Results from IFPA Pro International
September 28, 2011 by Ryan Irwin · Leave a Comment
Last weekend was the climax of 18 weeks of dieting and year round training as I hit the stage for the IFPA Pro International in Kansas City. I knew going in that this would be one of the toughest contests I have been in and it didn’t disappoint.
There were 12 of us in the lightweight men class from all over the US and Canada. I weighed in at 151.5, which was 10lbs heavier than my last contest (July ’10) but I was still one of the lightest onstage. I was very pleased with this increase in mass (mainly in legs/back) which I attribute to my powerlifting training. However, my conditioning wasn’t as razor sharp as it needs to be to place at this level. There were a couple factors that attributed to this, which I recognize and will improve for next time (color being one of them).
I am now reverse dieting, slowing bringing my nutrient intake up to allow for my metabolism to increase without gaining a bunch of bodyfat. This actually requires more discipline than the regular diet in my opinion as the contest it will affect is a year away. However, champions are made in the off season (in fact one would say there is no “off season”).
A big thank you to my amazing wife, Mandee who I could do none of this without her love and support. Also to my training partners, Cody Nour and Mike Beiter, who push me past my limits and was there through all the workouts. Cindy McGuire at Hands On Sports Massage and Dr. Tyler Molstre at True Life Chiropractic, which both helped my recovery tremendously and kept me injury free. Finally, Scivation for all their support and supplementation on my journey.
My next goal is back to powerlifting. I am again going to be competing at the Raw Challenge at the Arnold Sport Festival in March of 2012, and will be doing the USAPL meet in Freemont, NE as a warm up in December. By staying strong through my contest prep, I am looking to smash my previous personal records (PRs) this year. You can follow my training blog here.
Below are some pictures of prejudging and finals, along with my posing routine.
Side intercostal
Front double bicep
Rear double bicep
Side chest
For questions on training, precontest coaching or meal planning, email ryan at: ryan@nutrisportfpt.com
Nutri-Sport and Full Potential Training
9992 Swanson Blvd
Clive, IA 50325
www.nutrisportfpt.com
515.331.2141
Nutri-Sport East
4400 East University, Suite B (in the Lakeside Fitness building)
Pleasant Hill, IA 50327
515.266.2225
(soon to be at 1003 8th St SW, STE K in Altoona)
Supplement research-cordyceps for optimum oxygen utilization
August 25, 2011 by Ryan Irwin · Leave a Comment
In training one of the most common limiting factors is oxygen, as in how much we can take in and how much our body needs to function at full capacity. A supplement containing cordyceps is ideal for optimizing this factor by improving VO2 max.
What is cordyceps? Basically it is a fungi, which might sound gross to some, but dig deeper and see the benefits. As time passes and more studies are done, more of cordyceps positive research continue to come to light. In 1993 the Chinese Womens National Track Team use cordyceps to set nine world records three by staggering margins. In this country it’s been researched for it’s enhancement of energy production with applications in athletic performance and fatigue.
Which brings us to a product called Cordygen5.
Cordygen5 incorporates 100% organic highly concentrated extracts of five strains of and four species of cordyceps for maximum oxygen utilization, cellular energy,stamina and ATP production. These are the main aspects for sports nutrition we are interested in but there are other benefits as well and you can see the studies here. Cordygen5 oxygen utilization enhancing effects have been touted by many users as a natural, legal and effective alternative to EPO. It has been shown to increase ATP by 30% and up to 40% in oxygen utilization. It’s perfect for anyone you wants to increase their ATP but does not want to consume creatine.
Cordygen5
Cordygen5 is also ideal for anyone who is a non responder to creatine products, but still wants to reap the benefits. The added bonus is the tremendous increase in oxygen utilization that this product provides. It will allow all athletes both amateur or professional to break through their aerobic and anaerobic plateaus maximizing strength and endurance.
Lastly whether you’re a bodybuilder, power lifter, triathlete, cyclist, runner, swimmer, wrestler, basketball, baseball, of hockey player you’ll maximize your performance with Cordygen5.
Pick up Cordygen5 and other sports nutrition supplements at either Nutri-Sport location.
