I'm sure you either saw the "20/20" interview with Victor Conte of BALCO Labs or you've heard all about it. Personally, as a bodybuilder, I have to confess I feel a bit of smug satisfaction. I mean, for years, people pointed the finger at bodybuilders as being steroid users, but now the public is learning just how prominent their use is in all other professional sports, as well as the Olympics. Are you with me on this, or do you think any negative publicity about steroids will only put the heat on us muscleheads even more?

            I do agree with you. Ever since I've been competing in bodybuilding I've had to hear all these people making comments about how we're all on steroids, a bunch of "juiceheads," "juice monkeys," "roid heads," and on and on. The average person sees any amount of muscle on someone and immediately assumes the muscular person is a big steroid user. Never mind the fact that the muscular guy trains his ass off and eats eight times a day- nah, that couldn't possibly have anything to do with it. It's always gotta be the gear.

The funny thing is that steroids have always been a major part of most competitive sports, of which bodybuilding is just one. Actually, the really ironic thing is that bodybuilders, despite our bad reputation as a bunch of drug abusers, aren't even the most prevalent group of users. I remember reading a magazine a couple of years ago that featured the results of a survey showing who in the world was using the most stuff in terms of sheer numbers.  Shockingly, bodybuilders weren't even close to being number one; they were way down the rankings at number eight! Soccer players were the largest group of total users, and I recall that college kids trying to look good for spring break were number four.

To you this may sound crazy, but keep in mind that there are a lot more soccer players and college students in the world than there are bodybuilders.  With soccer players, you don't see any obvious signs of steroid use other than more speed and power on the field. It's not like they have 20-inch arms or are squatting 700 pounds. And the college kids are the real hoot.  A lot of them don't work out or eat anything more nutritious than pizza and Doritos10 months out of the year. Then, two months away from spring break, they decide they want to be buffed in order to get more drunken college girls to have one-night stands with them in Cancun.  They load up on steroids and fat-burning drugs like clenbuterol, and get "dedicated" to the gym for a grand total of six to eight weeks (following some "Shape-Up Fast" article in Muscle & Fitness). Then you see these jackasses on MTV strutting around shirtless wearing big gold chains, backward baseball hats and shades, keeping their six-packs and 14-inch arms flexed at all times. Jesus, it's sickening.

            But let me get back to the whole BALCO scandal and how it has opened up the eyes of the world to the fact that steroids are a part of nearly all sports.  The media and the government are doing their best to mount a campaign to rid sports of drugs. OK, that's fine. For now the public seems to be buying into it and agreeing that this is the right thing to do. So let's see what happens when they institute the proper testing procedures to make sure all professional sports, as well as the Olympic games, are truly drug-free. All of a sudden, you'll have baseball games with a lot less home runs. Are the people who pay thousands of dollars for season tickets going to be cool with that, or do you think they might start getting a little disgruntled at the diminished excitement in a game that can be boring at times as it is? A lot of people watch NFL games for the bone-crunching hits, with 320-pound linemen slamming into quarterbacks with the force of a head-on auto collision. Without steroids, a lot of these guys would be noticeably smaller and slower and those hits won't be as hard- not as much material for the highlights on ESPN Sports Center, eh?

  Then, what about the Olympics? What if, instead of world records being broken, you start seeing athletes performing at levels that were surpassed 20 years ago? How thrilling are the next Summer Games going to be if guys are running the 100-meter dash in 18 seconds? I'm not saying all sports are going to suddenly go down the toilet in terms of performance if you took all the drugs out, but I guarantee the differences would be very apparent. Who knows? Maybe the fans would get upset enough to demand that the players go back on drugs! This is a major issue and it won't be resolved for a long time. For now, I do have a snappy comeback whenever anyone asks me if I use steroids. I just give them a dirty look and say, "What do I look like, a fucking baseball player?"    

Sick Puppy

            We're in the winter season now and I always get at least a couple of colds and sometimes the flu. Every time I face the same dilemma: Should I train, or shouldn't I? I've heard the advice that if the symptoms are above the neck, it's okay to go to the gym, but I still wonder. How often do you get sick and how do you decide whether or not to train?

