I recently read  that pro Dave Henry doesn't do any isolation movements at all when he trains, only compound movements. What do you think about that? Competing at your level especially, don't you think you need to include exercises like flyes, leg extensions and lateral raises to get that extra bit of detail? 

            Dave looked really good at the Ironman, Arnold Classic and San Francisco shows, so I'm not going to say his training methods aren't sound. I think focusing on compound movements is perfect for beginners who need to build their foundation of mass, and even advanced bodybuilders would benefit from setting aside periods of six to 10 weeks once or twice a year in their off-season to train on basic exercises. But this isn't how I train and it's not how I recommend bodybuilders train most of the year. 

For one thing, I feel muscles need to be worked and stimulated from different angles to grow to their full potential. For another thing, after you have built a solid foundation, you will find that your physique needs more specific fine-tuning. Say, for example, you have big shoulders, but they lack that round "capped" look. Emphasizing lateral raises in shoulder workouts would help improve that. Or maybe your legs have decent size, but their outer sweep isn't very good. Regular squats and leg presses won't be as helpful as hack squats in giving your quads that sweep. Do you see what I'm saying? Compound movements are the mainstay of any good bodybuilder's workout, but isolation movements have their place, too. Don't limit yourself and miss out on exercises that could really benefit your physique.

            I have heard that when you are trying to get really ripped, you have to drink way more water than usual. I am dieting right now for a show that's 12 weeks away and I carry a half-gallon jug with me at all times to make sure I drink at least two gallons a day. I have to say, it's pretty uncomfortable having all that water sloshing around in my belly all the time and having to pee every 20 minutes, too. How far do you take this, Chris? Are you constantly slugging down water when you diet?

            I do drink a lot of water when I'm dieting, but I've always had a hard time doing it. Even after competing for 20 years now, it's still tough. Drinking when I'm not thirsty gets old real fast. What I do, which is something a lot of West Coast bodybuilders do, is mix the water up with some Crystal Light powder to add flavor and at least make it somewhat enjoyable. So if you ever see me walking around with a jug of pink or yellow liquid, now you know what it is. 

Keep in mind that excess water does help the body burn more fat and it also keeps your digestive system "regular." Also, you have to realize that your muscles are 75 percent water, so it's to your benefit to make sure you're adequately hydrated at all times. With the extra activity from cardio, you have yet another reason to take in more water while you're dieting. Yes, it's annoying having all that water in your stomach, and it's a pain in the ass to have to get up and use the bathroom so often, but if being a competitive bodybuilder was easy, everyone would do it!

I want to be a real bodybuilder, the best and greatest bodybuilder
of all time in the history of America. I'm going to be 23 and I need someone to give me the principles of being the best bodybuilder. 

            This is kind of difficult to answer, because you're essentially asking me to tell you how to go from nothing to the world's greatest bodybuilder in just a few sentences. That's a tall order to fill, but I will give it my best shot. First, stay consistent in the gym. I'm assuming you already know how to train properly, but maybe you don't. If not, you might think about hiring a personal trainer, preferably a bodybuilder who has done pretty well in competition himself, to show you the ropes and act as a mentor to save you a lot of years of trial and error.

 Next, you didn't indicate where you currently live. You don't have to live in Southern California to be a great bodybuilder, but it wouldn't hurt. I certainly think anyone with the level of aspirations you have should at least pay a lengthy visit to the Mecca and see what the nerve center of the sport is all about. I grew up in Palm Springs, about 100 miles east of LA, and as a teenager I used to drive out to Venice Beach to hang out at Gold's Gym every weekend. Now, you may not believe this, but I didn't actually work out at Gold's for a couple of years.  Most of that time I would sit on the little cement wall that bordered the parking lot, right next to the entrance, and just watch the bodybuilders come in and out.  If I was feeling extra courageous, I would venture into the pro shop and buy a T-shirt. I would look out at the workout floor of the first room and see all these huge guys and I didn't feel like I was ready to train next to them quite yet. I would go eat at the Firehouse and walk around the boardwalk down by the beach and soak in the atmosphere like the tourist I was.

The thing that made me start coming to Venice was that I had attended my first bodybuilding contest right at home in Palm Springs, and Mike Christian was the guest poser. At that time he was the reigning Mr. California. I brought my high school sweetheart along for a date, but when Mike came out and posed, I forgot all about her. Mike's physique was the most amazing thing I had ever seen. When he hit his back shots, it looked like a bunch of bowling balls back there. Mike turned around and did his famous crab most-muscular shot, and it just freaked me out. The guy's traps, shoulders, chest and arms were from another planet. I knew right then and there I wanted to look like that.

