Hi again,

For this month’s blog I thought I would list a few protein packed recipes which I have used in order to make the diet for competition more bearable and to make adding extra protein into your diet more interesting.

My main recipe which I still use today in order to have a healthy protein snack on the go is Protein Biscuits.

For this you will need:

400g Oats

4 Scoops for Smart-Tec Whey FX (Any flavour but I use Strawberry)

3 Table spoons of Crushed Almonds

3 Table Spoons of Chia Seeds

Handfull of Raisins

Milk or Water

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and then gradually add some Milk or water depending on how healthy your being. Mix constantly with a wooden spoon until it becomes a paste consistency. Then divide them on a baking tray into biscuits, I make around 6 biscuits with these ingredients. Place them into the middle of an oven for 30 minutes at 150 degrees or until they become golden brown. They will then be ready to eat.

I keep them in a Tupperware tub in the fridge to keep them fresh and take them into work with me to have as a healthy snack.

The next Meal which was a godsend during competition prep and again I still use today is Protein Mousse.

For this, you will simply need Protein Powder. I used to make this with Casein before I went to bed at night along with some crushed almonds.

Pour a serving of protein powder into a bowl, add a little water and mix together with a fork or spoon. Continue adding water and mixing until the protein reaches Mousse consistency. Then place the bowl in the freezer for 20 mins to half an hour and it’s ready to eat! I also used to do this with my Whey FX when I was on holiday when everyone else was having ice creams but I was dieting for comp and it kept me a little sane!

Here is a link to my friend and fellow Smart-Tec athlete Fabio Bonanno on making protein Mousse:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVYeCkmve9s

The final recipe which I discovered recently through my diet tracker app is Sweet Potato Protein Pancakes!

For this you will need

¼ cup rolled oats
¼ cup baked sweet potato
½ cup egg whites
dash of almond milk
1 scoop vanilla Whey FX protein powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon

For this blend everything except the protein powder and almond milk. Then mix in protein powder with spoon and add a splash of almond milk. The batter should be thick but not too thick you can't pour. If you blend all the ingredients together in the blender from the start sometimes it gets too runny. Then just cook like pancakes.

These taste amazing and are a great snack for anytime of the day!

Thanks again for reading.

Gordie Adam

INBF World Heavyweight Runner up
UKDFBA UK Heavyweight Champion
BNBF British Heavyweight Champion
BNBF Scottish Overall Champion
Smart Tec Athlete

Hi again, as with each of my blogs I try to write about things that I feel people would genuinely be interested in and hopefully either take something away from or have a go at themselves. Therefore, I thought this month I would list one of my favourite Leg workouts.

Obviously, my workouts change all the time depending on what programme I’m following etc. but I feel that there are always a few that have left me feeling like I’ve been hit by a bus the next day, which is awesome!

You’ll see below that due to the number of reps and intensity I split my legs into 2 separate workouts so that I don’t neglect my Quads or Hamstrings.

It’s probably worth mentioning with all my workout’s I love high intensity and high volume. I also focus entirely on feeling each and every rep, focus on strict form and try not to let ego kick in when I’m loading the bar. End of the day I’m a bodybuilder not a powerlifter. All workouts are also preceded by at least 4 warm up sets on the muscle group I’m going to work on.

Generally, I would take 30 seconds rest between most exercises and 1-minute rest after completing a Giant Set or Superset.

Legs (Focus on Quads)

Leg Extension – 3 sets x 8 -12 reps (Weight 97.5kg)

Squats – 2 warm up sets followed by 3 sets x 8 -12 reps (Weight 160kg for working sets)

Single-Leg Leg Press - 3 sets x 8 -12 reps (Weight 250kg)

 

Giant Set 1 on Smith Machine:

Static Lunges Left Leg Forward   (Weight 60kg for each exercise)

Static Lunges Right Leg Forward

Sumo Squats (Feet Wide and pointed out)

Close Squats (Feet close and pointed in)

 

Perform 10 reps on each exercise then move immediately onto the next with no rest completing 40 reps in total. Perform this 3 times

 

Giant Set 2:

Leg Extension (Toes out)              (Weight 70kg)

Leg Press                                             (Weight 150kg)

Leg Extension (Toes in)                 (Weight 70kg)

Walking Lunges                                 (Bodyweight)

 

Again perform 10 reps on each exercise then move immediately onto the next with no rest, on the walking lunges however complete 20 reps so 50 reps in total. Perform this 3 times.

