James Llewellin's 'Arnold Classic' preparation thread

[supercell]

Today is Wednesday 2nd January 2008

DAY 7

Weight this morning was 14st 4lbs

I awoke this morning feeling much better and was up at 5.15am. 60 mins cardio felt really easy this morning. It's only when you are feeling better you realise how much a virus can affect training and well being.

My chest was suitably battered today after yesterdays efforts in the gym.

Today was back day and we had a great session. It was fast, yet intense and as we both missed training back last week (nytol hadn't trained it for 3 weeks), we really felt the full effect of each contraction.

We started with bent over rows done with the EZ bar. This variation puts far less stress on the wrists and puts the hands in a very natural position. Nytol used an overhand grip but I used an underhand grip Dorian style as I haven't done this for months. We worked up to 3x20kgs a side for 10 reps (so around 130kgs) after doing 4 sets here we moved onto chins.
Again this is an exercise I haven't done for a while. We did 2-3 sets of this and after the B.O.Rows it really did hit the spot.
It was then onto the plate loaded one arm lever row machine. Again 3 sets were performed, 2 with single arms then one lighter set with both together. We worked up to 3x 20kgs each side.
The last exercise was dbell pullovers with fairly straight arms to really isolate the lats and teres/rhomboid areas. We did 3 sets here and worked up to a 50kg dbell for 10 reps.

After this we were both spent and the pump was silly. The workout only lasted about 50 mins but both of us felt it was very productive and I can only imagine the pain we will both be in come tomorrow.

I am pleased with how the diet is going and now that the festivities are over I can give it 100%. I now have exactly 8 weeks to go and so far the plan is working well, with a lot more size being retained.

Tomorrow is a day off then its back to the gym for shoulders and tri's on friday and seeing how my back is already tightening up I think its a damn good thing there are no weights tomorrow.

J

[pitbull]

J
Hows the better half mate, hope shes feeling better ??

Know you've been a busy man but did you not get my mail the other day ?

Had a good leg session this morning got Luke on both stag press and lunges ! Haven't spoke to him since but boy am i suffering lol..


S

[supercell]

Sorry mate seemed to have filed it without responding...Must be the diet!!

You now have email

J

[pitbull]

Originally Posted by supercell

Sorry mate seemed to have filed it without responding...Must be the diet!!

You now have email

J

No worries mate

Fired one back also

S

[Delhi]

Got to agree with the foreman for chicken.

if you time it just right the chicken tastes succulent and is easy to eat. Nothing worse than bone dry chicken.........yuck!

[Galtonator]

Supercell do you buy your fresh chicken from the supermarket or buy in bulk?

[Liam]

I always find foreman makes it dry, much prefer to oven it, takes longer but its the best chicken ive had.

These threads are great, people generally hear the term bodybuilder and jump to conclusions without realising the effort and dedication that goes into it. I've got a few of my mates to read this thread so they can see what it takes to be one of the best.

[supercell]

Originally Posted by Galtonator

Supercell do you buy your fresh chicken from the supermarket or buy in bulk?

Supermarket mate. ASDA do 625g for around £3.50, so I generally do a pack a day.

I have chicken for 3 meals and just over 200g for each one, so no need to weigh as each normally has 3 fillets in it.

J

[supercell]

Originally Posted by Liam

I always find foreman makes it dry, much prefer to oven it, takes longer but its the best chicken ive had.

These threads are great, people generally hear the term bodybuilder and jump to conclusions without realising the effort and dedication that goes into it. I've got a few of my mates to read this thread so they can see what it takes to be one of the best.

Hi Liam,

Tell them to join up and post, I'll be more than happy to answer any questions they may have.

J

[punkfloyd]

Hi James

I'm kinda new around here - in fact after almost a five year hiatus from any sort of training i didn't even know who Mr Olympia was - that out of the loop eh?

Anyway to cut a long story short i started moseying around the net looking for what was going on in the world of my former pastime - and found your threads.....

What can i not say? I was, am, and remain, completely blown away!

I started on your thread from the British and spent the last 12 or so days reading it in it's entirety - i swear i got hooked on it like i do with a good book - i got so engrossed in the journey unfolding my eyeballs were getting a tan from staring at my monitor.

I know you've had words of thanks and encouragement regarding this before but i really do want to get my 2 cents of praise out there too - i feel like i owe you one...

1) For taking the time and effort to post up on a daily basis the exacting details of your regime - this must take up a hell of a lot of your personal time which you are freely sharing with everybody reading.

2) For imparting your many years of training and nutrition knowledge so that we can all learn something from you, and providing us with a permanent reference a la your posts.

3) For your honestly and willingness to discuss all aspects of what you do in your preparations. I NEVER, ever would have believed that someone of your level would ever be as open about what assistance they use - that aspect alone is truly commendable in the fact that you are a positive influence to those that believe all the top guys use silly amounts.