            So I started going to Venice and I started competing. If you're going to be the best bodybuilder of all time, you are going to have to compete sooner or later. You need to see where you stand, and then you need to go to the judges after the show and ask them what you need to work on. Don't be a fool and disregard what they have to say, either. Take it to heart and go home and start improving. It might be overall size, cuts, or certain body parts or aspects of body parts, like thigh sweep or back thickness. You should also attend as many contests as you can, especially the Arnold Classic and the Olympia, and introduce yourself to as many people in the industry as you can. A great physique is only part of being a star; you also have to know how to network and market yourself. You have a very ambitious goal and I wish you the best of luck.  If and when you do become the greatest bodybuilder of all time, be sure to give credit to the Real Deal for helping you out with advice early on.

            This may sound like a really strange question, but I'm always hearing rumors that this or that pro bodybuilder is gay. Don't get mad, but I have even heard that about you! Now, I have seen you with plenty of fine women, so I know that in your case it's a bunch of bull. But honestly, are there more gays in bodybuilding than in the general public?

            Here's the thing. Gay men in general seem to be a lot more attracted to muscular bodies than straight women are. So when you go to a bodybuilding contest, or anywhere there are a lot of bodybuilders, you will also tend to find a lot of gay admirers. And because gay men are into physiques, a lot of them work out to look muscular. Few of them take it to the level of a competitive bodybuilder, of course.

Then you also have the club scene, where it's not uncommon to see bodybuilders dancing with their shirts off. To a lot of people, that in itself seems pretty "gay." I suppose the main reason the rumors get started is that there are muscle worshippers/admirers called "shmoes" who attend all the big shows.  This term includes gay men looking to meet male bodybuilders, and also straight men looking to meet female bodybuilders. In many cases, the shmoes will offer money in exchange for nude posing or sexual favors. Bodybuilders are people like anyone else, and some of them will take them up on these offers for the fast money. In the case of the bodybuilders, very few of them are actually gay, just "gay for pay." I don't judge anyone, that's up to God. But you asked me if there are more gays in bodybuilding than in the general public. I would say no, there are not, but there do seem to be a lot of gay men who hover around the sport because that's the look they like.

            Real Deal, you have one of the best backs in the game, so I'm asking for some help with my crappy lats. It seems like there are just so many different exercises you can do for back, that I get overwhelmed every time I train and don't know which ones to do. Sometimes, I try to do all these in the same workout: chin-ups, lat pull-downs, barbell rows, dumbbell rows, machine rows, cable rows, deadlifts, pullovers and shrugs. Needless to say, it takes me well over two hours and by the end, I feel like I've been run over by a truck because I'm so exhausted. I know that's probably too many exercises for one workout, but I'm afraid to leave out the right ones. I'm hoping you can give me a good idea of how to put a back workout together so I only have to do four or five different exercises every time and still hit the area properly.  

            If your whole back needs work, then I would suggest the following routine:

Chin-ups                     4-5 sets of 8-12 reps

Barbell rows               4-5 sets of 10-12 reps

Dumbbell rows          4-5 sets of 10-12 reps each arm

Deadlifts                     4-5 sets of 8-10 reps

            Or, you could do this. Find yourself a posing mirror or somehow set yourself up so you can get a really good look at your back. Be objective and look at it like an outside observer would. Here's how you will determine what types of exercises for the back you will benefit most from. If you have a short torso and narrow shoulders, you probably need to focus more on width. Wide-grip chins and lat pull-downs should always be in your routines. If you have a longer torso and wide shoulders, odds are you need more thickness. Barbell and dumbbell rows should form the core of your workouts.

There are three exercises I do think belong in everyone's back routine, and by that I mean you should always include one of them every time you train.  The first is dumbbell rows. Get a good stretch and squeeze the lats as you pull all the way up (none of this jerking, half-rep shit you see too often). Dumbbell rows are a very complete back exercise that can add both width and thickness.

Deadlifts almost don't even need my recommendation. They work the entire back, from the base of your neck all the way down to your waist. Hard work on deadlifts will always pay off with a bigger back. And finally, I love T-bar rows. They are great for mid-back thickness, something just about every bodybuilder could use more of. With the back especially, do your best to feel the muscle working. If your back never gets pumped and never gets sore, chances are you're probably using too much weight. You are always better off going a little lighter and really making the lats work, rather than loading up the weight and just throwing it around. 

            Chris, what's your take on red meat and whole eggs? I hear how great they are for packing on muscle, but I'm really concerned with the cholesterol content in them.  Heart disease runs in my family.  How often do you eat these, and are you worried at all about what they might be doing to your arteries?

