Been a while -- update

[drew]

Hi everyone!

I've been super busy and while I'm renovating my house, sans Internet so sorry I haven't been too involved on the board.

I don't have any pics to post yet because my phone won't let me upload any and also I absolutely hate self iPhone pics (if anybodys around New Orleans and takes good pics hit me up). But I thought I'd give an update.

As a lot of you know, my life has been a bit of a fitness roller coaster. Super skinny kid, chubby teen, and by age 20 or so somewhere above 440 lbs (that's ad high as the scale went) all fat and no muscle (@ 5'9).

I did the crash diet skinny guy thing (down to 158 over a year and a half) and even joined the army attempting to get fit. After years of yoyo'ing between 175-240 or so I finally decided in January 2006 to go for the body I've always wanted, that of a huge bodybuilder.

Come to find out, after years of trying to be thin, that my body loves getting big. Over my first 6 months I went from 207 with 13 inch arms wearing size 40 jeans to 227 16.5 arms and size 30 jeans. It was great but I still didn't have the body I wanted and honestly I didn't know what the he'll I was doing.

Over the next year I was sort of on and off fitness wise and didn't do much. But I had had a taste for what was possible and wanted more. I set out to do everything I had to to get myself fully on the road to huge.

Even when I was at my fittest in those size 30 jeans I had a lot of loose skin and love handles. Come to find out it was skin that had lost it's elasicity from my having been so fat so long. I saved up and in July 07 had an abdominoplasty (tummy tuck). What I didn't realize is that it's a way more invasive procedure than it seems. It took about 2 years to fully heal and greatly impeded my growth but Noe three years later the results are great so that's just been part of the adventure I guess.

I started back training hard in 08 and got back up to my usual weight of 240-250. I was doing well and getting bigger but the growth was uneven.

By spring 09 I was one of these looks great with clothes on guys who still didn't like himself clothes off. I moved to Florida and took a job helping run a sports nutrition company. I'm not sure what happened, whether it was not liking where I lived or diet or something else, but I ended up gaining a lot of weight again and was not making much progress in the gym.

I started out 2010 around 300 again and sporting those size 40 jeans again. I knew I needed to adjust my plan. I had some decent size but my growth was really uneven and had as many weak points as strong ones.

I spent the first 4 months of the year working out with a really old school trainer (you guys know him as BIGJOEY). He made me literally break everything down to the total basics. He made me relearn every exercise in every workout as if I'd never been in a gym. It drove me nuts! We started with super light weights and a ton of dirrerent exercises but every rep in every set in every exercise had to be exact proper form. The first effect of this was frustration as I saw a lot more size disappear before I started seeing any new size appearing.

In April I moved back to New Orleans in ok shape but with a huge inventory of exercises and workouts and the proper form and knowledge I needed to use them. I had gone from January's 300 down to 260 by then and had been stuck there for a month. From April till August all I did was ridiculous amounts of cardio and a super cutting diet. I made it down to 240 again by the end of August.

Since then I've been doing a run every morning, a 2-2.5 hour lifting session in the gym (5 day split), 10-15 miles of biking in the evening, and abs throughout the day everyday. I'm currently (5'9) 223, 34 jeans, 19 arms and not totally sure on the other measurements. I'm averaging about a 4 lbs loss a week as well as about and inch off my waist. Yet, I'm getting bigger at the dame time so I can't complain.

The gut and love handles are all but gone and I still have a bit (for me too much) of bodyfat left on my pecs, midsection (think I'll finally see abs within another two weeks finally) and on my legs. But, there's less everyday and the change from fat to muscle seems to be steady and consistent.

This is actually the least ice weighed in several years and I think it's the biggest I've ever been ad well. I finally have some development in my delts and lats and hopefully that will continue.

Who knows, we'll see. The big thing though is that well here we are 12 years on and it's still a long road and a slow trip down it. I know some of you know all this, but most of my old posts got deleted so I thought I'd retype it.

Well, here's to wondering what 210 will look like

[1bigwoof]

It has been a long road, Drew, but you are very dedicated and are just beginning to see the results for which you've longed for such a long time. I hope that you continue to make the bod of your dreams come true. Thanks for sharing your thoughts & progress.

