So before I share with you my SHOCKING 2010 - 2011 transformation pics, let me tell you this first hand, 2010 for me was NO walk in the park for me when it came to building muscle. (and you’ll see why in a minute)
So let me share with you the GOOD, the BAD, and the UGLY of what’s been going on since the last time I updated my blog back in ‘09. So let’s get all the negative stuff out of the way and start with....
THE UGLY
Remember my whole 42lbs in 4 months transformation, that
I’ve been telling you about for a while now. Well......... back in February of
2010 I LOST IT...... ALL OF IT. Yep, I started that challenge at 184lbs and
ended at 226 lbs, that’s right I gained 42 lbs in 4 months. And then I LOST it.
How is that possible Rich?????
Poor eating, virtually no exercise for months and months.
It’s a long story that led up to that but the truth is I “slightly” did it ON
PURPOSE.
Now I know what you might be thinking:
“Yeah right Rich..... on purpose... SURE..... you’d have to be CRAZY to WANT to be skinny again”.
See, here’s the thing, at the time I knew things weren’t going to be right (financially) for me to consume the diet I needed to build the muscle I wanted, or even keep the muscle I had, so I decided to go for broke.
And go down in weight as much as I can.
I told myself, “Well once everything gets back on track I know I can put the weight back on, so why not go through the process AGAIN but this time from a smaller weight for a more DRAMATIC transformation next time”.
It took a while but I finally decided to do it.
So there I was SKINNY AGAIN, and about to get SKINNIER!!!!
I’m guessing you’re having a hard time imagining this, so lemme SHOW you, just how skinny I got:
ME at 175 -180lbs - Feb 2010
THE BAD
In all honesty, part of the reason why I didn’t update my blog was because I was SKINNY AGAIN, and I didn’t feel comfortable giving you guys advice until I got it back.
I mean really, would you accept weight lifting advice from someone skinnier than you, I wouldn’t!
Well after deciding to go as low as I could go / tolerate (weight-wise), things finally fell into place and I was able to FINALLY start building muscle again.
The bad thing was that it was SOOOOO long since I weight lifted.
I had to go through ALL the growing pains of a “newbie” starting a workout routine and diet plan ALL OVER again.
Since I been out the gym for such a long time (I’m talking MONTHS ON END) I decided to do things a little different from when I first did things. I decided instead of jumping back into a full on weight lifting routine, it was best to re-train my body and get my muscles, joints, etc. used to simply working out again.
Which is why I incorporated a 3 - 4 week calisthenic routine (bodyweight exercises), to help my muscles and the rest of my body get used to the rigorous demands of weight lifting. Plus I also used this time to train my
lagging body parts, which helped me to prevent injury and hit the ground running when it came time to REALLY hit the weights.
When I started to hit the weights again to say I *STRUGGLED*
is an UNDERSTATEMENT.
I stepped into the gym, looked at the 30 lb dumb bells and said “I got THIS!” 2 seconds later.... “20 lbs it is!” The weights were heavy, my form was rusty at best, I felt gassed half way through the workout, and not to mention,
THE SORENESS.
After going through that **newbie** phase again, I could see alot clearer why most people quit after a week or two.
Luckily for me, I been there before, I knew what to expect and most importantly, I knew HOW TO GET RESULTS. So I saw results fairly quickly, which gave me a much needed *BOOST* to push through and
accomplish my goal to get back to 226 lbs.
THE GOOD
Now that we got all the yucky stuff out the way, now lets talk about the GOOD.
The good news is that I’m no longer 180 something pounds anymore. Can you guess where I’m at right now?
190.... Nope
200.... Nope
210.... Nope
217.............. YUP!!!!
I’m currently at 217 lbs. Yep, you read right Rich is officially 217 lbs.
I decided to cut my bulking phase a little short to get rid of some of this excess body fat that came with my muscle gains over these past few months. Which should be an interesting journey of itself.
(I’ll definitely keep you posted)
I hope by now you’re starting to ask yourself, “Where’s the proof Rich?”
I wanna see this new “Buff guy”
Me Now at 217lbs - Feb 2011
This is me after bulking for the past few months.
And when you put the two pics side by side the results are
downright **SHOCKING**. I knew I was skinny again but I had no idea I was THAT skinny a year ago. I call that photo my “Hostage” Photo, because I look so malnourished and underfed.
Then and NOW
Which leads me to the main reason I sent you this email.
I’m not gonna lie to you. Going through this transformation has
SUPERCHARGED my self confidence. Sure having the muscle is great and looking more masculine has its benefits.
But in all honesty the best part of this entire transformation is knowing that if I put my mind to something I can literally accomplish ANYTHING.
This body transformation goes WAY beyond just getting bigger, stronger and “sexier”, it’s about putting a goal in front you and knocking down ALL obstacles and barriers to achieve that goal.