 

Hamstrings, Calfs & Abs

Seated Leg Curl - 3 sets x 10-12 reps (Weight 70kg)

Superset

Leg Press Calf Raises - 3 sets x 30 reps (10 reps toes out, 10 toes in and 10 toes neutral) (Weight 120kg)

 

Single Leg Lying Leg Curl - 3 sets x 10-12 reps (25kg)

Superset

Seated Calf Raise - 3 sets x 10-12 reps (60kg)

 

Straight Leg Deadlift* - 3 sets x 10-12 reps (Double Drop on Final set performing 10-12 reps with each drop) (80kg drop 60kg drop 50kg)

Superset

Standing Smith Machine Calf Raises (On Platform) - 3 sets x 10-12 reps (Double Drop on Final set performing 10-12 reps with each drop) (80kg drop to 60kg drop to 50kg)

 

*I alternate each week with Barbell, Dumbells and Smith Machine for these.

Rollouts – 3 sets 15-20 reps

Plank – 3 sets to failure

 

I hope you’ll give this a go and let me know how you get on.

Thanks for reading!

Gordie Adam

INBF World Runner Up

UKDFBA Heavyweight Champion

BNBF Scottish & British Heavyweight Champion

Smart-Tec Sponsored Athlete

Most of us are only interested in how we look on the outside and forget about what is going on under the bonnet. Our bodies are machines and a very complex one at that.

Put in simple terms imagine your blood as being that of engine oil, give the machine a good quality oil it will run like clockwork, give in a bargain basement oil, it will still run but not as efficiently and smooth as the good quality oil. You won’t get a Formula 1 racing driver filling up his racing car with a low quality engine oil.

Our bodies work very much in the same way and is very sensitive to what we put in it.  The body works like crazy delivering oxygen, nutrients and a whole range of other things via the blood.  When the blood becomes intoxicated this affects its optimum performance and acidity builds up.  Fat is actually an over acidification problem meaning that the body creates fat cells to carry acids away from your vital organs, fat is a response from the body to an alarming over-acidic condition.  When you remove acid toxins from the body you will flush fat fast resulting in easier fat loss, muscle gain, feel energised and have skin that glows.

I have recently started to offer my clients a simple test to check what their PH levels are (how acidic the blood is).

The body’s pH is measured on a scale of 0 – 14. Mid range at 7 is where the pH is balanced. Anything below 7 is acidic and a state where your body does not function as well as it should. Above 7 is called Alkaline. Alkaline is the state in which your body thrives. Disease cannot live in an alkaline environment.

Here are a few simple things to improve the balance of your PH.

Drink Pure Alkaline Water – lots of it! Pure water meaning water that is filtered. At a minimum, you should be drinking 7 ounces of water for every 10 lbs of your body weight. So, if you weigh 130lbs, you need to drink a minimum of 91 ounces of pure water (that’s about 3 litres). Pure water meaning water that is filtered – the finest choice is an alkaline ionization unit (Jupiter is one of the finest on the market). If you don’t have this resource available, distilled water is a great choice with reverse osmosis coming next. Alkaline water means water with a pH over 7.5. Alkaline water adds oxygen to your water and helps to neutralize acids. A simple way to alkalize your water is with a dash of baking soda. There are also wonderful alkalizing agents you can purchase to buffer and alkalize the water.

Avoid: coffee, black tea and fizzy drinks. – These drinks are highly acidic and do not count towards your daily water intake.

Eat Celery…. This is one of the most alkaline foods you can eat. It quickly neutralizes acids. Eat it before, after or during a meal. Celery is so high in water content that is also works as an excellent thirst quencher. Celery is excellent for digestion.