            I usually eat egg whites instead of whole eggs, but it's not because I'm worried about the cholesterol. I just don't care for whole eggs; they seem greasy to me. And when it comes to red meat, I don't eat much in the off-season. My favorite foods then are definitely pasta and sushi, as anyone who knows me can attest. I can pack that stuff away! But once I start my contest diet, I will eat red meat once or twice every day. I think it's the perfect protein source to build muscle, or to maintain muscle while you're dieting away the body fat. I see my doctor regularly, always have, and in the 25 years I've been bodybuilding, I'm proud to say I have always had a clean bill of health. My cholesterol levels have never been high.

 But I also realize we are all different. I suggest that before you start any high-protein diet, you see a doctor who has a solid understanding of sports nutrition and get a full check-up with blood work. Then, be sure to get worked up again every six months to keep an eye on your cholesterol, kidney and liver function, etc. Someone such as you, with a family history of heart disease, should also be getting an EKG every year. Finally, when you're eating a lot of high-fat protein sources like red meat and whole eggs, you should be eating plenty of fiber at the same time to help prevent colon cancer. Foods like oatmeal, brown rice and fresh fruits and vegetables should be on your menu every day.

 Training and Lifestyle Journal

 May, 2005

The Leprechaun Speaks, but Who's Listening?

            I've been lying low since the onslaught of the spring shows I did, and catching up on my reading. I just read Flex Wheeler's interview with Shawn Ray.  Understand that if I don't like someone, I don't speak a word about him or her.  It's only when they call me out and insult me that I have to defend myself. Now, Shawn has forced me to do that in response to his comments.

            Shawn put me in the category of "good but not great" bodybuilders, because I never fulfilled my potential. Oh really? Let's compare our careers for a minute. There's no comparison. Shawn did just one show a year, the Mr. Olympia, for almost his entire career as a pro. He can count all the pro shows he ever did on his little fingers and toes. I've lost count of how many I've done, but it's around 70. He likes to brag about how he was top five at the Olympia for 12 straight years. I have been top three in over 40 pro shows. Shawn won two shows in his entire pro career, I have won 11 and I'm not finished yet. Lee Priest and Victor Martinez have already won two pro shows, to put things in perspective. I have competed all over the world. The only times Shawn ever left the USA to compete were the two Olympias out of 13 he did that were held in Europe (Italy and Finland).

            I don't know why I even let him get to me. Nobody respects what Shawn says, but he just keeps on barking like a little Chihuahua. I know for a fact Jim Manion can't stand him and would love to smack him. He loves to make snide remarks about Titus being an ex-convict; meanwhile his mother is in jail right now for selling drugs. Doesn't he know that people living in glass houses shouldn't be throwing rocks? 

Life After the Arnold

            I'm keeping busy even though all the shows are over now. This week I'm off to do a photo shoot for MuscleTech. I think they're getting all the athletes together for some nice studio group shots of the team. After that, I'm headed to Seattle for a surprise appearance at the Emerald Cup. I haven't guest-posed there since 1994 and nobody but the promoters knows I'm coming. The crowd should freak out.

            My DVD has been doing really well and I'm coming out with another one this summer that will be more my style and flavor. The original DVD wasn't really my vision, because I didn't have much input in the post-production process. Also, I didn't talk much in it. This one will be very different. I comment throughout on my career and all the ups and downs I have had. Mitsuru Okabe shot this one a couple of months out from the Arnold Classic when I was really big and full at 290 pounds. You see me training with Charles Glass, doing some really unique exercises. I hope Charles doesn't get mad that I'll be letting out some of his secrets! I will be editing this DVD myself and I am going to be sure I am 100 percent satisfied with the final product before we start selling it. 

            When that day comes, we'll have a viewing party at Max Muscle in Venice, my hangout. I kick much ass on the Playstation 2 there, especially on the boxing and football games. I like playing owner Dave Bourlet on "Fight Night 2."  I kick his ass every time!

            Skipping the Olympia? Maybe

            Right now, I am seriously thinking about sitting out this year's Olympia.  The reason is that I haven't had a true off-season in years because I have always done the spring shows and the Olympia, and this has prevented me from making the muscle gains I'm capable of. Understand that some years I have done five to 10 shows in a season. I feel if I take the rest of the year to make improvements, I can show up at the Arnold in 2006 at 265-270 ripped and just slam-dunk it. After six runner-up finishes, I really feel I am the uncrowned champion of that show. I know it, you know it, and the whole world has watched as I legitimately won at least twice. To know you were the winner, and yet not be awarded what is rightfully yours, is just f'ed up. No one can really say with a straight face that I never won. Shame, shame, shame. But I know that whining and sulking about it isn't going to change a damn thing. What I have to do is be so damn good that there is no way in hell they can deny me.  And I am in it until I am done. The Arnold Classic is something I have to win before I can step down from the stage for good.