Driving back to Chicago from NYC  on I-71 (West) last month, Muscleweek.com Senior Editor and Hustler, Shane Ray had to make a pit stop at Rod Parsley’s World Harvest Church in Columbus, Ohio to give a seminar about breaking the chains of the bodybuilding cult and the dangers associated  with such a vain and vapid underworld. During his stay at the Best Western-Columbus North on Granville Rd in Dublin, Shane Ray found himself getting restless.  Navigating his Friend List on facebook it was a matter of time before he realized he was in the same city as IFBB BIKINI Pro and Ohio native, “Flexy” Lexi Kaufman.

With a quick Private Message sent and a quick reply by The Flexy One it was off to Metro Fitness for an exclusive 21 Questions with Muscleweek.com .

MW: Lexi Kaufman. Welcome to Muscleweek. Right off the bat tell me the most embarrassing moment of your life.

HM: OMG! All the time! And it pisses me off because I was named after Hayley Mills from the original “Parent Trap” – not the one with Lindsay Lohan – and it is spelled Hayley with TWO Y’s!!!! LOL! Haley’s comet is spelled like so. And yeah, people call me Haley’s Comet all the friggin time and depending on who they are, I will correct them, LOL.

MW: You’re a genuine Bostonian, correct? Why the move to cold windy Chicago? Which city has better food?

HM: Well yea…but not really…I grew up a half hour west of Boston in the boring ass suburbs, and actually never spent any time in Boston. I could probably count on one hand how many times I’ve even been there. True story. Ummm…LOL you clearly don’t know me! I couldn’t care less about food LOL…Unless I’m dieting that is…But I really never ate normal people food…Never went out to eat a lot…And when I did I ALWAYS got just a cheeseburger. Hence why “Cheeseburger” was actually my nickname in my old gym haha. But Chicago deep dish is pretty fantastic, and they have some massive burgers! I’d save Chicago wins – but I really never gave Boston a chance. I’m finally living like a kinda normal person for the first time in 5 years here: going out, going out to dinner, eating non-bber food lol. It was fun until I realized I lost 10lbs since I’ve lived here! Nooo!!! LOL!

MW: Red Sox fan? Is it true you have New York Yankee toilet paper?

Ahahahaa!!! Lol if there was toilet paper that existed with ANY logo on it I would soo get it lol! Naw I really don’t care about baseball or the huuuge rival between Boston and NY. Like realllyyy don’t care. I’d rather watch a bodybuilding show. Or watch Law and Order SVU LOL!

MW: You’re still in your early 20′s. You were 12 when I was your age. What age were you when you got into bodybuilding and what about it captured your interest?

HM: Shut up LOL! I’m an old soul! So there! LOL! I was 18. It was my Christmas break from college. I was on myspace and saw my first fbb. I almost died! I fell in love immediately and the rest is history. I’m sure people are actually probably bored of hearing that story from me LOL. But yea, I went to the gym the next day, and decided I was gonna get huuuge lol!! I think everyone should be jacked. It’s just that simple.

MW: How did you go about competing? Did somebody prompt you or encourage you? Who were your earliest influences on the competitive scene?

HM: Hah! I befriended Dave Pulcinella and Chris Zimmerman on Myspace. If not for them, I don’t know what I would have done! They both took my under their wing, as many others did, and taught me everything they knew. They were instrumental in shaping my bodybuilding career. Dave and Chris kept trying to convince me to compete, and my response was always, “I’m not big enough yet!!!” There’s actually a scene where I say that in Raising the Bar 3 with Chris, Dave, and Mike Pulcinella LOL. And in fact, that summer I competed for the first time. Dave brought me around to every bodybuilding he knew and made them tell me I was in fact big enough, and convinced me I’d look muuuch bigger when I was lean. He also told me every day for months that I WAS in fact, big enough lol. Finally, I decided I would do the Delaware – Dave did my diet, as he always does – and I won. That show, and the East Coast Classic, a week later, was where I made my mark in the industry. If not for those two knuckleheads I don’t know what would have happened instead!

MW: Genetically you have an advantage over most girls who get into bodybuilding. Was it relatively a natural thing for you?

HM: Sure. I also worked harder that any sane human being should ever work lol! I was totally nuts, like I mean NUTS! Completely OBSESSED and most people in the industry know that lol. Until I felt I had finally gotten “huge”, I was unstoppable. Eating 6-9 meals a day, every two hours on the dot, made sure I got at least 8 hours of sleep a night, never missed a workout, woke up in the middle of the night to eat, and trained as hard as I possibly could. Nuts! I didn’t go out, I didn’t drink, I didn’t really talk about anything besides bodybuilding and getting jacked for literally 4 years straight. My grades in college actually suffered dramatically freshman and sophomore year (until I got injured) because I would chose training over writing a paper or studying for an exam any day. Somehow I got it together junior and senior year and managed to raise my GPA enough to get into graduate school. Wheww! Lol! Oh and yea, not only did I wanna get “huge”, but I had this whole mission to do it naturally too. I wouldn’t touch a drug – I had a whole ego thing about it. Hence why my first National Show was Team Universe – tested show. I wanted to show everyone you could get your pro-card naturally and change female bodybuilding forever. Too bad they’re getting rid of bodybuilding now, so it really didn’t matter…

MW: What do you like most about competing? The body transformation or the structure of a contest prep?

HM: I HATE competing!!! Lol! Which is why I am done!!! The Delaware, my first show, Dave couldn’t make it. I was beyond disappointed. I couldn’t think about anything else the whole day. When I won, if you see the video, there was zero enthusiasm in my face…I just wanted him to be there. The only show I actually enjoyed was winning the East Coast Classic. Dave was with me every second of the day, and nothing could have made me happier than winning that show – for us. We had worked so hard for that – he was so proud of me. I looked like an animal and I knew it. Team Universe – Dave had to go to a wedding and couldn’t make it – ANDDDD I got sick/dehydrated and almost died. I’ve never felt worse in my life. I thought I was getting 3rd the whole day: it was one of the worst days of my life…Until they said my name for 1st place at the night show…I was in total shock. I felt relieved but not even happy because I didn’t get my pro card. Team Universe, last time, Dave, and a few other very important people to me were there. We had a blast and I will treasure our time together forever…However, besides that – it was a fucking disaster. I was finally in the best shape of my life, and to get there I learned to despise bodybuilding and competing. I dieted soo hard for soo long, and it showed…A WEEK BEFORE THE SHOW!! I was sooo stressed out about WINNING MY STUPID PRO CARD that my body went from a shredded freak 5 days out, to a watery mess the day of. It was beyond devastating. I wasted 5 grand and 5 months of my life to lose everything to stress taking over my body. The best part was that me and Dave were skyping towards the end of my prep because I was too tired to take pictures anymore for him – so I literally have NO evidence of all that hard work. Ugh….Grrr! That prep changed me…And I don’t think I’ll ever be the same. The more I dieted, the worse I felt, and the more I questioned what the hell I was doing this for. Which is why I’m living like a semi-normal person now! Ahhhhh! Soooo, to answer your question, lol, I like nothing about competing, it seems. The diet is easy for me, I pretty much eat a contest diet year round. I like doing cardio, and I like training. However when I feel like I am literally dying, and don’t want to move, never mind do 1-3 hours of cardio a day, or lift weights. Everything about the process becomes something I DREAD. After two consecutive years of that, I can’t find anything I like about competing.

MW: How many shows have you done and what do you feel was your best showing?

HM: Just said it in my previous rant – Delaware State and East Coast Classic. No pressure, bodybuilding was still fun back then…It became work after that. It was all about the PRO CARD. WINNING. Doing whatever it took. Suffering more than anyone should ever voluntarily suffer in their lives. And for what – to do all that work and it to disappear right before the show?! No thanks. My body thinks I’m killing it when I diet, and I have to diet hard as fuckkk to get any results.

MW: How did you approach the dieting process? Keto girl or are you a carb cycler? Who helped you out with that?

Dave Pulcinella always did my diet. Noo keto! I already get light-headed every time I stand up and subsequently collapse on the floor throughout the day NOT on a keto diet. I get so tired I can barely get off the couch. And it’s like that the majority of my prep. It was like that whether we carb cycled, did no carbs, did lots of carbs, even when I used someone else as a nutritionist briefly – the only thing that happened was I still felt like total shit but lost muscle. The dieting process does not agree with my body at all. Everyone I’ve talked to has said they’ve never heard of anyone having the reaction I do to normal contest preps. My body just isn’t cut out for it I guess. I feel like a hangover times about a million the whole time, to the point where I’m too tired to even pick up my phone. I don’t talk to anyone, I get completely isolated. I’ll even get too tired to go on the computer. Then I get depressed, and just look at the clock all day until I can go to sleep. What a life to live…I won’t do that to myself one more time.

MW: The NPC seems to be drifting away from Female Bodybuilding. Where do you see it going in 2-5 years? Will serious competitive female bodybuilding exist?