Eat Green Salads – Always have a green salad on hand. Some greens that have the highest water content are: cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, celery, broccoli, cabbage, spinach, cauliflower, carrots, and onions. A great dressing would be cold pressed extra virgin olive oil with some lemon juice. Keep this in a bowl in your fridge Eat a large portion of salad with every meal!

Switch from cow’s milk, to almond, or rice milk. Cows milk has shown to produce an abundance of mucous in the human body. There are also few adults who can metabolize the protein in cow’s milk properly. This protein, casein, is what a cow’s metabolism needs for proper health, not for a human beings health. Also note that most dairy cows are injected with hormones such as the Bovine Growth Hormone to increase their milk production. Many of these hormones have potentially horrific side effects that can be passed on when consumed. Almond, or rice milk are excellent alternatives to dairy. They are well worth trying out.

Avoid artificial sweeteners! This includes: NutraSweet, Sucralose, Aspartame, Saccharin…. Not only are these acidic they also have other highly detrimental effects on the nervous system and neurological disease. Saccharin even tells you right on the package that it may cause cancer.

There is one natural sugar substitute that has had no reported side effects: Stevia.

Eat a grapefruit in the morning wait 15 minutes before ingesting a carb or protein. Grapefruit, similar to lemons, is also alkalizing.

Reduce the amount of red meat, pork, lamb, eat more of chicken, turkey or fresh fish in small quantities. Red meats, pork and lamb are highly acidic a very low water content, not to mention being hard on the digestive system.

An additional factor that adds to acidosis (acidic bodies) is stress. When the body moves into stress mode the digestive system shuts down and toxins cease to be eliminated. Thus the more toxins you keep in your system, the more the body will store them away (acids) in fat cells! Anything we can do to calm the mind/body will have a huge impact on alkalizing the body.  It is important to take time out to relax or do something relaxing such as yoga, meditation, not training in the gym, time out to relax is just as important as working out in the gym.

Drink a top quality super green supplement. : Organic super greens are known to be some of the most nutrient dense foods on the planet. They infuse the body with easily absorbed vitamins, minerals, amino acids chlorophyll, enzymes, phytonutrients and alkaline salts that help neutralize acids in the blood and tissues.

Avoid processed and refined foods. That means anything made with white flour and white sugar or food colouring. Our bodies were not designed to digest these chemicals and so it must do one of three things: 1. Eliminate them (if you are not hydrating properly this is very hard to do) or 2. Neutralize them by pulling alkaline buffers where it can – like from your bones leaching calcium, or from your blood, leaching iron. Or: 3. Park them away (in fat cells). Stay away from processed food as much as possible!

Improve your health and performance, even if you only introduce a few of the above tips little by little you will get there.  I also recommend purchasing a PH kit, an inexpensive valuable tool.

Note: The information in this blog is for educational purposes only and is not designed to diagnose or treat an illness.

Hi guys, for this month’s blog I thought I’d go through my gains over the past year and how my training has been going so far in the off-season.

In my work as a Firefighter we have annual health checks testing our weight, body fat % and V02 max as we need to maintain a standard of fitness to fulfil our duties. This is ideal for me as it allows me to see in black and white how I've progressed in the past few years. My stats this Feb compared to 2012 were; Weight 115kg compared to 104kg, Body Fat % was 10% compared to 14% and my V02 max was the same at 50. So for me this was great news gaining 11kg while dropping 4% Body Fat! Even I surprised myself with these results!

I think there are a few factors that have helped with this, the main one being competing in various bodybuilding comps which really helps you to understand your body and the way it reacts to training and dieting. Getting my supplements right was another thing, knowing ideally what to take and when to take them and the benefits of each. I will put my hands up and admit that I have the privilege of being sponsored and have many knowledgeable people to turn to for advice but so do you! That’s what the internet is made for! lol. Finally I believe my training has got a lot smarter, I was like many gym goers who would train 7 days a week sometimes twice a day for hours on end as well as hammering the cardio to keep body fat down. This is a crazy way to go about making decent gains. Your body desperately needs to rest and recover from hard training sessions in order to grow. For this reason my training has been focused around the big compound moves and I try to train 4-5 days a week now. Cardio wise I do intervals for 10-15 minutes twice a week (I have written about the benefits of this in a previous Smart-Tec blog).

