After a Lifetime of Lifting – My First Year of Competition

Age: 39

Education: BA, Eastern Michigan University; MA, Marygrove College; Post Grad, Loyola Marymount University

Occupation: Teacher/Personal Trainer

Family: Married to Katie Senter

Current Residence: Linden, Michigan

Years Training: 23

Height: 5’11”

Weight: 195-200 (Off Season); 178-182 (Contest)

Favorite Bodybuilding or Fitness Meal: Eggs with beef sirloin and oatmeal with chocolate Beverly UMP (tastes like chocolate no-bake cookies).

Favorite Supplement: Muscle Provider vanilla. I look forward to taking a full scoop after my workouts. I take it dry with a little water and chew it up. People think I’m crazy but the Beverly protein tastes really good, it’s like a treat.

What would you recommend to someone who has never used Beverly supplements before: Speaking from experience, I can tell you Beverly supplements are effective if used the right way in correlation with a quality diet. I think Beverly has found a way to enhance competitors’ physiques and it shows when they step on stage. Even if you don’t compete, Beverly products improve your quality of life.

Music: At heart, I’m a country guy; however, I enjoy listening to all types of music as long as I can understand the words.

Most Inspiring Book: Coach Wooden One-On-One. I love this book because I coached varsity basketball and baseball for a number of years. John Wooden talks about doing things with purpose and passion. I’ve done my best to apply these principles to my training and lifestyle. Every time I step into the gym, I remind myself to train with a purpose and to be excited about being there.

Hobby or interest outside of bodybuilding: Fantasy Football (it’s addicting).

Words to live by: “Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome.” – Booker T. Washington

I grew up playing sports as a kid (football, basketball, and baseball). The desire to become bigger, faster, and stronger fueled me to be the best I could be in any athletic competition and led me to start weight training. I began to train consistently when I was a sophomore in high school and have stuck with it ever since. I have been training at the same gym, Fenton Powerhouse, for the past 17 years.

Last year, I competed for the first time at the NPC Great Lakes Ironman in the Men’s Physique division. I placed 1st Overall True Novice, 1st Overall Novice, 2nd in the Masters, and 3rd in the Open. Just recently I stepped on stage for only the 2nd time at the NPC Michigan State Championships and won the Masters while placing 2nd in the Open division.

I don’t take my initial success lightly. I continue to challenge myself with each workout because I’ve learned that my real competition is against myself. The only thing I can control is how hard I’m willing to work every time I step into the gym. I try to live by the principles of dedication, pride, commitment, and excellence each and every day. In the remainder of this article I am going to present my workout, my precontest nutrition plan, and the supplement program that helped me gain 10 pounds of muscle.

Training Schedule

I normally train each bodypart one time per week using 4-5 exercises per muscle group. I do each exercise 4-6 sets doing up to 20-25 reps on some and 8-10 reps on others. I’ll usually incorporate the time under tension (TUT) principle on one exercise per bodypart, and often superset two of the exercises. I try not to pick the same exercises two weeks in a row (ex: if I barbell bench press this week, I will use dumbbells the following week), and I never use the same order (ex: if I bench press first this week, I will do it last next week).

Monday: Back	Amount
Pull-ups	5x10
Reverse Lat Pulldowns	5x25
Bentover Barbell Rows	TUT* 5x12
T-Bar Row	6x8
Lat Pulldown	5x10, superset with next exercise
Close Grip Chin Assisted Pull-ups	5x10

Tuesday: Biceps/Triceps/Abs	Amount
Static Curls	5x10 (10 on each alternating holding opposite in a halfway curl position)
EZ Bar	4x21's
Straight Barbell Curls:	6x8 TUT
Spider Curls	4x15
EZ Bar Overhead Extensions	5x10
EZ Bar Skull Crushers	4x21's
Single Cable Kickbacks	TUT 6x8
V-Bar Pushdowns	4x15
Ball Crunches	with 10lb plate behind head 3x20
Oblique Cable Twists	3x20
Hanging Leg Raises	3x20
Lying Bicycle Crunches	3x20

Wednesday: Shoulders/Traps	Amount
Front Dumbbell Statics	5x10 (hold one dumbbell out while raising the other)
Lateral Raises	4x20
Military Press	TUT 6x8
Machine Rear Delt	7x10 (30 second rest between sets)
Upright Row	4x12
Barbell Shrug	TUT 6x10
Smith Machine Reverse Barbell Shrug	6x12

Thursday: Lower Back/Calves/Abs	Amount
Deadlift	6x8
Hyperextension	5x20
Standing Calf Raise	(2 toes forward, 2 toes out, 2 toes in) 6x20
Seated Calf Raise	6x8
Decline Sit-ups	TUT 3x20
Stick Twists	3x100
Machine Crunches	3x20
Dumbbell Oblique Raises	3x20 each side

Friday: Legs	Amount
Hack Squat	5x20 (10 wide/10 close stance)
Leg Curl	TUT 5x6 (1/3, 1/2, Full)=18 reps
Squat	5x8, superset with next exercise
Lunges	5x10 on each leg
Leg Press	7x10 (30 sec rest between sets)

Saturday: Chest/Abs	Amount
**Superset each chest exercise with pushups
Incline Barbell Press	TUT 4x12 / 25 Push-ups
Barbell Bench Press	8x8 / 20 push-ups
Wide Chest Machine Flye	4x15 / 15 push-ups
Low Cross Cable Raise	4x10 / push-ups to failure
Ab Roller	3x25
Alternate Heel Touches	3x20
Planks	3x25
Hanging Oblique Rockers	3x40

Sunday: Calves	Amount
Seated Calf Extension	6x20 (vary foot placement)
Standing Machine Calf Raises	TUT 6x8

My Diet Plan

I run a high/low diet (when I run high fats I go low carbs and vice versa). There is really not that big of a difference between my offseason and precontest diets. I prefer to stay fairly lean year round and rarely go more than 15 pounds above my contest weight. In the off season, I include more fats (especially peanut butter) and carb up more frequently (once every 3 days). I also have a cheat meal once a week when I’m not prepping for a show. I start my show diet 8 weeks out from the contest.

Supplements

I firmly believe that Beverly International products have helped with my success. I have always had a really fast metabolism and a hard time adding muscular size. My friend, Steve Robinson, an all-natural bodybuilder who has been competing for a long time, suggested I try adding Beverly International supplements into my nutrition program. He uses them himself and suggested a specific protocol to add muscle. I went “all in” taking Mass Aminos, Ultra 40, Creatine Select, Muscle Mass, Muscle Provider and UMP. The results were spectacular, in a year’s time I’ve added ten pounds of muscle to my competition weight. At 8 weeks out I add Density, Muscularity, Glutamine Select, Quadracarn, Lean Out and 7-Keto MuscLean in order to hold all of this hard earned muscle while I diet down for competition.

After a Lifetime of Lifting – My First Year of Competition

After a Lifetime of Lifting - My First Year of Competition

No Nonsense Magazine Vol 21, #1

Training Schedule

My Diet Plan

Supplements