Adam Ringler, MS, CSCS – Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist – East Lansing, MI

The Root Hog Sled - A Beast

I had a great workout today. Went into the gym and did a few movements that I haven’t done in quite awhile. The first being a seated leg curl using the Keiser Functional Trainer and a Valslide. That really hit the hamstrings great. I rest-paused all the reps and aimed to get 30 total across 3 attempts a leg. I fell a bit short, somewhere between 20-25 reps for each leg. This will allow me to attempt the same weight next time in aims of increasing repetitions. Remember, progression is key! If your using the same weight or getting the same amount of repetitions – that is not progression, that’s stagnation. Continue Reading…

Well, as October 4th rolls around so will my week-long nutritional hiatus. After spending nearly 10 months of dieting I have just spent the following week eating whenever I like, whatever I like, and how much I’d ever like. It’s been a great week of relaxation free of counting macronutrients, cardio minutes, reps, sets and all. Usually when I’m in a mass phase I’ll take a week off every 8-weeks but while I was in contest dieting mode, I damn went from January to September dieting down for my show.

An Oreo Cookie

Now that everything is said and done, I’m ready for Monday to come again & I’m excited again to eat, cardio and start lifting some heavy weight. Towards those last 3 weeks of contest dieting my weights went done and I began being more “cautious” with my weightlifting sessions. That doesn’t mean I didn’t lift heavy but rather that I wouldn’t “grind” though sticking points and attempting personal records (PRs). However, now it’s all coming back again and I’m foaming at the mouth to attack those weights and get back to action.

This blog, Bodybuilding Blueprint is about my offseason training. I’ll document my workouts, my nutrition, my goals, my ups, my downs and everything in between. Along the way if you have any questions, comments, or anything at all – don’t hesitate to e-mail, comment, or drop my a line and I’ll get back to you. No problem whatsoever.

So… Here we are… My first blog post of my off-season training. Well what I can first talk about vaguely (because I don’t have my notes in front of me) is my diet. This off-season I’m doing something new but healthier for my body. I’m an individual who doesn’t tolerate carbohydrates very well – with that said, this offseason I’m going to be keeping my carbohydrates lower than one my expect for off-season – around 100g on training days, and 0g on non training days. I’ll disclose my diet in a future blog post but right now – that is what I’m sharing.c

I’ll be training 3x a week; Monday, Wednesday, and Friday doing Dante Trudel’s (Doggcrapp Training or DC Training). This isn’t a new change as I’ve been using his principles since 2005 and wouldn’t contemplate using any other ideas or training philosophies. Hell, I was using the 3-Day split right up till 2 weeks out from contest – AND STILL PROGRESSING on lifts. So now that I’ll have more calories I’ll be back to the 2-Day split training across three days. My cardio work will be done at 5:15am on an empty stomach for 30 minutes – 7x a week for the start of this offseason.

The two biggest changes from this year and years past are A) the lower carbohydrate intake and B) the increase in cardio work. I’m going to do my damnest to make sure I don’t balloon up and gain 20-30lbs of fat during this offseason. While losing weight in the contest prep is fun and exciting to watch, a hour and a half of cardio a day is not fun and towards the end of it all you start to dread it. Nonetheless, my philosophy this year is preventative and to make slow & consistent changes in LEAN mass rather than packing on pounds of both muscle & fat – mostly fat.

Well that is all folks. Stay tuned to next post which will disclose my diet, training, cardio and scheduling in more detail. It’s an exciting journey and I have some lofty goals to reach. It’s going to be a fun off-season and I’m looking forward to making some gains and reaching these bodybuilding goals that I have.

Arnold Schwarzenegger - A True Champion

As I’ve blogged about before, I was in the process of cutting down and getting my ass in shape. While my weight loss goals started as an endeavour to simply “lose weight” – they shortly become a quest to stand on stage & compete in my first local bodybuilding show. The fire was sparked. I started in February weighing near 215lbs and a chubby little lifter. Six months later I’m weighing 173lbs today with abdominals showing. I cannot say it was completely easy but I will say I had a burning desire to compete and to prove to myself that I could. It was never my goal to win, however, my only goal was TO COMPETE.  However, there were personal circumstances that kept me from competing this weekend, none of my choosing.

So now I’m left in this conundrum of selecting new goals. After six months of not missing a workout, meal, or cardio session – I can tell you a little two week vacation away from the gym is going to be WELL DESERVED & LOOK FORWARDED TO.  So what are my plans now? Like any bodybuilder I’m going to try to improve on my weaknesses. I’m going to do everything in my power to stay as lean as am now while trying to add and improve my physique. Maybe down the road when the time is right, I’ll be able to compete in my first local bodybuilding show.

So… In the next few weeks you will start to see some new goals coming from me other than six pack abs. They’ve been a great goal and I have loved striving for them. I’m a bit lost right now on exactly WHAT my new goals are, but I have a few in mind. I think after this little hiatus away from the gym, I’ll come back refreshed, engaged and ready to make some awesome gains in the 09/10 year.