Our athlete Rory Golden is going to compete this year and we have decided to follow his journey. A diary from start to finish, 18 weeks out until stepping on stage.
Rory Golden - The Prep files
18 weeks out.
Start of the 2019 season has started. This will be the 3rd year competing in a row and the 2nd year in bodybuilding. The journey last year was unreal and very challenging at times. It opened my eyes to the requirements behind the scenes that no-one sees. The regimented cardio every morning, the same 6 meals every day which slowly decrease week by week. The weight sessions when you’re tired and depleted. All these aspects add up to the moment stepping on stage and with having no regrets during your prep.
This week all these thoughts came back to me, even being this far out from the show I know what will lie ahead in the upcoming weeks. This just excites me to get deep in the trenches and bring the best package possible. I’ve recently changed gym to take myself out of my normal comfort zone and to be tested in every gym session I undergo from now till show day. This was something that I lacked last year by training at my place of work. Last year my cardio and diet were done to the dot from every minute to every gram. This is a required aspect from anyone, not just me and nothing else is expected other than everything being done perfectly with no shortcuts. So I knew I needed to change something else in order to be better, so the change of gym to an old school bodybuilding environment will keep me more focused and hungry while learning and always enjoying the process of pushing myself to the limit every day.
Nothing has changed this week other than 20 minutes of cardio post workout and the mindset. By the mindset, I mean not having the flexibility that I would normally have in the offseason to do certain things. I don’t want to get into the habit of slipping up in any parts of training/diet/cardio even this far out. Being this far out isn’t the point, it’s being able to switch on and get the correct mindset and knowing small details behind the scenes will make all the difference as they all add up. The current training split has carried on from my offseason (push,pull,legs,push,pull,legs,rest). This split worked very well purely from the fact of being able to focus on more compound movements twice a week adding good muscle tissue which was lacking last year. Along with training like this, I’ve dialled in on my recovery more. Using certain supplements like L-glutamine/whey protein / super greens and BCAA’S from Pharma Fitness. Also making sure I sleep more and getting the basics right.
So coming to the end of the first week the main focus is getting the mindset right as everything else is slow moving. Enjoying the process and looking forward to what lies ahead in the coming weeks.
