Word. What in the Sam hell happened to Mr. Canning?
Hey, Abraham. Long time, no talk.
I'll be back on Getbig when I get to the size and strength of the average Grtbigger, and the average body fat level [bench/squat/deadlift = 315/405/495 - these are minimums].
And under 15% body fat. I'm probably around 18% body fat now, and I do think I can drop that to somewhere below 15% as I stick to my diet, that I've been very strictly adhering too since June 30th, but will be taking it up a notch stricter.
This is all in advance of competing at the 2022 Canada's Strongest Man u-80kg [u-176.3-lb] contest next summer.
Canada's Strongest Manlet, essentially.
Since I already went up the latter from Thunder Bay's Strongest Manlet, Northwestern Ontario's Strongest Manlet, and Ontario's Strongest Manlet in 2017, but skipped Nationals for personal reasons / life stuff.
I didn't want to go there, and be lackluster, and place 16th to 18th, out of 18 guys.
Top ten would be nice.
They give a 3-lb weight allowance for clothes, and you can weigh-in in your underwear and socks, so you can be 179-lb in contest.
Although they may do 24-hour weigh-ins, and I've never cut weight for a contest...so that may add in a challenge I have no experience with.
I'm prepared to compete and perform against the top manlets at 175-180, off PED's. But I'll be at a disadvantage if the guys weigh over 190, and are on sauce.
I'm hoping it's just a 3-hour weigh-in. I've done that a dozen times before. I'm just worried I'll screw up on that cut.
I got excited when I found out that they actually had some weird socially distanced Nationals last year, and the 3rd place finisher in my contest is from my city - I also beat him the two times we competed, and I think I can beat him now.
He holds the u-80kg Circus Dumbbell record in Canada at 153.6-lb, but then doubled 168.4-lb in the gym a month later, but may have been offseason and over 200-lb at the time [I'm not sure - and they allow arm sleeves, which I'm sure will help].
I'm pretty sure I could beat both those lifts at that weight. If I can't do it PED-free, I'm confident I could get a 170-lb Circus Dumbbell with some assistance.
Since resuming training, I have been thinking to go the course with no help, but it's disheartening to me to think that even the manlet divisions of all sports are filled with guys on PED's. I hate to have to do that, just because everyone else is - but I'll be 40 in December, and it would be required for me to be the most competitive I can be, if all the other guys are on.
Or maybe I'll just do it without help, and accept where ever I place, even if it's towards the bottom of the pack.
Even if I were to win Strongest Manlet, I can't travel outside of Canada for any subsequent contests because I won't be a lab rat for Big Pharma.
I still read Getbig every day, but I don't want to post any updates until I get back to my lifts pre-Coof19.
I have some ancillary goals for the following six months [all lifts will be at 175-lb body weight, or...close enough]:
- 225x30 bench press [that's the city record, set by 2x Ontario's Strongest Man, Like Skaarup]. If I break his record, he'll just break it again the next day, lol. So I'm just trying to tie it.
- 250x20 bench press.
- 350-lb bench press with gym form, just to beat my previous max of 345, and to do it at 175-lb would be a nice goal to achieve.
I'll be prepared to post an actual worthwhile update in a month or two's time. It's been a bit of an uphill process trying to catch up after Ontario gyms closed for 200+ days straight, due to the current global situation. In fact, at least two good gyms closed in town that I know of, as well as a bunch of CrossFit type studios.
But I'm getting there...just trying not to push an injury at my age, because that would almost definitely take me out of any 2022 Manlet contest ambitions.
Current weight = 178-lb, at probably 18% body fat: