For those of you, around my vintage, you may be interested to see the list of blood markers I like to get checked every 6 to 12 months or so (see below).

I presented this list to my GP, who then wrote it up on the usual Clinipath Pathology form.

Very important to not put your head in the sand when it comes to your health, particularly hormonal status, which is the key to looking and feeling good!

Remember the old adage, folks…”Knowledge is power”!!!

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Here’s the list:

Blood test markers, December 2018

Total testosterone

Free Testosterone

FAI

DHEA

Estradiol

SHBG

Potassium

Sodium

Magnesium

Calcium

Vitamin D

Red blood cells/Iron

Mercury

Lead

Total Thyroid

Blood sugar

C-Reactive Protein/inflammatory marker

PSA

Kidney (creatinine)

Liver

10. Kamal Elgarni’s incredible showing in the 212 division. This 42 year old gentlemen showed us all that age is merely a number and that muscle maturity after the age of forty is something that is hard to look past!! I actually thought he’d done enough to get ahead of Derek Lunsford and jump into second place!

9. Also over 40 years of age, was the legendary Boston Mass, Jose Raymond, who in his last Mr Olympia 212 competition finished in a very respectable 5th place. His posing routine to Frank Sinatra’s “My way” gave me the chills and was so well received by the appreciative audience. And, MC, Bob Cicherillo’s verbal tribute to Jose and resulting standing ovation was a wonderful way to conclude his outstanding Bodybuilding journey of 10 years at the Mr O and 25 years of competition! And this version of Jose was even more impressive given the fact that he will undergo hip replacement surgery not long after the show!!

8. The advent of the People’s Choice Champion for the Mr O IMHO was a winner!! Roelly Winklaar is nothing short of a cartoonistic marvel of muscle with an improved waistline and ability to pose. I believe Roelly was a worthy recipient of this inaugural award, as we all love to see that freaky muscle mass. If he can continue keeping that waist line tight, whilst refining all that beef, then who knows what might happen in the future!

7. The quality and depth of the 212 Division was something to behold!! Gentlemen like Zane Watson, Stanimal, David Henry, Shaun Clarida, etc had to settle for the minor places, but at any other pro show during the year, could have easily themselves been winning or in the top 3.

6. On a more negative tone, I believe these professional athletes and their legions of loyal fans deserve to be placed from 1st to 10th and given the kudos and respect they deserve. Streamlining the show by just awarding the top 5, or worse still, the top 3, was somewhat disappointing. This leaving the crowd wondering what the hell happened to their favourite competitor!! After all is said and done, announcing the minor placings doesn’t take very long at all, say 4 or 5 minutes, maximium.

5. The Classic Men’s Bodybuilding division continues to gain popularity with a huge line up of quality athletes. This class has really helped put the sport of Bodybuilding back on the map, so to speak, where average Joe Blo is realising the more realistic proportions, muscle size and aesthetics of this division are not only more attractive, but more attainable too. I do believe, however, that a short and a tall class needs to be introduced to try and reduce the massive numbers and make the judges job a tad easier. The overall winner would also be very exciting to watch and reminiscent of the classic battles of the 1970’s when the Over 200lb winner would do battle with the Under 200lb for the overall Mr Olympia. Think back to the 1975 Mr O when Arnold would do a final comparison with Franco! The same could be said for the 212 Mr O having a showdown with the Open Mr Olympia.

4. People may criticise Big Ramy’s showing this year, but I believe this 310 pound behemoth still has what it takes to win the show. Ramy’s condition today was much improved from yesterday’s pre-judging and I thought he could have been placed a bit higher. Ramy has amazing proportions to compliment the slabs of Egyptian muscle he possesses. And, his waistline and abdominal wall are still in proportion to his upper and lower body, giving him the most extreme X-frame we have ever witnessed in the sport!!

3. ‘Old man muscle’ once again proves to be a feature of the sport these days and proof that a man can continue to improve past the fourth decade of his existence. Dexter Jackson may have dropped a few placings, but still looked pretty amazing in this stacked line up! And let’s not forget that Roelly is 41 and Shawn Rhoden himself is 43 years old too!!

2. The Welsh Dragon, James Flex Lewis’s fantastic showing this year in the 212 Division to win his historical 7th straight title, was a sight to behold! I am definitely a big fan of this remarkable champion, as both an athlete and an ambassador to the sport. I hope and pray that he returns to the Open Class with that extra 20lb of muscle we know he can carry. Mark my words, Flex will be a major threat if he chooses to step up!!!

