F*ck Crystal Balls
I'm writing this exactly two weeks before the Ironman Pro. I've been reading where a few magazines and threads on various message boards are predicting I will win. Someone asked me today what it's like to be a favorite. I fucking hate it! I hate predictions when it comes to contests, period. I just want to go in at my best and that type of thing just puts pressure on you. There are a lot of good competitors going in and I never count anyone out. Someone can always come out of the blue that nobody was worried about, and blow everyone away. Gustavo almost did that last year. It's nice to be favored by the fans and pundits, but it's better to be favored by the judges. By the time you read this it will all be over, so there's another reason it's silly for me to pretend I have a crystal ball. Speaking of predictions, that stupid Dead Pool has had me supposedly marked for death every year since around 1997, and I'm still kicking. Sorry if I ruined your little game, ya wankers! My death has been announced I don't know how many times on the Internet by now, but I keep coming back. This Priest has been resurrected many more times than Christ Himself!
The Ironman does have a special meaning to me because I've been second place at it on three separate occasions: in 1997 to Flex Wheeler (Ronnie Coleman was behind me in third place, the year before he starting kicking everyone's ass); in 2002 to Chris Cormier; and again last year, to Dexter. The only time out of those three I think I got shafted was in 2002. Chris is a great competitor, but at that particular show I was harder and I thought I had him. I went on to beat him shortly after in San Francisco. I also thought I looked close to my best ever in '97 when I lost to Flex; he just happened to have the body type the judges preferred. That was the year Ronnie started to transform into the freak that couldn't be beaten. When he beat Kevin that fall at the Russian Grand Prix, we all knew he was at another level than he had been for years. And last year with my loss to Dexter at the Ironman, what can you say? He's got a really pretty body with close to perfect shape. I was happy because I did the best I could and avenged my poor appearance at the 2003 Olympia.
This will be the ninth time I have competed in the Ironman and you'd think I would stop punishing myself with this show by now. But I always liked it because it was close to home and I had a lot of friends and fans who would come out to support me. I also get on good with Lonnie Teper over at Ironman magazine, and he has talked me into doing the show on a couple of occasions when I wasn't planning on it. Winning this time would be a good omen, because it would be close to 20 years from the time I won my first contest as a teenager back in Australia.
Winning my first pro show almost three years ago was strange. I was ecstatic to finally come in first place after not having won anything since I was an amateur, but at the same time, in the back of my mind, I had a feeling it might be my only win. You always go in hoping to win, but I'm also very realistic. I always want to be in the top three or the top five at the very worst, and I know at my best I'm perfectly capable of that. But as for winning a pro show again, I don't know. Maybe I just got lucky that one time. I'd like to think otherwise, but it's hard to say. If I retire knowing I was one of the best in the world for well over a decade and had a huge fan following, how can I be disappointed in that? Maybe that's not the kind of smack talk people like to hear about how I'm the greatest and I must win the Olympia before I quit, but I'm grateful to be where I am and doing what I'm doing- even if it is a pain in the fucking ass sometimes.
Sometimes I feel like one of the old men of the sport of bodybuilding, even though I'm still just 32 years old. In reality, I am still one of the younger guys in the IFBB. A lot of guys now don't even win the USA or Nationals until they're my age or older, and this is my twelfth season in the IFBB. My very first pro show was the 1993 Niagara Falls, a show they don't even have anymore, and I came over to do the amateur contest they were having along with it. I think back to all the guys who were competing back then and the only ones still at it are me and Ronnie. Back then you had Flex Wheeler, Shawn Ray, Dorian, Lee Labrada, Porter Cottrell, Vince Taylor, Flavio Baccianini, J.J. Marsh, Andreas Munzer, Ray McNeil, Sonny Schmidt, Jim Quinn, Mike Matarazzo, Achim Albrecht and Mauro Sarni.
Who's Mauro? I figure the younger guys don't recognize some of those names, and his would be the most obscure. He won the first pro show I was in; he was a smaller guy from Italy. I remember I was just happy to be onstage with all of them. I felt like a little kid among grown men. Jeez, even Bertil Fox and Vince Comerford were still competing at that time, and so were Paul Dillett, Mike Ashley, Franco Santoriello, Robby Robinson, Ron Love, Thierry Pastel, Dave Dearth, Tony Pearson, Johnny Morant, Dave Fisher, Paul Jean-Guilliaume, Terry Mitsos, Ian Harrison... Christ, I could go on and on for days. Sometimes I wonder what the hell happened to everybody from back then. Obviously, some have died, and a couple of smart bastards like Labrada and Gaspari went into the supplement business, but there are so many guys I haven't heard a thing about in years and years. They must be hiding out with Osama.