HM: Yeah, no kidding! I heard from reliable sources it was GONE as of 2012. Another reason I don’t care that I’m done competing for good. No they will not exist. It’s Physique now. Look at the recent shows even – there are only a few fbbs! There are already a million Physique chicks! It was genius creating that category. The girls don’t have to get enormous and can keep their femininity – it’s bodybuilding from the 80s! Which was the best! Hot chicks with muscle – that’s what it’s all about. Although I love the huuge chicks – not everyone supports that. No support – no money – no female bodybuilding. Very sad.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Hayley McNeff continues to eat cheeseburgers and train religiously at various diners and gyms in Chicagoland. If you’d like to reach Hayley, you can do so via Facebook. Stay tuned for a future exclusive interview with the delicious Hayley…only on MuscleWeek!

By XfitSpin

MuscleWeek: We want to thank you so much Patrick for taking the time for this interview. We really appreciate it. Jumping right in, what inspired you to start bodybuilding?

PA: I started when I was quite young because my grandfather had some old York Barbell weights that he gave to us kids (me and my brothers). I didn’t know too much about weightlifting back then. We bought a book or two and started doing the exercises we found in there. After Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder came out we became big fans of Arnold. Then our training became more sophisticated. We eventually bought a bench and made a gym in our cellar. I also remember that my mom got Prevention Magazine. I’m not even sure if it’s still in publication.

MW: I think it is actually.

PA: Really? Huh. Well, anyway, it got me interested in supplements and the nutritional aspects of training.

MW: So, when you were a teenager just out of high school, going to college. What in the world made you decide to go into Chemistry?

PA: I originally wanted to go into Pharmacy. I was really interested in drugs. How drugs could heal people, and how they worked in the body. I did well in Chemistry in High School and I enjoyed making stuff in lab during class.

MW: What was your first job out of college?

PA: I took a job during college at a company called Uniroyal. It’s a chemical company. I worked as a lab tech in a work study program. I made polymers and polymer precursors. It was really messy and included nasty chemicals.

After I finished school I got a job at a company called GAF which changed its name to ISP and now has a different name. I’m not sure what it is. I worked in a lab and did research mostly for the cosmetic industry. Polymers once again. You know, products that go into hair gels and conditioners. It was boring but I learned a lot about analytical and synthesis techniques.

I had a decent lab and access to other labs and there was a Chemical Library on our floor. That’s where I started looking up all the chemical compositions of steroids and bodybuilding drugs. Since my job was really boring and my boss was never around I started making whatever I wanted, and I’d come back at night and work on stuff. People started catching on. I got caught and lost my job, but I made all kinds of drugs, bodybuilding related and otherwise. Anything I wanted to make I looked it up and figured it out.

After I lost my job I returned to CT and got into the PhD program for Organic Synthesis at UConn. At that time I started fooling around on the internet. This was around 1995 when it was relatively new. I met a lot of people on there like Dan Duchaine, Will Brink, and Bruce Kneller.

MW: Oh Wow! I actually had a question later about how you met Dan. There it is.

PA: I feel like I’m giving you a total biography. Do you want me to keep going?

MW: Definitely, but I’ll ask you a few more things for this interview specifically.

PA: Yeah, maybe you could make the bio into a separate post or something.

MW: That sounds like a great idea. Okay, serious question. If you could go back in time to when Duchaine was still alive knowing what you know now, what would you say to him?

PA: I think I would just tell him that people appreciated very much what he’s done and he inspired a lot of people. I enjoyed working with him, but he was obviously a very tortured man, and I wish that I could have helped him in some way.

MW: What are you working on right now?

PA: I’m doing some very exciting work with ketones. I’m collaborating with a top researcher in that area.

MW: That sounds exciting! Crossfitters love ketones. Probably not like Dave Palumbo loves ketones, but in what capacity?

PA: Products that raise levels of ketones in the body.

MW: What are your goals for Epharm in 2013?

PA: I’m doing a lot of work with natural products like Ursolic acid and I also have a direct sales brand called Prototype Nutrition. I also have a Ursolic acid derivative with high bioavailability that I made into a topical. That is probably my most exciting product right now. It’s all natural and great for losing fat, maintaining muscularity, and endurance. It’s called Ur Spray and is sold through Prototype Nutrition. I also have a version sold through Epharm called Pump Spray.

MW: So, I know you personally don’t Crossfit, but what are your thoughts on the subject?

PA: I saw it awhile ago on ESPN actually. My understanding is that it’s very aerobic, varied, high intensity training. From a cardio fitness aspect it’s probably great, but as far as gaining proficiency at a certain exercise, it’s counterproductive. With crossfit you have to try and learn a million exercises at the same time. However, in order to be good at a complex exercise technique like a power clean you have to build neural pathways by doing the same movements consistently and somewhat exclusively for a while.

MW: Well, they do say they specialize in not specializing, but you think this can actually be a negative thing?

PA: I think Crossfit actually confuses the body to where you’re not proficient at lifts, or it takes you a lot longer to gain that proficiency. I wouldn’t recommend it to beginners. There are too many complex movements that need some dedication to develop the proper technique. Doing something like a snatch when you’ve already done other things, and you’re exhausted, and your form isn’t that great is very dangerous. For someone that knows how to do all the exercises, well I think it’s a good system and people get a hell of a workout.

MW: I agree. I get asked frequently at Crossfit about how to improve one specific movement. I always say, you have to do it, and do it often. You can’t just do it when it pops up once a month in a WOD. For women especially, building that upper body strength takes some serious work and a band won’t get you there in any timely fashion. Anyway, off my soap box.

MW: What are 3 supplements you recommend for anyone training at high intensity 2-5x a week?

PA: I would suggest a protein supplement. Definitely a Multivitamin/Multimineral. Fish Oil obviously, because people who train hard are subject to injury and inflammation that could hinder performance.

I would also add caffeine. It enhances the utilization of fatty acids for fuel, speeds up glycogen replacement after exercise, and decreases perceived exertion and pain during exercise. Not everyone enjoys the effects of stimulants however, and some have personal reasons for avoiding caffeine.

MW: What are your thoughts on the presence of performance enhancing drugs in Crossfit? Is it naïve to think people aren’t cycling in the off season and then coming off to compete in Regionals and the Games?

PA: Whenever there is a substantial reward – a financial reward -there’s going to be people that cheat to win. It’s that way in any sport. There’s no reason to believe that crossfit would be immune to this, especially since its foundation is around weightlifting. These drugs are so engrained in the weight/gym culture that there’s bound to be some people who use them to their advantage. Plus, they’re so easy to use since they only have in-competition testing. If they want to get rid of drugs in the sport I would say stop giving people money when they win.

MW: LOL, that’s kind of funny. I could just see Dave Castro going “Hey crossfitters, I was just kidding about that 250k purse you’ve been gunning for all year.”

PA: If they want to get serious they need to do off season testing like the Olympic anti-doping agencies and model their protocols and use their laboratories. This would be very expensive to implement and I don’t know how crossfitters would feel about it.

MW: There’s an argument out there that steroids or EPO would actually hinder a crossfitter’s performance. What is your response to that?

PA: Track and Field athletes have benefited exponentially from using these drugs. Crossfit wouldn’t be any different. Overuse of anabolic steroids certainly can hinder performance by leading to tightness and excess water retention, and just like in track and field a crossfitter would need to carefully manipulate their drug intake to avoid the negatives.

MW: Muscle Weeker with the screen name “Bruce Berkowitz” wants to know if you ever hear from Bruce Kneller?

PA: Yeah, he just sent me an invitation on LinkedIn. I tried his new protein at the Olympia and I thought it was pretty good. I don’t really compete with him in the industry anymore so we don’t butt heads like we used to.

MW: MuscleWeek Senior Editor Shane Ray wants to know what your thoughts are on SARMS? Before you answer that, what exactly are SARMS?

PA: Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators. Basically, they are the same thing as anabolic steroids but they’ve been designed using computer aided molecular modeling. These models create structures that bind and activate the androgen receptor, which is essentially what steroids do. However these structures are completely different than the classic four fused rings structures of steroids.

In theory the people that developed them thought they would produce the same effect as anabolic steroids while simultaneously avoiding unwanted side effects. Some animal studies suggested this, but the human studies do not. Similar to anabolic steroids they still disrupt your body’s hormone regulation. They also increase liver enzymes and produce abnormalities in blood lipid profiles. Despite their efforts using sophisticated drug design techniques, the developers still can’t really differentiate between therapeutic and toxic effects any more than what was achieved decades ago with anabolic steroids

One interesting aspect is that no one ever uses the word steroids with them. Are they going to be scheduled as anabolic steroids? As it stands presently they’re in a gray area legally. If they become available drugs they’ll be used in patients with age related sarcopenia and cancer, cachexia and what not. I would think at that point they will need to be scheduled because they’ll be abused as steroids are.

MW: Shane also wants to know if you think legal supplements will ever be as good as they were prior to 2004 or the age of prohormones?

PA: No. Unless some monumental discovery is made, but aliens might land here someday too.

MW: Another MuscleWeeker asked what your thoughts are on Lance Armstrong?

PA: I feel as though he was made a scapegoat. He was singled out and it’s sad to see a hero fall like that. I think it’s a little unfair they would go to such extremes to catch him when they didn’t do that to anyone else. Although, I also think he was a fool to continue to compete even though he was being suspected more and more. He was pushing his luck and snubbing his nose at the testing people. If he just retired in 04’ or something he would have been the best ever, but since he didn’t, he made himself more and more vulnerable.

MW: The craziest thing you’ve ever seen at the Olympia or Arnold Classic?

