If you think that you’re going to be a Pro in the next 6 months, I have a cruel and jarring reality for you….you most likely will not be. That’s the good news! The bad news is that the feeling you are feeling right now after reading that is the strongest thing you have and will motivate you to become a Pro. If this does not sound appetizing to you, than pick a different sport, because there are very few athletes or competitors that just “walked on” an amateur and “walked off” an IFBB Pro. Ask any IFBB Pro and they will tell you the trials and tribulations they had to overcome and the dedication it takes...
is no easy road! It's all about making the lifestyle changes necessary in order to achieve the results you want. You have to decide how badly you really want to make the changes and then put the effort & hard work into getting it done.
You must realize results will not come overnight. This is going to take consistency and dedication. That's why it's more important that you change your lifestyle and not just go on a diet or try some other quick solution. Your goal should be results that are going to last a lifetime and make you a healthier person...
![Paramount_logo[1]](http://rxmuscle.com/images/stories/Mens%20Physique/NicholasVerdi/Paramount_logo%5B1%5D.jpg)
amazing opportunities to enhance our careers or move forward, entering a new level. However, we all know that with elevated success comes great responsibility, energy and time commitment. We must embrace the challenges and do our best to manage our schedules. Great opportunities do not come around every day so we must take risks in order to move forward in life. Over the next few weeks I will be faced with a difficult challenge. I must find a way to balance my responsibilities with the Slim&FIT, the franchise I am helping build across the country and the stunt work I have recently been hired for by Paramount Pictures...
that weren’t there a year ago, or a bit of sagging in the skin on your cheeks and jawline. Alas, this is all a part of aging. However, we all know how much our personal appearance is scrutinized when we are up on stage. To remedy the age-related changes which can creep up, there are a number of options available...
has a profound effect on the end result. Simply waking up and heading to the gym sans adequate grub could and probably will make your workout basically worthless. Our bodies need to be properly fueled and when and what to eat is an art and a science. Assuming we all know about complex versus simple carbs, proteins, and fats, let's take a moment to make certain that we are taking in the proper foods to prep for a hard lift. First off, I recommend a good complex carbohydrate rich meal the night before any large lift, especially legs. Due to the amount of energy required to digest complex carbs, eating pastas and rices the night before is an awesome way to get that full feeling the next morning and the energy built up to begin that lift. Otherwise, we wake up feeling empty and the time it takes for foods to kick in may be too late for your workout. Eating brown rices, multi grain pasta, wheat bread, and even white rice (just contains more sugar), will prep your body for the morning lift. Then, once the athlete wakes up, some simpler sugars like a piece of fruit and and maybe some light carbs like a bowl of cereal is optimal. I, on occasion, will eat an English muffin with some natural peanut butter. Again, this can get tricky as the key to a good workout is to basically slow the digestive system down so energy can be put toward the workout. Warming up adequately also slows it down considerably...
IFBB Men’s Physique Competitors Dean Fazzolari. Congrats on a great showing and earning your IFBB Card! What made you decide to compete in the Men’s Physique Division? Thank you Ian, it was a 24/7 commitment but worth every minute of it. I started off just bouncing in a club, and I was approached by a fellow bouncer who told me about the Physique Class that is being introduced to the NPC. Now, he had my attention. He explained what it would entail and then I was fortunate enough to be introduced to Dan Hawtin from G-Force. Dan saw my potential for being a Pro in this division. He took me under his wing, welcomed me to the team and put me to work every day while monitoring my diet and figure while he and the rest of the team gave their full support. I trained for my first show 10 days out....
and in working with a wide variety of athletes, I frequently talk about different training splits. With other athletes, I have found we have a similar philosophy….whether they are long distance runners, professional mountain bikers, or my favorite bodybuilding/physique athletes. I find the most successful athletes focus on training splits and the appropriate amount of rest between workouts.
For example, the following is the training split I use most often during the off-season. This training schedule helps me add size, works best for me, and I trust it will be helpful for you as well...
anyone involved in living a very health oriented lifestyle one thing is predominant in our daily diet…and that is protein. However, until recently, I didn’t know just how detrimental to muscle building one of the sources I was taking in could be. 
