Competing Again after 12 Years

When I tell people my goals, I usually get something like this: Wait a second… WHAT!? You haven’t competed since when? How old are you? You have how many kids? You work a fulltime job AND you’re running your own company? WHY AND HOW would you possibly want to step on stage again?

Or, even worse: “There’s no way you could ever accomplish that!”

For some, these questions will validate the questions we ask ourselves - Am I really willing to put in this work? Do I have the time? The energy? The support system? But, for a select few, it adds fuel to the fire! I can assure you, I was asked each of these questions! I asked myself some of them as well. For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Vince Shirey and I wrote my first article for Beverly International 12 years ago. My last body building competition was the Mike Francois back in 2008. Fast forward 11 years. I’m 37 years old, have five, count ‘em, FIVE kids! I also work a fulltime job and run a fitness consultation business called, ‘Skinny with Vinny.’

I was done bodybuilding. I was done competing. I stepped off the stage in 2008 feeling I was at the top of my game. I walked away, continued my career in law enforcement, met a beautiful woman and created an incredible family. But something inside of me wouldn’t let go. I knew how to get into shape and I knew there were people in the world that needed to get into shape. I couldn’t sit idly by knowing that
I could help. I had to be an example for other men and women who are ‘past their prime’ or in an unhealthy rut. I had to show them that they too could get into great shape! I wanted to demonstrate that regardless of age, regardless of time, regardless of the number of kids you have, regardless of the number of naysayers you have saying you can’t do it. I WOULD PROVE THEM WRONG. I WOULD PROVE MYSELF WRONG!

So that’s what I did! I stepped onto the stage at the Mike Francois Classic on May 11th, 2019. I entered the master’s physique and the open physique divisions and placed 3rd in both classes! Not too bad for a guy who had been out of the game for more than a decade.

Now, I know this sounds like it was easy breezy for me, but it took a lot of hard work! Thankfully, I have an AMAZING group of people to lean on. First and foremost, I get to read out of the GREATEST SUCCESS BOOK EVER WRITTEN,the BIBLE. This book fills me up daily! 2nd, I’m married to one AMAZING woman!! She was there cheering me on from the front row and supporting me in everything I do! I also had 4 incredible kiddos in the audience cheering me on, along with family and friends.

Hey wait a minute didn’t you say you had five kids? Well, yes I did, but one of them is not incredible… that’s a joke, ACTUALLY, my oldest son Noah competed with me in his very first show at the Francois. He was by far the youngest man to enter the show as he had just turned 18!! I would say he was probably one of the leanest too. I can’t begin to tell you how proud I am of him.

So prior to this prep, did I try anything that didn’t work? Uhhhh, haven’t we all? Yes, a few months prior to making the decision to
compete again, I had tried intermittent fasting, “counting macros”, and the Keto diet. None of these produced lasting results. I knew I had to return to my old school roots if I was going to be competitive on stage and get into the BEST SHAPE OF MY LIFE.

In Closing

I’m happy to be back!! It was surreal to compete with my oldest son. If you would have told me 12 years ago I would do that, I’m not sure I would have believed it! This process was one of the most challenging, yet rewarding I’ve ever completed. The fact that a 37 year old, husband and father of five could manage to jump back on stage should be reason enough for you! If you are motivated by a challenge then let’s do this together!! If you are frustrated, hardworking, teachable & ready to take action I would be honored to help you lose weight and become the BEST VERSION OF YOURSELF! Check me out at skinnywithvinny on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram. PS. If you mention this article you’ll receive 10% off when you join!

Training and Cardio

My training was consistent but never the same. I tend to get bored pretty easy, so variety in the gym matters. I was also bringing a couple dozen people along with me on the journey. They were completing the same workouts via my private Facebook group “Skinny with Vinny.” An example workout is included in this article.

For cardio, at 12 weeks out I was completing a lot of HIIT on the treadmill. As the show neared I added 20 – 60 minutes on the stair stepper. FYI, Sixty minutes on the stair stepper is NOT for the faint of heart.