Under Pressure

Back on the grind! I feel very grateful to have recovered from a bad cold and to be able to hit the gym again after a decent sized delay. I've been on and off for the past few weeks in terms of my contest dieting. At this point I've really reached the end of my "tolerance" period for making mistakes. I plan on returning to the stage in about 26 weeks or so. Here's my schedule:

March 24, 2012 - I start my official contest prep with my trainer Jason Clark (of http://www.committedtraining.com.au/ )

August 11th, 2012 - I make my return to the stage at the 2012 ABA Natural North American Championships (http://www.naturalolympia.com)

I can't express the amount of excitement and at the same time the amount of anxiety I feel. I've really been doing a lot of thinking and mental preparation for this event. In order for me to really shine my brightest I have to push myself the hardest I have up to this point. There can't be excuses for cheating on my diet or excuses for skipping the gym.

To be clear: You must truly do something amazing if you want something amazing.

I mean there are so many quotes that you can use to really attempt to grasp the depth of what is in front of you.

Here's another: You must do what the other won't to have what the others don't.

If you really want something you have to go for it - no one else can get it for you...

Be well friends,

Mark "MarkitoMuscle" Thompson

Pushing past the limits

My training has been off the charts over the last few weeks. Here are some of the changes I've been making:

1. Diet - I've been adding more meals per day and ensuring that I get at least three food meals and I aim for 50g of protein per meal.

Tomorrow I'm going to institute a new change. I'll be taking two real food meals to work with me.

My day will look like this:

1. 2 whole eggs, 6 egg whites

2. 7oz Chicken Breast, 2 scoops of PB, 40z of asparagus

3. 7oz Chicken Breast, 2 scoops of PB, 40z of asparagus

4. 2 scoops of Evopro Protein powder, 2 scoops of PB

5. Tuna + Veggies (undecided which yet)

6. (PWO) 2 scoops of Evopro, 2 scoops of PB.

Today I trained shoulders like a beast and I've figured out something. You have to be intentional about your workout - forget all of the weakness that enters your mind telling you that you don't want to finish the training. Forget all of the excuses that plague you. Get in there and truly focus on each exercise. Look in the mirror and imagine yourself reaching your goals - envision that body you've been fighting for. Then and only then will you break through your plateau. Make it count every time and the goals will slowly come into reach.

I'm going to post some progress pics on this blog moving forward. I want there to be proof that the 10x3 system is the real deal.

Long life the best life - short live the waste.

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Pain is Temporary - Glory is Forever

Just finished yet another workout. Hit Chest and Back 10 X 3 style.

Here's what I did:

Chest:

Incline DB Press 70lbs for 3 sets

Flat DB Press 70lbs for 3 sets

Incline Flye 35lbs for 3 sets

I pushed myself to failure on the DB Presses because I really want to trigger some new growth in my upper pecks. I don't want the normal slant that most guys have, I want the hardcore full chest.

Back:

Wide grip pull-ups to failure 3 sets

Seated Cable Row 3 sets @ 140lbs

Deadlift 3 sets @ 185 lbs

I brought my deadlift up again this week - I did 135 last week but even with that I want my lower back to be nice and developed for a full back, not just nice lats.

Diet was a little skewed due to my sucky work schedule, but I once read that if you miss a meal don't sweat it, just get back on the train for the next meal and that was what I did. Since I'm doing 50g of protein per meal, I still end up with a bit of 200g of protein every day.

Time to clean my room and shower before bed so this is Markito Muscle signing off!

Got questions, hit me up!

@markitomagic on twitter.

When I say "F" I mean...

...quite a few things.

1. FOCUS - too many guys come into the gym with other motives other than working out. Focus people. You are only there to improve yourself, the others around you don't matter. Get the most out of each rep and each set. Dorian Yates once said "If you aren't training at 100% you are wasting your time".

2. FORGET - forget what happened before you got here and forget about what you think will happen when you leave. Just pay attention to what's at hand. Oh yeah, and that guy screaming at the weights or that girl in the revealing gym attire...forget them too.

3. FINISH - complete the workout. Sometimes I train through fatigue, set backs, dizziness and other stuff that would be seemingly crippling. If you are injured stop for your own benefit, otherwise get in there and push yourselves to the finish line.

Leg Day

Did my first leg day in about 3 months. I had some ankle, knee and hamstring injuries that had been preventing me from training my wheels but today I really focused on getting some super deep squats (even though I had to use much lighter weight) and I got some great single leg deadlifts in!

I felt like I was going to through up then I thought about Arnold's voice reminding me that throwing up is just a part of the magic.

Now I'm off for the rest of the weekend, gotta keep my protein counts high!

Keep the party going or stay home and sleep - either way I'll be training.

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Train insane or remain the same

As my tray of chicken breasts cook, I'm going to write a quick post!

I've been training exceptionally hard...in the kitchen! I've been forcing myself to have proper nutrition during the day and replaced a few of my whey protein meals with more real food. I am actually happy about that.

I work in an office and can't have multiple lunches (not really feasible) so I have taken to the following pattern:

1. Breakfast - Egg whites (and carbs on off days)

2. Lunch - Chicken or tilapia, asparagus and PB

3. Shake

4. Shake

5. Chicken or tilapia and PB

6. Shake

I am working on getting making it a 4/2 ratio of meals to shakes. The shakes are very convenient and enable me to keep my protein levels as high as I want. Currently they are hovering between 250 and 300g a day, which is right where I want them.

I trained arms pretty hardcore today. I also learned something about triceps - try to get a full extension on rope press downs, even if it means going lighter. Who cares how much is on the stack if your arms look amazing.

Train hard or go to sleep (or train hard THEN go to sleep).

Be well!

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Nobody's gonna mess with me because I'm a monster

Today I trained shoulders and traps 10 X 3 style and I loved it. I've been pushing out some standing shoulder presses that I saw Lou Ferrigno do in "Pumping Iron".

Sometimes in the gym I have to say "F" them all...or really "F"orget them all so that I can stay focused. When you work out at a public gym you get a lot of guys in there trying to prove they are the "stuff"...I don't have to prove it to them - only to the judges. I'm trying to bring a new direction to my physique. I really like the way Frank Zane looked when he competed. I want that type of build - so I am really focusing on bringing up my upper body while not trying to grow my legs too much.

Meals have been great today:

1. 6 Egg Whites + 2 Whole Eggs

2. 2 scoops of Muscle Milk

3. 6oz of chicken + 2 scoops of PB + 4oz of Asparagus

4. 60z of chicken + 2 scoops of PB

5. 60z of chicken + 2 scoops of PB + 3 slices of whole wheat bread (PWO)

6. ??? (if I am still awake at 11:30 I'll have a shake).

Keep lifting hard and remember that you'll only achieve what you believe you can.

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Something to grow on

After washing a ton of dishes I'm preparing some Tilapia for tomorrow's day of training.

My diet has been pretty bad today but I'm going to attempt to eat clean until dinner Saturday night but the rest of the time keep my diet super tight.

Tomorrow's training includes back and chest with a side of jump rope cardio. That stuff is the secret sauce of cutting, I'm telling you!

More details to come!