I have just started back on Decreasing Set Training (again info in a past blog post) after 9 weeks of Y3T. I absolutely loved Y3T but believe it’s good to add variety every 6-9 weeks. This training for me suits my body down to a tee as I feel I respond better to higher reps and high intensity which this kind of training is all about.

All in all it seems as if things are going as I hoped. If I can put another 10kgs of muscle on before I hit the stage again next year I would be delighted and would like to hope I can blow away any competition!

Once again thanks for reading.

Gordie Adam

UKDFBA UK Heavyweight Champion

INBF World Runner Up

Rest is a very critical part of bodybuilding- at any level. Actually, rest is where the actual "getting bigger" takes place.

So it is very important to organize your program so that each muscle is trained for the maximum amount of growth possible. Some muscles combine better with others in training.  It is also important to make sure that your workouts don't conflict with each other.

For example, if you do lower back the day before you do legs, you will have a lot of trouble doing squats because your lower back is needed.

So if you don't organize it all correctly you will have to take a lot of extra days off especially in the example I mentioned above because the lower back takes longer than any other muscle to recover.

I must note that I am not a strong believer in over training, or at least what some people consider over training. For me over training is training a muscle too frequently.

Some people are set on the idea that 12 sets or more for any major muscle group is far too many, and that you can completely stimulate all the available muscle fibres with one or two concentrated sets of each exercise. Now I agree with this to an extent, as I don't believe that you should do 15 or 20 sets when you first get started.

Now I know how tired I am after a set where I take it to absolute failure; but the thing is I can always rest and do a few more- meaning that not all the fibres were exhausted.

I simply believe that performing 3-5 sets for each exercise will recruit and overload the most fibres, thus, producing the greatest gains.

Now- to the training split.

Your muscles really don't know what day it is so I don't have specific days for each muscle. I also don't believe in planning specific rest days- I take them as they are needed. Now if you were sore and have run out of body parts to train and need a break say on a Monday then have the rest. However if you could have worked out a sufficiently rested body part on the Monday and didn't, well then you should kick yourself for a missed opportunity.

I really work on the basis as an example, lets say that in any given year you could hit each body part 60 times always remembering  with correct technique ,intensity and the all important rest, you have given yourself  60 opportunities to grow (perfect world).

Injury, poor form, poor supplementation reduces these growing opportunities.

This is really true in competitive bodybuilding as each year the gains might be what sets you apart from the competition.

To give you an example of how would plan a week to afford rest between exercises

Day 1: Quads

Day 2: Shoulders and Traps

Day 3: Back (both lower and upper), Hamstrings, and Biceps

Day 4: Chest and Triceps

*Abs and Calves

When you train these is totally up to your preference. For calves and abs, you really don't need any secondary assistance from any other major muscles group, so train them whenever they're ready. I personally believe in training your abs and calf’s whenever they're not sore. Since they only take about 10-20 minutes to train.

"The pain of bodybuilding is inevitable, but whether you suffer or not is entirely up to you."

Brandon Greenwood

WNBF  Pro World Natural Body Building Champion

CLEAN EATING!

Most people know that clean eating means to eat lean meat, fish, fresh fruit and vegetables, pulses and grains, but just how nutritious and clean is the food we eat today? Do any of us give it much thought, probably not!

I remember being a child and visiting the green grocer, butchers and bakery with my mum. My diet as a child was far better than what our kids eat today! My parents had a budget to stick to so the foods were basic, but did provide a good staple diet; lots of fruit, veg and meat and the occasional treat from the fish and chip shop. How things have changed! Everything nowadays is about fast and convenience foods and that does include the healthy choices too, including fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and fish. Everything is grown and reared for consumer demand on a vast scale which has altered the way in which crops are grown and cattle is reared resulting in a significant drop in vitamins and minerals in fruit and vegetables and meat that is pumped with growth hormones and so on, thus having a negative impact on our health.