Because let me tell you my friend, once you go through your transformation,
your new self confidence is going to OOZE into everything you do and every aspect of your life.
You’ll know that ANY goal you place in front of you, you can reach it. PERIOD.
That’s how I feel. And that’s EXACTLY how I want you to feel.
So here’s the deal.
I want to make 2011 **YOUR YEAR**
I know this is a kind of long winded blog post, so hopefully you made it this far and read through the GOOD, the BAD, and the UGLY of my 2010. And now I want to tell you how I want to make this year
YOUR YEAR.
I went through alot of HIGHS (major accomplishments) last year and alot of LOWS (obstacles). Trust me going from 226lbs back to a 180 something pound weakling is no picnic.
Clothes fit you too big again, people look at you different, you feel SMALL all over again and your self confidence is SUPER LOW.
It brought me back to the days I was in high school when I was SUPER SKINNY and I didn’t want to relive those days any longer than I had to. (Maybe that’s why quitting wasn’t an option for me this second time around)
I know what a BOOST it is to transform your body. When you finally reach your transformation goals (or goals of any kind for that matter) it’s like
putting your self confidence on STER-OIDS, and that’s how I felt coming into this year and it’s EXACTLY how I want YOU to feel as well.
So how the heck am I going to do that??
Well, I’ve decided to get this done through my blog. Which is currently getting REVAMPED for all the help I want to give you.
Alot of it is still in the works but here’s what you can expect in the near future....
- A chance to get your questions answered: this is huge because when I first started out, I had a gazillion questions. And I know this is the reason ALOT of people quit or don’t even get started at all. Well not anymore, I’ll be here to help answer your most burning questions
so you can see results quickly.
- WAY more tips: I’m going to be updating my blog almost DAILY with the same tips and strategies I used to completely transform my body TWICE
so you don’t have to go through the stumbling blocks that I did.
- More step by step instruction: I’m also going to give you real world step by step instruction on how you can overcome what ever obstacle you’re facing that’s holding you back
- No Fluff Advice: I’ll be here to tell you what works and what doesn’t work. I’m gonna be here to tell you if something is going to take alot of effort that it’s GOING TO TAKE ALOT OF EFFORT.... but you CAN do it if you
put your mind to it.
Lemme ask you a question, are you still struggling to get the results you want.
If so, then stay tuned for my next blog post, where I’ll give you
my SECRET WEAPON I’ve been using that made building muscle almost a JOKE for me this second time around.
Trust me if you’re busting your butt in the gym and still not getting the results you deserve then you’re not going to want to miss this.
Til next time,
Rich
P.S. - I’d love to interact with you and get your thoughts and feedback on this 2nd transformation of mine (especially feedback my hostage photo), and what your transformation goals are for this year.
So let’s get it started!!! (Black Eye Peas style) and
leave me your comment below.
Hi Rich, nice to see you back 🙂
Amazing progress that you have accomplished.
I haven’t been exercising or eating in 3 months and I am now only 70kg (154 lbs) and 177cm (5′ 9½” ) the most weight I have gain is to 75 kg and at that weight I will stop gaining more :(.
I want to start get to 82 kg (180 lbs)
So it would be fun to see how you gain weight in so short of time.
Regards,
Biggi from Iceland
Hey Biggi, thanks for the comment. I remember you’ve been with me for a while (all the way back to my first transformation a few years ago) and I really do appreciate that buddy.
Yeah I know how it feels to lose your muscle, but since you already have experience at getting positive results, it’s gonna be alot easier the second time around, Trust me.
Just let me know how I can help you get to 82kg, I’d be glad to help you Biggi.
Rich
Hi am Ty and I’m from England I have all ways struggle to put on Weigh but now I am at my lowest point am 20years old 5.6feet and 123.5 I was 145.5 my goal would be to get back to that weight or more . Is there any tips or diets you could give me thanks.
Wassup Ty, sounds like you lost some weight as well, the good news is it doesn’t seem that much. So you should be able to get back to 145.5 lbs fairly quickly.
As for dieting tips, just shoot me an email and I’ll shoot you over my dieting guide, that should help you out alot.
Rich
That was totally crazy when I saw your skinny picture it looks like my body right now… but I’m happy your back up to 217. I’m looking forward to your next post for some tips and advise!!
Hey Viken, you’ve been with me for a while as well, thanks for posting your comment.
I figured you guys would enjoy my “hostage” photo. (for some reason I have this scared senseless look on my face)
I honestly forgot I took that picture until I started going through my camera.
Glad you’re looking forward to the tips and advice that’s soon to come.
Let me know what I can do to help you Viken, for all you guys who’ve been with me for a while I DEFINITELY want to help make this your year.
Rich
thanks!!