PA: I’m going to have to get back to you on that. I’ve seen a lot.

MW: What is the coolest thing a fan has ever sent you?

PA: Someone sent me a watch once and a board rep just sent me some cookies and fudge, and hot dipping sauce for Christmas. I also get letters from people in prison asking me to help them get out. I guess that’s interesting, but I obviously can’t help them.

MW: If you had any dating advice for women who compete in figure/bikini/bodybuilding or even crossfit, what would it be?

PA: When I go to the shows and see the really serious fitness and figure girls, they’re usually dating guys that train them, are also bodybuilders, or men they most likely met at the gym. Their lives are so extreme they probably couldn’t co-exist with someone not in the same lifestyle. If I were a girl I’d shoot for a more interesting life and look for someone that may not be as into competing, perhaps an intellectual. A fitness girl has to look at her practical needs yes, but she also shouldn’t restrict her life to being a hermit and making her whole existence about training, broccoli, and tanning.

MW: I think so too. Thanks so much Patrick, always a pleasure.

PA: You’re welcome.

You can check Patrick out at www.patrickarnoldblog.com

Patrick’s products are sold through www.prototypenutrition.com and www.epharmnutrition.com

If you have your own questions you can track him down on his Q&A threads at http://www.prohormoneforum.com/q-patrick-arnold/ and http://anabolicminds.com/forum/advanced-discussion-patrick/

Listen to what Toney has to say about the current state of competitive bodybuilding, women who turn him on, creepy schmoes who won’t leave him alone and how aging is only a state of mind.

MW: If it isn’t The X-Man Himself. Toney. Welcome to Muscleweek. Thank you for meeting me. HOTLANTA isn’t what I expected. It reminds me of Chicago. So. Tell us something about Toney Freeman not many people know about.

TF: Here you go. I love to bake, man. I do. I love to bake and cook. It’s my new passion, Shane. I’m into the culinary arts now and I think it’s cool. I bake cookies, pies, cakes anything. I go online and find these recipes and I just try them out, you know? I love it. Actually. In Atlanta I may be starting this cooking show for television called “Man Up!”. It’s basically I go on the show, make a quick meal of healthy food and teach the audience how to spruce it up and make it more edible. I’m looking forward to it, man. I can’t wait. I may be doing my own video series on YouTube pretty soon that will be almost the same kind of thing so look out for it.

MW: You’ve been around the scene a long time. Some believe you hit your highest cylinder around age 40 instead of late 20′s or early 30′s. What do you contribute to that and would you agree?

TF: You know? This is why. I know how to take time off and know when to push it and when to back off. I learned over the years and I’ve been competing since 1988, man. You believe that? So through the years I picked up a few things. I learned from other people’s mistakes. I also took about 10 years off. I came back to the competitive stage when I was 36. So with all that time off it was like I was new at this all over again with a ton of knowledge already. On top of all that I pay attention to what my limitations are. I know what I can get away with and what I cannot. Some guys don’t care or pay attention. They just push it, man. Our bodies are like a car, man. A machine. Treat it good it will treat you good. Take care of it and it will last you a long time.

MW: Describe a typical day in the life of Toney Freeman. You seem like you have a lot cooking. You don’t seem to be like most of these lazy turd-burglar bodybuilders who live on facebook all day long. What’s up!

TF: [Loud Laughter] I keep myself busy all day. From the moment I wake up I start answering business e-mails, making phone calls or booking flights to other cities because I still am fortunate enough to get guest posing gigs. On top of that I have 3 shows planned for 2012. I have my cooking show I am working on, my YouTube Channel and making sure business is handled properly with X-Frame Spray. I stay busy in the day, too because I cook one meal at a time. I never cook in bulk. I never do. I don’t like cold stale food. I like my meals freshly made so it’s worth it to me to prepare them one at a time.

MW: At age 45 you seem to be getting better. Ronnie Coleman is the same age as you and he barely looks like a shell of his former self respectively. Do you think your style of training preserved your body to what it is today? I know you like to employ a higher rep, moderate weight blood-pumping style instead of the inhuman colossal weights Ronnie was famous for employing over the years.

TF: You’re right, man. That’s true. I think that has a lot to do with it. When I was in my 20′s I was all about trying to keep up with the next guy so I pushed it with the weights. I didn’t know my limits then. I thought the only way to get bigger was to life heavier than the next guy. It was when I tore my pec is when I said to myself that there has to be another way. So I started to experiment. I found out that you have to put your ego away and use just enough weight to stimulate the muscles without making your joints and ligaments do any of the work What people also don’t know is training so heavy all of the time damages your bones. It causes micro-fractures and over time it catches up to you. I know this about the body. It always wins. The House always wins. I learned to not care what the guy in the gym training next to me thinks. You see me. I’m 6’2. I’m 300lbs. I’m a big guy, right? I used to think I should curl the 80lb dumbbells because that is what is expected. Once I said I didn’t care about that bullshit of what people think I got better. I curl the 40′s and think nothing of it because I can feel the muscle working deep inside the fibers. I never really need a spot because the way I see it is if you can’t lift it on your own then you are just going to activate the joints and ligaments in that set so it makes it counter-productive. I use angles, I use different rep schemes, rep tempo, drop sets and all kinds of different things. I never limit myself to one way of training. I keep my body guessing all the time but the main thing is I feel the muscle working and not worry about impressing people in the gym, you know?

MW: I do know. Yes. Toney. At 300lbs you seem to still be very conditioned. In the interview you did with my Editor-In-Chief, Jason Stern, recently you had visible abs. What’s that from? Good genetics? Superior metabolism? Constant cardio?

TF: I think a little bit of everything. No. I think it’s because I keep myself pretty strict all the time. I do like to eat what I want sometimes but I am mindful. If I eat sweets one day or if I enjoy some fast food then I know I will do some extra cardio or take a walk or something. Right now, though I do cardio 3 days a week for about 30 minutes either in the morning or after my workouts but I workout twice a day. I train each body part twice a week so I am always in the gym so it keeps me lean and keeps me from gaining fat.

MW: Toney. Lots of guys go way off of the deep end with using different compounds and dabbling with things with dosages that ruin their physiques. See: King Kamali as a reference. What are your thoughts on SEO, extreme dosing gear and mixing so many different chemicals the way some of these guys do? What are your thoughts on that?

TF: I’m not a fan of all that. Just like I said when I was younger I would push it with the weights and think heavier is better but guess what? It isn’t. Not for me anyway and I bet not for most people. When I lightened up the weights and backed off I got better and it’s the same with gear and all that. You have to be smart and know your limits. You have to take as much time off as you do on and even add another month or two. With me I get my blood-work done every 45 days and stay on top of all that. I put smart training, actual dieting and proper rest before everything else where people now seem to put that stuff first and everything else after. That isn’t right. If anything it ruined bodybuilding, man. Back when I first got going guys looked awesome and everyone wanted to bodybuild. It was on ESPN. There were morning workout shows featuring real bodybuilders. We made people want to look like us but that is when we put our work in the gym and on the treadmill and paid attention to our food and how we ate. Not anymore, man. These cats now think they could do better from a needle or a pill and go to the pancake house every night. Oh. I think I will skip cardio and just take another pill or two instead. No, man. It doesn’t work that way.

MW: Toney. You mentioned a pec tear earlier. Most guys never recover from a pec tear. With you it’s hardly noticeable. How did you recover so well? What did you do to bring up your upper chest to conceal it and bring it back to par with the right side? New style of training?

TF: One thing is I didn’t give up and think that you can’t get back to where it was before. The surgeon said he attached the muscle back to the bone and told me that the pectoral minor would never be the same but I didn’t accept that. I made it a goal to find a way to bring it back up as much as I can. I started to get weekly deep tissue massages, I would do lots of stretching and like you said I started to train more smart. I focus mostly on my upper chest. I never go heavier than 225 on incline barbell. I use dumbbells like no higher than 120lbs and focus on feeling and squeezing the muscle. I got really into uni-lateral movements, too. I would do one arm pec-dec flys. One arm dumbbell presses and stuff like that. I focused on making it better and I did. It isn’t as good as the left pec but it came a hell of a long way.

MW: Toney. One remarkable thing about you is that you are one of the very very few bodybuilders walking the globe who has an enormous approval rating on the more gossipy bodybuilding message boards. Where even guys like a Jay Cutler or a Phil Heath take lots of grief you seem to be exempt from all of that noise. How do you think you earned that respect?

TF: You know I am actually honored by that. I heard that before. I don’t get down too much with looking at the boards because like you said even guys like Jay and Phil get flamed so I try to stay away from the negativity. I guess people like me because I’m cool to everyone, you know. I treat everyone with respect. I’m not a phony fake like half the people in the industry so people see that. I meet so many people and I am always sure to treat everyone with respect. You know, I been around a long time and people see me coming back again and again getting better than ever so I guess people just like that about me.

MW: You seem to have a lot of “industry chicks” flocking to you at all of the expos or at all of the shows you enter. I’ve seen you at Jason Dhirs’ parties in Columbus. Do you have good Game or are you just a natural Pick Up Artist?