It is very difficult these days to have a diet which is 100% good that doesn’t contain something in it that is bad for us. I do believe it’s time we should take a closer look at what we are putting in to our bodies and make a few changes that will help to promote health and wellbeing.

I have changed the basic essentials including fruit, veg, meat, eggs and dairy products by using locally produced organic foods. The foods are more expensive than the supermarket brands, but having said that the amount of cash you save by avoiding the supermarket makes it a worth while purchase and you can be assured that the foods have not been intoxicated with harmful chemicals and will contain a higher percentage of vitamins and minerals than conventional supermarket brands and you get what is in season not products that have been shipped from other countries which by the time they get to your plate there is little nutritional value left.

 

The difference between conventional farming and organic:-

Conventional	Organic
Apply chemical fertilisers to promote plant growth	Apply natural fertilisers such as manure or compost, to feed soil and plants
Spray synthetic insecticides to reduce pests and disease	Spray pesticides from natural sources; use beneficial insects and birds, mating disruption or traps to reduce pests and disease
Use synthetic herbicides to manage weeds	Use enviromentally - generated plant killing compounds; rotate crops, hand weed or mulch to manage weeds
Give animals antibiotics, growth hormones and medication to prevent disease and spur growth	Give animals organic feed and allow them access to outdoors. Use preventative measures - such as rotational grazing, a balanced diet and clean housing to help minimise disease

 

To ensure I get all the vitamins and minerals I top up with SmartVit from the Smart-tec range.

Jenny’s plans for 2013

I won’t be competing this year as my focus will be on my business. I have quite a few girls competing this year and need to put all my efforts in to them. Last year was a hard year for me juggling family, work and prepping myself and clients for shows. I would need to put 100% effort and dedication in the off season and the last few months leading up to a show and as busy as I am I know I would be taking on too much. I did what I set out to do last year and that was to win the UKBFF Fitness class and compete with the DFAC in the Miami Pro show job done happy!

Since the New Year I have been very busy with work and my training was a little hit and miss, with no competition to work for my training became less of a priority and I missed a good few workouts. I started to feel crappy and knew I had to do something to bring back the buzz for training again other than just for health and fitness. I decided to get out of my own gym and try cross fit and I love it! With new targets each week, and being in competition with myself it was just what I needed.

Competing in the figure class for me didn’t require me to lift heavy, heavy weights, cross fit is totally different to my way of training and I’m having a go at lifting heavy, struggle with grip so I’m hoping that will improve, chin ups frustrate the hell out of me, when I get 20 on my own I will be happy. So far weights are 80kg deadlift and 90kg squat, I weight around 60kg so not a bad start, I know I can be better and will do better!

Jenny

Hey guys, for this month’s blog I thought I would briefly cover an issue that seems to keep cropping up with anyone who trains regularly and that is shoulder pain. The majority of these problems seem to be primarily due to rotator cuff problems.

Just now in my gym there’s at least 10 people who are all having issues with pain in their shoulder, which is preventing them from training properly. So for this reason I’m going to try and cover some of the things you can do if you are experiencing shoulder pain and the things you should be doing from preventing it happening.

Your rotator cuff is made up of 4 relatively small muscles; teres minor, infraspinatous, supraspinatous and sucscapularous which work together to stabilize and rotate the shoulder. These muscles come into play in a variety of exercises and anyone who has had any rotator problems will know that it greatly affects nearly every aspect of their training. The unfortunate thing is many gym goers continue to train through the pain, which can ultimately lead to a tear and a dramatic halt to training altogether. Strengthening these muscles will greatly reduce your risk of this happening and will also greatly help with your lifts, especially Bench Press.

There are a few main exercises you can do to help strengthen your rotator muscles. Generally I will use cables / resistance bands for these but dumbbells can also be used.

