Gymrat’s Weblog

Hardbody Entertainment (launced in mid 2005) is the new partner that will head the production for the television pay-per-view, post-event DVD:s and live webcasts from Olympia Weekend (webcast apparently won’t cover the main Olympia-competitions - see wording below). In April 2006 the following was posted on Hardbody’s website:

“Hardcore Olympia fans who can’t make it to Vegas in late September will still have some of the best seats in the house! Stay tuned for more details about the 2006 Olympia Worldwide Webcast that will be filled with behind-the-scenes coverage, up close and personal interviews, expo hall, arena events and Hardbody’s World’s Fittest Model Search Finale!”

The first tangiable production so far (besides some flash websites*) is the three minute sneak preview video for FLEX Magazine 2006 Swimsuit Issue Behind-The-Scenes Special. The programme is aimed at television and home video and is “currently under production”.

The preview doesn’t convince me that Hardbody Entertainment has what it takes to produce a solid live webcast. It lacks pizzazz… With sexy female athletes in really small pieces of clothing, how can you go so wrong!?! The preview has nothing like the come-hither looks that’s present in IronMan’s Sexy Swimsuit Spectaculars. Here a couple of DVD covers from bodybuilding.com - see what I mean?

All who have been watching the live webcasts bodybuilding.com has put on knows that it takes several attempts, with trial and error (and cursing), to get things remotely working.This years webcast better be free (as in beer) - some errors in such a webcast fans can forgive. But if they are promised an excellent production and it doesn’t work out… All hell breaks loose on the discussion forums. Ehm, the forums seem even more hellish than usual I mean.

In the beginning of 2006 BODY Magazine included a DVD with the magazine, it had hour long version of the events at the two day fair/expo FitnessFestivalen 2005 in Gothenburg. The DVD isn’t anything advanced, but still, the amount of work that goes into making it… The editor who produced the DVD brought his powerful computer, sound equipment and editing software to our office. The final editing process took no more than two days, thanks to the 15+ years of experience the editor had.

Here’s the DVD-trailer of the many events and competitions at FitnessFestivalen 2005 (with a short history introduction):

* hardbodyentertainment.net, rtpstore.com, roadtothepros.com, myroadtothepros.com, and fitmodelsearch.com.

If you live in UK, France or Germany, you can enter a sweepstake to win a trip to 2006 Mr. Olympia! Visit Flex UK, Flex France, and Flex Germany respectively:

“On September 30th 2006 Mr. Olympia, the world’s greatest bodybuilding competition, takes place in America’s capital city of fun, Las Vegas, and you could be there too! Prize draw hosted by TrioNutrition, BSN and FLEX. The prize:

• 2 return flights to Las Vegas from a suitable airport nearest to the winners home address
• 1 twin/double room a the Orleans Hotel and Casino, Las vegas
• 2 tickets to the Mr. Olympia Competition
• 2 invitations to the BSN after show party plus autographed pictures of Ronnie Coleman, Triple H, and Monica Brant.”

The two hosts for the online radio show ‘Pro Bodybuilding Weekly‘ will also be hosting the 2006 Olympia Press Conference:

“The annual event, which serves as the official kickoff to the Olympia Weekend, is scheduled for Thursday, September 28th in Las Vegas. As the media and fans gather, PBW hosts Dan Solomon & Bob Cicherillo will moderate the panel of Olympia athletes, including Ronnie Coleman as he looks to make history with a record 9th consecutive Olympia crown.”

But most important of all, will Bob Cicherillo be able to trump his pimpin’ shirt from last years Olympia?

Randall J. Strossen, IronMind, got an update from Swedish Strongman Magnus Samuelsson, and publishes this report:

“Weighing 153 kg at the moment, the tremendously popular World’s Strongest Man winner Magnus Samuelsson said that his back is recovering and he looking forward to competing in this year’s MET-Rx World’s Strongest Man contest, which would be his eleventh appearance in the WSM competition.

Known for having the world’s strongest arms and grip, among other things, Samuelsson is quite a bench presser, as well, and as an indication of his current strength levels, the 1998 World’s Strongest Man winner said he would have no hesitation about going for a 300-kg bench press on a stage in front of thousands of people - no shirt, just touch and go.”

