Diet: Well, the diet has been very extreme this week. A few days of very low lows, and one day of a very high-high day! The low days consisted of a few rice cakes and the high day was stuffed to the brim with rice and a burger at the end of the night. The low days just so happened to be over the course of the weekend we were traveling to Boca for the guest posing! Which sounds terrible but kind of worked in my favor. Having lower carbs, yes definitely hungrier, but it also keeps my body a little tighter. I was exhausted to say the very least by Sunday when we were driving home. After traveling and training and then guest posing I was plain just beat up. However, I woke up at a new low weight Monday morning and was rewarded with a huuugggeeee high carb day. So, the hunger and energy I put in over the weekend paid off wonderfully. The high day was lots of jasmine rice and cream of rice all day long, and then a double burger with fries and halo top ice cream! (was supposed to be half the pint… supposed to be). I went to bed in gastric pain, and woke up with a huge food baby. In a good way though. I felt on top of the world and went to bed a happy prepper. So moral of the diet story is to keep pushing and doing the next right move, as hard as it may seem, it’s temporary, this too shall pass and the other side if you can stick with it, is oh so abundant and sweet.
Training: Training is nothing crazy different. We may be super setting more and drop setting more to keep the heart rate higher for longer. But the typical rep range I find myself in now is 10-20 reps with shorter rest periods. Quick and intense! Something I do want to tell you guys about in regards to training that I do frequently, is mimic poses with some of the exercises I choose, as well as posing in between sets. The way I see it is, practice how you compete. The more I can choose exercises that mimic poses, the more I grow in that particular pose, essentially because I am adding weight to the pose. I find when I pose in between sets, the better the mind muscle connection becomes. And then when I go to train that specific muscle group, the proprioceptors are primed and ready to be damaged by the weight ? So in a nutshell, high volume, lots of mind muscle connection, just sculpting and getting to know my body more.
Cardio: We have switched up this week, and thank the universe for that! For the last few weeks I was doing 55 minutes in the morning, and then 25 minutes post workout a few times a week. The 55 minutes was on the stepper or step mill, and I could get into it and enjoy it, but after a few weeks of that I began getting restless and I found myself having to switch between machines to keep interested. I don’t typically do the treadmill or elliptical, most times it doesn’t get me in the zone enough. On that same token, I don’t know that I ever do steady state cardio anymore. There is always room for intervals. Like I mentioned this week we switched it up and we are doing less time, around 30 minutes and more High Intensity Interval Training on the stepper or spin bike. I personally like that better. It hurts like a frick, especially with sore legs, but there is something about the pain and intensity that really lights my spirit up. I know it’s go time, and it’s almost show time. It’s like I trust the energy I am putting in will come back as results, so every pedal I push, every step I take is harder than the last… my mind is focused, the tunes are up, bring it on.
Supplements: My new jam this week from Redcon1 is the Double Tap Powder fat burner. I have never really tried a powdered fat burner before this one, and I am a huge fan. I have been using it frequently to get me through my workouts. What I notice is that my body heats up quite a bit faster and I break a sweat quicker than if I don’t take it. I also notice an increase in energy, kind of a big increase in energy to be honest, and that is so awesome because my energy is beginning to get lower as the prep gets harder. Right now, this supplement is perfect for what I need because it keeps my workouts intense, and the name of the game for me is calorie burn with muscle maintenance. So, the thermal effects are highly sought after. I also like that it has dandelion root in it, this is great for ridding excess water, so you can see all the shreds. I like it so much Ian and I even put together a fun little special effect video for it. (check it out on my Instagram) One more thing about supplements, the Isotope protein shake, I have both the chocolate peanut butter and the cake batter. This past weekend while we were traveling I brought a few shakes with me just in case I needed extra meals… and man was I pleasantly surprised! I did try both of them over the course of the weekend, and they were very very good. Especially for an isolate. Definitely not your typical dirty water isolate protein shake. And my favorite thing to do is make it a cereal meal with some crushed up rice cakes in it, mmmmmm so good forgetaboutit!
With less than 5 weeks until I hit the stage again, I am in a very good positive spot, I feel like I’ve already conquered the world and I am Redcon1 for what’s to come!! Talk to you soon!
Great vibes and lots of light.
Dani
]]>In 2016 we witnessed the return of The Gift in spectacular fashion. Silencing all rumblings about him coming in at less than his best in 2015, Phil Heath’s physique commanded the utmost respect and awe from the moment he set foot on stage last year. At only 37 years old, Phil hasn’t even begun to age or slow down. It’s sometimes said that bodybuilders peak around age 40, with that in mind it’s entirely conceivable that we have yet to see the best package Phil has to offer. Phil has made it clear that he expects to win no fewer than 10 Sandows in his career, and I see no reason to doubt the man. While it’s anyone’s guess how the placings will finally fall, I feel confident putting Phil in first.