For my last few shows, I have been posting progress pictures, usually on GetBig.com. I've been criticized for doing this because it "ruins the surprise." Who gives a shit? My feeling is that if you look good and you're getting in great condition for the show, why not post up your photos and let everyone see? It gets people talking and builds up some hype for you. And if you don't think hype makes a difference, I have one name for you- Gunter fucking Schlierkamp. Hype turned a guy who was never a big deal into this big threat to the Olympia crown, or that's what they wanted us all to think, anyway. And Gustavo Badell sure has a lot of hype behind him right now after taking third at the Olympia. You know the judges are going to be on the lookout for him in all the spring shows he does. If you don't get your name and image out there, the judges could possibly have their minds half made up about who will be in the top two or three before you even get to the show.
Another thing that's supposed to be bad about posting up your pictures leading up to the show is that you take away the psychological advantage of having your competitors worrying about you. What a joke! The real stupid thing is the guys who won't post photos, but go on and on about how they're going to be 20 pounds heavier than last year and twice as ripped. Then they show up and everyone is wondering what the guy was smoking when he made that statement. My photos are never put up in an attempt to scare my competition. I know they aren't going to change the outcome of the show. We are all going to look like whatever we look like and the rest is up to the judges to sort out as best they can.
For those who morbidly follow the injury news in pro bodybuilding, here's one for you. My lower back has been unstable for many years. Because I train so heavy, things get out of alignment pretty often. Actually, something is always out. Right now, it's my hips. And from time to time my lower back gets hurt. Last week, I was doing rack deadlifts from the knees up. I had eight plates on the bar, or 765 pounds. I don't always go that heavy, but when I'm feeling good and strong I will test the limits and see what I can do. Anyway, the power rack at this new gym I train at is kind of weird; it's got hooks instead of the usual type of thing you take the weights on and off of.
I was coming up for a rep and hit one of the hooks with the bar. My torso twisted a bit to the side and right then I felt a ping in my lower back, like an electric shock. I am guessing I pinched a nerve. Now it hurts like fucking hell to the point where it takes me 45 minutes to get dressed and get my shoes on and tied in the morning to do my cardio. Honestly, I almost went to bed the other night with my shoes and socks still on so I could just wake up and be ready straight away. But I can't stay in my own sweaty, stinking clothes like that, as tempting as it was. So, I'm obviously cutting deadlifts out of the program and anything else that might aggravate my back, until I feel better. For back, I'm doing just two or three free weight movements, the rest cables and machines. It's not like I was going to get any more back thickness in two weeks, anyway. For now, I'm not getting any treatment for it, just sitting home bitching and complaining. If the pain keeps up, I might break down and go see a chiropractor.
The last two weeks before a show is almost like I'm in another dimension. I'm so focused on the contest and so brain dead from the dieting and cardio that it's almost impossible to communicate with other human beings. People call me on the phone and my attention drifts away while they're talking. Most of them just want to know how I'm looking and feeling. If I don't just let the answering machine get it, all I'm usually good for is a couple of grunts. I will talk to Hany Rambod in more detail because he's my nutritionist, but for everyone else I generally say, ‘You'll see how I look in a couple of weeks," and leave it at that.
One thing I really hate being asked is how much I weigh. It's a visual sport, people, haven't you figured that out yet? At this stage I barely go out. The meals are timed so precisely that I can't even go out to see a movie. I prefer renting DVDs and watching them at home, anyway. I can stop the film to eat, go to the bathroom, or even go to sleep and finish watching it the next day if I'm tired.
The last time I competed in Australia was 1989, when I won a big amateur show Tony Doherty was promoting. In 2001, Tony started putting on a pro show every spring and everyone was always asking me why I wasn't competing in it. They thought maybe I had some type of problem with Tony. Not true at all; Tony is a great guy. The real reason was that I didn't have a green card and couldn't travel outside the USA. If I did, they wouldn't let me back in for ten years! But next Thursday I will be at the Immigration and Naturalization Service office at the Federal Building for three hours to finally get my card. Hopefully I won't get locked up or anything.
But I am looking forward to competing in my native country again. Not only have a lot of my Aussie fans been waiting a long time to see me, but they have been telling me how sick they are of seeing Americans like Chris Cormier and Dexter Jackson come over to their country every year and win. There are a few very good pros Down Under, like Luke Wood, Jonathan Davie, Mark Lampard and Matt McLean, but so far they have been unable to beat the Yankee invaders. I might have to finally pull out a win for the Aussies. It's only right.
