Meet the Man in The Shorts: Thomas Murphy

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Published on Monday, 09 December 2013 20:19

Written by Ian Lauer CSCS

There's a time and  place for everything, even "Little Debbies."

Congrats on a great showing!  What made you decide to compete in the Men’s Physique Division?

I needed a sport to compete in! Living and breathing the fitness lifestyle, I’ve always kept in relatively good shape and this was a perfect outlet to showcase my hard work.

Can you tell us a little about the show in which you most recently competed?

I competed in both Physique and Fitness at the Southern States show in Fort Lauderdale. It was an awesome show and well worth the drive to Florida! I had so much fun competing and met some invaluable contacts while I was down there, including the photographer Pat Lee, who I got the opportunity to shoot with after the show.

How did you feel after pre-judging?

After pre-judging I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. It was almost unbelievable that I had finally completed what I had been training so hard for in the past couple of months. I felt like a million bucks! And also like eating some Little Debbie snack cakes! LOL

How did you feel about the final results of the show?

I was very happy that I was going home with a trophy and a medal for placing 5^th in Fitness. Physique was a big class so I didn’t beat myself up too bad for not placing there. Overall, I felt like I had accomplished my mission!

What are your thoughts on the Men's Physique Division and what it may be able to do for your career?

I believe Men’s Physique is exploding and becoming very popular. I’m curious to see how the division ends up panning out since it seems some of the shows are getting too crowded. I believe that the Men’s Physique Division has already been a tremendous benefit to my career. Competing and placing in shows adds a certain amount of credibility, showing that I actually practice what I preach. Above and beyond training, I have found it to be an excellent platform to showcase the hard work I’ve been putting in for over 16 years now.

Age: 32

Hometown: Morgantown, WV (Home of WVU)

Current city: Atlanta

Years training: 16

Education: BBA Finance, Associates Recording Arts, CSCS, Pn1

Occupation: Currently pursuing acting and additional modeling work while building my TMT Systems brand.

Favorite type of training: Heavy and Intense / supersets. I’m a bodybuilder at heart. I love the dungeon gyms just as well as the upscale clubs. Fasted cardio and small muscle groups in a.m., large muscle groups in afternoon.

Favorite body part to train: LEGS… just kidding! Although I do hammer legs, my favorite parts to train are chest and biceps together.

Favorite exercise: Preacher curls

Rep range: Off season – Go hard or go home! 6-10 reps; Pre contest – Burn it up with 12-15 reps.

Number of sets: 4

Typical workout duration: 45 min-1 hour

Training split: Varies widely. It’s tough to keep a set routine due to me working out with my clients that I still train. In order to prevent overtraining, I have to alter my workouts to fit their routines. In a perfect world, my competition prep would look something like:

CHEST/BI/ABS – MON

LEGS/DELTS – TUE

BACK/TRI/ABS – WED

CARDIO/CALVES – THUR

OFF – FRI

REPEAT

Typical daily eating plan:

Egg Whites/ Lo Carb Pancakes/Powdered Greens/Syntha 6

Chicken / Brussel sprouts

Tilapia / Potatoes

Egg White Omelet w/ Veg

Turkey / Squash

Bison / Broccoli

Favorite supplement: Probably a tie between BSN Nitrix and Syntha 6

What peaked your interest in training?

My father was a physical therapist and I’ve always been around gyms. I think it’s just in my blood.

Patrick Hagedorn, my neighbor in college at MTSU used to work out with me every day and taught me the traditional bodybuilder split as well as basic nutrition. 

Who influences/influenced your training?

Marcel Babers convinced me to get my first personal training certification and work as a trainer.

Marwane was the first trainer I shadowed who really gave me a solid foundation as far as weight loss routines for 30-minute sessions. I had always been used to 1 hour bodybuilding workouts.

Tara and Chris Garvey convinced me to pursue fitness modeling and NPC competitions. They continue to support me in my efforts in modeling and acting.

Josh Jarmin, owner of The Bar talked me into my very first fitness competition.

Dex Martin also convinced me I had what it took to be competitive in this sport and gave me the guidance to get through my first NPC show prep, providing me with the knowledge and motivation only an experienced prep coach could give.

Sports: Boxing, Ice Hockey, Judo, Soccer

I’m interested in competing in Crossfit although I’m not a proponent of their workout structure. Again, this is just another sport to compete in related to working out.

Special interests: Shooting and editing workout videos. Check out my YouTube page: silencer24 / TMTSystems

Music Production… I used to run my own recording studio and one day will get another up and running. Music is what drives me and makes me feel alive! Social Media / SEO, Day Trading.

Physique, fitness, bodybuilding competition history: 

2013 NPC USA Coastal – 5^th in Physique

2013 NPC Southern States – 5^th in Fitness

2013 NPC Eastern Seaboard – 9^th in Physique

2012 KSU Iron Owl III – 1^st in class & 1^st Overall

Bench press of 405 / Deadlift 565 (weight 197)

2012 Atlanta Fall Fit Fest – 3^rd

2011 Atlanta Fall Fit Fest – 3^rd

2010 KSU Iron Owl I – 1^st in class

Bench press 370 / Deadlift 560 (weight 190)

Awards and/or accomplishments: I’ve been on a billboard in downtown Atlanta. :-D Have a song I produced on the movie “ATL” with T.I.

Next planned competition: Atlantic USA, March 15^th before Junior Nationals in May.

What keeps you on track towards reaching your goals? 

My fans reminding me that I am an inspiration to them. Seeing my past achievements also keeps me motivated to attain more.

My new, first, and only tattoo was designed to remind me of what Victory feels like.

Interesting fact or something you would like our readers to know about you: 

Outside of the gym I’m all smiles and laughs and a genuinely nice guy… inside, you might think I’m ready to kill something. That’s just how serious I take my training.

I was raised with morals and really dislike some of the vanity I see in this sport by those who let it go to their head. I intend to use my successes as a platform to be a good role model.

Contact Information: 

Instagram – TMTsystems

Facebook – ThomasMurphyNPC

Website – TomMurphyTraining.com

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