1. I saw Shawn Rhoden win the IFBB Australian Grand Prix back in 2013 at FitX, Melbourne. His insane aesthetics, tiny joints, round muscle bellies, V-taper, 8-pack abdominal wall, ridiculous separation and crazy conditioning was awesome to see back then. Fast forward to 2018, his physique has continued to improve, as has his desire and tenacity to achieve at the top level. Shawn never gave up on his belief in himself and this I believe was a key factor in his emphatic dethroning of the 7 time champion, Phillip Heath!! This victory was not only a win for the man himself but also a victory for aesthetics and a message that abdominal distension is something that the judges will be more critical of in the future!! Good on you Master Rhoden, you are ‘making bodybuilding great again’!!!

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I remember jumping on the pre-workout bandwagon many years ago when SuperPump 250 and Nano Vapor first hit the market.

This was back in the days when I was having 5-6 strong coffees per day at work, followed by another truckload of caffeine in my serve of pre-workout that I took just before training in the evening.

I’ve got to say, looking back, all I got out of this was adrenal fatigue, increased anxiety at work and jitteriness!!!

Fast forward to now, I have 1-2 coffees earlier in the day, usually decaf, and no pre-workout whatsoever.

My energy for training is equal or better to what it was loaded on stimulants, but more importantly my adrenal fatigue has gone and so too, it’s annoying symptoms.

And because my cortisol hormone is now lower, this then allows for optimum testosterone levels.

I find that a 10-20 minute meditation/power-nap about 30 minutes before I train is the absolute best ‘pre-workout’ you can do!!

I did that this evening before my Quads & Calves workout at Gold’s Gym Port Kennedy, and had an absolute rip-snorter of a session, where not only was my stamina good, but my strength was at its best.

So as I say to my clients and friends, ditch the pre-workout, save your adrenals, feel better and spend your hard earned dollars on better quality food or supplements that actually work!!

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Was great to see one of my favourite pieces of equipment today at Gold’s Gym in Port Kennedy.

A brand spanking new plate-loaded DY Row machine!

This of course made famous by the legendary 6 time Mr Olympia, Dorian Yates.

This was one of his favourite exercises that he used to develop his incredible contest winning back. He had one of these at his hardcore Temple Gym in Birmingham, where he trained and prepped for his Mr Olympia contests.

Dorian believed that this exercise, combined with his underhand grip barbell bent rows, were the keys to his freaky back development.

This movement not only gives you a tremendous stretch of the lats under the armpits at the top of the movement, but also allows you to pin your elbows back at the bottom of the arc so as work the lower lats through their girth to the point where they insert just above your hips.

The lower lats are hard to develop and take time to bring out, but when this happens, the result is very impressive looking back musculature from top to bottom.

Many thanks to the amazing owners of my Gym, Chad, Amy & Brendon, for acquiring this piece and for continuing to improve their already fantastic facility!

Listed below are the ingredients for my latest Supashake:

1. 2 scoops ATP Science Noway protein powder

2. 5g Creatine Monohydrate

3. 5g MSM powder

4. 5g L-Arginine

5. 5g Zeolite powder

6. 5g Organic Cacao powder

7. 1/2 cup of frozen blueberries

8. 1 banana

9. 1/2 teaspoon of pink Himalayan sea salt

10. 1 cup of Natural Greek Yoghurt

11. 300ml of unsweetened coconut milk

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Tonight, I decided to put together a meal plan for myself, so as to get back in contest condition.

This is a very different pre-contest plan to what I have done before as it involves eating my 4 ‘meals’ in an 8 hour feeding window from 12:30pm to 8:30pm.

The Intermittent Fasting philosophy then involves not eating for 16 hours from 8:30pm till 12:30pm the next day.

The benefits of IF are amazing, some of these include:

1. Increased Growth Hormone production

2. Detoxification

3. Autophagy

4. Lower insulin

5. Increased fat burning

6. Better brain function

7. Improved heart health/lower blood pressure

8. Less inflammation

9. Increased longevity

10. Lower SHBG = more testosterone

My dietary intake will involve all 3 of the macronutrients. I may lower the ‘impact carbohydrate’ intake as I progress closer to my goal of very low body fat. If I do that, I may then increase the fat and/or protein content.

The need to perform low intensity cardiovascular exercise will be part of my regime, but hopefully just once per day. But that may change if my body gets stubborn!!

Weight training will be as per normal, HIT style, 3-4 sessions per week, so as to continue building muscle.

At 52 years of age it will be interesting to see just how this plan will go.

Time will tell…

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https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-health-benefits-of-intermittent-fasting#section9

Was great catching up with Mitch today for some posing coaching before the ICN State Titles on May 12th.