4) For setting an example as a true sportsman - it shines through like a beacon that you love what you do and it's also very clear that you have professionalism to match - ya just can't manufacture that sorta thing!

I know you have a lot of support from quite a few of the other guys on here - and from what i can determine from your personality through your writing you probably wouldn't accept gratitude without acknowledging those individuals too - so consider this me doing it for you - thanks guys for helping James!! Ive enjoyed reading your postings just as much as the journey has progressed . :nod:

So to summarise, thank you for continuing to chart your progress through your Arnold thread - as you can see from my posting i've read this far
and now look forward to your updates and progress as it all comes together.

I wish you every success dude - i'll be on the edge of my seat!


Stuart

[supercell]

Hi Stuart,

WOW, what a first post!!

Firstly a massive thankyou for your kind words; to know that guys get something from these threads make them all worth while.

I sometimes think I am the only one reading my threads but I know that many read and 'lurk' without ever posting, preferring to view at a distance and thats cool.

Secondly welcome to this site and my thread, its great having you here and if you have any questions feel free to ask.

kind regards

J

[supercell]

Today is Friday 4th January 2008

DAY 9

Weight this morning was 14st 4.5lbs

I have now received my supplements from M.P for my diet with some interesting additions to the mix for my show prep.

These have now been introduced as of yesterday and will be the finishing touches to my diet and supplementation over the next 8 weeks.

Today was shoulders and triceps and the session was very productive.

We hit side laterals first this week, done again with palms facing back and leading with the little finger. We did 4 sets (3 warm ups and then 1 work set which was a drop set)
We then went onto shoulder press with Dbells and did 4 sets here working up to 55kgs for the last set.
The last exercise was rear delts on the pec machine and again we did 4 sets (2 warm ups and 2 work sets)
Triceps was started with tricep pushdowns where we did 4 sets (3 warm ups and 1 work set). Finally we did overhead tricep ext with the EZ bar doing again 4 sets working up to 70kgs for the final set.
It was a great workout and we finished both bodyparts within 60 mins. The pump was fierce and the weights lifted were very respectable.

One thing I commented on (and also Steve, the owner) was how much bigger Nytol was looking. He looked really full, wider across the shoulders and thicker front to back. I asked his weight and I think he's put on around 8lbs in the last 3 weeks of training together which is fantastic.
He is certainly benefiting from the more frequent training sessions and the slightly higher volume. And I am benefiting from slightly less volume and heavier lower reps (6-12 instead of 10-15) so its a win win situation for both of us.

Nytol is a big tall guy who is 6'1" with a 32-33" waist and weighing just shy of 18st he looks fantastic and his conditioning isn't too shabby either with visible abs.

So I think I can safely say that the training is working for both of us and that was the intention when we started training together 3 weeks ago.

Another thing I have noticed is how my appetite seems to have increased over the last few days. This I see as a good thing as it means things are going in the right direction and visibly things are changing from this time last week. My strength is also improving week on week and although this never really mattered to me, it does now and as Nytol said today, the competitiveness is good and is what pushes us on to improve week on week.

Having never felt like this before when I train, its really refreshing and has given me a whole new purpose in the gym and now instead of training filling me with apathy it now feels me with anticipation and a real need to improve each time.

So all is positive and good in my little world at the moment.

James

[Fivos]

James all looks good and algthough i havent been posting much i am reading your prep on a daily basis..

One thing i will say about James is everything he does is for a reason not juist beacuse everyone else is doing it..also dieting cardio training etc will get you shredded (as James says the rest is the icing/cherry on top) as ive proved..i may not be the biggest by ive got proper shredded naturally..what im trying to say is just dont do as others do research and make sure you know what you are doing and make sure you have the basics sorted out (as no amount of "bits" will make you look like James!)

Im still hoping t come over to the Arnold James so maybe try and link up before then..

Keep it going James you are a credited to British Bodybuilding!

Fivos

[jjb1]

i notice your weight is dropping very slowly and almost perfectly controlled, you just seem to get everything spot on all the time! (hope thats not a kiss of death) but you do.

i cant wait to see the arnold pics now and i know your as good as any other country has to offer...... i wonder if your oponents are reading yer thread too ????

[supercell]

Originally Posted by jjb1

i notice your weight is dropping very slowly and almost perfectly controlled, you just seem to get everything spot on all the time! (hope thats not a kiss of death) but you do.

i cant wait to see the arnold pics now and i know your as good as any other country has to offer...... i wonder if your oponents are reading yer thread too ????

There is method in my madness you know!!

I will be posting some pics tomorrow hopefully, so we can see if I am heading in the right direction after 1.5 weeks on the diet.:lift:

J