Hi Rainer - Congrats on your recent showing at the NPC Masters Nationals! Even without knowing how you placed, I know that you came in at your best and gave it one he** of an effort! When the dust settles tell us a little about the experience. Not very many of us will ever have the opportunity to compete at that level and I'm sure that we would find it very interesting to hear your take on things.

For those of you who don't know Rainer he runs a great gym up in Ohio and has an outstanding record as a competitor. He is also always very willing to help others and of course is a big fan of BI products and strategies. I hope that the show was a good experience for you.

Well... I don't know if congratulations are in order. I thought (as did Roger) that I was in one of the best conditions ever, but the judges must have either overlooked me or were looking at something different. Another competitor whom I know (she's a NPC judge and has seen me numerous times before in shows) thought I had won the class, Steven from Beverly was sure I was top 3 at the least, then I didn't even get a callout with the first 6 guys, so I was quite p....., to say the least.
Next goal is the Mr. Ohio September 18th, I hope it goes better there!
Thanks for the compliments, though!

Rainer,

Do you have any pics from the show?

A huge congratulations Rainer. You quite possibly competed in the toughest class in the show: the Men's Master's.
Us old guys keep defying the odds. lol.
Was this the best condition you've ever achieved?
And I can relate to your frustration and being p*****.... The last show I competed in marked the 49th time I came out of retirement
Again, my sincerest congrats!

Aram

Sorry, no pictures as of yet.
Thanks, Aram, I think I was close to an all time best, at least as a lightweight, I had striations in places I never had them before, so at leat makes me feel good knowing that I did my homework. Now I got 7+ weeks to go until the Ohio, I'm planning on doing the Master's and the Men's Open there, by then I should be even leaner. I weighed in at exactly 154, so the carb load and water reduction worked perfect for me, gonna try the same next time. Right after the prejudging I was ready to hang it up, but I don't think I can just leave like that, unfinished business now what the Master's Nationals concerns. In the words of the great one: "I'll be back"!!

Congrats none the less sure you were going against some not so natural competitors anyway.
I too am 6 wks out of a contest, Musclemania, how do you approach your 7 wk wait, both diet and supp wise?

Thanks!
Diet wise we decided to add a few more calories with extra carbs for the next 2 weeks to recover some, the rest of the diet remains pretty much the same. In terms of supplements, I drop the GH Factor until about 2 weeks out again, everything else stays the same. I weighed in at exactly 154, so just cutting my water intake from Thursday afternoon on worked. My bodyfat is so low now anyways, I definitely don't have to worry about adding cardio, just keep going for the next 7 weeks and stay focused.
Good luck for your show!