Mitch has just recently moved from the boardshorts Men’s Physique Division into Bodybuilding.

Bodybuilding, with it’s 4 quarter turns in the Symmetry round and 8 compulsory poses of the Muscularity round, presents itself with quite a step up from the few simple poses of the Physique Division.

After 2 and a half hours, Mitch was really starting to nail these poses, even those he thought he was weak at are now some of his better ones!

He now has some ‘homework’ to do in terms of posing practice, but should be ready to do some serious damage on stage in just a few weeks time!

Mitch was wondering how was going to remember everything I told him, so I gave him my Posing ebook at the end of the session which covers all the poses in great detail with accompanying photos.

You may own a Ferrari, but do you know how to drive it??

The same analogy applies to your body, you might have a sensational physique, but do you really know how to pose & present it on stage!!??

For more information about my exclusive one on one posing sessions, send me an email at craigwinter@rocketmail.com

for more details.

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Many untrained, sedentary people often poo-poo the sport of Bodybuilding as a vain, narcissistic and selfish pastime.

I have blogged on several occasions about the multiple benefits it can offer.

https://bodychiselbycraig.com/2016/12/07/cws-training-tip-15/

https://bodychiselbycraig.com/2017/09/10/there-is-more-to-bodybuilding-than-meets-the-eye/

https://bodychiselbycraig.com/2016/12/15/cws-thought-of-the-day/

The excerpt below, was taken from an article written by Peter McGough on the day Joe Weider died back in 2013.

These were Joe Weider’s Predictions from the July 1950 issue of his publication, “Your Physique”. Some of them are idealistic, but most of them are now a reality!!!…

PREDICTION 1

I PREDICT that civilization will speed up in every phase and that the stresses and strains on mankind will continue to increase.

PREDICTION 2

I PREDICT that the resulting increase in mental and physical illness will force the world to recognize the importance of systematic exercise and physical activities to prevent and combat the evils of civilization.

PREDICTION 3

I PREDICT that bodybuilding will become the chief form of systematic exercise and physical activity and that it will come to be looked upon as one of the greatest forces in the field of preventive medicine.

PREDICTION 4

I PREDICT that a full realization of the importance of muscular development will sweep the world and that the sport of bodybuilding will grow by leaps and bounds.

PREDICTION 5

I PREDICT that the principles of good bodybuilding, which include balanced diets, adequate sleep, plenty of fresh air, ample sunshine, and regular workouts, will become basic principles of living.

PREDICTION 6

I PREDICT that bodybuilding will become the stepping-stone to every other sport and physical activity.

PREDICTION 7

I PREDICT that the art of relaxation, which is one of the fundamental principles in bodybuilding, will become more and more important as the tensions increase and that relaxation will be universally taught and advocated.

PREDICTION 8

I PREDICT that bodybuilding will spread to every corner of the world and that it will one day be recognized as the king of all sports and physical activities.

PREDICTION 9

I PREDICT that those who practice bodybuilding will live healthier, happier and more useful lives.

PREDICTION 10

I PREDICT that bodybuilding will one day become one of the greatest forces in existence and that it may be hailed as the activity which actually saved civilization from itself.

I was fortunate enough today to watch a very interesting and informative Bodybuilding Posing Clinic very ably conducted by IFBB Pros Amy Fox, Josh Lenartovicz, Lee-Anne Temnyk as well as IFBB National Head Judge, Michael Buna.

The accompanying video shows Michael talking about the absolute importance of being able to master the 3 variations of the Most Muscular pose, that is, the upright hands clasped version, the upright hands on hips version and the trapover version where you bend at the waist more.

He said that when it is very close between two bodybuilders he will ask them to hit these variations and the one that does them the best will usually win!

Food for thought for all those competitors out there that are not paying their dues to their all-important posing practice!!

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The old school pec deck machine from the 1970’s was a very effective exercise to hit the pectoral muscles, all whilst saving your shoulder joints.

It was great using Rohan Reid’s machine at his Body Matrix Gym whilst I was in Melbourne recently.

Now back in WA, at the awesome Gold’s Gym, I had to compromise by placing my arms adjacent to the poles rather than gripping the handles, which is essentially the same as doing dumbbell flys.

Doing it the old school way really gives those AC joints a break, but still allows you to get a great chest pump.

I also find that the cross-bench dumbbell pullover, with bent arms, is another good chest exercise that is kind to the shoulders.

So that was literally my chest workout today before hitting biceps and forearms!

Sometimes you’ve got to think beyond the box, so as to stay in the game…the iron-game, that is!!!

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#oldmanmuscle

#oldschoolrules

#grandmastersphysique

#keepitsimple