Smelling 
at the gym is a necessary evil. While it might not be appealing to those around you, it’s actually the body’s way of keeping you cool as your temperature rises and riding your body of the toxins you produce on a regular basis. When the body sweats in produces acid in various sweat areas. This acid is secreted and when it makes contact with the air and dries is produces a sour smell. Sweat is also considered a food source for bacteria living on the skin; thus, when it reaches the top layer of your skin bacteria begins to feed off of it producing an unappealing smell (http://www.medimanage.com/my-worries/more-articles/do-you-sweat-excessively-here-are-the-solutions.aspx).
As 
I sit here on my patio almost a week after placing 8th in the L.A. Grand Prix, I can’t seem to get this smile off my face. What a roller coaster of a week. After the show I had several days of shoots; Iron Man, Reps and Noel Daganta for some cover attempts. On the last day of my stay in LA, I went to Six Flags for a full eight hours of riding coasters. It was a nice way to end the week. What’s funny is, I remember sitting on this exact patio enjoying the warmth of the Arizona sunset three weeks ago after winning the Governors’ Cup in Sacramento feeling stressed and overwhelmed. Although I came away with a very disappointing placement at the L.A. Grand Prix, I was able to arrive in the best shape of my life and achieve in my physique the image up until this point that has only been a vision in my mind. When you think you lose, you really win. It's all about your life goals and your perspective on where you are at in reaching those goals.
Charleston,
South Carolina
May 19, 2012
Hey there Men's Physique Fans, this is Derek M. Trombetta here in Charleston, SC with your Men's Physique Update! What a Competition it has been and as usual the Men's Physique Division came in with their A Game! There were nearly 100 Competitors spread among three classes (A, B, C) with almost 50 Competitors in the B Class! I had the pleasure of competing in that B Class and can tell you that it was Classic Men's Physique Style: Look to your left... Yep they are dialed in! Look to your right... Yep they are dialed in too! What an Honor to be amongst such worthy Competitors! AWESOME!!!
I 
remember back in the good old days when I…” It’s what I used to hear in the gym when I was in my 20’s, from the older guys. Back in the day, when I was in my prime, listening to the older guys speak about what they used to do was becoming a broken record. I thought to myself if they want to they can still lift heavy why not, right? I would lift a ton just to prove to myself that I could and felt as if people in the gym were watching me. I did grow from a measly 118lbs to a little over 200lbs in a few summers from lifting heavy. I got into the mindset that lifting heavy was the only way to grow. I was lifting heavy and eating big. Since I lived 2 blocks from Gold’s Gym in Pasadena, I was able to lift anytime day or night. I even wore wraps on my elbow and knees to get those weights up! Now I’m in my late 30’s and sometimes the beast from my prime wants to come out and lift like that again; but, my body is just not as responsive.
I
have been helping individuals reach their health goals for about 10 years. I have always had a passion for helping others succeed. It wasn’t till a few years ago that I decided to make a career out of helping people by creating Staggs Fitness. My main focus when I started the company was to coach competitors and your everyday average person who was trying to look and feel their best. I do some personal training, but found I could help the most people by focusing on their wellness and everything that happens outside the gym. Since starting Staggs Fitness back in 2009, I have helped hundreds reach their health goal or compete on stage. What I have found in the last 3 years is that everyone seems to think they can be a coach and help people reach their health goals. I have had the unfortunate experience of having people come to me after breaking off their relationship with their coach due to bad advice or not being compatible. I have seen competitors step on stage with no clue what to do, or even knowing they are not ready. I have seen individuals with metabolic damage. I have seen injuries caused by ridiculous exercises or individuals pushing themselves too hard. I’ve seen posing on stage that is nowhere near what it is suppose to look like. I have seen overall trophies lost due to bad coaches. Bottom line not all coaches are created equal and to be blunt some should not even be coaches! Here is what to look for when interviewing a coach to help you achieve your goals on and off stage...
Most 
everyone knows that the exercise known as “side-bends” is meant for working the sides of the waist, also known as the external obliques or “love handles”. The term “love handles”, however, is generally used when someone has too much fat in that area. But whether one’s goal is to lose that fat, or simply to create definition in that area, the first exercise that comes to mind is usually “side-bends”.
However, there is quite a bit of misunderstanding regarding exactly what that area is comprised of, what can realistically be done to change it, and even how to do a “side-bend” correctly.
So
you competed in a national qualifier and got your qualification…fantastic! But now you may be wondering how to prepare for a national level show, what to pack, and generally what to expect at the national level. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen competitors who are newbies to the national circuit and have that deer in headlights look. They are completely stunned by the magnitude of a national show and intimidated by all the other nationally-qualified athletes who, for the most part, look amazing. Quite frequently these new competitors have no idea what to pack for a show outside of their local region and end up scurrying all over the place trying to procure the items they neglected to pack.
Hey
everyone! Thanks for checking out my first article here on MensPhysique.com. Starting today, I will be doing an article of the month containing a “Blast” Workout of the month. For those of you who are unfamiliar with my “Blast Training System,” here is a brief overview.
The system is built upon the concepts of strength/hypertrophy training, muscle confusion, volume training and lastly cross fit style training. Each individual workout style yields benefits to you as both the avid gym rat and physique competitor. My theory is by combining different aspects of the above mentioned training styles, you can create a workout that will push you to your physical limitations thus effectively build new lean muscle tissue while simultaneously reduce body fat.
Joining 
us today is Johnny Johnson. Congrats on a great showing! What made you decide to compete in the Men’s Physique Division?
