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.