TF: [Hysterical Laughter] I mean. I don’t have that kind of Game like the way you guys talk about on Muscleweek but I treat everyone the same including the ladies, man. I don’t try to hustle anyone or lie to anyone I just treat the ladies like a gentleman so they like that plus women like tall guys like me. It’s an evolutionary thing, I think. Most women say the ideal man is tall, dark and handsome and I am all 3 so I guess that’s why they come around. Plus I smell good, too! [More Laughter].

MW: Speaking of the ladies. What’s your ideal woman? Does she have to be a schizophrenic and bi-polar Figure girl or some delusional Bikini competitor or can she be a girl who has nothing to do with the physique competition world?

TF: Oh, man. You know how they be, right? No. I like women who take care of themselves and keep fit but that is because everyone should be fit and make health and their body a major priority in their life. They don’t have to compete or anything just take care of their shit. I like women who like me for me not just for my muscles but I like all women. I think it’s a mistake to have a certain type and stick with only that type. I like them all, man. Blondes, brunettes, red heads, white girls, black girls everything. As long as they have some sort of substance and a decent brain I can be cool with it.

MW: Being a popular bodybuilder not to mention a 6’2 300lb jacked black guy must bring you a lot of attention. Good and Bad. How does the general public take you to at say a grocery store or a gas station or something? What’s their initial reaction?

TF: You know what? 99% of the time it’s positive. I get people staring at me all the time and most of the time people have questions they walk up to me and ask me how much I bench press. You know, man. The usual questions. Do I take protein shakes. How much do I lift. So I am always conscious about conducting myself like a gentleman every where I go. I know people already have their minds made up about me as soon as they see me so I try to do the opposite of what they expect so I hold doors for people. Look people in the eye. Shake their hands. I try to remember names and all that. Sometimes I hear a stupid comment but I just ignore it. I don’t care anymore at this point.

MW: On that note. Facebook is littered with every creeper and schmoe in the galaxy. What kind of weird requests do you receive privately? Somebody we recently interviewed told us that this pervert offered him money to crush a live mouse in the palm of his hand. You have any funny stories like that you can share?

TF: Oh, man. I know. I get that crap all the time. Mostly I get these weirdos e-mailing me asking me if they can give me a massage or suck my dick or stuff like that. I just ignore it I won’t even entertain them. One time here at that gym we were at earlier[in Atlanta] I was working out with my training partner and this big fat creepy old guy was there and he kept staring at me so then he walks over to me in between my set I was just standing there and he comes up and grabs my ass, man! Can you believe that shit? I turned around and yelled at the dude and warned him not to ever put his hands on me I told him I was a grown ass man and not to ever do that again. He just ran off saying he was sorry. Had that been me say I did that to some girl or something I’d be in handcuffs or in a police car, right?

MW: Toney. Over The Counter supplements. Do you actually use any? Most pros pretend they do because they have to but we all know they don’t. What’s the deal?

TF: I do. Yes. I mean, I don’t go too crazy with them but some of them I like and some I think is pure garbage, you know. I am real big on vitamins & minerals. I also am big on anti-oxidants. I think that’s another reason why at 45 I am still going strong. I always make sure I take my vitamin complex and minerals every day. Let’s see, I will drink a protein shake if I know I have to get a meal in but feel too lazy too cook I’ll have a shake and sometimes I take arginine when I go to sleep. People think arginine is best to take before a workout but it’s better to take it when you sleep. I don’t like pre-workout drinks with stimulants in them. I get all jittery. I don’t like it. The only time I use stuff like a Redline or something is when I am feeling a little sluggish and I got to get cardio in so I’ll drink maybe half a can and then hit cardio.

MW: It seems like with the introduction of Men’s Physique that Bodybuilding took a nose dive in popularity. Do you find that to be true?

TF: It is totally true. Like I said guys ruin themselves because for a while like 10 years ago everyone wanted to see the freaks so the judges rewarded it so guys went crazy with the shit. Now we got Men’s Physique which is what all guys want to look like. The problem is they don’t let only the quality bodybuilders on stage anymore. Now anybody can do the USA’s or Nationals now. All you have to do is pay your entry fee and buy a NPC card that’s it. You can make the USA’s your very first show if you want. For the promoters or those making profit of it then it’s great but look what that did to bodybuilding. It made it go downhill and until they stop letting so many people get on stage that don’t deserve to be up there then bodybuilding will get less popular. I remember back when I was on the national scene all the guys who entered the show were real good man, all of them. There were no scrubs. Everyone in every class were hard to beat. Guys were all state level winners, regional winners and local level winners. Back then you had to win like all the types of shows to be able to do nationals. Back then only the best of the best were on stage. Now? Please. May only be 2-3 real good guys at every national show. So when the bodybuilding show is 85% guys who shouldn’t be there it is no wonder why Men’s Physique is getting more popular. Bodybuilding isn’t visually appealing anymore.

MW: Can bodybuilding every go mainstream? I used to see it on ESPN. What happened? Why does it still remain cult-status?

TF: I doubt it ever will but back when the Olympia was covered on ESPN and it got more coverage the physiques on stage were good and everyone looked healthier. Now guys have lumps, bumps and obvious use of oil everywhere and big ol’ stomachs sticking out everywhere why would anyone put that on TV? It’s a joke. Nobody wants to look like the guys on stage now. The only people who like the way it looks are hardcore bodybuilders and schmoes.

MW: Who do you work with as a nutritionist these days? Do you get caught up with the whole “guru” thing?

TF: I don’t work with anybody at all. My business partner, Lloyd Davis will give me an unbiased opinion and be an extra set of eyes for me but that’s it. He keeps it real with how I look otherwise I do all my own cooking and meal planning. I know what I gotta do. I am not about to pay someone 5k so he can tell me to eat egg whites and oatmeal for breakfast. Come on, man. I don’t get down with that “guru” stuff. I know my body. I know how to eat to lose fat and preserve muscle, man. I think that “guru” stuff is silly. I keep my basic blue-print of foods I rotate and add or subtract based on how I feel or look. That’s it.

MW: Tell me who in the bodybuilding industry you want to give the ol’ “Freeman Frewilly” to? There has to be someone. For me it is still Monica.

TF: [Laughter]. Bro. You know who Denise Millani is? That’s who. Man. I saw her at the LA Fit Expo and I couldn’t keep my eyes off of her. She has it all. She got a butt, she got boobs. Wow! I saw her and I was frozen. I lost my composure, man. I’d love to see her again.

MW: Where does Toney Freeman see himself in the next 5 years? Is Hollywood calling you? If Terry “Squeege Lo” Crews can make it then I believe you can.

TF: Yea, man. I’ve been doing some acting. People don’t know this but I was big into drama and theater in high-school and took some thespian classes after. I always been into acting so I’ve been testing the waters and just landed a role for a movie where I played a Thug Boss. Type-casted, probably but it’s cool. I know what I look like. That movie was called Parked. So after 2012 I plan on focusing more on that because 2012 is my last year where I am going to go full on with bodybuilding. If I can get Top 5 at the O then maybe I will do it again next year but we’ll see.

MW: Toney. You’re called The X Man. You carry the classic X-Frame and have an uncanny mutant ability to get better with age. Are you also a comic book fan? I find there is a direct link to comic book fans and bodybuilders.

TF: I like comic books. I like the characters. I don’t collect the books but I think it’s cool. I like the movies and the cartoons and all that. I seen all the movies and I know they have new movies are coming out this summer so that’s cool. I know where the Marvel Comics headquarters is at in L.A. I always want to go in there and say to Stan Lee – What’s up!

MW: If you can change bodybuilding for the better what would you do? How can bodybuilding be great again like it once was.

TF: They have to stop letting just anybody be a pro. Being a pro now isn’t special like it used to be now everyone is a pro. When I went pro I knew every other pro because there were so few because only the best went pro. Now? I meet people and they tell me they are a pro and I have no idea who they are it isn’t exclusive anymore now they give away pro cards. What? Like 30 girls a year go pro with like 20 guys? Back then it was maybe 5-6 new pros a year because only the best of the best went pro. They also need to set a standard for the shows. It’s so subjective. Too subjective. There is no standard. They should say. Any SEO usage means disqualification from the show. Roid guts means you will place last. Lumps means you are disqualified. If you pose the wrong way you lose points and nobody should ever fraternize with promoters or judges or anything. That will leave some of the bull shit out but mostly make it special to compete at nationals again and make is special to be a pro again.

MW: It was great being here in Atlanta with you, Toney. How can anybody get in contact with you for anything you have to offer? What would you like to plug and promote?

TF: People can contact me through my website which is www.tfxman.com or through facebook if they want to. The site for my X-Pain Spray is www.xpainspray.com

MW:  Laura Jeanne Niedermayer. How the heck are you? Any relation to Scott who used to play for the New Jersey Devils?  Tell us a little about yourself. 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LJ.FiT
Gmail: lj.fit24@gmail.com
Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/LJFit

Bonus Questions:Bon Jovi or Cinderella: Bon Jovi
Favorite Cheat Food: Taco Bell…oops
Favorite Movie: Gladiator
Favorite Travel Destination: Mexico
NJ Devils or NY Rangers: Philadelphia Flyers!
The New Jersey Devil. Real or Fake: Fake. Except for the time I was driving home from the shore alone, at like 1 am, through the Pine Barrens…then I’d say that shit was real!