See Arnold Get Milked
I did see this piece-of-shit movie on A&E that the magazines had been hyping up for about six months, at least. The acting in "See Arnold Run" was so bad, it should have been called "See Arnold Get Milked for Ratings." It looked like it was shot on a $200 budget, for Christ's sake. It was almost as bad as "Open Water," an ocean thriller that made me want to go drown myself. It's a good thing the Arnold movie didn't run before the election, or else Gray Davis would probably still be Governor of California. Roland Kickinger did a good job as the younger Arnold, but his gyno was very noticeable. Funny, the real Arnold won seven Olympias and never had gyno. You'd think with all the money Roland must be making he would go get that crap removed, but apparently it doesn't bother him. I did enjoy seeing Mike Ergas and Bob Cicherillo as Franco and Ferrigno. They made the most out of their silly roles. See Arnold Run? I bet he ran to the bathroom to throw up after watching this garbage.
Overpaid Pro Athletes
I am writing this the night before the Super Bowl. I might watch it, or maybe record it and watch it later. I'll probably do that, because all I'm interested in is the commercials. Bob Cicherillo and Gunter are supposed to be in a Visa commercial, but all the commercials they run in the Super Bowl are usually pretty clever. As far as the game goes, I really don't give a shit who wins. These guys are all so overpaid, anyway. They get millions and millions of dollars to play, guaranteed, even if they get injured and can't play, I might add, and they still bitch that they aren't paid enough. Shit, if I don't compete, I don't make a dime from my sport. Thank God for my MD and Twinlab contracts for providing me with at least some financial stability. I just read that Roger Clemens, who is over 40 now, is getting paid $18 million to pitch one last season of baseball. For half that money, I'll learn how to throw a ball 100 miles an hour!
Michael Jackson in his Own Little World
Michael Jackson is in the news again for molesting little boys. I wonder if I should come forward now and press charges, since Michael held me softly that time in the Sharper Image store. I was doing an appearance and Neil Thompson from Twinlab was with me out at a mall. Michael was trying shop in disguise and got recognized. Him and his entourage ducked inside the Sharper Image where Neil and I were checking out all the useless, overpriced shit in there, and the manager threw down the gate and locked us all in until a police escort could arrive to rescue Michael from his mob of adoring fans. I couldn't get over how timid, pale, and frail he looked, like if you touched him he would shatter into pieces. No matter what this guy does, people still love him. In the store, people were pulling out anything they had on them for him to sign; business cards, baby pictures, receipts.
Neil had his camera and says to me, "Hey, do you think he knows Ronnie is Mr. Olympia?" I said, "Absolutely fucking no way." So Neil goes up to Michael and asks him if he would like to take a photo with Mr. Olympia, Lee Priest, the bodybuilding champion of the world. Michael agreed. I have to ask Neil to dig that picture up if he still has it somewhere. As for all the crap going on with him being in trouble once again, you have to wonder if Michael really thinks he did anything wrong or inappropriate. I bet you he doesn't. He's such a weird guy, so out there, that the things that seem horribly wrong to us probably seem perfectly normal to him- like sleeping with little boys.
Now, I don't know if he did or didn't molest anybody. Celebrities are targets these days for greedy types after their money, cretins who know it's often easier for a celebrity to settle out of court and avoid the embarrassment of a trial, regardless of whether or not they're guilty. If Jackson did commit crimes, I hope he pays for it. If they find he didn't, I hope people leave Jacko alone and let him get on with his strange life.
Bush's Vietnam
Though I'm not an American citizen, I have lived here for 12 years now and feel like I'm an American. As such, I wish we would get the troops out of that bloody hellhole, Iraq. Enough is enough! I feel sorry for the Iraqi people, but it's been that way over there since before the time of Christ. They have always been ruled with an iron fist by one type of king or dictator after another. What was the war about? If it was weapons of mass destruction, well, what the fuck? We didn't find any, and we looked everywhere for almost two years. If it was because of 9/11, it's pretty well accepted by now that Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda were the ones responsible for that. I think Bush is getting revenge for his dad, who didn't finish off Saddam and his regime when he had the chance back in 1991.
The lives we are losing and the billions we are spending on this war and on rebuilding Iraq is simply disgusting. It's great to help others, but I think Bush should worry more about helping his own country and its people. They are talking about how Social Security is almost bankrupt and how so many Americans don't even have medical insurance, while healthcare costs are skyrocketing. But Dubya stubbornly insists on sending more and more troops overseas. The poor soldiers are being kept over there longer than they are supposed to be, and don't even have the proper armor. Almost two years after we "won the war," Americans are being slaughtered over there. It's Vietnam all over again, just this time in a desert and not a jungle. I'm not a big political person, but the whole Iraq situation is one big mistake. To all of you serving over there who may read this, I wish you the best and hope you return safely. You shouldn't be over there.
Next month I will have my full report about how I won the Ironman and Arnold Classic. Oops, you caught me daydreaming again. In any case, I will give you the rundown on how I saw the shows from the stage and backstage.
Got a topic you would like to hear Lee's opinion on? Contact him through the "Ask MD" section of http://www.musculardevelopment.com/.
