Hey guys, just wanted to give those of you who still read my blog here a bit of an update on whats been going on the last few weeks, and believe me, there has been a TON of stuff happening.

First thing, and this is a basis for a lot of the other stuff Ive got going on, but my stress levels are through the roof right now, and I’m forgetting shit that I shouldn’t as a result. This blog for example. I havent posted much of anything here in a while. Im working on that, and working to improve that stuff Ive been fucking up is fixed now however, so its no longer an issue worth discussing. Stress levels are still high, but apparently, thats how its going to be for a while. Shit happens.

I’m going to be doing the SPF ProAm in August Rawdog. I know this goes against everything that I believe in as a man, and as a lifter, but with all of the other things I have going, I honestly don’t have the time, energy, or mental capacity to try to jack with gear and fit it into training. I love it to death, but, like so many other things right now, it’s going to be easier for me to just go into the meet with as little distraction as possible. RAWDOG all the way, with the most bad ass singlet you’ve ever seen. I will however, continue to refer to raw lifting as gay, and refuse to put it into all caps. Just because I’m doing it doesn’t mean I have respect for it. To you rawdog guys reading this, keep the sand out of your panties. Its a fucking JOKE.

Had, what was, in my opinion, a HUGE hiccup at the gym that has now been straightened out. Maybe it wasn’t as big as I had imagined, but for a couple of weeks, I was under the impression that we were done as a barbell club. Being as that was where my income was completely based from, you can imagine the shit and stress that this too caused. When it rains it pours.

I decided to take a new job, and will be moving to Columbus, Ohio in the next week or two. Its a little faster than I had wanted it to be, but at this point, I really don’t care. Its going to be totally worth it. I’m actually leaving again tomorrow so that I can be there bright and early Monday morning, and not have been up 4 hours before hand. Got some admin type stuff to do at the new job.

As for an actual training update, the Pro Am is slightly less than 15 weeks away. I will be breaking into the accumulation block this week, and run a 14 week meet cycle, still using the Block Periodization stuff I used last time. Outside of what I managed to do to fuck it up, I feel it worked incredibly well for me. Going to be doing a lot of work with my diet stuff too. My appetite, as many can verify, has been in the toilet as of late, and Ive got some plans to work on that. My diet has also been pretty sub par compared to where it normally is, so Im planning on fixing that, and trying to actually lift as a 275. I think if I can get within 10lbs, i will definitely do it. Weight is hovering around 290-295 depending on if Ive eaten that day or not. I’ve had some days where Ive only eaten once or twice. This is completely unacceptable. You cant stay in Rhodestown on 1500 calories a day. Just ask Vincent.

from semiprofessional.wordpress.com

The Angry Coach and his driver picked me up in typical New York fashion, that being that they were 40 minutes late. Wasn’t too bad, as I got to see some real big city type stiff. Not really, but I did see a gang of Asian dudes motherfukc an old man who was working at airport security a half dozen times, and some NYPD officers get loud with some cabby, who, from the looks of him, didn’t understand a word they had to say. The highlight was probably the cabby who just repeatedly yelled the word “douchebag “out his window, over and over, for a good 2 minutes. Doesn’t sound like much, but say the word douchebag out loud. Doesn’t take long. Now do it for 2 minutes, only stopping to reload your lungs for the next verbal assault. NOW you see how entertaining it was to behold. He eventually let off, and I honestly never did see whom the hell he was yelling at. Fortunately, after Bob and his driver picked me up, the rest of the night was pretty uneventful.

We left the Angry Coach’s place pretty early Thursday morning. That’s a total lie; it’s his Moms place. She let us stay as Bob has an approximately 46 square foot apartment in the city that he can hardly sleep in by himself. Freddy Francisco, his driver, picked us up, and we were on our way to AthElite, http://www.athelitetraining.com/ Ben Tonon and Dave Cavalluzzos gym located in Hawthorne, New Jersey. Thanks to the apparent lack of any sort of legal requirement, such as a license, to drive in NYC, the 30 mile drive took approximately 2 hours and cost us just under 600 dollars in tolls.

