SimplyShredded.com

How did you get started with bodybuilding?

I joined the wrestling team my freshman year in high school, where I was introduced to the weight room for the first time. I enjoyed wrestling enough, but decided not to continue with it my sophomore year, and instead dedicated myself to weight lifting full time. From there it was a fairly natural progression – I continued training throughout high school, gradually educating myself on training and nutrition, and eventually pursued my personal trainer certification at the end of my senior year. I went on to attend Texas A&M University, and continued to train religiously there. At the end of my sophomore semester, I decided to begin preparation for my first contest, the INBF South Western (May ’09). One semester of meticulous dieting and intense training later, I was standing on stage with a 2nd place trophy in my hand for the Novice Mens Middleweights. More important than the placing was the permanent impact competing had on my training and outlook – from that moment on, I was dead set on earning my natural pro card at some point in the future. Now deep in my offseason, I continue to work toward that goal, and have decided to occupy myself with natural raw powerlifting in the meantime. I believe that heavy training is the best way to build muscle, which implies that bodybuilding and powerlifting go hand in hand. As such, I thought competing in a few powerlifting meets would be a great way to stay focused over the next 2-3 years until I step on stage again shooting for my pro card.

So what is the bodybuilding training routine that you use to achieve that killer physique?

I have experimented with many different training routines, and at this point in time I believe the optimal program for myself is anything with moderate volume, moderate-high frequency, and high intensity. I train mostly in the 3-6 rep range, and alternate between hitting every bodypart once a week, and twice every 10 days, depending on how my joints and nagging injuries are treating me.

When trying to cut down do you prefer to use HIIT or just normal cardio?

Thanks in large part to my ectomorphic genes and the fast metabolism that comes with them, I have only ever had to lean down once – for my contest season earlier this year. For that, I used a mix of HIIT and steady state cardio. I performed my HIIT via sprints on the track, with anywhere from 8 to 16, 4-6 second sprints per session, with a brisk walk of 20-30 seconds inbetween each. Steady state cardio was performed on the treadmill for the first half of prep, and later on an elliptical to put less stress on my ankles. I gradually increased my cardio over a 3-4 month period, and by the last month was performing 6x 1 hour sessions on the elliptical a week, and 3-4 16x sprint HIIT session a week. In hindsight, I would have attempted to stay more in touch with my nutrition early on, which would have allowed me to do less cardio later in the prep.

What is your Diet like?

In the offseason, I set loose macro goals, and attempt to meet them using any convenient combination of foods throughout the day, normally across 5 meals. In general, my intake is low-moderate fat, high carb, moderate protein. The main concern for me is to take in enough calories, any way I can get them – gaining weight is like fighting an uphill battle against my metabolism. As such, I consume a lot of foods that would leave the bros very upset – breakfast cereals, Pop-Tarts, bagels, pizza, hamburgers – you name it, I probably eat it. While contest dieting, the strategy is almost exactly the same, except I am very strict with counting macros – I use a food scale to weigh and measure every gram of everything I eat, no exceptions. I start out diet in a slight deficit, and chip away at my carb intake as needed to keep the weight loss moving.

What is your supplementation like?

I use only the most basic of supplements – a multivitamin to help meet micronutrient needs, a fish oil to meet EFA needs, glucosamine to help keep my joints healthy, and a whey protein per convenience to meet my protein needs. Those are the only supplements I use year round. I have also experimented with BCAA’s, and believe they are a worthy supplement, but simply cannot afford to use them year round. I recently began using creatine monohydrate again, for the umpteenth time, simply because of the overwhelming evidence supporting its significance. I personally have never noticed anything drastic from it, but I have never been one to scoff in the face of science.

Plans for the future?

I currently have 2 main goals:

1. To earn a pro card in either the WNBF or NGA
2. Achieve an elite level raw powerlifting total for the BW<220 class, which is approximately ~1550lbs. My current total is 1175lbs

so needless to say… I have a lot of work ahead of me.

Favourite Quote?

• “Each workout is like a brick in a building, and every time you go in there and do a half-ass workout, you’re not laying a brick down. Somebody else is.” – Dorian Yates
• “Franco is smart but Franco is a child, and when it comes to the day of the competition, I am his father. He comes to me for advices. And you know, it’s not that hard for me to give him, the wrong advices” – Arnold Schwarzenegger

Bodyspace: http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/Whomper107/

Share

SimplyShredded.com answers your questions! Check out our new forums for free bodybuilding advice from the community. Fast, friendly and free! What are you waiting for?