By: Emily Zaler Author of The EZ Whey Cookbook
As Seen in Oxygen Magazine August 2011
Who would think you would be able to enjoy “cookie dough” or baked cookies while eating clean? Well with this recipe you now can! With these simple ingredients you can create a delicious treat that fits right in to your meal plan. High in protein, and balanced with both moderate carbohydrates and healthy fat, this recipe is going to help keep you right on track towards your goals of dropping fat and increasing lean muscle mass.
the cover of the April 2004 domestic issue of Men’s Fitness magazine. I guess I didn’t realize it at the time, but that was kind of unique & remarkable, especially now that Men’s Fitness typically only puts celebrities on their covers. More commonly, fitness models tend to work their way up to landing a national fitness-magazine cover by appearing on several e-magazine or catalog covers first before they’re even considered for a national magazine cover-try. Yet there I was, inexperienced and naïve somehow landing Men’s Fitness as my first cover! Was it because I was a genetic Adonis? Was I simply lucky? Was it because I was persistent & a proactive self-promoter? The answer to all these questions was NO! Obviously I had the ‘look’ necessary to appear on a fit-mag cover, but so did several thousand other guys. So what set me apart from all of them?
with GINGER SOY SAUCE.
you see working out in the gym want to have great abdominal muscles. Achieving a six pack is one of the most sought after goals by individuals of all ages and body types. It's become pretty common knowledge that having and displaying great abdominals is primarily related to your nutrition habits. Although proper training of the abdominals does play an important role as well, so that when you have shed enough body fat for them to be visible there is actually muscle to be seen.
You can go into most gyms and watch people that train their abdominals and a common trend will usually emerge. Abdominals are usually trained with a large number of fast repetitions. I personally believe when it comes to getting great abdominals the old saying couldn't be more true "Quality over quantity." I don't feel that you need to perform sets of 100's of reps to produce quality abdominal muscle. In fact I believe that when you perform high volume sets like that you more often than not tend to actually shift focus away from your abdominals...
Do you ever notice how many times in life
we feel like the world is against us and our backs are up against what seems to be an immovable wall? We feel that we will never get out of our current situation and wonder what it is that we have done or not done to end up here? Yet there are those moments that we feel like we are soaring above it all and will never come down no matter what is brought up against us?..
I first became interested in bodybuilding 
when I first saw Arnold almost three decades ago in “Conan the Barbarian”. To me, he exemplified the ideal male physique. The perfect proportions, nothing too monstrous, at least not by today’s bodybuilding standards with everything symmetrically perfect in harmony.
By the time I was in my late twenties I’d reached a body weight of 315 lbs. as I was trying to “keep up with the Jones’” in the new age of bodybuilding. Seemingly gone were the body types I’d looked up to, the Schwarzennegers’, Zanes’, or even later, the Bob Paris’, or the Barry Demay’s were only the things of the past. In this “new” age of bodybuilding those physiques wouldn’t even get a top 10 call out.
and now you want to know what you need to do to improve. How do you go about deciding what to change? Do you ask the judges for advice and how do you take that advice and use it to improve for your next show?
First I would recommend not asking your friends. 90% of your friends are going to tell you that you should have won and you looked perfect. The first person I recommend asking is your contest prep coach since you have put your trust into them to lead you in the proper direction. If they are a good coach it’s in their best interest to help you improve and to be brutally honest with you...
You may not know this but fitness modeling
is VERY hard work. We are often bringing thousands of dollars of camera equipment into some of the most inhospitable places, not to mention bringing models that don’t know what to expect, placing them in the most awkward settings. Now here’s where the fun begins.
In this photo, we have a great model poised for the camera, ready to make a kind of grungy urban shot. What you don’t realize is that our location is in the back of a downtown nightclub behind the dumpsters. Our model is standing barefoot on a series of rusty pipes that run the length of the building. To make matters worse, the overpowering smell of urine is causing our valiant model to gag between shots. In addition he has to keep balancing himself against the dumpster which is also making an attempt to challenge the urine for which is more gross...
The number one thing I am ask is for “diet tips” 
secrets of the game. I think most are looking to hear about a magic pill or specific workout that does the trick. Well… neither of them exist. It’s always a matter of balanced diet and proper training. I do however believe we can do a better job at the things we are doing that we don’t sometimes consider as important. Here are a few tips I have my athletes do that have seemed to make a difference in the things they are already doing. The key is “thermogenesis” not to be confused with supplements that contain “thermogenics.” Thermogenesis is directly related to the metabolic rate. When the core temperature of the body is increased, the metabolism is stimulated, which ultimately causes the body to use stored fat cells to support the additional energy output.
Where can this help you in your day to day routine? Here is a short list of ways to implement this in the things you are already doing:
one’s body. On the other hand, Men’s physique is just that a physique contest. While the merits of both can be argued and believe me they have been. I wanted to touch on one aspect of training that may seem small and obscure but speaks volumes when achieving one’s goals in the different divisions of the NPC and IFBB. 
not having the same kick that it used to? I get asked all the time what fat burners and pre-workout I use. People are usually surprised to find that I not only take ¼ to ½ of the recommended dosage, but that I use several different products and cycle their usage.
Just like your body will get accustomed to the same workouts, your body will get accustomed to the same supplements, especially when they are of the stimulant variety.
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