[BIGJOEY]

Yes there was a method to the madness that we did in the beginning of this year. Now your seeing the results of reeducation that we did way back. Glad to hear that it's finally paying off. Congrats bro. if you need anything else you know how to reach me. YO YO.

[drew]

Thanks guys!

I did a 2.5 hour leg workout today and loving it. It does take a lot of time and a lot of learnng but it's slowly happening.

Today's excitement was looking up during one exercise to realize that I'm getting a split in my chest finally. For the first time ever!

Good times

[BIGJOEY]

bro congrats but 2.5 hrs a bit too long

[drew]

Yeah I still have trouble timing myself without a workout partner. But I don't think I did too much. This was it:

Leg extensions 5x10-12
Front squats 4x8-10
Regular squats 5x8-10
Abductors and adductors, each 4x30
Leg presses 5x6-10
Calves (3 diff angles per set, 20 per angle per set)
Lying bench dumbbell hamstring curls 4x15
Walking lunges with two 45 plates 4x10 steps pet leg per set

[digger]

Thanks for the detailed update, and kudos on your successes over the years. I don't think I ever met a bodybuilder who never had a setback of one kind or another. It's part of being human.

[hulkoutlvr]

You are so hot Drew! But don't keep those of us with crushes on you in suspense. Show us how you've grown, and we're dying to see those sweet eyes of yours again, lol.

[BIGJOEY]

Bro check my watch me grow posts.been putting everything you know has had me doing there. pussy drop the lunges and do jeffersons. drop your sets by 1 on each excersise. if your not sure text me.

[drew]

Wait jeffersons, are those th ones where I stand over the bar and proceed to crush my nuts?

[hulkoutlvr]

oh no! Don't do that!!!!

[drew]

So been another week or so and my weight is still staying right around the same (220-225) but my shape is still changing.

I haven't lost much on my waist, maybe an inch if I'm lucky.

My legs are still hardening up but no visibly major loss of bodyfat yet although I do still seem to be getting a little bigger in the traps, pecs, delts, and lats which is good because those are weak areas for me.

I'm starting to notice some separation between my bis and tris, but not enough to be all the time, just during workouts. Guess it's happening, just slowly.

This weel I cleaned up my diet which had honestly been pretty crappy the previous few weeks. We'll see if I can cut another 10 lbs like I'm planning...

[peace4255]

Drew, you are a great encouragement to so many here. Watching your weight rise and fall, feeling great and feeling bad, getting started and falling back, but no matter what you give it another try and see great results.

Thank you. And I will say that it was hard to stop drooling after hearing about that split in your pecs!

[drew]

Haha thanks man.

Yeah now I'm in a super hurry to take advantage of the fact that my upper bod is actually growing.

My chest is still so much smaller than what most guys start out withbatually. Same for my delts and lats but that's just the luck of the genetic draw.

Either way I am enjoying getting some size there as it cones in. Still working hard at cutting which is my biggest challenge. When I get lean enough where some definition will actually show up in a pic I'll post some photos.

[drew]

OK I promised I'd do some new pics at the beginning of the year, but until I can find someone with a better camera than my iphone this about as good as it gets.

My year of cutting has been pretty successful. As stated above I started out 2010 around 300, and finished up just under 200 at New Years 2011. I think I'm about 195 currently.

Most of my stats are the same as they've been but my waist is considerably down. Here are some pics. This first one is from the other day. These are jeans I bought in 2005 and haven't worn since then because I couldn't. They're pretty much falling off now. Just a note, last time I wore them was about the second pic (with the hat and pink polo).

The other two pics are from October just to compare.

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/b...4/jan72011.jpg

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/b...Katrina-me.jpg

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/b...4/IMG_0803.jpg

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/b...4/IMG_0802.jpg

[1bigwoof]

Looking good, Drew...you still have good muscle but are obviously much leaner. Keep it up!

[bulknola]

Drew that's phenomenal what you achieved. I'm impressed and envious.

I dropped some weight but back up to 300. How'd you re-learn the exercises? Seems like something I need to do.

[drew]

Bulk I basically worked out with BIGJOEY who had me do every workout as a series of really planned exercises. Some of them were a big too old school for my liking but for the most part it was just all about proper form. It was certainly weird going down to much much lower weight than I had been accustomed to, but the effect a year later is a much more solid and uniform build.

Now this year is about putting on size again!!