Your very welcome Farid
Hey Rich, i’ve been keeping up with your advice and tips for awhile now but wondered what had happened to you since you weren’t posting up stuff anymore .. now i know why .. but it’s great to see you back and you’ve gone through such an amazing transformation! I can’t wait to find out how you did it since i really need help in putting on some muscle mass..!
Thanks in advance
Thanks for the comment Faze.
It’s great to be back. I didn’t realize it until after I decided to begin posting again, but I’VE BEEN GONE FOR A WHILE. Glad to see that my absence was noticed.
I gained a TON of extra tips, tricks and little known secrets that I can’t wait to share that’s definitely going to help you out.
Rich
Welcome back!
So many things changed since your last post, I’ve changed my place, the country, job. But still struggling with gaining mass. Hope with your help I’ll reach my dream. In the meanwhile it would be good to hear stories of transformations from your followers, I guess you should have some. Who gained most, in what period, what was the goal and etc. This thing will keep us – your followers motivated.
p.s how long it took you to return to 217 lbs? You mentioned about few month, but how many exactly?
Cheers,
Aibek
Aibek, one of the ORIGINAL members,
I’m definitely looking forward to helping you reach your dream. As for stories from others I’ve helped, to be honest I don’t have many. Which is actually one of my goals for this year.
I’m going to start measuring my success rate for what I’m doing based on the # of transformations I get.
Alot of people, just tell me that they gained X pounds because of my help and guidance and that’s about it. Which is great but their transformations could be a source of inspiration to others.
So I think I’m going to have to add an incentive for guys to share their stories and transformation photos, because that’ll be a HUGE spark of inspriration for everyone else.
Thanks for the idea Aibek. Hopefully your transformation will be one of the first…. we’ll see…..
I’ll be in touch Aibek,
Rich
Great 2nd transformation man, I did the same thing this past year, with the help of a lot of the tips you sent out. Thanks for the info man, helps a lot.
Cheers from Canada!
Hey Keiran thanks for the comment.
Glad to hear that my advice helped you reach your goals. How much did you weigh when you started and how much weight did you gain?
I’d love to hear your numbers and your story.
Rich
Hey Richard,
I found your YouTube videos about a month or two ago and found them to be quite inspiring. I hope to see the same results but I am a little worried that I may go at it the wrong approach. I’ve tried workouts in the past and nothing to show for it. I believe a large part of this is due to a lack of proper dieting. Can you tell me a good diet to utilize when trying to gain muscle and what are the best types of exercise?
Also, how long exactly did it take you to put the weight back on the second time around?
Also, how long did it take you to put the weight back on the second time around? It looks like you threw muscle on rather quickly the first time.
Hey Joe, thanks for comments(s).
I remember when I used to workout and not see any results, and the reason why was because I wasn’t eating enough of the right kinds of foods.
Sounds like you really need to learn the nutrition fundamentals.
Shoot me an email so I can send you my dieting guide, that should help you out big time.
To answer your question, it took me about 6 months to go through my 2nd transformation. It couldn’t ve been alot faster but I decided to try ALOT of different things, that I’m going to be sharing with you guys in a few.
Don’t forget to send me that email.
Rich
hi..so good to see your totally back. yes im still struggling in gaining weight..i just dont have the focused but im willing..its juts its so hard. is there a way that i could gain without spending too much?
Thanks for the comment Rene.
Building muscle and gaining weight (the right kind of weight) takes some focus. And it can take some getting used to, but once you get the ball rolling it gets easier, and gains come quicker (like clockwork)
to answer your question, when you say spend too much, it all depends on your budget.
For me (estimating this) I spend around $50 – $100 per week on food. I don’t think that’s too expensive, but keep in mind I have to eat alot more than most people since I’m so tall and I have alot more muscle than someone of average height.
Hope this helped,
Rich
Hey rich , good to see your back. Seems you have been through quite alot. Seeing this give me inspiration to achieve my goal. Keep it coming. Cheers!
Hey Jed thanks for leaving your comment.
I’m glad I’ve inspired you to keep pushing toward your goal. thats what this blog is about.
And best believe…. I’ll keep ‘em coming.
Rich
well rich, im going to start my plan. thanks for all the advice big man.
No problem Gerard,
Keep me posted on your progress.
Rich
hi rich michael here i am only 69kg and am wondering how to gain weaight very fast so i can build muscle
Hey Michael,
69 kgs is about 150 lbs
What’s your height?
I know Jimmy was about 5′ 7″ and 125 lbs when he first started out, and now he’s 184 lbs.
I’m not quite sure where you’re at physically, so my advice, just keep following the blog, and stick with the fundamentals and BELIEVE you can do it.
Rich
Hey Rich,
Ive been trying to gain weight ever since i was 16, now i am 20 and i am 130 lbs 5’8. Id be really happy if you could help me or give me some advice of any kind that would allow me to gain any weight.
thank you.