10 Dec Tucker: Contest and prep recap

Okay! Done and done. Things went well and my hams ended up coming back last night, so it was the correct call from Noel to have me eat more. Something similar to this happened last time too, so he wants to do one more regional level show with me so that we can play with things and know what to expect, and hopefully avoid this happening again. I’m not sure if we started playing with water too early the day before the show and my body just responds faster, or if we did too much or what it is. Noel and I will talk in a few days and try to trouble shoot some more.

I ended up taking second in my weight class. I’m happy with this considering the quality of the guys who took first in light heavies (mine), heavies and super heavies. The heavyweight guy won the overall and looked freaky from head to toe with peeled glutes and crazy vascularity. He could kick ass at a national level show for sure. The guy who beat me looked great except for the gut he was packing around. Not to sound like I’m a sore loser, but everything was good except for the watermelon he was smuggling under his abs! I felt kind of bad because he’s got great condition and muscularity, but because of genetics or something else he’s got not only a thick/blocky waist, but it’s super distended too. They couldn’t not give him first place though because everything else on him looked great.

I knew he would win so I was shit talking with body language during the morning show ? when we did side chest I pointed to his gut since I was next to him for the judges to look at, and in the ab and thigh shot I made an obvious glance a couple times at his tummy sticking out when mine was tiny and tight. The picture for this log says it all haha. I kept bumping elbows with him during the front double bi shots and stuff but it was all in good fun…. I didn’t tell him that but I was just playing around and having a good time.

The prep itself was good, but way too long and stressful. I basically started on a diet when we got to LA, and that was 5 months ago. I still had weekly cheat meals but that stupid mono came back for a couple weeks and that took me out for two full weeks of doing nothing, and then several weeks of light training. After that fiasco I think I had 8 or 9 weeks left to get ready, and even with deloades and smart training, my body started breaking down. Mentally I was foggy and feeling crappy for the last few weeks, and I felt super weak. That’s a big reason why I kept going flat for the last several weeks and Noel kept having me eat burgers here and there to retain some size and glycogen. I’m wondering if the accumulated fatigue had anything to do with my losing my tightness on show day too.

Either way, it was a good learning experience and I’ve satisfied my need to compete down here for the time being. I’ll be coasting for the next month or so and letting my body recover. I want to start my next phase of off season training totally healthy – no more elbow or knee pain, and no major limitations to what exercises I can do. I’ll be seeing craig for that a few times and taking the down time to do lots of PT work on my own.

I’m not sure when the next show I’ll do is, but I have several options. I’m nationally qualified for the next full year because I took top two in my weight class, but honestly I don’t have any of the impatience I did earlier. I’ve got a long way to go and I have to be able to peak correctly on show day, and be able to get very lean from the back, rather than still being able to grab some fat on my butt and hips like I can now. Why spend the money to do a national level show if I’ll get stomped? Knowledge is power and finding the right combo of what works for you is what separates the good from the great, so I’ll take my time and do it the right way and keep learning, rather than just hustling and being careless.

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Tucker Loken

Tucker Loken is a Bodybuilder turned Powerlifter turned Powerbuilder from Eugene, Oregon. He did his first bodybuilding show when he was still in high school, and has been training male and female competitors for shows since 2011. Several years ago he decided to take a step away from his normal routine and learn how to get strong. He worked with Brian for 9 months, added 200 pounds to his raw total and qualified as an Elite lifter in the 220 pound weight class. He returned back to bodybuilding much stronger and now incorporates the 10/20/Life philosophy into his training to keep himself healthy and making continual progress in the Big 3 as well as adding size and shaping his physique. Now part of Team PRS, he brings his unique expertise of nutritional knowledge and how to balance Bodybuilding with Powerlifting to help athletes achieve their best potential.

Latest posts by Tucker Loken (see all)

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