Your Little Victories

[Rich]

The milestones that meant a lot to YOU.

For me:

- Benching 95 ... I remember how proud I was to finally be able to put the big quarters on the bar

- Benching 135 ... the wheels!!!

- Benching 185, 225, 275 ... all major milestones, though I only ever singled 275

- Deadlifting 315 for multiple reps. DAMN did those plates sound good smacking on the ground!

- incline DB with 100 ... I waited FOREVER for that - big deal!!!

- seated DB press with 60 ... for some reason I decided that only really strong people could do that (I know better now), and MAN did it feel good when I did it

and of course ... my show. Still one of my top 2 best personal moments in my life. Right there with finishing university.

[mrbeefy]

Wow! Cool idea Rich!
Let's See.....

Scoring with my girlfriend (now wife) the first time!
Ohh...you mean in the gym..ok, here goes!

1) My first bodybuilding contest...taking a third place, and having Gunther Schlierkampf give me a high five back stage, and telling me my posing routine was "really cool!" Then walking off stage and my grandson exclaiming, "My Papa is a Bodybuilder!"

2) My last bodybuilding contest in PA, where even "I" thought I looked pretty good. When we got back from the contest, a female friend of my son came over (she was 17), and when I opened the door, her jaw dropped, and she said, "Daym, you're hot! (Remember I am 50 years old )

...and everytime I walked through the mall and people would stare and say, "Did you see the (arms, legs, back, etc.) on that guy!"

3) The first time I squatted 300 lbs, and my trainer said, "Now do it again" and I did...then he added 15 more pounds...and said, "Now...do it again"...and I did. I didn't think I'd ever squat 300 lbs.

4) The first time I put on a bench shirt, and benched 300 lbs, and it was VERY light!

5) My FIRST powerlifitng meet, where I set new PR's in ALL 3 lifts, and set 3...yes, count them..1, 2, 3...WORLD RECORDS!

6) Coming back from my bicep tendon tear, and "almost" being 100% in 5 months. (Side note: After the injury, my powerlifitng "peers" finally accepted me as a powerlifter vs a bodybuilder).

7) "Kinda" related...my LAST martial contest (a "few" years back), where the judges kept saying I didn't have enough power, and I kicked my opponent in the chest with a side thrust kick, and sent him out of the ring, into all the judges. I was disqualified for excessive contact, but, MAN...it felt good! (And YES, I have it on super 8 film!)

8) Martial arts related also: Breaking a brick with my hand.

9) Running a 15 mile race, carrying a company guidon (army), in BOOTS!...and repelling out of a Chinook" helicopter.

10) Last, but certainly not least..... Not starting bodybuilding until I was 43 years old, at 181 lbs., 44 inch waist, and 38% body fat...to stepping on stage a year later at 135 lbs, at 13% body fat, and wearing "little boy" size 16 pants. My weight has gone up as a powerlifter (around 181 to 189), but my BF is still about 16-18%.

I am the healthiest I've ever been in my life and I'm VERY happy and proud to be here with ALL of you! (Yea, even you Mo! )

Rich, this was a great idea, but I have so many milestones, I don't want to bore everyone. I am lookinmg forward to reading everyone else's too!

;D

[Intensity]

Very nice guys!

Oh yeah Frank, even me?

I'll think about my little victories and post it later...

[Intensity]

Stuff like using the 45's on the bench or using more weight on different exercises has been great, no doubt, but since I don't really have the powerlifter attitude, there isn't a lot of my little victories related to best lifts or something like that. So here are some of it...

- Succeeding at running 10k races and doing a bodybuilding contest during the same year (over a 6 months period) although it's two opposite sports.

- Placing better than a guy who once told me I would never be able to do well in bodybuilding because I was to small.

- After losing to a guy in 2005, training hard for a year and winning over him on the same stage in 2006.

- Eating more than Randy in one of Montreal's fast food restaurants