We all know ExRx.net is the most solid resource for strength training exercises, anatomy - and well, everything exercise related. Now Justin Leonard, leonardfitness.com, seems to be developing a web resource much like ExRx.net:

“Coming soon: Workoutz.com - the largest collection of online instructional exercise photos and video demonstrations.

• The largest collection of exercise photos and video demonstrations ever assembled
• 100% FREE, no membership required
• Specialized videos - athletic performance, home workout, stretching, and more
• Ability to select exercise “target area”
• Choose exercises based on fitness and skill level”

The website that covers news as it becomes available related to the murder of Melissa James, titusandryan.com, writes about a new property owned by the Vegas couple:

“The house that was occupied by Mandy Polk and her boyfriend is up for sale. The house was owned by Kelly Ryan and rented to them before Titus and Ryan were arrested.”

• Like New Two Story Home
• Built in 2005
• Approx. 1,812 sq. Ft.
• 3 Bedrooms + Loft, 2 ½ Baths
• Attached 2 Car Garage
• Upgraded Carpet & Tile
• Island & Granite Countertops
• Formal Dining Room
• Lots of Windows w/ Upgraded Window Covering

Powerlifting Watch (which I’ve written about and recommended recently) goes to the bottom with Powerlifting Pickup Lines:

“So here’s the scenario, you’re at a meet and see someone that strikes your fancy. What do you say? That’s the subject of a thread over at Fortied Iron. Warning: Not so subtle innuendo, intended for mature audiences.”

Overweight teens at risk of developing diabetes can prevent (or atleast delay) its onset if they lift weights regularly according to an USC study:

“Research led by Michael Goran, PhD, professor of preventive medicine in the Keck School of Medicine of USC, showed that overweight Latino teenage boys who lifted weights twice per week for 16 weeks significantly reduced their insulin resistance, a condition in which their bodies don’t respond to insulin and can’t process sugars properly. Insulin resistance is common in obese children and is a precursor of diabetes. The findings were published in the July issue of Medicine and Science of Sports Exercise.”

Omar Deckard wins USA Overall; Mike Ergas takes second pro card. Heather Policky takes the female pro bodybuilding card, and Simone Douglas the pro figure card.

FLEXOnline.com reports that Omar Deckard wins the 2006 NPC USA overall (scroll down to bottom of report for FLEX traditional full prejudging galleries).

Photographer Bill Comstock, Graphic Muscle, has posted photos from USA Bodybuilding & Figure Championships. He writes that this year saw the toughest competitions yet:

“I’m back from Vegas and what a great show it was at the USA this year. In the lightheavyweight and heavyweight classes alone, there were roughly 30 competitors in each class. This was absolutely the most competitive and toughest classes at this level I have ever shot. I’ve posted complete coverage of the “elimination rounds” for each of these classes during prejudging which then cut the classes down to the top 15. You will get to see every competitor in these classes pose during these rounds.”

Iron Man Magazines Lonnie Teper and Ruth Silverman has video and audio reports online from 2006 USA Bodybuilding & Figure Championships.

Hard Fitness Online Magazine now has over 1000 photos from 2006 NPC USA’s Figure and Female Bodybuilding Championships!

GeneX Online Magazine reports that Heather Policky (her blog) joins the pro bodybuilding ranks. Heather indicated that her first pro show would be IFBB Europa Pro Super Show, 25-26 August, Dallas, Texas. Simone Douglas in joins the pro figure circuit. Results and pictures from GeneX, and HardFitness USA’s Figure and Women’s Bodybuilding Photos and Results are posted on Muscle Mayhem. FitSights promises to update his blog posting from the USAs regularly.

Weird News Today writes about a new book on the problem of male breast size:

“Merle Yost, a psychotherapist, has written “Demystifying Gynecomastia: Men With Breasts“. In it, he reports that up to one-third of males may have to deal with this problem at some time, because of the increased use of anti-depressants and the obesity epidemic.

What got him motivated to write this book is all the public interest he got on his website. He posted a page about gynecomastia on his therapy practice website, and is apparently getting a lot of traffic to it.” The full press release for the book can be found at prnewswire.com.