As most fans of MuscleWeek know, Senior Editor Shane Ray caught a bad case of ‘Yellow Fever’ last year and was briefly engaged to not one — but two different Asian fitness models. And while I like to think he’s learned his lesson about dating bikini girls, I’ve also learned that his newest addiction is going to outlast that case of herpes I gave him three years ago (we shared a glass of wine, I swear!) Anyways, when I told him about a hot, new Bikini competitor from Chicago named Maxine Chaikouang, his first question was ‘Chaikouang? What kind of name is that?’ It took exactly zero coaxing to get Shane to sit down for a nice Sushi dinner (on MuscleWeek’s tab) with the razor-sharp and ultra-fine Maxine.

MuscleWeek:  Maxine Chaikouang. Did I say that right? Tell Muscleweek a little about yourself. You own your own personal training company?

Maxine Chaikouang: Yep, I’ve been a personal trainer for over 4 years, but started off on my own in August of 2010. I do most of my business at HiFi personal fitness.

MW: There is a lot of money to be made in Personal Training if one can build a niche and reputation including clientele. What separates a good trainer and “rep counter”?

MC: Besides education. Being able to know exactly what it is that your client wants. If you can provide for them something that someone else is unable to do, and give them the results in regards to their goals; they’ll tend to stay with you for a while. Also, having a six pack and great legs wouldn’t hurt. Just kidding. Kind of.

MW: I am known to train a random client here and there but doing it full time would make me pull the hair I don’t have out of my head. I find it redundant and frustrating. How do you stay motivated and enthusiastic every day with every client?

MC: I know trainers at this popular gym in Barrington, Illinois who can’t train a days worth of clients without being stoned or slipping alcohol in their bottle of Speed Stack. I do have tough days sometimes, but I try to look at each session as an hour with a friend. Most times, it doesn’t feel like work to me. I also take into consideration what my clients pay me for that hour, and it makes me think ” they’re paying this much money just to spend an hour with me “. If you’re a compassionate person, it holds you to a certain feeling of obligation to make it worth their time.

MW: So how did you fall into the whole bodybuilding/physique thing? Was it a natural transition from being a trainer and into the gym scene anyway?

MC: It was pretty natural, and it does not hurt that I practically live at a gym. I was actually inspired by this woman at the gym who was doing shows. I had absolutely no idea that bikini competitions existed, but when she was walking around in her sports bra and tight abs; it truly was motivating. There’s also my mindset that you should always look better than your clients; or most of the general population for that matter. Trainers don’t like to admit it, but I will attest to the fact that if I didn’t have the body that I did; it would have been harder to attract many of the clients I have today.

MW: You compete in Bikini. Why don’t you compete in Figure? What’s the major difference between the two divisions?

MC: I like the general softness that bikini competitors still retain. Plus, I prance around in booty shorts all over the gym; why not showcase my talents on a real stage and actually win something?  The major difference is that figure competitors are much more developed muscularly and their goal is to be even leaner than bikini competitors. Separation between muscles are much more evident.

MW: I understand you work with Dr. Ko. What does he do different than other trainers? He seems to be building an impressive track record. Have you ever worked with anybody else?

MC: You will never meet a more benevolent, yet knowledgeable person with his type of physique. You can sense that he genuinely cares about you and your success. Not to mention his eye for minor details. With his experience, I knew I was in the right hands. I have worked with Katie Peterson, a colleague of mine at HiFI personal fitness. She actually competes in figure competitions.

MW: Would you say contestants in Ms. America, Hawaiian Tropic or Hogs & Honey pageants are athletes? Why do Bikini girls in the NPC consider themselves ATHLETES?

MC: Those girls are not athletes at all. NPC bikini girls are athletes because contrary to belief, it is a hard training regimen. The diet is tough, even though we are restricting calories respectively speaking, we are eating 6x/day and it’s all healthy stuff. No sweets, and definitely NO alcohol which most people find difficult. And most importantly…WE WORK OUT.

MW: What is the long term plan with competition? Pro Card? How will life change if you win the ever so elusive Pro Card?

MC: I most definitely am working to winning a Pro Card this year. I’m not sure what the future will hold when I win my Pro Card, but my purpose of achievement and recognition would definitely be fulfilled. My life probably wouldn’t change much, if anything I would find a new expensive hobby to fill my time.

MW: Do you feel the political card is the key to success in higher levels of competition or do you think hard work always prevail?

MC: Hard work is definitely a must, but in any industry or sport, I believe that politics absolutely plays a role in higher levels of competition. Because when you reach a certain point where there are two girls on stage who look just as equally gorgeous and perfect; how else would you discern but to make a decision that is biased by the pressure from the influential people who just so happen to hold a special interest in one of the girls?

MW: I have spoken to many Bikini competitors who are already dabbling in sorcery, alchemy and pharmacy. Do you feel like using physique enhancing drugs are necessary in serious competitions?

MC: Drugs are bad.

MW: What is the most frustrating things you see or have seen in your short time in this crazy industry?

MC: Girls who try too hard on stage and present themselves as porn actresses. Repulsive… and then going on to see those girls win or place. Just my pet peeve.

MW: Maxine, you’re an Asian girl who competes in Bikini. You’re not a typical boring “Barbie Doll”. How filled is your facebook inbox with schmoes trying to run Game on you? Besides an interview request from MuscleWeek, what kind of funny solicitations do you receive? 

MC: HAHAHAHA. Shane, if only you knew. Most of them your typical “you’re sexy as fuck”, I’m actually still waiting for something original.

MW: Yellow Fever seems to be a very serious but fortunate disease that inflicts many men who cross paths with girls like you. What kind of guys do you go for? You don’t date broke-dick dog bodybuilders who lie and post ducky face phone-mirror pics on facebook all day long do you?

MC: (Cracking up) Seriously? No I don’t go for any Pauly D’s, but what I do find sexy is that all-american, clean cut, highly intelligent, and witty guy (i.e. WASP/ Tom Brady-esque) Anyone who’s unable to hold a decent conversation stands no chance.

MW: If you can change one thing about Bikini what would it be? I see the girls are getting more muscular every show. Should the criteria change? Do you really need striated abs on stage?

MC: The one change I would like to see is a lower frequency of girls who have had their boobs done. I would love to see more NATURAL girls… maybe I’m biased because my bust size or lack thereof leaves me embittered. I think the criteria is fine where it’s at, but any direction further towards muscular would deter me from competing. I don’t think you need striated abs on stage… if anything I think many guys are repulsed by striated abs on girls.

MW: Moving on. Have you shopped any potential sponsors? If you could represent any company in the bodybuilding industry which one would it be?

MC: I have yet to shop for any potential sponsors.. maybe I’ve been waiting for them to come to me? Being a novice I wouldn’t know where to start. One company whose products I’ve always been satisfied with is Optimum Nutrition, but I wouldn’t mind others who are just as reputable.

MW: If you knew you were going to be stuck on a desert island for a full year but could bring with you 3 items. Which 3 items would you bring?

MC: My baby blanket, Atlas Shrugged (it took me a damn near half a year to complete), and my favorite pair of booty shorts.

MW: Who is your bodybuilding industry Hubby? Whose glutes do you want to squeeze?

MC:Is it bad that I don’t have one?

MW: Tell us something about Maxine Chaikouang that not many people know. Tell Muscleweek a secret.

MC: I’m that girl that can bake a batch of cookies, and leave none for anyone. Quite antithetic…

MW: If you could make only one wish come true what would be that wish?

MC: That I could eat all of the cupcakes in the world and still be sexy.

MW: Maxine. What are your 2012 plans? What shows could we see you at this year?

MC: You’ll most definitely see me at Illinois State in May, and I will be ready to rock at Junior Nationals :]

MW: Is there anything you would like to plug? Your website? Your personal training business?  How can potential sponsors, schmoes and clients who want to work with you contact you?

MC: Everyone can check out my site: FitMaxPersonalTraining, or find me on FACEBOOK

Bonus Questions:

Favorite Movie?

Troy.

Favorite Cheat Food?

Cupcakes or Sushi

Favorite Clean Food?

Oatmeal

Favorite Drink?

Tequila on the rocks.

MuscleWeek: Tell us a little about yourself, Rob. Where did you grow up? What do you do for a living?

Rob Krieder: I grew up in southern Maryland. Very rural and country. My grandfather, who was a farmer, gave my parents a few acres to build a house on and that is where they still are living to this day. I get most of my genetics from my grandfather. Hard working man, with huge arms and forearms and a heart of gold.

I have been running a personal training business since 1998, RK BODIES (www.rkbodies.com). I managed health clubs and was a fitness director as well, but I got tired of making the clubs a lot of money, and I myself, only seeing a fraction of that. I’ve always done things my way, and always will.

MW: How did you fall into this cult known as the competitive bodybuilding world? Was sand kicked in your face, too like most of us?

Nope, no sand kicked in my face. I was the stocky kid in school. During lunch, we would always have arm wrestling challenges and me and another kid were the champs.

I picked up a Muscle and Fitness and Flex magazine at a 7-11 when I was about 14 and read those suckers from front to back. I had no idea what they were talking about, but I did my best to apply it all in the basement of my parents house using my fathers sand weights. I kept educating myself through magazines and Arnold’s Encyclopedia of Body Building. I grossly over trained for a couple of years trying to emulate the pro’s routines, not realizing they were all juiced up. It wasn’t until Dorian Yates came on to the scene and his high intensity/low volume approach became popular. The more rest I gave myself, the more I grew.