            I don't get sick very often, but I've learned to pay a lot more attention to how I feel. I don't know if you recall my big heart problem a few years ago, but it was actually a direct result of not listening to what my body was trying to tell me.  I was getting ready for the spring shows and came down with the flu. The flu is actually a very serious virus. People don't die of colds very often, but the influenza virus kills a good amount of people every year, usually babies and the elderly. Over 150,000 people are hospitalized every year in America alone because of the flu. The smart thing to do for me would have been to stay home and rest once I noticed the flu symptoms, which are different from a cold. With a flu, you run a high temperature and feel extreme aches and pains in the muscles and joints. I knew I was running a temperature, but as far as muscle aches and pains go, hell, I have those all the time from training! 

There was no doubt I was sick, but I was determined to compete in the shows and stay on my training regimen of weights and cardio. I'm Superman, remember? A little sickness can't stop the Man of Steel! I started feeling more tired and weak and eventually I had no choice but to go to the hospital. Even I knew something was very wrong and I was in danger. By that time, the virus had actually traveled into my heart and infected it. I was in there for a few days with tubes running in and out of my body, pumping a lot of antibiotics into my embattled system. I nearly died, and of course the Internet was full of rumors that I had died, or that I had at least suffered a heart attack. Yes, boys and girls, be sure to believe everything you read on Internet message boards, because it's always guaranteed to be 100 percent percent accurate! 

I recommend that everybody pay special attention to their body when they feel sick before deciding whether or not to work out. Obviously, if you have a fever, you have no business training. Your body is already fighting to rid itself of some sort of viral infection, so the worst thing you could do is ask your immune system to work even harder recovering from a workout. And I think that little rule about symptoms being above or below the neck is a good one. If you just have a runny nose or a little sore throat, it's probably okay to work out, though you should take it a little easy and not go for your heaviest weights or longest workouts ever. If you feel congestion in your chest or lungs, you probably have some type of respiratory infection. In that case, training could again strain your immune system worse and allow your infection to advance to something more serious, like bronchitis or pneumonia. 

Pneumonia is another condition that can be fatal. Not only should you be cautious about training when you're sick, but you should also make it a habit to visit your doctor whenever you have symptoms that could be a flu or something similarly serious. Don't be one of those fools that thinks he's so tough his body can defeat any type of sickness. Believe me, those muscles of ours don't make us indestructible, as much as we might like to think so. Doctors are there to treat illnesses and to prescribe antibiotics or other medications that can help you get better as quickly as possible. If you're a bodybuilder, you want to get healthy again quickly so you can get back to training. Never hesitate to see your doctor when you're sicker than a run of the mill cold, cough, or sore throat.

Go Big or Go Home?

Lee, I'm a big fan of yours, but I have always wondered something.  Since you are one of the thickest, freakiest bodybuilders alive, do you have any respect for "smaller" physiques? I'll be 40 years old in a few months, and I compete at 5-7, 165 pounds. I have won Overall titles at 14 natural shows and I have also won my weight class in six different non-tested shows in the NPC. So, I wanted to know, do you feel good physiques can come in all sizes, or do you only think the really huge guys deserve any credit?

            I give credit to anyone who trains hard day in and day out, whether he's 150 pounds or 300 pounds. I'm well aware that factors like drugs and genetics make some guys a lot bigger than other guys, too. As far as good physiques go, I do feel they come in all shapes and sizes. People automatically assume I would only be a fan of the freak-type physiques. I do like to see the big freaky guys and the crazy body parts, of course. It's motivating because I'm someone who is always trying to get bigger and freakier myself. But the bottom line is that there aren't that many freaks out there. If you were able to take a survey of all the competitive bodybuilders in the world, I bet 85 percent compete at under 200 pounds.

You even see this whenever you go to a regional NPC show. The classes with the most guys are usually the middleweights and the light-heavweights. Once you get to the heavyweights, there may be only a few. And as far as Super-Heavyweights goes, guys over 225, I have been to many shows where there was only one, there were none at all, or the guys who were in that class were just heavyweights who didn't diet down into proper condition and the extra weight was flab and water. 