Thank you, my first show I’ve ever competed in was bodybuilding at NPC Contra Costa 2011 placing 5th in novice middleweights. I’m a drug free athlete, and although it was my only first show, I immediately knew It was going to be tough to compete in this sport. Men’s physique was then announced, and I felt it catered to all athletes, especially drug free competitors.
Joining us today is IFBB Pro Collin Humphrey. 
Congrats on a great showing and earning your card! What made you decide to compete in the Men’s Physique Division?
Well I first got introduced to the NPC and IFBB about 3 years ago. I was training hard in the gym and figured why not just compete; I was putting the work in anyways. So I might as well do something with it. It seemed like every time I tried to do a body building show something would come up, until men’s physique came around. I was excited and thought that men’s physique was perfect for me! I Made the decision in March to compete and never looked back..
Everyone 
who’s dieted for a show knows that when it’s crunch time we stick to the basics in terms of “diet foods”. A lot of us are on low carbs and it’s hard to be creative. I stumbled upon this recipe and integrated it right into my contest prep. It is a simple Ultra-Low carb pancake mix. Most people put oatmeal into their protein pancake, which works if we want the carbs. But what do we do if we are depleting?? Should we be deprived of a great breakfast? NO!
The recipe calls for:
It
has become very common for everyone from the Average Joe to Bodybuilders to do low intensity cardio or even to run to burn extra calories and lose weight. This can cause joint and muscle injuries from the repetitive movement and mass amounts of time spent performing the activity. The solution to this problem is another effective method of cardiovascular conditioning – Sprint Training.
Every
day, 90% of Americans ingest trimethylxanthine. It’s become our society’s drug of choice and it’s completely legal! It’s even considered good for you by many? How do you get it? Run down to your local convenience store and buy yourself a cup of coffee.
A 
significant and often unmeasured amount of time, energy and money goes into prospecting a new client. Suppose you are a modeling talent who is marketing yourself towards a fitness magazine. You send them materials (which involves you spending the time to develop the materials, finding the person to which you will submit said materials, building that relationship, printing out all the materials, shipping the materials, and so on) to advertise who you are and what you can do for them. This process can be ongoing for days, weeks, months, even years before you could have the opportunity to do a project for them (in this case be featured in their magazine).
This weekend we are looking at only the second ever MP PRO show to hit the stage. The
NPC and IFBB were quite wise to establish the Men’s Physique Division. However, it is the baby of the bunch amongst divisions (alongside Women’s Physique) and will endure growing pains for a period of time before standards are clearly defined. The newly minted IFBB Men’s Physique Pros have the opportunity to legitimize and strengthen the division not only by how they continue to condition their bodies, but also by how they conduct themselves within the IFBB and how they choose to brand themselves within the mainstream.
Since I 
became sponsored by Pharmafreak, I have been asked repeatedly how to apply the Hybrid “Ripped Freak” Fat Burners or any Fat Burner for that matter to the daily grind. Here is a great example of a day in the life of the Freak Lifestyle!!!
6am –
Multi Vitamin
1g-3g CLA
5,000IU Vitamin-D3 (Liquid Best)
*Ripped Freak Cap
Often 
times in Life so many of us get caught up on focusing on all of the things that we do NOT have, what OTHERS have, our WEAKNESSES, etc… Yet, by doing this it frequently leads us further away from what we really want in the end. We certainly must focus on Personal Growth, but it ultimately needs to be reasonable and constructive in order to influence Our Lives POSITIVELY. Dwelling and focusing on the Negative will only bring more Negative! For a Great Article on Goal Setting, be sure and Check Out My Previous Article; http://www.rxmuscle.com/blogs/the-life-inspiration-and-dedication/4962-purpose-driven-training.html
Modeling 
for the first time can be a bit daunting, especially during fitness shoots in which your physique is being prominently displayed. However, there are some guidelines and tricks to make the experience a pleasant one and one in which you can maximize the chances of producing strong images. The single-most important thing is to follow the photographer’s lead with posing, since prominent fitness photographers have developed considerable skill in posing the human body in the most flattering manner possible. This doesn’t mean that your work isn’t cut out for you, but the following posing tips will become easier over time as you are asked to do more shoots. It’s actually a good idea to practice modeling poses in front of a mirror so that you can more clearly assess how your body looks in certain poses.
When 
a company (or even a photographer) posts a casting call online it could be saying a few things.
1 – They are looking for a plethora of options
2 – They don’t have time to scour the internet and comp cards to find someone
3 – They are also looking to extend their brand to additional prospects
Whatever the case may be, your role as a modeling talent is to make the job of the person doing the casting (whether it is an agent, photographer or other) as easy as possible.
“Absorb 
what is useful. Discard what is not. Add what is uniquely your own.” ~ Bruce Lee
As our sport goes through the growing pains of any new category there should be an expectation of constant change until the “ideal” physique has been determined. Unfortunately, many athletes refuse to adapt to the changes and instead want to believe their perception of “ideal” is the benchmark all should go by. So rather than face the fact that maybe they have some improvements to make they take the easy route and claim they lost because of politics or that the judges simply have no clue what they’re doing.
One 
of my favorite methods for hitting Chest is my “Summer Reps” set style. I will typically choose a weight that I can rep 6 clean with. I will then drop the weight about 10lbs until I am able to complete 4 sets. Increasing the reps by 1 until the final set I will go for 15 (i.e. Flat Bench – 195x6, 185x7, 175x8, 165x15). Keeping the tempo non-stop.
Applying this type of resistance to your Chest encourages large amounts of Hypertrophy. Here is an example of my chest day using this format –
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