We managed to beat the photographer and his assistant there, which was surprising, at least to me. I’m never on time to much of anything. It took them a while to get set up, and once they did, it was time to get busy. Or so I thought. Being my first day working as a professional fitness model, I had no idea what to expect. Was pretty cool though, the photographer was kind enough to explain anything I had questions about what the hell was going on. It was pretty apparent to everyone there I really had no idea.

I really had no idea how long it would take, or the amount of time it would take getting the “right” picture. I tried to make sure that he got me from my good side, but, as anyone who has met me will tell you, I don’t have a good side. They’re all awful. It sounds way better if you say it though. At least in my own head it did.
I honestly was surprised to find out how long some of the stuff takes. I was under the impression that I was just going to be training, and that he would be taking pictures as I went along. Once again, WRONG. I did get to warmup, and do everything I needed to do, but then, I found out how they get the sweet pictures they have in the magazines. They’re fake. Not fake in the sense that the stuff isn’t being done, but they’re kind of “posed,” if you will. I did however refuse, on more than one occasion, to go all Matt Kroczalewski and open my mouth as wide as I can, as if a 225lb squat is the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Sorry Matt. It’s not that hard. Not for me!

The Angry Coach made sure to blow me enough shit while we were there to keep it entertaining as well. I thought that, as a Senior Editor of a Major National Magazine, that he would be all business and get pissy at me for acting like a retard the whole time, but he didn’t. Which was probably a good thing. I might have felt bad if I had to kick his ass at his own photoshoot. I’m kidding.

Did a little bit of training while I was there too; I’m so much more than a pretty face. Actually ended up squatting and doing some rack pulls, and a little benching, so that the Angry Coach could see how a man lifts. Its unfortunate that I didn’t have the flip, as I had to do something that I literally hadn’t done in years, and will probably NEVER< EVER, do again. Walk out a squat with a 7-foot Olympic bar. I gave fair warning to Rob that it was going to be one of the most disgusting things he had ever seen in a weightroom, bar none, and I didn’t disappoint. Was literally an hours worth of footage for Team Awful, and not one second of it was caught on tape. Dammit. Such a waste. It was so bad; the photographers’ assistant actually asked Rob if it was safe. He has been lifting for 7 months or so, if I remember correctly. How is that for Awesome? As far as the squatting, I don’t remember what I worked up to, but I know it wasn’t a whole lot. Maybe like 800 or so. Maybe a touch less.

Since my back was, and still is, a bit jacked up we did some rack pulls versus pulls from the floor. Surprisingly these went well. I really had no idea how my back would react, but other than being a bit stiff, it gave me no problems. It was kind of funny here, as the photographer, Mat, wanted me to do the Kroc faces. I told him the weights weren’t enough to do it, and I didn’t really know how to make faces. So we put some more weight on the bar. This happened 3 times. He got the shot he wanted, and I hit 675 for a double.

After the deadlifting, we were pretty much finished. Did some more different stuff, but nothing related to lifting. He got some pretty cool shots though. Apparently I do have the ability to look EXTREMELY creepy if need be. As if I didn’t know I had a sweet stalker stare anyway.

Probably one of the coolest parts of the day came after the pictures were almost done. Ben called Rob, and asked him if he thought I would be interested in speaking to the Bergen Catholic High School football team. For those of you who aren’t aware, Bergen Catholic has some ridiculous athletes on their team. Ever hear of a guy named Brian Cushing? He played for Ben and Dave for 4 years before making his way to USC and the Houston Texans. I’m sure the fact that Ben himself played for the Philadelphia Eagles had something to do with that as well. Im still convinced you cant coach something you have no idea how to do yourself. As a frame of reference, they played Don Bosco Prep within a touchdown last year. Don Bosco was the Number One high school team in the country last year. These dudes can play some football. Was great to get to talk to them Took about 20 minutes and talked to them about my story, and the importance of focusing on today, as you have no idea what will happen tomorrow. I think they enjoyed it, as they all paid attention. You know how kids are. If they don’t care, they don’t listen.

In closing, I just want to take a second and say thanks to The Angry Coach, Rob Fitzgerald, for the hospitality, and more so, the opportunity to make this happen. Thanks to Ben and Dave for letting us use the gym, and letting me talk to their team while they were in the middle of a training session. I really appreciate all of it.