And getting back to the freaks, personally, I always want to see some shape and symmetry, no matter how big the guy is. I much prefer a smaller guy with good lines and a small waist over a big blocky bastard with a pregnant-looking belly and a waist as wide as his shoulders. The IFBB judges usually feel the same way. Darrem Charles and Dexter Jackson have been consistently blowing away lineups that featured plenty of guys who out-sized them by a huge margin. Look, if all I cared about was being the biggest freak I could, I'm very sure I could compete at 240 pounds or more at 5-foot-5. But to do that, I'd lose my small waist and V-taper and look like a bloody fire hydrant.  You didn't send a photo of yourself, but your titles and accomplishments speak for themselves. I give you a lot of credit for your track record and wish you continued success in the sport. You have my respect, if that's what you were hoping to hear.

Now that's a Pump!

            I'm sure you're aware of all these Nitric Oxide supplements out there promising to deliver incredible pumps while you train. Have you tried any of them? And do you think getting a great pump is necessarily going to lead to muscle growth?

            I just started taking a Nitric Oxide product for the very first time only a few days ago, so I haven't had time to properly evaluate the results, or lack thereof, in my own case. I can tell you that I know quite a few people who have used these supplements and give them very good reviews. There have been a few who didn't seem to notice anything substantial, too, but that happens even with Creatine. Not everybody responds to every type of product out there. 

Does getting a pump lead to muscle growth? I would say it does, but only if you also have sufficient resistance applied to the muscle. I mean, you could do 500 pushups and get a great pump in your chest, triceps and shoulders, but you're not going to get huge that way. If that were the case, all the soldiers in the world who do tons of pushups every morning as part of their physical training would be massive like bodybuilders. I can get a pump with sets in the range of six to eight, but not everyone can.

If you can't, I suggest you try drop-sets. Say you can do a set of dumbbell curls with a pair of 50s for six reps each arm, and that's where you fail.  Immediately put those back on the rack and go for a pair of 40s to pump out five or six more reps.You can even do another drop, extending the set with a pair of 30s or 35s for five or six more reps. That way, your biceps have handled the heaviest weights they were capable of, and you walk away from the rack with a nice tight pump. As for my results with Nitric Oxide products, I will have to get back to you on that.

Squat Solutions

My lower back gets hurt every time I squat, probably because it's been injured many times over the 10 years I've been lifting. To try to Make Up for not squatting, I do legs twice a week, once with very heavy leg presses and hack squats, then a second time with Smith machine squats for high reps, plus walking lunges and leg extensions. Does this sound like a good idea? If for some reason you couldn't squat, what would you do for legs?

            I think you're definitely on the right track with what you're currently doing.  I happen to love squats and have been using them to build my legs from the time I was knee-high to a... oh, wait, bad analogy. But if I couldn't squat with a barbell, my next choice would be heavy squats on a Smith machine. They are the next best thing to squats. The only difference is that the bar moves inside a guided track and you don't have to balance it as you would a free bar. The safety factor is also attractive. If you happen to get stuck, you always know you can just roll the bar forward and latch it onto the machine. You can go as heavy as you want without a spotter. Heavy leg presses are also a good mass-builder, just be sure you use a full range of motion. It never ceases to amaze me how many guys load the leg press up with over 1,000 pounds and do these little half-reps, then come up to me the next day asking for advice because their legs "just won't grow." So Smith machine squats and leg presses are good options for sure. 

Another exercise is dumbbell squats. You don't see this one done too often, but for someone like you it could be perfect. You are just holding the dumbbells down at your sides, keeping your torso as erect as possible, and doing deep knee bends. It's similar to a deadlift except that you aren't using your back to lift the weight, just your legs. Because the weight is hanging down from your arms, there's no pressure bearing down on your spine, so you should have no worries with your lower back. Use wrist wraps to support your grip and you should be able to go really heavy. And I don't think you would need as much weight as you would with standard squats. I bet holding a pair of 100s and doing 15 good reps would be just as taxing and effective in terms of making your legs grow as the same set with a 315-pound bar on your back.