Nutri-Sport and Full Potential Training
9992 Swanson Blvd
Clive, IA 50325
www.nutrisportfpt.com
515.331.2141
Nutri-Sport East
4400 East University, Suite B (in the Lakeside Fitness building)
Pleasant Hill, IA 50327
515.266.2225
(soon to be at 1003 8th St SW, STE K in Altoona)
Arnold Raw Challenge Powerlifting recap
March 10, 2011 by Ryan Irwin · 1 Comment
To sum up the IPF/USAPL Powerlifting Raw Challenge competition at the Arnold Sports Festival in on word would be: surreal. It was amazing to be in the warm up area with athletes from all over the world (Russia, Japan, Brazil, France, just to name some). The caliper of lifters there was top notch and I was honored to be in the same meet.
I flew in on Thursday 3/3 with my gear so I had all I needed. I competed in the 74 KG class (162.8 lbs). I weighed in at 159.9 Friday AM, which was almost 3lbs lighter than I wanted to be, but fear of coming in over and not having access to a scale (which I will remedy next time) caused this. We weighed in about 85 min before we started lifting so you don’t get a long time span to replenish if depleted.
Once I started warming up, I could tell I wasn’t feeling strong, but I kept plowing forward and didn’t want to psych myself out. On my last warm up squat (335) I had something happen the first time ever, I lost the bar off my back in the hole and it crashed down on the floor. Thankfully, I wasn’t injured but rather rattled. I quickly regrouped and got one more good squat in before I hit the platform. My first attempt with 358lbs went good, quick and easy (see video below) so I had hoped that I was in the zone. However on my 2nd attempt with 386lbs, I went down too deep. On my 3rd attempt, I took the same weight and while I got it (see below) I got called on depth.
On to bench, a bit disappointed but put the squats behind me. I opened with 276lbs, which was a solid opener (see video below). They have the same person lifting off for you, so if you have your normal training partner lift off for you, having someone different is a bit odd. Judging from squats, I knew that I wasn’t having my strongest day ever, so I lowered my 2nd attempt to 292lbs for a conservative weight. However, I couldn’t get it past the sticking point and was stuck with my opener as 3rd attempt was the same scenario.
At this point I was a bit deflated and started to worry about hitting my opener on deadlifts. However, I was pumping fluids all morning and by the time I got to my 3rd warm up attempt, I could tell I was feeling good again. I opened with 495, which flew up faster than it ever has. While that was the case, I still didn’t want to get too nuts as I didn’t want to repeat what happened on bench so I went with a modest 5lb PR over last meet and got 524lbs for my 2nd. In the video below, you can see it went up very well. Getting a 3rd attempt on deadlift is very tough and even a 5lb increase wasn’t happening today.
Overall, wasn’t satisfied with my performance, but I did get the highest deadlift in my class which is a great way to finish the meet. It was an amazing experience and loved every minute. The rest of the weekend equaled as I had the opportunity to meet Arnold Schwarzenegger and see many top athletes in the bodybuilding/powerlifting/fitness industry. I want to give a big shout out and thank you to my sponsors: Scivation, True Life Chiropractic and Hands On Sports Massage. Without these three, my body would not have held together! Also I want to thank my training partners Cody Nour and Mike Beiter, who pushed me to the limits!! Especially my wife Mandee who has always been there for me along every step of the journey. Next goal: IFPA International Bodybuilding competition in September at Kansas City!
First squat:
Third Squat attempt:
First bench:
First deadlift:
Second deadlift
Opportunity of a lifetime, meeting Arnold!
Nutri-Sport & Full Potential Training
9992 Swanson Blvd
Clive, IA 50325
515-331-2141
Nutri-Sport
4400 East University, Suite B (in the Fitness World East building)
Pleasant Hill, IA 50327
515-266-2225
Bodysculpting results, what it’s all about!
December 9, 2010 by Ryan Irwin · Leave a Comment
Any chance we get to brag up our clients we absolutely do!
We have mentioned Dee before but she has continued to progress. Since beginning our Bodysculpting program in March she has lost 78 pounds and reduced her bodyfat from 32.7% to 13.8%. Dee has also lost 27.75 inches around her hips and waist, reduced her thighs by 11 inches total.
In addition to making physical changes, her diet is improved considerably and we are working with her to continue to increase her metabolism and monitoring her intake with food logs.
Dee works out like a machine and is full of energy! We’ll stop rambling and let the pictures speak for themselves. If you or someone you know is interested in making positive life changes, please send them our way! Bodysculpting starts every 9 weeks.
Nutri-Sport & Full Potential Training
9992 Swanson Blvd
Clive, IA 50325
515.331.2141
www.nutrisportfpt.com
Reverse diet -harder than the regular thing?
August 14, 2010 by Ryan Irwin · Leave a Comment
It’s been just over one month since my last bodybuilding contest. Since that time I have been following what I like to call a “reverse diet”. After restricting nutrients and increasing cardio progressively for 15 weeks to achieve a bodyfat of 3.9%, one cannot quickly shift gears and go on a normal “full feed” overnight. This would lead to a very quick and efficient accumulation of bodyfat, which not only is undesirable, but will make getting ready for the next physique competition that much more difficult.
My goal is to compete in the IFPA Yorton Cup in November of 2011. This is one of the top professional natural bodybuilding contests in the world and I will need to bring my best package to date. In order to accomplish this, I am focusing on progressively increasing my muscle mass while controlling my bodyfat. This is where the reverse diet comes into play. I continue to follow a structured eating plan, however each week I slowly increase my intake to allow for my metabolism to increase, but still foster muscle and strength gains. For me, a 1/2 pound gain each week is the goal. While this sounds great, both myself and my clients will testify that this is more difficult than the actual precontest diet. The reason is simply that you only have a long-term goal to aim for and your self-discipline to keep from eating all the foods you shouldn’t (or overeating the good ones too).
So far my progress is going great. My bodyfat as of yesterday is 5.8% and I have gained 3.5lbs over my contest weight. Strength has continued to climb and I, along with the rest of Team Nutri-Sport, will be lifting at the Iowa State Fair Powerlifting meet next Sat. If you are interested in watching, it’s at the ABC/Budweiser stage on the 21st from 10-3.
I will continue to update with my progress as I continue my journey back to the pro natural bodybuilding stage. If you are interested in getting into the best possible condition (either just to get into shape or get onto stage) we can not only help get you there but also the critical adjustment period afterward to get to a maintainable condition.
Below is a video of guest posing at the NANBF ProBody Championships in July.
Keep training hard!
Ryan
Nutri-Sport & Full Potential Training
9992 Swanson Blvd
Clive, IA 50325
515-331-2141
www.nutrisportfpt.com
Supplement research results: D-Aspartic Acid increases testosterone naturally
July 7, 2010 by Ryan Irwin · Leave a Comment
Testosterone is the male sex hormone that is well know to be a primary driver for muscle growth. In the pursuit of increasing muscle mass and strength, finding safe and effective ways to boost these levels is usually a priority in men.
Recently, in a scientific study published in the journal of Reproductive Biology and endocrinology, there has been an amino acid that has been shown to naturally increase testosterone and luteinizing hormone (LH) levels in the body. D-Aspartic Acid was shown to increase testosterone by 40% and LH by 25% in males. This was done on healthy males aged 26-37 and are significant increases. (see study here).
Being able to increase hormone levels naturally and within safe levels without dangerous and temporary prohormones and steroids is obviously a very good thing. For males looking to naturally increase their testosterone levels without the negative side effects, look to this amino acid for a boost to your supplement stack.
Come in to Nutri-Sport for this new product and other supplements for scientifically proven ways to get the most out of your training.
“Results speak louder than actions and words!”
IFPA Natural Pro Bodybuilder Ryan Irwin
Nutri-Sport & Full Potential Training
9992 Swanson Blvd
Clive, IA 50325
www.nutrisportfpt.com
515-331-2141
9-week Bodysculpting program
May 31, 2010 by Ryan Irwin · 2 Comments
We have a lot of success over the past couple of years with our Bodysculpting program. This program is different than many of the “transformation” programs out there. Really Bodysculpting is more like personal training than it is group fitness. We keep the number of participants in the workouts small so we can better supervise and push everyone. Additionally, the workouts are always different, both in structure and equipment used. The intent is always the same: stimulate the muscle tissue and bodyfat loss. Additionally, we focus on nutrition and proper supplementation to optimize progress.
