TRAINING

Successful training for natural bodybuilders can be summed up in one word – INTENSITY.  There are an infinite number of rep schemes, workout styles, and splits to choose from.  None of them is guaranteed to provide optimum results for your physique.  Finding out what routine works for you requires a good deal of patience, the willingness to experiment with different types of workouts, and an ability to "feel" how your body is responding. 

I personally feel that I respond best to moderately high volume, which is why I typically include at least 10 working sets for each body part.  I tend to keep my reps between 5 and 10 with relatively strict form at all times.  A sample weekly workout is below, but I vary the exercises I do each week, and also change my workout split every few months.  My best lifts are probably laughable to most avid gym patrons, but I have never been a strong bodybuilder.  My ultimate goal is muscle growth, which is not necessarily directly correlated to muscle strength.

In the off-season, I tend to incorporate more recovery time, lifting only 5 days per week and focusing on core lifts such as squats and deadlifts. I spend a significant amount of time putting together a routine that I think will address the weak points in my physique. I switch to a 6-day per week routine (shown below) as contest time gets closer.

Day	Bodypart	Exercise	Sets	Best Lift
Monday	LEGS	Squats	4-5	Squat:  405 x 5
	(focus on quads)	Leg curls	4
		Hack squats	4
		Seated leg curls	4
		Extensions	4
Tuesday	ARMS	EZ-bar Curls	4	Alternating
	CALVES	Tricep Pressdown	4	Dumbbell curls:
		Alternating Dumbell	3	75s x 5
		Skullcrushers	3
		Cable curls / pushdown	3
		Standing / seated calves	8-9
Wednesday	SHOULDERS	Machine shoulder press	4
		Side laterals	4
		Reverse pec deck	4
		Arnold press	3
		Shrugs	3
Thursday	LEGS	Stiff-legged deads	4
	(focus on hams)	Smith machine squats	4
		Bulgarian squats	3
		Leg Extensions	3
		Walking lunges	3
Friday	CHEST	Incline dumbbell	4	Incline dumbbell:
	CALVES	Incline / flat flyes	4	110s x 5
		Machine press	4
		Cable flyes	4
		Standing / seated calves	8-9
Saturday	BACK	Deadlifts	4	Deadlift:  535 x 4
		Weighted pull-ups	4
		Lat pull-down	4
		Seated Rows	4
		Lawnmowers	4
Sunday	OFF

CARDIO

My relatively ectomorphic tendencies allow me to get away with doing less cardio than the average bodybuilder might. In the off-season, my cardio consists of walking my dogs in the morning. When I switch to contest mode, the majority of my cardio is low-intensity for 15 - 20 minutes in the morning - usually walking on an incline treadmill or on a stepmill. I do take in a little food before I the morning cardio session, but not much (see my sample diet in the nutrition section.) I implement high-intensity cardio (interval sprints, hill sprints) if I feel like I need to shock my body into additional fat loss. Typically I do cardio 5-6 days per week when I am contest dieting, but never more than 20 minute a day. I will also ramp up my cardio as my diet continues, starting out with 3-4 days per week during the first few weeks and working up to 6 days per week as the contest approaches.

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• No tank tops
• No sleeveless T's
• No UnderArmour
• No Ego
• No Juice
• JUST TRAIN

One other thing about training – one of my biggest pet peeves about bodybuilding is the stereotype that we are all egotistical narcissists who love staring at ourselves in the mirror, and that we constantly crave attention.  Unfortunately, the way a lot of bodybuilders train and act in the gym only adds credence to this theory.  I try to combat this in several ways when I train:

1. I never wear tank tops, sleeveless t-shirts, or any type of form-fitting gear (i.e. UnderArmour) in the gym (or outside of the gym, for that matter).  A regular old t-shirt and shorts is the only thing you'll find me wearing. This is especially true during contest prep, when some people seem to find it necessary to show off how lean they are.  

2. I never scream, drop weights, or draw unnecessary attention to myself.  I can psych myself up for a heavy deadlift or squat without forcing others to look in my direction. 

3. I never flex in front of a mirror when training.  There is a time and a place for posing practice – and it's not during your training.  Flexing after a set to force blood into a muscle is a great training technique, but you don't have to stare at yourself in front of a mirror when you're doing it. 

In short – keep your head down, train hard, and don't call attention to yourself.  It gives a much better impression of the sport if people find out you compete secondhand rather than assuming you do because of your garish behavior.  

*Please note - I know some people out there like to train in tank tops, or let out a good yell as they finish a tough set. In fact several top natural bodybuilders that I know personally probably fall under this category, and no one is going to suggest they are setting a bad example for the sport. I'm certainly not judging anyone else, the list above simply reflects my own beliefs and illustrates how I try to avoid some of the stereotypes associated with bodybuilding.