External Rotations

External rotations work your teres minor and infraspinatus muscles. These muscles originate on the lower, posterior surface of your shoulder blade; they insert on the upper-most, posterior aspect of the humerus head. Adjust the cable handle so that it’s in line with your elbow. Stand side on to the weight stack and with your furthest away arm hold the cable handle. You should have your elbow close to your side, forearm across your stomach and your palm facing in. Then pull the handle as you rotate your arm out to the side. Return to the start in a controlled manner and repeat for 3 sets of 12-15 reps both sides.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIu7fPiFdvg

Internal Rotations

Internal rotations work the subscapularis muscle which originates on the under surface of the scapula; it runs behind the head or upper-most end of the humerus; it inserts on the anterior aspect of the humerus head. When the subscapularis muscle contracts, it causes your arm to rotate inward. This time again have the handle in line with your elbow and stand side on to the weight stack. This time however grip the handle with your closest arm, elbow close to your side and palm facing in. Rotate your arm bringing the cable across your abdomen. Return to the start in a controlled manner and repeat for 3 sets of 12-15 reps both sides.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmO2upw_v9U

90 Degree External Rotation

This final exercise again works the infraspinatus, hold a light dumbbell in each hand and raise them to 90 degrees while keeping your elbows bent at 90 degrees. With your arms parallel to the floor rotate your arms so that it looks like the starting point of a dumbbell shoulder press. Return to the start in a controlled manner and repeat for 3 sets of 12-15 reps.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VGI8grVweQ

I would recommend performing these exercises once or twice a week in conjunction with your current training. However, DO NOT do these prior to training Chest or Shoulders. Pre-Exhausting your rotator cuff runs the risk of causing aggravation to the area. As already mentioned the rotator cuff muscles are very small and can only cope with so much.

If you do have shoulder problems and depending how bad the pain is I would recommend resting the shoulder for at least 6-8 weeks. During this period, follow RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation) as best as you can to try to reduce inflammation. If the pain persists, you may need to speak to your GP or a Physio.

I hope this has been useful, thanks for reading,

Gordie Adam

INBF World Natural Heavyweight Runner up

UKDFBA UK Natural Heavyweight Champion

Smart Tec Athlete

The New Year always brings with it new goals, to get fit, lose weight and lead a healthier lifestyle.  More often than not these goals fail due to the individual getting off to a bad start, usually start on some crazy diet leaving them feeling tired, hungry and bored then reverting back to the old eating habits and generally gaining more body fat than they started out with.

Here are some tips to help you stay on track.

Firstly I would recommend a detox to rid the body of all the toxins accumulated over the festive season.  Smart-tec Detox FX is perfect for this, a powerful detox formula which will help rid your body of toxins and will aid healthy digestion which in turn will compliment your weight loss plan.

Include plenty of water (filtered is best) don’t waste your money on bottled water, invest in a filter jug or have a filtration system installed in your home.  I have one on my fridge which gives you cold water at all times. Add a good wedge of lemon to your glass of water helps to cleanse the body and adds a little taste.  Green tea or herbal teas are also very good to have, replace your cup of coffee for one of these instead.

Planning in advance is a must if you are to succeed so get cooking!

Breakfast – Important! Do not miss this important meal of the day.  Having breakfast will kick start your metabolism and give you much needed energy for your body to function at top speed, you will feel much better and be more productive in your work and your training.

Always include protein, carbohydrates and good fats in each meal.  Many people think it is a good thing to cut carbs out all together to lose body fat, bad mistake!  Initially weight loss will be happen no doubt about that, but then energy is also lost resulting in fatigue and poor quality workouts and then the weight loss comes to a halt as the body turns down its metabolism fighting against you to hold onto it’s fat stores for its future fuel source. You really can have your cake and eat it so to speak.  Portion control is key here, eating small meals often (every 3/4hrs) is undoubtedly the best way to keep your metabolism running at optimum speed, so get eating!

Give your body the respect it deserves, eat good quality foods, fresh fish, lean meat, eggs, fresh vegetables and fruit.  Cook everything from scratch, no shop bought meals! There are a million healthy recipes out there so no excuses for getting bored!

Make a shopping list or shop online for the foods you need this will prevent you from picking up the odd buy one get one free in the supermarket which more often than not is a unhealthy choice.

For most individuals it isn’t convenient to have all home made prepared meals with them at all times, I recommend having protein shakes or bars for between meals, keep them in your hand bag or the car that way you will never miss a meal.  Smart-tec Whey fx is super tasting and mixes very well and leaves you feeling full.  I also recommend the diet bars for convenience.

Allow yourself a reward meal at the weekend, visit your favourite restaurant and have what you like regardless of how many calories it contains.  Food is something which should be savoured and enjoyed whilst some folk eat to live and others live to eat consistently denying yourself the occasional treat meal will only make you resentful and result in a blow out later which will make you feel miserable and a failure.

Whilst planning your foods is essential so is planning your training, get out the diary and make an appointment with yourself and don’t break it, treat it like all the other important stuff in your life, you are important and so is your health!  Training 3 x per wk can make all the difference to your health, wellbeing and happiness, just do it!

Keep up the good work, you can do it!

Happy new year.

Goodbye to last season and hello to the new season.
With your objectives set its time to make things happen.  Consolidate what worked last year and to put to one side what did not.

I have got my own sights set on the World champs later in the year. I have periodised my training throughout 2012 and nothing will change during 2013. It's time to go back to basics for January. I'm injury free, i am happy with my overall muscular balance. With this in mind I'm ready to hit a month of super heavy sets to increase strength and stimulate some growth. 5 rep max 2 moderate light sets to warm up on first exercise and create muscle memory for the required motion for the next 4 heavy 5 rep max sets. Compound movements
Only 3 exercises per body part. With the each major body part I will throw in second body part either biceps, triceps, calves, abs depending on what i have trained, previously or going to train on following days. I apply the same heavy sets and reps to the second body part.
My diet is pretty much eat what I like at this moment in time.

Having said that I am making sure that my protein, carb, fat and hydration intake is maintained to get the results for the training sessions and post workout. WheyFX 3 times a day. RecoverFX after every session.  Glutamine and CreatineFX. I am also using DietFX for the early morning sessions to give me that caffeine boost.

Good luck.

Brandon Greenwood
WNBF Pro Natural World and Universe overall bodybuilding champion.

I have been working hard all year for this show and was excited to be part of the BNBF team as a Pro Figure athlete.  The last show of the year in Miami was a perfect way to finish off the season.  So far it had been a good year for me 1^st  place UKBFF British Finals (Fitness) was just amazing! I was in a positive mind set for the DFAC Worlds and ready for the next challenge!

The family and I headed out to Miami, met by the team at our hotel where the competition was to be held.  We had a few days before the comp so plenty of time to relax and focus on the comp.

We had posing sessions in the gym, I was happy, looked good and had positive feed back from the team which is always reassuring.  Everything was going to plan then on the Fri morning started to feel ill, picked up a sickness bug not good couldn’t eat and felt dreadful.  I was hoping it would pass but it continued to the next day (show day).  At this point I was thinking of pulling out but having worked so hard all year and travelled all the way to Miami decided to go for it.  I wasn’t myself on stage and it did show but all said and done placed 3^rd in the Pro figure class, a good placing and I was very happy.

The show itself was fantastic, well organised and professional.  Back stage was brilliant all the competitors friendly and encouraging a good atmosphere amongst all.

Me and my family checked out the next morning and headed to another hotel to spend a couple of days as a family and enjoy the delights of Miami, just wonderful!

My plans for 2013

After a hectic 2012 I will be taking next year off to concentrate on my business and get some good off season training in. My business is doing very well and more and more girls coming forward to compete so I will be very busy no doubt helping others to achieve their dreams.

My off season diet

I will be eating clean most of the week and continue to supplement my diet with the Smartec range which has been a god send being as busy as I am don’t get that much free time for meals and often rely on my supplements.  I can now incorporate things like bread and pasta back into my daily diet which is so nice, favourite at the moment is plain old eggs on toast yum!

A typical off season day:

Smartec vits

Smartec Tonalin CLA

Fish Oils

3oz oats, Smartec whey

Diet FX with almond butter and apple

2 x slices seeded batch bread with butter and sardines or mackerel

Fruit and nuts

Chicken, spud and veg and healthy sauce

Small bowl organic muesli and greek yogurt