MW: Would you say you are now over the hump? On your way UP the hump one constantly worries about their nitrogen balance and thinks whey protein will help “build muscle”. Over the hump means if you miss a meal you know you’re not going to shrivel up and drop 60lbs and evaporate into nothing. It means you put your fanny pack away and don’t look down on men with hair on their legs. Which side of the hump are you on?

RK: I was obsessed at an early age, and I am glad I grew out of that quickly. I am educated, with a Bachelors in Exercise Physiology (Cum Laude), so I got over the hump a long time ago. I don’t look down upon anyone. Fanny packs, bad bad memories. How about tight skinz pants back in the day as well. Funny shit.

MW: Did you at one point have a true interest in winning a pro card?

RK: I still do. I hope to obtain that fucker in 2013 at Masters Nationals. I is just a personal goal, one I have had since I was a kid. I have experienced everything a pro body builder has already, except the pro card. I have been sponsored by Twinlab, MHP, MuscleTech and now Big Bitch Formula (www.bigbitchformula.com), I have traveled the country, working booths at show, tons of photo shoots, interviews, videos, magazines cover and features etc etc. I have done it all pretty much. Has it changed me or made me a better man? Not really, but it has made me realize body building isn’t a mean to an end. I will never make a career of body building. I just enjoy doing it. I wouldn’t have competed in over 30 contests in 20 years if I didn’t.

MW: What would have that really given you besides an annual bill to “renew” it?

RK: To pay for your pro card in the first place is the most absurd thing EVER. It may help my business slightly with the added title of IFBB pro body builder. That’s about it.

MW: Do you dabble in seedy ways to make money like majority higher level competitive bodybuilders do? You don’t have a pseudonym somewhere in cyberspace such as Zeus Maximus, do you?

RK: Too fucking funny. I have had so many people contact me for private posing, web cam shit etc. I have morals. I couldn’t live with myself if I did any of that crap. The only person I have a pseudonym for is my fiance. Gotta keep things new and exciting right ? lol

MW: It’s public knowledge now in the bodybuilding world over your distaste and mishap with hiring George Farah. You claim he was not invested in you and was very flaky like a typical bodybuilder despite your handsome payment to him. Tell us a little about that.

RK: We had a run in down in South Beach, Miami this past Nationals. I paid him for 16 weeks of contest prep. I heard from him the first 4 weeks and didn’t hear a peep until our paths crossed in Miami. I asked what happened ? He said what do you mean? I said, I haven’t heard from you in 12 weeks. He tried to turn it around on me, I haven’t heard from you. I said, George I paid you to be my coach, if you don’t hear from me, wouldn’t you feel obligated to at least check in with me ? He said, I lost your email. Someone broke into my garage/car and stole my lap top. I shook my head, knowing you don’t need your lap top to access your address book. I said, you have my number also. He said no I don’t. I showed my phone with his number on it. I said look, I am not hear to argue, can I get a refund, since I feel I paid for a service that I didn’t get ? He said, yeah sure, whatever to make it better. Have I seen any type of refund ?? NOPE. After my radio interview on RX MUSCLE, in which I told the same story, he probably got his panties all up in a bunch.

MW: What possessed you to hire George in the first place? Why George over somebody else such as a Chris Aceto or “Diamond” Dave Palumbo?

RK: I was going to go with Palumbo. The dude is pretty smart. However, a couple good friends of mine suggested Farah, so I did. I thought you get what you pay for ($1500) and Palumbo was much cheaper. Boy was I wrong. I may work with Palumbo for the 2013 Nationals, but to be honest, no one knows my body better than I do. I did consult with someone this past Nationals who was good, but if I had done things my way the final couple of days, I would have done much better.

MW: Is competitive bodybuilding in your future cards still?

RK: Indeed. I love this shit. I don’t give a flying fuck where the judges place me. I won’t kiss anyone’s ass either for a better placing. I do this to challenge myself. It is always a journey I enjoy. It is like therapy I suppose. Until I find another hobby/activity that challenges me in the same way, I will always be a body builder.

MW: What frustrates you the most with the way competitive bodybuilding is governed by the Usual Suspects and power brokers?

RK: Politics man…just politics. During the run in with Farah, he said I had a guy in your weight class place in the top five. I said who? I wont name names, but he said he placed fifth. I knew who it was and threw my arms up in the air and said, well that explains it. That is the only way someone with a fat ass and zero conditioning could make it in the top five.

MW: It seems like Men’s Physique is growing and bodybuilding is dwindling. Just look at the numbers. Why do you think more guys are choosing the Men’s Physique route?

RK: It is more mainstream. It is not as hard core. Body building has gone in the wrong direction the past 15 years. Bigger is not better. It has gone so far to the extreme that I don’t believe it will come back. But its the fans doing. No one wants to see a dude they see on the street every day. They want freaks. It is a freak show, but now the Physique division is great for the women admirers as well as the homosexual population. One thing about the NPC, they are smart business men.

MW: Competitive bodybuilding seems to be a game of alchemy, sorcery and chemical wizardry more than ever. I know of guys still on the local scene barely cracking the Top 5 in a light heavy class that use year around and exceed dosages up to 2g a week and possibly up to 10 unites of serostim daily. Is this facilitated by the way bodybuilding is governed?

RK: Its gone way way overboard. I say, if you don’t have the genetics to be a body builder, pick another hobby. You aren’t gonna make it past the local scene. People who use so much gear just on the local scene, make zero sense to me. This chemistry shit isn’t healthy. People are fucking with their long term health and longevity. I have learned the hard way regarding all of that also. Been there and done that with crazy dosages. I was strong, but bloated me, gave me high blood pressure and nose bleeds etc. Felt horrible all of the time. That ain’t fun to me. For the past several years, I have only touched stuff around contest time. If I cannot grow in the off season from eating lots, training like a beast, resting lots etc, then I am not cut out to be a body builder. Again it goes back to genetics man.

MW: Delusions of Grandeur seems to be an ailment affecting many competitive bodybuilders. In your early years of all of this did you think streets of gold and a lifestyle of a baller was waiting for you eventually?

RK: More people are realizing now that unless you are a Heath or a Cutler there is less than no money or opportunity for you. Like I said above, I have done it all except receive my pro card. It has helped my business etc. I know there isn’t a career in it for me. I learned this years ago. It’s all about balance. Most body builders are extremist for some reason or another. Body building is used to cover up insecurities as well. When something is done at one extreme, the other end of that extreme is waiting right around the corner. Universal balance man.

MW: You seem to be a smooth cat and Playa.  How many Figure girl Industry chick ass have you white washed?  Be honest.

RK: Out of respect and love for my fiance, I will not divulge that information. Let’s just say, I sowed oats here and there, when I was young, dumb and full of………BOOM !

MW: Is dating a competitor chick really all that? The ones I dated were all fit for a straight jacket and Thorazine drip.

RK: Chicks who get into the sport are just as fucked up as a lot of body builders. Covering up insecurities x 100. As for the ones who get on the juice, why the fuck do you want to have facial hair, a raspy deep voice, a manly face, zits, and a huge clit ? Well maybe the huge clit ain’t so bad for em. Easier to get off BOOM !

MW: Where does Rob Kreider see himself in five years?

RK: In 5 years, I will be married with kids, partnered with my boy Bobby Haire with Big Bitch Formula, kicking the supplement industry in the ass, and also opening a gym with him as well.

MW: Who are some of the best people in the bodybuilding industry that you admire and can actually call a friend?

RK: Mat Duvall, Troy Moore, Fred Smalls, Vinnie Galanti, Derek Farnsworth, Lee Priest.

MW: Who shouldn’t be expecting a Christmas card from you this year or anytime soon?

RK: George Farah !

MW: Marry. Fuck. Kill. Ready? Ava Cowan. Jessica Paxton. Erin Stern.

RK: I am engaged man brother. I wouldn’t marry or kill any of them, soooooo…….

MW: How can people get ahold of you for nutritional prep and contest coaching? Is there anything you’d like to plug? Feel free.

RK: My personal/business website is www.rkbodies.com. My sponsor Big Bitch Formula is gonna come on strong in 2012. The BEST tasting whey…ever. NO BS. www.bigbitchformula.com

MW: Name Association. I drop a name and in one word tell us what comes to mind.

George Farah: Fucking douche bag!

Steve Blechman: Wise

Steve Weinberger: The Godfather

Aaron Singerman: I don’t know who he is.

Arnold Schwarzenegger: Bodybuilding.

RK Bodies – Personal Training in Washington, DC, Bodybuilder, Model

Assisted by Muscle & Fitness Editorial Powerlifting Advisor Jason Pegg

(Transcribed by Vendetta Transcription Services)

MuscleWeek: What’s up Ronnie?

Ronnie Coleman: Hey, what’s going on?

MW: How are you doing today?

RC: I’m doing pretty good.

MW: Well first, we want to congratulate you on your wedding.

RC: Oh thanks, I appreciate it.

MW: Well it’s official. Ronnie is officially off the market. Right?

RC: Oh yeah. I’m getting too old to be on the market so…

MW: We can tell those fitness girls to stop calling you, right?

RC: Oh yeah, I ain’t got time for that now.