Here is the video and writeup from my meet earlier this month. It went pretty well all things considered. I only went 3 for 9 on my attempts, but managed to hit a new PR in the bench, and the deadlift, as well as moving my total up 30lbs to 1820. Not happy with how it went, but it happens. Hope you guys like the video, it is pretty self depreciating, that’s for sure!

Me pulling a 700 pound deadlift

I knew that we were supposed to get a ton of snow, but the forecast for Indiana was also calling for ice and sleet. Rather than try to make the drive over to Columbus in all of that crap, I left Muncie Thursday night and drove to Wendler’s. That was about the most uneventful thing to happen all weekend. However, Friday morning I realized I had made a good choice.

I woke up around 9 AM and started to head over to the meet venue, which was at the Courtyard Marriott. Danny has all of his meets there. It started snowing a bit on the way, but it wasn’t bad. The drive was about 20 minutes from London. I made weight – at 302 even – and spent about an hour bullshitting with some guys in the lobby. The weather was quite a bit different when I left the hotel that afternoon. My car was covered in snow. Roads had also digressed to the point that I thought I was going to die – more than once – and the same drive that took me 20 minutes an hour ago took almost 50 minutes on the way back!

The ride in Saturday morning was even worse. Jim, Leigh An and myself took an hour and fifteen minutes to get there in Jim’s monster truck. No worries though, I was ready to go.

I was lifting in the third flight. I felt strong, and planned to open at 890 pounds in the squat. It’s not a huge weight, but honestly something that I feel I could handle on my worst day…no matter what. It turned out to be a good call, as it would be the only squat I got in. Warm-ups went great, everything felt light and solid on my back. I was excited.

Warm-ups:

Bar x 10

135 x 5

225 x 5

315 x 3

405 x 1 added belt and briefs after

500 x 1

600 x 1 added suit after

700 x 1

800 x 1

I went up and took the opener – 890 pounds was good, three whites. Took 1000 on the second. I took it out strong, it went down easy, made it about halfway up and…started losing it forward. It stalled out, and they grabbed it – no lift. The third lift was similar. I took it out strong, sat back, and continued to do so until I realized I was going to fall over backwards, and told them to take it. I would rather miss a lift than dump a grand on someone because I’m an asshole. I’d like to say thanks to the 500 guys Danny had spotting. Although I missed two out of three, I wasn’t even close to being injured. I wish I had some sort of excuse as to why I missed, but in reality, I just sucked. The strength was there and then some, but I just didn’t have it. I just sucked.

Bench press was the same for me. One and done. I did set a 30 pound PR, hitting 230. Could I do more than I open with? Absolutely. There’s a reason I didn’t though. For me, as a lifter, it doesn’t make any sense to have spotters and loaders rip the bar down from 800 to 250 so I can take a second attempt. Meets take a long time anyway, and if I can do my part to shorten it up, that’s what I’ll do. I’m still going to end up getting beat by 500-600 pounds plus in the bench anyway, so what does it really matter?

I was impressed with the guys in the bench-only flight. There were about 20 guys in the bench-only flight, and they literally had 35 missed attempts IN A ROW. That has to be some sort of record. I wish more bench-only guys were like Vincent Dizenzo or Joey Smith and actually opened with weights that they could handle. Instead, they just get a gangster shirt and are only strong enough to lock out what is coincidentally the lightest weight they get to touch. I don’t know if there were 20 misses in any flight where they do all three lifts. Mike Maxwell was on the mic, and he let them know what he thought too. It was pretty funny, and definitely ran over into the powerlifters benching.

Deadlift went well for me, and was the only real hiccup at the meet. Danny had said they were going to combine the last two flights, so everyone started warming up, then about 10 minutes later, they decided to keep it at three flights. I had just pulled my third warm-up, so no damage was done.

Warm-ups:

225 x 1

315 x 1

405 x 1

225 x 1

315 x 1

405 x 1

500 x 1

600 x 1

My opener was 700. I pulled it easy for a 20 pound PR. I really thought that this meet was going to be the one I was actually close to my capabilities in the deadlift. Nope. Took 735 on a second, which would have given me a 60 pound PR and the biggest pull in our gym. Hips rocketed out of the bottom for a huge miss. I guess it does take technique to pull sumo. I took 735 on my third and pulled it conventional. It went up pretty quick to (what I thought) was lockout. Got the down signal, and set it down. I looked at the lights, two reds. Apparently I re-bent my knees. Damn you John Bott! I haven’t completed or gotten white lights on a third deadlift at any meet John judges. I think he hates me. Ha! Sounds better than what is true – that I just suck.

