of bed and his tricep completely tore off the bone and rolled up to his shoulder. Surgery two days later and it was re attatched nicely. Hard to tell what goes on when you bump an elbow. You are likely right about the bursa being aggitated or burst BUT I'd have it checked out before I went lifting again. Congrats on all your success.Quote:
Originally Posted by steve_d
WELL DONE all of you!!! It was great following your journal!! I am sure it has been quite a journey for all of you :)
Got some pics back of the first show. Here are 3 of me with the top 3. Also, 2 pics of ange with her class as well as a shot of her with the other 2 class winners in the overall.
Attachment 29477Attachment 29478Attachment 29479Attachment 29480Attachment 29481
And finally, another pic from the week after - for my atlantic win!
Attachment 29507
Awesome job Steve and Ange! Both looked great and was a great log to follow.
Stand like a pro.
Eric
I still have a few tweaks to get all poses just right, but I like the way I changed a few poses this year to bring out my strengths, hide my weaknesses. As for now, my biggest weakness is simply overall size. I am 168 pounds in that pic!! I still could pack on 10 more pounds before I reaach my top potential as a middleweight. I hope I can do that in the next 2 years or so and compete at nationals 2014-2015 or so...
That said - it's off season time for me. I hope to open up a thread soon about my progress during the transition period from on to off season.
Thanks for following along everyone and for all your support along the way! Once again you guys at cbb helped keep me sane!