MW: Your player days are behind you?

RC: Yeah, I’m all done. Too old to be playing now.

MW: By now, most of us have seen the photos of you and your beautiful wife on the cruise ship Carnival Glory. How was the cruise?

RC: The cruise was off the hook. I had the time of my life like I always do. I go on cruises every year.

MW: We’re big cruise fanatics as well. Now, in the bodybuilding, everyone recognizes you but how about on the cruise ship. Were you hounded by fans or did people leave you alone?

RC: Not too bad. It’s kinda hard to go anywhere. Being 8-time Mr. O and not get hounded at least by some people.

MW: Are most people hounding you because they know you’re Ronnie Coleman or do they think you’re a pro wrestler?

RC: Most people know who I am. Then I get the people who don’t know who I am and just want to take a picture with a guy with muscles. I get more people that know me than anything.

MW: I imagine after a few trips to the buffet line, the abs start to blur. Anyone try to capitalize on that with a posedown challenge by the pool?

RC: Oh no. Never! I didn’t even go to the pool to be honest with you. No matter how much I eat, I’m always going to be in some kind of shape.

MW: Seriously, people are very weird. People must come up to and ask you how much you bench or if you want to arm wrestle. What’s the strangest question you’ve ever gotten?

RC: Do I work out.

MW: And what’s your response — that it’s just pushups?

RC: I tell I work out sometimes every now and then. But for the most part, I just eat a lot.

MW: I know they have a nice gym on that ship. Did you actually go and work out there?

RC: No. When I’m on a cruise, I’m on vacation. I take 3 months off every year, so my vacation falls within that time period.

MW: I imagine with the dumbbells only going up to 50 lbs, it might be the first time you actually mean it when you say ‘Light weight baby’.

RC: Laughs. Exactly.

MW: Ronnie, there’s a misconception out there about you that you’ve retired from bodybuilding, but you actually have an announcement about your comeback show. Tell us when we’re gonna see you onstage again.

RC: When I said I retired, I meant that I retired from the Olympia. I never said I was retiring from bodybuilding. But I still want to compete in other shows like the Arnold and some of the shows in Europe that I haven’t done in the past. I want to do some other shows out there besides the Olympia — some of the smaller shows too.

MW: When can we expect to see you back on stage?

RC: Next year’s Arnold Classic.

MW: Okay, so you’re about 56 weeks out.

RC: Yeah yeah. (Laughs) I’m gonna start dieting in a couple weeks. By the time the Arnold comes around, I’m gonna be in pretty good shape.

MW: Ronnie, obviously you prefer to be the reigning Mr. O. Is there an upside to being able to just relax and not have so many demands on your time?

RC: Not really. With me, the more I have to do, the better off I am. I’m not really one to sit around and relax and take it easy. I always like having something to do. Even though I’m not competing, I’m going to be making a lot of appearances, doing guest posings and seminars. Making appearances for BSN. And of course being in Weider in the magazines. I’m still gonna be pretty busy. I’m not going to be sitting down and going fishing, swimming and jet skiing and all that kinda stuff.

MW: Can you give us an idea of what a day in the life of Ronnie Coleman is like now?

RC: Well right now, I’m not doing anything. I got up this morning around 2 o’clock.

MW: AM or PM?

RC: PM. I didn’t go to bed until around 5 o’clock or 5:30. I stay up late every night because I have so much email. I normally spend about 2-3 hours every night just on my email. I don’t get started until around 1:30 – 2pm. Plus, I have to eat. I’m still eating 5-6 times each day.

MW: So you’re usually going down when the sun’s coming up?

RC: Exactly. When I was on the cruise ship, I wasn’t going to bed until 6 or 7 in the morning. I was up so late doing all that kind of stuff.

MW: And doesn’t the rocking of the ship make you take a nap?

RC: Laughs. Nah, I don’t take naps. But I do like the rocking of the ship.

MW: You wake up around 2 in the afternoon. What do you do? Do you still go to the gym every day?

RC: No, I’m not training now. I’m coming up on my third month. I think I’ll start up around February 1st. I haven’t trained since my last guest posing — maybe in December. MW: No lifting at all?

RC: No. I haven’t done anything.

 MW: Ronnie, you played college football. What position did you play?

RC: Middle Linebacker.

 MW: You played under the winningest coach in the history of NCAA Football — the late      Eddie Robinson. What did you learn from him?

RC: Well, I didn’t really deal so much with Coach Rob because he coached the offense and I played  defense. So I dealt mostly with the defense coordinator.

 MW: Did you have any aspirations to play in the NFL?

RC: I sure did. I was being talked about by some of the NFL Scouts at the beginning of the season but come close to the end of the season I didn’t hear from them anymore. So I just kinda gave up on it after I didn’t hear from them no more. After that, I just got a job.

MW: You’re obviously a goal-oriented man. What are your goals beyond bodybuilding?

RC: Uhh, I never really thought about that.

MW: Is there another area of passion that you could see yourself throwing yourself into?

RC: No, nothing besides bodybuilding. It will probably be something in the field. I’ll probably either be coming out with my own supplement line or endorsing somebody’s, coming out with my own equipment line or endorsing somebody’s. There will be something working out.

MW: And we can count on seeing you at the Arnold and Olympia expo for the next 20 – 30 years?

RC: Oh yeah, at least.

MW: Some of your peers have hung around bodybuilding for what some people might say is too long. Chris Cormier has said that he’ll milk bodybuilding until his arms fall off. What makes it so hard to give it up?

RC: It’s a hobby. At least for me it is. I’ve trained since i was 12 or 13 years old. It’s a hobby I just have so much fun with it. I get so much enjoyment from it. To have your job as your hobby — life don’t get better than that.

MW: Tell me about your phrase ‘Nuttin but a peanut.’ Where did that expression come from?

RC: Just something I said in the gym one day. And kept on saying it.

MW: It really caught on. Do you ever get a chance to say it in real life — like in response to ‘Ronnie, what are you eating?’

RC: No, no. Never like that. Doing something else I might say it.

MW: Whether people admit it or not, bodybuilding is all about genetics. Who had the better rear lat spread in the Coleman family, mom or dad?

RC: My mom. Mom had better everything!

MW: So you really got your genetics from your mom?

RC: Oh yeah. For sure.

MW: Tell us about your business. Any new projects? DVD coming out?

RC: Yeah, the new DVD should be ready by the Arnold.

MW: Will you be selling copies of your video?

RC: Yeah. I’ll have them at my booths.

MW: There’s been a longstanding feud on the message boards about who is the best bodybuilder of all time. You or Dorian? What’s your official response?

RC: Oh Jeez! To be honest with you, I’ve never really considered myself as being the best. I always try to let the people decide that. I just try to do the best I can do at whatever it is that I’m doing.

MW: If Dorian had come back and competed at the 1998 Olympia, would you have smoked him?

RC: Aw, naw. I think he would have kept winning as long as he was competing. I don’t think he would have lost.

MW: Ronnie, if you’re on a desert island all by yourself with nothing but a squat rack and some weights. Would you still train? Even if there was no one else there and you were going to be there for the rest of your life? Would you still squat?

RC: All day! So long as I had some water, I’d train all day!

MW: What’s going on with the tricep? Is it torn?

RC: Ummm…what happened was in 2005, I fell and hit my elbow on the floor and it hasn’t been the same since. As far as having an injury in the gym benching or doing overhead triceps extensions, nothing ever happened there. In terms of My strength is still there. I guess maybe I lost some of the feelings in there that caused the triceps muscle to go down a little bit, but that’s all I can really remember happening.

MW: Did you ever sit down and look at the pictures of you from 2001-02 and compare them to those from 2006-2007 and take an analytical look at the differences.

RC: No, I don’t even like watching myself on video.

MW: What else do you have going on — are you a part owner of Metroflex or do you just train there?

RC: I just work out there. I have a gym in my house. That’s the only gym that I own.

MW: So no desire to follow in the footsteps of Lee Haney and open up a chain of Ronnie Coleman’s Kingdom (fitness centers)?

RC: (Laughs)Nah, none whatsoever.

MW: Ronnie, thanks for taking the time to speak with us. God Bless you.

RC: You too.

The preceding interview was transcribed from MuscleWeek’s Big Nation Radio program that aired on January 22, 2008. To listen to the original radio broadcast as it happened, click on this link: BIG NATION RADIO – RONNIE COLEMAN INTERVIEW.

“Ugh. What a fucking asshole! “ Uttered straight out of the mouth of 2002 NPC Nationals Female Bodybuilding Champ and IFBB Pro Sarah Dunlap as she entered my car on that busy corner near her loft in the heart of downtown Chicago. Apparently as she stood on the corner patiently waiting for me to scoop her up to conduct this whole thing a couple of local wise asses drove by with a “Hey, nice hair DUDE” comment directed towards her.
“Aren’t you used to that by now, Sarah?” I curiously asked her. “Yea well, I just hate insecure people” she said as she flared up a Marlboro Light en route to a nearby gym. Sarah is 2 weeks out from the 2007 Jan Tana Classic. A very special show to her as it falls on her 27th birthday.  During our brief but very intense workout we talked a little shop and a little about her show. It was at a this local Italian restaurant on the west side of Chicago’s LOOP where I got to pick her brain and get her insight about life, bodybuilding and her thoughts on the industry and a little bit of everything else in between.