Below is a video that goes into detail and gives a visual:
Classes run Monday through Saturday with varying times. New sessions start up every four weeks, space is limited so contact us or stop in to get your spot reserved and get ready to “reach your full potential”!
Nutri-Sport & Full Potential Training
9992 Swanson Blvd
Clive, IA 50325
515-331-2141
www.nutrisportfpt.com
Nutri-Sport & Full Potential Training tip: Medicine ball pushups
March 30, 2010 by Ryan Irwin · Leave a Comment
There are many aspects to fitness: strength, cardiovascular, flexibility, balance, coordination, to name some. Today’s exercise hits on strength, flexibility, balance and coordination.
In the video below, David demonstrates medicine ball push-ups. This exercise directly hits the chest, shoulders and triceps. What really makes this a great exercise is that since you are using a med ball, it requires shoulder stabilization, plus one arm at a time helps develop balance between each side. Having to roll the ball back and forth requires coordination and focus, which are important especially in the athletic world.
Give this exercise a try at the end of your next chest workout.
Contact us here for more information on our personal training options. Helping clients reach goals such as weight loss, muscle gain, strength, athletic performance and healthy lifestyle.
Nutri-Sport & Full Potential Training
9992 Swanson Blvd
Clive, IA 50325
www.nutrisportfpt.com
515-331-2141
Nutri-Sport & Full Potential Training tip: disc split squats
March 9, 2010 by Ryan Irwin · 1 Comment
When training, it is important that you not only just do the exercise, but do it in proper form and emphasize the muscles that you want to target. In other words, don’t just lift weights, but “feel” the bodyparts working.
In this video, David demonstrates a great variation in the Nutri-Sport studio to the split squat on the smith machine that helps emphasize the quads and requires more balance and stability, all of which is great for athletes or just those looking for a way to shake up their workout.
Throw this exercise into your leg routine at your next workout to shake things up. For more information on our personal training in the Full Potential Training studio, click here.
Nutri-Sport & Full Potential Training
9992 Swanson Blvd
Clive, IA 50325
www.nutrisportfpt.com
515-331-2141
Nutri-Sport supplement tip -nutrition during training
January 13, 2010 by Ryan Irwin · Leave a Comment
In order to make the body adapt and change, one needs to do three primary things: stimulus (exercise/training), nutrition and recovery. If one of those three components is lacking, progress either won’t be made or will be slowed. While constantly changing one’s training is essential for continued growth and performance is important, rest and nutrition should always be a mainstay and fairly consistent.
One aspect of nutrition that many individuals overlook is during their training. It is critical to fuel the body throughout the day, especially what we call the four most important meals of the day (before/after training, breakfast and before bed). However, by ingesting specific key nutrients during your workouts, you can accelerate your recovery and progress big time!
A recent study published in the Journal of International Society of Sports Nutrition once again proves this. While pre and post workout nutrition is critical, one’s digestive system still needs to break down the foods before it can absorb the nutrients. Even a shake (which we recommend due to it’s quick absorption) takes time, so one should allow at least 30 min before workouts to allow for this process. During training, you don’t want to have solid food in your stomach as it could not only make you sick, but also makes your body pull blood and energy from your muscles while you want them to perform.
We recommend sipping on a mixture of simple carbohydrates and Branch Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) during training. This minimizes digestion, which gets the nutrients into your bloodstream and delivered to your muscles quickly, to begin the recovery process. Performance will be enhanced as well (especially if one is not taking full advantage of pre workout meals). As the research in this study shows, supplementing with this combo improves performance greatly over just drinking water. For recommend 2 Tbsp of dextrose (20 grams of carbs) and 2-4 scoops of Scivation Xtend, depending on your weight and intensity of the workout. Of course a sound post workout shake with the proper ratio of protein and carbs should be taken within 30 minutes to optimize growth and recovery.
Xtend from Scivation
Ryan Irwin, BS, CPT,
Certified Sports Nutrition Specialist
Nutri-Sport & Full Potential Training
9992 Swanson Blvd
Clive, IA 50325
515-331-2141
www.nutrisportfpt.com
