6 Days and Counting

The 2nd of January seems such a long long away, the day I started my prep for my return to Body Building after 22 years. My training has been so hard that occasionally I suffer from exhaustion and it's only my mental strength that allows me to continue onto the next and toughest challenge to date, the NABBA British finals in 6 days.
The over 50's is usually fiercely contended with around 15 Finalists, champions from each region of the UK, so this is not only a tough call for each competitor but also for the Judges, so to do well one has to stand out in many ways, like muscularity, definition, symmetry, skin tone and presentation. I work on all these aspects daily, knowing that many of my fellow competitors miss at least one of those criteria I have mentioned and that's what I'm hoping will give me the edge.
I won't be the biggest guy in the line up but my symmetry and presentation does stand out, at least it has in the previous 2 shows I have won. It's all about getting noticed!
I going into the NABBA britain around 4lbs heavier and in better condition, 4lbs doesn't sound like a lot, but for a short old man like me it's quite significant, I think these improvements have slowly ascended since the the start 2nd January. My carbohydrate intake has increased too, I always kept to low carbs in the past in the fear that I would spill over and loose some of my definition but this simply hasn't happened this time, in fact at 54 years of age I believe I'm leaner and more vascular than ever.
3 more comps and I'm done, NABBA Britain 31st of May, one week later The NABBA World in Belfast and finally one week after that the WABBA Worlds in Athens. I have never ever done 3 shows consecutively so I really don't know how my body is going to react, on a positive slant I have the Chance of winning at least one of those!
The support and kindness that has been shown to me by friends, family, colleagues and sponsors has simply been overwhelming and fuels the fire within me to do well, I hope I make all my supporters proud and bring home the spoils.
I'll blog again on Thursday just to let you know how my week has gone, thank you for taking the time to read my blogs and make comment, it's always inspiring. Visit www.therenzoeffect.com to read my blogs taking me through the whole Journey

2 Weeks to go!

After an unbelievable experience of winning the Hercules Olympia overall and qualifying for the Wabba World Championships in Athens after a 22 year break I was utterly overwhelmed by the response from well wishers and sponsors but I was completely shattered too, so I took 2 days off! The first break since I started my competition prep on January 2nd.

After all the adoration from friends and fans, reality finally hit home, The Nabba Mr Wales was looming, this time I would be under pressure to deliver especially since I had sold approx 50 tickets to friends and close family, there's no way I will disappoint.

My training intensity has increased markedly and I didn't think I could train any harder but I am! As a result my physique has changed again, looking fuller and more vascular than ever, I just hope I can show case the improvements I've made on the 10th May. 

Apart from friends, family and fans supporting me there will also be the guys that want to see me fail, I'm sorry guys but I will disappoint you! I'm in it to win and nothing else will do. My sights are set on qualifying for the Nabba Britain and do well there too. A couple of Nabba judges that saw me compete at the Hercules both said I have a great chance of winning the Britain, that was sweet news to my ears indeed. But I still have the small (well it's not small really) matter of doing the business at the Mr Wales.

My posing is becoming more and more polished, I practice every night, presenting ones physique at its best some times overcomes the bigger more muscular guys because you end up making them look clumsy and out of breath, so presentation is a key factor in my strategy, that's why it's important to practice, even when you're exhausted from all the training and dieting.

Another plus for me is that I know what my body responds to with food, I never have a so called cheat meal, I think that's nonsense and lacks discipline, instead if I'm feeling a little flat I just increase my rice or potatoes, simples. All I see on face book are pics of cheat meals consisting of cakes, biscuits, ice cream and other nutritionally deficient foods, that to me is a weakness, that's my opinion and I'm sticking to it, no matter what the so called Gurus Think!

In closing I would like to thank everyone who has supported me from the beginning and the new friends I've made since the Hercules, you guys are part of the fuel that drives me to train harder, without your support It would be a lonely road and much tougher. I want to win for me, my wife, my family, my sponsors and of course you my friends.

See you at the Mr Wales on the 10th May, please come and say hi and please shout for me when I'm on stage, you wouldn't believe the lift it gives me.

TRAIN WITH PURPOSE! Renzo

101 days to go

10th of May is 101 days away, that's how long I have before stepping on stage for the Nabba Mr Wales! Now I'm not one to leave things to chance, I have my music, my routine is almost finished, my trunks have been made (3 different pairs), My cardio began on the 2nd January and my training is going better than it ever has, but I haven't stopped there. I'm actually going to enter a competition in England called The Hercules Olympia in Colchester 5 weeks before the Wales, why would I do this? Well first off it's 22years since I last stepped on stage so leaving nothing to chance I need to test the package I have put together.

My training partner will be in the audience, we'll check the tan, the way I stand, the way I pose, my posture and so on. From this we'll be able to iron out out any glitches, of course I'll still be 5 weeks away from tip top condition so it will also give me a measure of how tough the last 5 weeks are going to be and what diet adjustments I need to make.

Don't get me wrong although I won't be in 100% condition I'm still going to give it my all on stage, apparently many athletes from all over Europe will be there so its going to be tough and the organisers have almost hit there quota for entrants, it's that popular.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on whether you think I'm making a mistake entering on April 5th, of course I currently have tunnel vision and total focus so I might have missed something, so please share, I really do appreciate all your comments and feed back, thank you and TRAIN WITH PURPOSE!

Target Weight Hit!

Silly me, my scales were way out and unbeknown to me I had already hit and exceeded my target weight and I'm still fairly lean. I think the really heavy training we are doing is burning those extra calories of fat and the muscles are growing with the increase of food and in particular protein.
I still have a way to go before my diet starts so things are well ahead of schedule with regards muscle growth and strength.
Competition prep is always at the forefront of my mind and visualising how I'm going to look seems to spur me on each week, I visualise the line up, my presentation, picking up the winners trophy, the crowd chanting my name and so on, sounds arrogant I know but I'm not competing for the fun of it or the camaraderie, I'm in it to win it!