Lest I forget...

Hi Fellows,

Lately, I've been guilty of posting entirely too many after photos. Well, here are some before. Some of you may have seen all but one of these, a new one that I captured from a video of three years ago...  (Best Wishes, Dave)

yep, it's a little harder to posts those pics. seems like a lifetime ago huh? you did a fantastic job dave. yeah, the surgery took your weight off but your physique is all due to a lot of hard work and dedication. i like it when i see people on our board who take full advantage of their surgery and dedicate themselves to staying in a normal weight range. it's not easy and there's plenty of temptations out there. we must remember to work on our heads too lest we revert to these pics again.

keep up the good work and keep posting. i really look forward to all the interesting and fascinating information you send our way. it's been a whole new chapter of knowledge for me when i read your research and Dx's......carbonblob

Hi CB,

Thanks, I was a big boy. Looked like a danged truck.

Yeah that's the hardest thing to do, control your eating when you don't gain weight. I haven't exercised for 6 days and still haven't gained weight! Makes it hard to stay motivated to eat right. I get a lot of fiber and antioxidants, but the number of calories that I put in my mouth is way too high! (mostly from fruit juice, milk, my wife's cookies and stuff like that). Gotta figure something out here. Maybe an experimental diet, like that marcronutrient cycling, Natural Hormone Enhancer diet or something like that with a motive for something other than weight loss.

Dave

did i miss something? how come you stopped working out for the past week? is everything ok?

as for me, i'm returning to normal. i threw up for 21 straight days and now it's finally stopped. how's that for a record? i'm all straight now and the pain pill episode is behind me once again. god what a nightmare that was. so i started to work out a few days ago. just eased back into it. i actually did my chest/back today and then took Tango on a 3 mile run so i'm back in the saddle so to speak. when i was sick the past month i lost a lot of weight plus 3/4" off my arms alone! i couldn't even keep water down. so i was drawn and weak for a long time.

all is ok now and i hope so with you too. i have to admit, i can eat more junk now and not gain weight. you mentioned most of the guys who workout on this site don't gain. that's true, it seems this time around i can eat more and not gain. that never happened before but maybe for two reasons. i eat very clean and i eat a lot less. yeah, i had some junk here and there but maybe a week apart so i've changed eating habits for sure. i think that makes a difference plus i work out like a madman when i'm feeling well.

so when i get back to working out full time i'm going to update my pics. just before i got sick i had 15" guns and some pretty good abs. so i'll have to get a pic out there by the end of the month to show you my progress. you look great by the way. oh, bodybuilding.com has a great training article on the V taper. i'm trying a few new exercises in my routine. at my age it's very hard to stretch your rib cage and lats. i'm faking it with bigger shoulders and smaller waist to give the V taper appearance. hell, whatever works. ok, getting off subject, take care.......carbonblob

Sounds rough, CB!

21 days of that, I don't know how you did it. But glad to hear you're back working out.

Don't worry about me, I took a planned week off. Got to get back to it, though. I crack wood just bumpin' against the bathroom counter when I brush my teeth! Too much leftover energy.

The V? Can you really expand your rib cage? I thought that that was a myth that Arnold perpetuated? Got any good links on that?

Best Wishes,

Dave

nope, no links on that but i remember when i lifted in the late 70's and article where the guy said that the best thing for a V taper and big chest was to do chin ups and pullovers when you're a teenager because you're most pliable then. as we get older we can't stretch our bones like that anymore. i agree with that statement but can't back it up. i was into lifing and gymnastics as a kid. all i know is that the kids who did those sports had a great physique later in life. it's just that wer'e more pliable back then. now i have a much better taper but i think it's because of a much smaller waist now. i trick the V look with wider shoulders and i do a lot of chinning work for my back. my lats have spread but it's more smoke and mirrors rather than an actual stretching.

also, i read an article by tom platz remember him? huge legs. anyway, he used to take huge deep breaths and hold them then squat! all that pressure would expand the rib cage. i'll be damned, it worked for me. it really does put a lot of pressure on the rib cage. still, i think pullovers are best for chest and expansion. my back can't take them. i do dumbell pullovers but only lighter weight. like i said, for width i do a lot of wide grip chinning with weight attached to me about 30#. i'll do one thickness chin and that's with a close grip attachment over the bar and then chin up. it's great for the middle back and adds thickness too. i think pulling is much better than pull downs. some of that energy goes to your legs when you doing lat pulldowns on the machine.

ok, gotta run, it's shoulders and legs today! carbonblob

I did a lot of shoulder work when I was 12, maybe that widened the bones up there. Could say, "wish" I done pullovers, but don't want any bigger jacket size than I have now, unless it's from bigger chest or lats (and pullover hit both of these).

The serratus probably give the illusion that the ribs are spreading out.

Tom Platz? I'll check him out.

It's true on the cable pull downs, you tend to use a lot of leg weight and abs to jerk them down.

Still waiting for those pictures. I've got a copy of your "man in black" pic in my "My Pictures" folder. I see it every time I go to work with an image.

Best Wishes,

Dave