Second place last year was taken by none other than Shawn Rhoden. Hailing from Jamaica, the Flexatron has consistently impressed bodybuilding’s fans with the kind of symmetry rarely seen even in top level physiques. 42 years old, Shawn has yet to show signs of aging as well. It’s often been said that if Shawn could improve his back and his legs in particular that he could closely contend with Phil for the number one position. Even back in 2015 we witnessed an authoritative display from Shawn, with some in the audience remarking after pre-judging that Shawn had appeared better than Phil himself. Analysis of the 2015 Olympia scorecard reveals that Shawn’s third place finish (after Phil and Dexter Jackson) was decided by only a single point. Just like last year, Rhoden has taken all of 2017 off from competing in order to focus on bringing the best package he possibly can to the Olympia stage. As a major Rhoden fan myself I’m not counting on him dethroning Phil, but if there ever was a year this would be it.
This brings us to last year’s third place finisher, the timeless Dexter Jackson. In the weeks leading up to the 2016 Olympia Jackson appeared confident and assertive, stating in an interview that “if you got me out of the top three, change your f***ing list.” Jackson’s prediction came true, though admittedly many fans thought the third place position rightfully belonged to Big Ramy. Whatever your belief, there’s no denying that 2008 Mr. Olympia Dexter Jackson is a very real threat in this lineup. Furthermore, Dexter has mentioned in the past that he feels unrecognized as a former Sandow winner, and we can conclude that much of his motivation going into this year’s contest will be to put that lack of credit behind him. Like Rhoden and other Olympians The Blade has not competed this year, which means that the Dexter we see at the Olympia will be fully rested and ready for whatever may come.
Taking fourth place was the most impressive Big Ramy we’ve seen yet. Ramy has competed at the Olympia since 2013, and has improved his placing every single year (8th, 7th, 5th, and 4th). The most noticeable difference between the Ramy of 2016 and every other form of him that we’ve seen was his conditioning, which was markedly improved since 2015. Ramy had competed at 316 lbs. in 2015, and so drastically different was his 2016 look that it earned him the temporary nickname “Medium Ramy.” It’s often said that of the current Olympians, Ramy has the best shot at being the man to eventually take the mantle from Phil. While I hesitate to believe (as some do) that this will be that year, I greatly look forward to seeing Ramy take home a Sandow one day.
Cedric McMillan, Roelly Winklaar, and (hopefully) Brandon Curry can be counted on to duke it out for the last spots within the first callout and the first couple within the second. Though it’s likely that we’ll inevitably see surprises and shakeups in the top 10, we can realistically guess with fair accuracy what placing range most competitors will fall into. If there’s one thing that’s for certain though it’s that this year’s Olympia will feature one of the most stacked and talented lineups we’ve seen in many years, and witnessing how things will ultimately play out will be a fine spectacle indeed.
Written by Trent Wozniak
]]>Notes From Matt
Yesterday we did a very slight depletion day. The goal was to bring weight down just slightly for the sake of having Dallas be in a good position to handle our travel today.
We trained chest at Project Flex yesterday, the entire workout was filmed so be sure to check that out on redcon1.com!
Be sure to following along today on IG and Snapchat as we document the training day!
@dallasmccarver and @mattjansen8
Diet from Sept 12
8-9 liters of water
Sea salting all meals / seasons fine
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Meal 1 – Pre Training Meal
Meal 3 |
Meal 4 Meal 5 Meal 6 – The McCarver Vanilla Berry Blast Smoothie |
Cardio
3 Hard posing rounds
Training – Chest Workout
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Exercise 1 – Tri-Set 3 Way Standing Cable Fly – This has been a staple of our training since we stared together. Incline plane of motion x 8 Flat plane of motion x 8 Decline plane of motion x 8 3 rounds Exercise 2 – Straight sets Banded incline hammer press with hard contractions 3 x 10-12 |
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Exercise 3 – Superset Flat DB Fly (emphasis on stretch) INTO DB hex Press (driving wrists together throughout) 3 Rounds x 12 – 10 on each Exercise 4 – Superset Incline Flex Press Into Incline flex fly done on flex press (holding onto machine arm) 3 sets of 10-12 Exercise 5 – Bottom Half Dips Stretch partial emphasis 3 sets to failure |
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Dallas Journey hit a new weight low this morning, as his coach I’m very happy with his current look and where he is sitting inside of 3 weeks. I think it’s very important to believe in your athletes, motivate and encourage them but not be overly confident to the point of being a detriment to the athlete which is why we will continue to work all the way up to prejudging!
Be sure to following along today on IG and Snapchat as we document the training day!
dallasmccarver and mattjansen8
training – arms
8-9 liters of water
Sea salting all meals / seasons fine
| Meal 1 – Pre Training Meal (off) 3 Whole Eggs 200g – Egg Whites 90g – Cooked 95/5 Sirloin 150g – Oats raw measure Pre Workout Intra workout Meal 2 – Post training 120g – Cream of Rice 73g – Whey micro filtered isolate (weight)Meal 3 224g – Grass Fed Sirloin steak cooked 280g – Jasmine Rice |
Meal 4 3 Whole Eggs 250g – Raw Egg Whites cooked 5 Slices food for life breadMeal 5 224g – Ground Sirloin Cooked 210g – Jasmine Rice cooked 75g – Asparagus cookedMeal 6 3 whole eggs 250g whites 100g oats Onions and pepper if you want |
Cardio
30 min am light
Be sure to following along today on IG and Snapchat as we document the training day!
@dallasmccarver and @mattjansen8
]]>Road to Olympia.
With five weeks to go before the Mr. Olympia competition, Dallas McCarver takes us through a full day of eating and training.
Read More on the Red Files
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