Road to the 2026 Vancouver Fall Classic - 5 Weeks Out Audio

A quick update on my prep for the upcoming Vancouver Fall Classic. We are officially just under five weeks out from show day, and I am feeling pretty good about where things are at.

Current Stats & Physique Update Right now, I am sitting at about 190 pounds and estimating my body fat to be roughly 7% to 8%. To hit my peak stage condition, I need to drop another 3% body fat, which equates to losing about five or six more pounds. I’m going to be doing my posing for physique updates as I get closer ot the show, here in my C-can studio because the lighting is consistent and truthful. There is no overly flattering direct overhead lighting to hide behind, which gives me an honest look at where my definition is at when running through my poses, like the double bicep.

Training & Nutrition For the past couple of weeks, my diet has been fairly strict. I have not cut out alcohol completely, just a lot less for sure, saving drinks for a nice dinner, or outing and I've dropped my intake to a steady 2,000 calories a day to ensure I hit my weight goal on show day and avoiding getting stressed at the end. To keep the fat burning without overtaxing my body, I’ve ramped up my daily walking to roughly three miles a day, split between walking the dogs and heading out on my own. My weight training is locked in at six days a week for an hour per session, utilizing a three-day split. I find keeping workouts to a tight hour is optimal for recovery at my age while still putting in the necessary work.

Supplement Protocol As for the supplement side of things, I've temporarily bumped up my testosterone from my standard TRT base of 100mg per week to 400mg, alongside adding in 200mg of Masteron, strictly to peak for this event as it helps manage estrogen, increases free testosterone and lowers SHBG. I'll be cutting the testosterone entirely a month out from the show to drop water retention, and I've incorporated a very low dose of retatrutide (2mg per week) simply to help curb my appetite, manage insulin, and keep water retention low during these final weeks.

Mindset Going Into the Show Because I am on TRT, I cannot compete in the natural divisions, meaning I have to step on stage in the Open category. I am fully aware that I will likely be stepping next to guys running significantly heavier, more complex protocols, but I am not letting that get to me. My goal isn't necessarily to be the biggest guy on stage; my goal is to be the tightest, leanest, and most conditioned competitor in the lineup. This prep is all about having fun with the process, pushing my own limits, and seeing the best package I can bring right at the peak of show day without causing harm to my body.

Keep an eye on the channel and getfitover40.com as I’ll be posting more updates leading up to the competition. Stay focused and keep putting in the work!

Road to the Vancouver Open Regionals - 4 Weeks Out Posing

We are getting ever closer to the Vancouver Open Regionals where I plan to compete in both Men's Physique and Classic Physique. At just 4 weeks out I am feeling good and I feel I am right on track. I am happy to be holding my weight at right around 190 pounds which has not changed for a while now. For some they may see this as not making any progress in terms of cutting weight? My plan has been all along to keep my weight but convert fat into muscle and since fat has about 3 times the potential stored energy compared to muscle tissue, I am able to keep my weight even when in a caloric deficit. Once I get closer to the show at about 2 weeks out, I will start to really push the cutting and caloric deficit and losing actual pounds on the scale will happen for sure. My goal will be to drop down to about 185 pounds but carb up for the show and fill in closer to 190 or even 195 pounds if I do it right.

You can see in this video I am leaning out and to me it looks like I am putting on additional muscle, but I will let you be the judge as I show off a few poses for the camera.

It Begins - 2025 Vancouver Open - 56 Years Old - Post Open Heart Surgery

So it begins yet at least one more time! Last year I did a show called the 2024 Vancouver Open Regionals and competed in the regionals which is "Open" to everyone, no qualifications required. I competed in Classic Physique 45+ along with Physique 40+ and Physique Open.

The goal of this show for me was to see how my body would respond now after the open heart surgery and to see if I could get anywhere near being somewhat competitive on stage. I did end up placing 3rd in Classic Physique 45+ and 3rd place in Physique Open, which I was happy with but more importantly I was very happy with how my body responded to the contest prep as it is very stressful on the body and I have to say this contest prep was probably one of the easiest and most comfortable I have ever done.

That brings us to this year and I have decided to compete again at this years Regional Vancouver Open which is on July 12th, so that gives me over 3 month to contest prep which is perfect. Last year I only had around 5-6 weeks to prep and my starting weight was 185 pounds with a body fat percentage in the high 9%. Right now I weigh 195 pounds with a body fat percentage in the mid to high 8% so I am in a much better starting place with an extra 10 pounds yet around the same body fat percentage.

With all that in mind my expectations for this years Regional Vancouver Open will be much the same as last year. Which is first and foremost to not stress my body out too much and to come in highly conditioned and with as much muscle as is healthy and realistic to expect, knowing that I can not rely on drugs to do much of the work for me. I am just not willing or prepared to jeopardise my health for a plastic trophy a the end of the day. This means I will more than likely not be holding as much muscle as some of the guys that have less to risk, so I will have to focus a lot more on conditioning to make the muscle I do have look as good as possible.

Hopefully at this years show the judges will be awarding conditioning a bit more than last year as in my opinion they were looking more for size over conditioning based on what I saw in the judging and placing of those on stage.

If at any point I do not feel good or have any health concerns I will be shutting down contest prep, but I am confident that it will go well this time around as I do have more time and can take things slow and adjust along the way.

53 Year Old Contest Prep 4 Days Out Update Peak Week

Even closer to the finish line where this Grand Master will be taking on the youngins at the Vancouver Fall Classic! in this video I take you along with me as I push through another challenging day filled with tons of activity and very few calories. As long as I keep moving things seem to be OK!

Some of the video clips highlighted today are some basic thoughts, a bit of food eating, a little bit of tanning booth post posing, a preview of my new posing shorts and my Classic Physique posing routine at West Coast Iron with Jeff. Join me as I get closer to stepping on stage and showing off all the hard work over the last several months...

53 Year Old Contest Prep 5 Days Out Update Peak Week

One day closer to the Vancouver Fall Classic and today I am in a better mood! Getting back on the low carbs has flushed out a ton of water as I am done almost 5 pounds literally overnight sitting at just under 195 pounds. Still got another 3 pounds or so to lose but it is happening for sure, leaving no stone unturned!

In this Vlog styled Video I take some random video of my day starting with a morning chat at A&W about what's going on, then I go over what my day will look like, some food shots and talk, a little bit of tanning booth posing video, a look at my new posing shorts ending with dinner and a little more conversation...