CalorieLab Calori Counter News writes about the issue in a post called “Obesity contributes to man boob epidemic“:

“We can add one more medical side effect to the lengthy list of problems associated with obesity: “man boob syndrome” (MBS), or pseudo gynecomastia, a condition in which the breasts of obese men become enlarged and flabby. Increasingly, victims are seeking a surgical solution.”

The Bodybuilding Professor, Roland S Persson, PhD, posted this amusing (and true) list of size troubles in his blog some weeks ago:

You know you have finally made it to bodybuilderdom and become quite muscle bound…

• …when your shirt unintentionally bursts open the first time.
• …when clothing shops do not have your sizes anymore.
• …when unknown people ask how much you bench press.
• …when people turn around in the street to stare at you.
• …when you cannot scratch your neck.
• …when the bar won’t come all the way down to your chest anymore.
• …when you wear out pants in a matter of weeks because of inner thigh friction.
• …when you cannot reach the opposite shoulder to shave.
• …when you cannot undress a tight shirt without assistance.
• …when your feet turn flat because of your weight.
• …when your shopping cart is filled with as much as possible of a few things.
• …when unknown men and women come running across the street asking to feel your arms.
• …when your food bills exceed your clothing bills.
• …when you have sacks or piles of tubs of protein visible in your kitchen.
• …when you need to apply vaseline between your thighs when walking in shorts.
• …when you have no choice but to wear gym clothes at work.
• …when you must sleep on your back in bed.
• …when sex in a bed from IKEA becomes doubtful.
• …when you need two bus seats or aircraft seats when travelling.
• …when you bring food and protein drinks with you at all times.
• …when the table in front of you squeaks and cracks as you merely rest one arm on it.
• …when people declare you a brainless musclehead but simultaneously can’t hide how much they want you for sex.
• …when you no longer fit behind the steering wheel of European city traffic cars.
• …when fellow passengers scream at the air stewardess: I don’t bloody want to sit next to HIM!
• …when fellow professionals ask if you have added “bouncing” to your other qualifications.
• …when you without thinking about it bounce your pex and flex your arms in public.
• …when you change your sounds and vocabulary in the gym doing 600+ lbs squatting.
• …when you spend a good part of the day in the bathroom … reading.
• …when butt-whiping becomes an effort in terms of reach.
• …when you shy away from the word “small”.
• …when one of your turnons is muscle soreness.
• …when you know more about physiology and pharmacology than your family doctor.
• …when food becomes function rather than pleasure.
• …when your shadow provides sunshelter for at least two people.
• …when you can’t help looking like jumbojet taking off with lats forcing your arms outwards.
• …when you have to go through many doors sideways and can give up the thought of heeding Nature’s Call on board an aircraft or a train.
• …when you walk like you have wet yourself.

Arizona Daily Star reports a strongman feat that possibly saved a life:

“A hefty bystander at a road accident in southern Arizona heaved a car clean off a trapped teenage cyclist, possibly saving his life, police said on Friday. Eighteen-year-old Kyle Holtrust was struck by a car as he pedaled along a Tucson highway late on Wednesday and pinned beneath it, city police said.

Tucson paintshop worker Tom Boyle, who is 6 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 300 pounds, grabbed the Chevrolet Camaro car and lifted it, allowing the driver to haul the injured cyclist clear. “He lifted that side of the car completely off the ground,” police spokesman Frank Amado told Reuters by telephone.”

Mark Memmotts blog posting on this story has many comments about the feat.

Tucson Citizen has more in an article called: ‘Rescuer says traffic victim real hero‘:

“Boyle said his wife told him he was holding up the car for about 45 seconds. He doesn’t know who pulled the teen out. While waiting for an ambulance, Boyle held the teen, rubbed his head and told him everything would be OK.”

The Godfather of Fitness, Jack LaLanne, has three children; stepdaughter Yvonne LaLanne, 61, a chiropractor; stepson Danny Doyle, 58, a photographer; and son Jon LaLanne, 45, who runs a pool maintenance business and leads the band Blowgun. Now World Entertainment News Network reports that Jon got fired by Britney Spears:

“Britney Spears has sacked the hired help who used to clean the pool at her Malibu, California mansion - because he became too friendly with her husband, according to US reports. Jon LaLanne claims chatting to Kevin Federline got him fired - because Spears feared he was only out to get information about her family.