 Pick two of those exercises to do on your heavy day, then do the other one for higher reps on your light day, along with lunges, step-ups and leg extensions. Try single-leg extensions for variety. The bottom line is that there are many, many ways to work the thighs even if you can't squat. I think one of the dumbest things a bodybuilder can do is to stubbornly insist on doing exercises that he or she knows are dangerous due to a past history or injury or some other factor. There is no reason to risk injury with so many options out there in the gym. Squats are excellent, but there's always more than one way to skin a cat.

            Protein Confusion

            Lee, I'm really confused about how much protein I should be taking in as a bodybuilder. I hear everything from one gram per pound of bodyweight to two grams. And some are trying to say now that you don't even need one gram. Where do you stand on this? Do you think it depends on things like how often you train, how hard, and whether you're natural or not? I'm also concerned about possible damage to my kidney from excess protein.

            I have been eating a gram and a half to two grams of protein per pound of bodyweight since I was a teenager and I've had blood work done on a regular basis ever since I turned professional as a bodybuilder almost 12 years ago. There has never been anything wrong with my kidneys. I think most of the time, when a bodybuilder has kidney problems, it usually has something to do with dehydration, and in that case, diuretics are often the culprit. Water is more important when you're eating a lot of protein, which is why the standard recommendation of eight glasses a day is far too little for bodybuilders.

I average at least a gallon and a half to two gallons a day. As for the protein, I tend to actually eat less in the off-season, around a gram and a half.  That's because I'm eating plenty of carbohydrates and they are protein-sparing.  Things change when I diet for a show, as the carbs come down and I'm adding a lot more cardiovascular work into my training program. To preserve my muscle mass during this phase, I up my protein to two grams per pound of bodyweight. The whole issue of too much protein being dangerous is overstated, I feel. I can vividly remember one time when I was at a party being lectured by some guy about how eating too much protein would ruin my kidneys. This man had a cigarette in one hand and a vodka tonic in the other. I guess he was a real health nut. Or at least a real nut.

Training Journal: Late December, 2004

            New Deal for Me and MD

            I'm very proud to announce that I'm now under exclusive contract to Muscular Development magazine and will no longer be taking photos or granting interviews to any other publications, either in print or on the Web. I have always loved MD for its honesty. Like me, MD will say what needs to be said whether or not it will upset people. There's a lot of great information in MD that other magazines either can't or won't print, and that's a wonderful service to the readers. I didn't have to think about the offer a whole lot when Steve Blechman presented it to me. Steve is a devoted fan of the sport of bodybuilding and he genuinely cares about bodybuilders. He goes to all the shows, he knows all the guys and he will always ask how we're doing and how everything is going in our training and in our lives. Steve is the only publisher who pays the athletes for photo shoots. I have shot for some magazines that act like they are doing you a big favor by shooting with them, even though it's our photos that sell copies of their magazines. Steve has a real passion for the sport. He cares not only about the athletes, but the direction the sport is going in. That's a rare thing in this industry. He wants to see the sport of bodybuilding grow, and he wants the athletes to be better known and better paid.  I like that attitude!

            Breast, er, I mean, Muscle Reduction for the Women

            Being married to an IFBB pro, I'm well aware of the memo sent out by Jim Manion concerning all pro bodybuilders, fitness, and figure competitors. In case you haven't heard about it by now, he has asked all of them to decrease their muscularity by 20 percent. I had a good long laugh at that one. The IFBB can't seem to Make Up its mind about how much muscle and how lean women in these various sports should be. At one show they reward the biggest, most ripped woman, then at the next show that type of physique gets fifth place and a smaller, smoother woman wins. The funny thing is that the fitness women aren't very big at all. It just seems that way because they diet down and get lean. When you get lean, you're going to see a six-pack in the abs, separations in the thighs, detail in the back, etc. That shows she did her homework with her diet and cardio, and worked her tail off getting ready for the contest.