I didn’t have the day I wanted, going 890 – miss – miss – 230 – pass – pass – 700 – miss – miss…for three of nine and a total of 1820. However, I did set two PR’s and a total PR. So, I can’t really argue with that. I know some things I need to work on and get fixed, so it’s back to the drawing board to get shit right.

Hey guys, Sorry for the long ass delay and not letting anyone know shit about who won. I have been having major computer troubles for the last few weeks, and was dealing with VERY spotty internet connections and availability here at home. My 6 year old HP was just no longer showing me the love. Got a shiny new MacBook now though, and am about 98% caught up. Hopefully i will get ahold of you guys tomorrow or Friday. Im really sorry.

Jason

Logo of the Indianapolis Colts

Lots of good stuff coming up this week. Can you guess what I am excited for? If you guessed Superbowl Sunday, you’re absolutely right. hahaha. I kind of gave it away though, but Im sure that someone out there had absolutely no idea. However…

Got a TON of big things going on this week. got a bunch of awesome clients to train this week, as usual, and also have a ton of first timers coming to the gym to check things out. Really looking forward to getting them in the doors, as I’ve spoken to them, and they have some lofty goals. Im really ready to get after it and get them to where they want to be! Big Swole and Alva are also training for a meet in March, so I will be helping them out a ton with their training.

I actually have a meet this weekend I am really excited about. I am doing the Lexen ProAm in Columbus, Ohio Saturday. Im excited, as meets are always a good time to meet up with old friends, see huge weights lifted, and meet other lifters. Danny Dague always puts on a great lifter focused meet, and I feel extremely ready for this one. I really believe that i will finally squat 1000lbs. I hate to make predictions, but it is definitely there if I have a good day. If any of you are going to be in the area, or are interested in checking it out, let me know and i will get you the meet info.

Make sure you check out our newsletter too if you haven’t already. Going to be lots of great content coming out in the next few weeks that is going to be for our newsletter subscribers only! Don’t worry, Im not that guy who sells your information with anyone, and I’m not going to spam you with a ton of emails every month.

I am also HOPING to make some big changes to the site this week. The personal training side of things are the priority here now, but i do manage to mix in some of my personal stuff. Hopefully by the end of the week i will have everything transferred to the new personal training domain name, and this will become my personal blog to talk training, and other sweet stuff. Not that I mind discussing personal training, i just feel that its more fair to both my clients and my regular readers if there was a separation. If it doesnt go this week, it will definitely happen next week.

Did i mention that I was excited to see the Colts in the Superbowl? Its nuts. I’m painfully excited for it. Im sure that you might not be a Colts fan, especially if you live in New York, but I want you to be excited this week too. That is why I am offering 12 WEEKS OF FREE ONLINE TRAINING to 3 readers here. There is a slight catch, but its not bad. If you’re interested, you have to do 2 things. Really only 2 things, but the third would be greatly appreciated! First thing is leave a comment in the comments section that says “I’m interested.” Then I need you to send an email to jason@jasonpegg.com and explain, in as many words as you feel is necessary, why I should pick you. It doesn’t have to be long by any means. You never know, a simple “I want to be awesome” might suffice. HAHA A chance to win $225 worth of programming from me for 5 minutes of your time. GET AFTER IT!

I will pick the winner on Friday, and let you know by email at halftime of the game if you have won! you will also get a post about you here with your name and your goals, unless you just want to keep it a secret. Up to you.

Like I said, leave me a comment, shoot me an email, and root for the Colts!

BSU Cardinal Logo

Training for me was deloading. Didn’t squat one rep or pull at all. Just some restoration stuff. Good to go. I feel like a million bucks, which is good this close to the meet. Maybe a little bloated, but you will have that sometimes. hahahaha

I also started working at Ball State University with the women’s volleyball team. This is in addition to the personal training im doing Definitely keeps me busy in the gym! This is an awesome opportunity for me, and I am hoping to make the most of it. They train like beasts, and, surprisingly to me, are pretty strong. They are on a pretty basic program, nothing crazy. I will post updates here and there about some of the stuff that we do in the weightroom to get them ready for the spring season. It starts in about 8 weeks.