Now, angry LaLane is firing back after his dismissal, telling American magazine In Touch his former boss can’t stand the thought of anyone talking to Federline without her permission. The fired 45-year-old says, “I was hanging out a little bit and she came out screaming at Kevin for lying around, then looked at me like I was to blame… She wants Kevin on a leash.”

In related news, Britney Spears recently got an apology from National Enquirer:

“The National Enquirer has issued a rare retraction and apology today for publishing stories about the impending divorce of Britney Spears and Kevin Federline. The retraction comes after Spears sued the tabloid, and a settlement requiring the retraction, with no cash damages, was reached.”

Chief Executive of National Enquirer? David Pecker, CEO of American Media Inc., which publishes Muscle & Fitness, Flex, Muscle & Fitness Hers. Magazines that are on the auction block. Magazines that AMI got when they spent $350 million to acquire Weider Publications in 2002.

Via several forums and blogs:

1. For a few days each year your toilet seat is brown and this time it aint the husbands fault.
2. You can honestly say you have spent more on a bathing suit than your wedding dress.
3. Six inch clear hooker heels is your footwear of choice in your own home (and not just in the bedroom).
4. Someone asks about the man in your life and you tell that Gym is fine!
5. You have two sections in your wardrobe. Contest and Offseason. And they arent mix and match. (Rae’s note: not with my coach it isn’t… there is no off-season… LOL!!)
6. Your top three priorities on any given day:
   A. Workout.
   B. Eat. Clean.
   C. Check the fitness forum board.
   Not necessarily in that order.
7. You can name any pro figure competitor by seeing her butt alone.
8. When someone wants to take your picture, you immediately spread your lats, tighten every muscle in your body, point your fingers and SMILE!
9. You take more pills daily than your 80 year old grandmother.
10. Your idea of dressing up is taking your hair out of the pony tail its been in for a week.
11. If you have had someone close to you, hide food from you in your own house.
12. An easy day is lifting and only 1 cardio session.
13. Instead of carrying a Gucci pursue you accessorize with a Coleman cooler.
14. Waking up so sore you can barely move puts a smile on your face.
15. You cant do any work because you are to busy counting down the seconds until your next meal!!!!!!!!!
16. The faint smell of Pro Tan gets your heart pumping faster than your man’s cologne.
17. You leave a little trail of Splenda packets, tupperware, and empty water bottles everywhere you go.
18. Your hubby makes you pee in the guest bathroom because every meal includes asparagus.
19. You consider Beano an essential part of your supplement regimen.
20. Your jaws are sore because you can’t stop chewing sugar free gum!
21. You spend at least 5 minutes grilling your server at arestaurant, and another five minutes re-writing the menu until you’ve got a meal that meets your diet’s specifications…and then you devour it in less than 60 seconds flat!!
22. You consider a day when you only have to make ONE trip to the gym a luxury!
23. You think about having “relaxed hands” and sticking your butt out while standing in line at the grocery store. (Hey, a girl’s gotta practice her posing!!!)
24. You consider condiments and diet coke taboo!!!
25. And…your neighbors start gossiping that you’ve had lipo cause there is no way a girl could get that fit in 12 weeks!

IFBB Fitness Professional Julie Lohre’s DVD ‘Ultimate Posing Guide for Fitness & Figure‘ has recently been released. The DVD is region free, and in it you can take part of Julie’s advice from her personal experience competing in 13 shows. Also, for posing advice in person, check out Julie’s blog, which lists dates for her Posing Clinics.

“Great posing can make the difference between winning the show and missing out on a top five placing. To be competitive, you MUST have great posing technique. In this video, you will learn:

• What the Judges are looking for
• Step by step instruction for the mandatory poses
• Multiple options for the relaxed pose
• Tips to make your presentation unique & perfect for YOUR body
• Actual contest footage, along with tons of photos of IFBB Pros & National Level NPC competitors, including quarter turns & presentation
• Posing practice sessions along with me”