 Now, they're saying what? Don't do so much cardio? Have a little junk food every day?  Even I am confused as to what the women are supposed to do to comply with the new mandate. And this 20 percent thing, how will they figure that out? I guess one way would be for all the judges to have a set of photos of every woman competing so they can compare what she looks like now to the older shots. I can just see it now. "Hmm... Sandy is only 17 percent less muscular; not good. And Tammy is only 19 percent less; not good enough. And Tina, my goodness, I don't think she's even 10 percent less muscular!"

            How ridiculous, and what a nightmare for both the competitors and the judges. One of the reasons this is supposedly being done is for the women's health, but I never seem to hear about the female competitors having any major health issues. It's always the guys who go overboard with gear and diuretics and blow out a kidney or a liver. But I suppose the IFBB is trying to help make the sport more acceptable to mainstream America and I can't fault them for that. Lord knows there isn't a whole lot of money in the game for the girls, so if this can possibly help at all, maybe it's for the best. As always, with any change like this, time will tell.

            Countdown to Spring 2005

            As I write this, I'm a little over 10 weeks away from my first show of 2005, the Pro Ironman. I have taken second place in 2004, 2002 and 1997, so it would be awesome to finally win the bloody thing. The LA fans give me a lot of support and I feed off that onstage. From there I will go to the Arnold Classic and the San Francisco pro show. 

            My bodyweight seems to be a constant issue. People always want to know what I'm weighing in the off-season and what I plan to weigh at my next contest. It's odd to me, because I really don't think about my weight very much at all. I can say this, though. I don't plan on ever competing below 200 pounds again. When I won the San Francisco show at 199 pounds, I had so many people telling me, "Lee, that's the weight for you! You need to come in at 199 every time and you'll do so well!" But they don't know my body the way I do.

             I did a photo shoot a few days after that show and I was close to 210, just as hard and grainy-looking, but much fuller. The truth is, I was pretty flat when I won that show in San Fran. Just because it was my only win so far, people jump to the conclusion that the way I looked there must be the ideal look for me, but I know that's not true. I was too cautious with carbing up and other things to be sure I was in that extra-hard condition, but I sacrificed a lot of fullness that would have made me look even better. I still think my best look hasn't been seen yet, at least not onstage.

            My off-season weight is always a big topic of discussion and debate, too.  That's probably because for a few years I was getting up to 270-280 and that seemed too heavy at my height for a lot of people's tastes. For the past couple of years, I've been staying leaner, but just to be a little more comfortable. I am able to move a lot better and have more energy at 235-240. Again, people assumed they knew the real reason I was staying leaner was so it would be easier for me to diet down. That was never the case. I have never had trouble dropping fat when the time came. In fact, I think it was actually a little easier to diet down when I was heavier in the off-season, because I had more pressure on me to come down in x amount of weeks. That gave me a lot of drive to stay strict on my diet and do all the cardio I needed to every day.

 I also seemed to drop the fat at a quicker rate because my diet was changing so drastically from the off-season fare that included a lot of junk.  Nowadays, I have gotten away from a lot of the fast food and sugary cereal that I used to have every day. Don't get me wrong, I will still have dessert or a chocolate bar once a day in the off-season if I want it, but I don't have buckets of KFC and bowls of Lucky Charms every day anymore. Honestly, once you stop eating it for a while you sort of lose the taste for it. I'm sure if I had some I would want to start eating it again, but once you forget how it tastes, you stop craving it. 

            I'm still very active with drag racing in the NHRA, too. I have a race coming up on the first and second of January in California, and I'm looking at a bunch more races next year out in Palmdale, Fontana and Las Vegas. I will probably do the Silver State Open and the Nevada Open road races again. I will probably team up with Greg Smith once more, and maybe John Schneider from "Smallville" (and "Dukes of Hazzard," for you older readers).

That's all for this time. Check for updates on http://www.cathyleepriest.com/ and I will talk to you next month, as I'm closer to my shows.

Got a question for Lee? E-mail it to him through http://www.musculardevelopment.com/