Thats about it from this end. I plan on getting back on it this week, assuming this computer holds up. I thought it had died yesterday, but a little time off and some Army style motiviation seemed to fix it for now. So that’s good news. More to come this week! Honest!

Well, you could say that the New Year really starts tomorrow. With the first day of the year falling on a Friday, and then a lazy weekend, a lot of people have probably decided to push their resolutions “start date” back to Monday the 4th. This isnt the case for all of you, but ma be for some of you. Some of you have decided to hire a personal trainer, as you’re not sure where to start with your weightloss. Others are starting alone. Either way you decide, there are some simple things that you can do that will definitely help with your weight and fat loss goals, personal trainer or not.

1. Don’t jump right into a strict diet!
Unless, of course, you don’t really want to do it. From my own personal experiences, both with myself, and my personal training clients, diving headlong into a restrictive diet program is by far the worst thing you can do. Start with making small changes to your diet, eliminating junk, and adding in more protein and tons of water. This is HUGE, and will take you a long way towards the body you really want.

2. Don’t try to do everything at once.
This should really go without saying, but you aren’t going to be able to lose 30 pounds of fat, gain 20 pounds of muscle, get in shape to run a marathon, and win a bodybuilding contest all at the same time. These pursuits, while all being worthwhile, require VERY different training programs, and unfortunately when it comes to your body, more is usually not better. that being said, you can add muscle while losing fat and getting in better shape, but to have extreme goals for all of these different pursuits means that you are going to have to pick a goal, bust your ass to get to it, and then refocus on the next goal.

3. Don’t be afraid to look for help.
This one holds especially true for changing your body and your life from where you are at now, to where you want to be. Fortunately now, in the information age, tips, tricks, and plans to reach your specific goals are literally only a few keystrokes and mouse clicks away. The only problem is that there is SO MUCH information out there. Contrary to that however, people are all reachable now, and you do have the ability to contact them. How many will reply is up in the air, but those with solid info will have no problem laying t=it all out there. really what it boils down to is, if you decide to go it without a personal trainer, make sure that you are doing your research.

4. TAKE ACTION NOW
Of the 4 points here, this is the most important, and why I saved it for last. You can do as much as you would like researching, planning your diet, plotting your new training program, and talking about how you’re going to lose weight, get fit, and look like you did 10 years ago. However, all of the planning, talking, and thinking will get you NO WHERE unless you take massive action. This is probably the step that most have trouble with. They have the best intentions in the world, but wont take action towards their goals. I could go on forever about this, but there are literally hundreds of books dedicated to this one subject. My question to you is will this be the year you take action? Will you decide this that now is the time to invest your time, energy, and money into yourself, and not your things? Will you make 2010 your best year yet?

Its the start of a new year, and quite possibly the start of a new you! To help you get started on the road to your physique goals, we want to offer you a free workout on us. Give us a test run. I bet you like it!

Call today and setup your first step to your new body. There is no pressure, no commitments, and most importantly, no cost to you! You can reach us by phone at 765.215.6393 or email us at jason@jasonpegg.com. Remember too that Your first month is only 90 bucks!

First Month for $90!

Want to save $150 bucks and get in shape at the same time? I’ve got some great news for you guys who are wanting to check out the gym, and let us show you how DC Personal Training is the premier location in Muncie to lose fat, get in shape, and meet all of your health goals!

In order to help you see this, we are going to be offering a One month trial at the gym for only 90 bucks. This is a pretty big savings and by far the lowest cost, most effective fitness training you will find anywhere.

What does this get you? A months worth of training programs, customized to your goals and current fitness level, as well as two training sessions a week for the entire 4 weeks.

After the first month, you decide what to do next. Like your results and want to keep them coming? Stay on with us. Don’t think that your results were worth your investment? No problem. You’re free to walk away.

Give us a call or email us and find out how you can get get started and get your first month for 90 bucks!

Merry Christmas!

-Jason