TBH: Sarah D. How the hell are ya and where the hell have you been?

SD: Hi, Block. I’m fine. I’m tired. I’m 2 weeks out of the Jan Tana and I’ve so been busting my ass getting ready for this. It falls on my birthday so this show is extra special for me.

TBH: Well let me be the first to wish you a pre-happy birthday. 27, right? How do you feel going into this show? You make the improvements you wanted to make?

SD: Yep, 27. Since it’s on my birthday I have this extra confidence going in as if it’s like my lucky charm going in. At the same time I have some butterflies because I am so anxious and I so have to qualify for ‘O’. I’ve been training harder than ever and putting the pressure on myself. I think I work better under pressure or if I feel that there’s a gun to my head. It being the Jan Tana and one of my favorite shows to do and the fact that I must qualify for the Ms. Olympia just keeps me pushing forward for this. My game plan for this one was to keep my waist as tight as possible and my taper wide. My conditioning as improved tremendously since the 2006 Europa which…I kind of want to forget because I was so off and I knew it.

TBH: What’s so special about the Jana Tana outside the fact that it’s your birthday? Can you tell my why you were off at the 2006 Europa?

SD: Jan Tana is such a sweetheart, I love her to death. Her whole crew is so supportive and everything is organized and you get treated like a real athlete. We get this guy R.J. to work with the girls, to work with us and do our makeup. He’s so awesome. We’re supplied massage people to massage us if need be, we get airbrush service for our color. Just everything about it. It’s great! I love that show. At the Europa in 06’ I had so much going on in my life and so many distractions. I didn’t give it 100% and I know that. Then on top of that the show was so bad for me. Everything about it. Oh God, I get there and everyone who I depended on to help me with the last minute touches like color, meals and even a ride from the airport just totally bailed on me last minute. I was all alone out there and had no help. Nobody wanted to help me. Even in the hotel I had to apply my color so here I am in front of a mirror putting my color on without any idea who’s going to help me put it on my back or the back of my legs. Most girls have a whole entourage or like this whole team of people who travel with them to shows and take care of every single little thing for them so all they have to do is wait to go on stage. I never have anyone with me. I travel to all of my shows alone. That show was…forget it I don’t even want to think about it.

TBH: Why do you travel to the shows alone? Do you have anyone you can rely on? Why are you such a loner?

SD: I don’t mean to be! I don’t know. I just kind of don’t depend on anybody. In my experience people tend to let other people down. It’s sad.

TBH: I feel that. How the hell did you get into this whole scene? This whole fucked up industry.

SD: I was introduced to the whole industry when I was 19. I was working the front desk at a Gold’s Gym in Pittsburgh and I never even lifted a weight in my life but everybody was always asking me if I was getting ready for a show and I was always like “Noooo” so people kept telling me how I should consider getting on stage. I decided to but it wasn’t bodybuilding at first. It was fitness. I have a gymnastics background so it was natural for me.

TBH: What show was that? What finally made you switch to bodybuilding from fitness?

SD: The 1999 Teen Collegiate and Masters Nationals. It was after that I found myself going into the weight room and I would just mimic what I saw other people doing. I had no structure or any rhyme or reason to what I was doing in there but responded so well to it I found myself going out to buy a whole new wardrobe shortly after because none of my clothes fit. Everything got small on me.

TBH: Almost sounds like you were pre-disposed genetically for all of this. So then you decided to compete in bodybuilding?

SD: Oh yea. I remember my whole childhood being able to count all the muscle in my legs. I used to go “Look, mommy…1, 2, 3…4!” (pointing to her quads/hamstrings) I always had a perfect 6 pack even throughout highschool and I never lifted a weight or did a crunch. Lots of people don’t know this but in 2000 I actually competed at the Arnold Classic as a submission grappler. I was at that show just walking around the expo just so amazed at the muscular men and women everywhere. I thought they were all so beautiful. I wanted to look like them. I think muscles on people are so pretty. I find it so amazing that you can make your body look any way you want it to look like it’s some big piece of clay. You can just sculpt it and shape it and make it look beautiful. I just fell in love with it.

TBH: Submission grappling, huh? Interesting. You’re a jack of all trades, Sarah. So what brought you to mean streets of the Windy City from Pittsburgh?

SD:  I came here to compete in the 2002 JrNationals and just fell in love with the city. I love Chicago. The architecture, the skyline, everything. It has beaches like L.A., has culture and diversity like N.Y.C. and a nightlife like Las Vegas. It has everything here. Everybody I have ever met from Chicago loves their city and never want to leave it and if they do they eventually come back.

TBH: Yea I know. I always contend that God Himself hangs out in Chicago and is a White Sox fan. I wish he was a BlackHawks fan but that’s another story. So just like that you up and left?

SD: Just like that! I came here with $400 in my purse and 1 suitcase. I right away found an apartment but that’s all I was able to afford was just GETTING it. I had no furniture and slept on the floor for who knows how long. I had no clue how I was going to support myself and no idea how I was even going to eat.

TBH: That’s detrimental as a bodybuilder. I bet it was a mindfuck.  What did you do? How did you support yourself?

SD: I did what I had to. I worked security, bounced at nightclubs. Worked at a gym as a trainer. Whatever I had to. After I went PRO I took 2 years away from the scene to get my life in order so I would be able to focus on being the best PRO I could be. At one point when I first got here I was so broke and I knew I still needed to keep training. I didn’t have a car so what I would do is I would scan every newspaper and local publications looking for those coupons of FREE workout passes or day passes to whatever gym was advertising. I would clip them and I used a map to figure out how to get to these gyms since I didn’t have a computer at the time. I’d get on the train, take multiple buses if I had to and go to these gyms and workout for a day.

TBH: That’s dedication. I remember doing things like that when I first got into this and didn’t have a car. So the adjustment wasn’t an easy thing for you, huh?

SD: No. No way. There was so many set backs and whatever could go wrong just made sure it went wrong. What’s that called…Murphy’s Law? This one time my purse got stolen at this bar I was in. It was middle of winter. All my money, my phone my keys to my apartment EVERYTHING was stolen. I literally had to stand outside a bus stop and bum money off strangers to get on a bus to go to this gym I worked and use their phone to quickly cancel my credit cards. I even on a whim called my cell phone hoping somebody could be honest and the person who answered says to me “I feel really sorry for you because you will never see your phone and little Prada purse again!” I couldn’t believe it.

TBH: Yea, life in the Big City for you. So before I feel an urge to listen to some country music and order a beer let’s get back to bodybuilding. So how do you feel about the rumors of the standards for female bodybuilding with the placings and rewards supposedly going to the more FEMININE or more Everson-esque physiques  as seen in the 80’s when female bodybuilding was in it’s pinnacle selling out venues and actually getting positive press. What’s your stance?

SD: That’s fine. The more the better, right? I think lots of girls over time got kind of turned off by what is seen now on stage. Not many girls want to look like us so they all do FIGURE which is more or less a beauty pagent but if more pretty faces want to come over to compete and hang with us then let them. They just better be able to face reality.

TBH: Realtiy as in what it takes to compete at the highest level? Elaborate on that for me will you?

SD: The drugs are never going to go away. Never. They can talk all they want about how we’ll get penalized or marked down but whatever, it’s all talk now but at the end of the day the biggest and most ripped girl will win. Then the next show her competitors will push it a little bit more and then the next show her competitors will push it and we’ll be right back to where we are again.

TBH: That’s just human nature. Humans by nature are very competitive animals. So how rampant is the drug use among higher level competing female bodybuilders? Among the men it’s pure unadulterated chemical warefare. The same is almost said among the women even in FIGURE or FITNESS but especially bodybuilding, obviously. Would you say maybe 75% of the girls use drugs?

SD: Yea, maybe more. I’d say like 100% use. If I am wrong then I sincerely apologize if any one girl who reads this gets offended but based on what I know and see I’d say all of them to one extent or another.

TBH: Give me a rough draft of what some of these girls are using now a days. Break it down for us.

SD: I don’t know for sure but probably a little bit of growth. A little bit of winstrol, anavar. Maybe even Deca. Clen, of course but usually the straight anabolics. I know of some of the more adventurous girls who toy with androgens from time to time but I won’t name names.

TBH: I respect that. How about insulin? I’ve spoken to a national level girl who told me insulin is common now. Have you ever used it?

SD: Oh, hell no! I don’t mess with that shit. Insulin makes your body so ugly and people could get real hurt using it if they aren’t careful. I would never. No way. I wouldn’t be surprised though if some girls do.

TBH: Nothing suprises me in this industry. Is the extreme look of some of these girls the culprit of what keeps female bodybuilders getting positive press in the magazines or even supplement contracts?

SD: I’d suspect that. I think it’s coming though. I think female bodybuilding is going to be big again soon and we’ll finally be rewarded and get the respect we deserve. We bust our asses just as hard as the men but everything comes down to money and revenue. The limelight is on FIGURE now because the NPC and IFBB knows that it’s a cash cow. Every girl now wants to be a figure competitor. The promoters and sponsors of the shows know that for every 1 figure competitor there will be 4-5 ticket buyers in attendance. With us female bodybuilders it’s usually just our husbands or boyfriends and of course, our hardcore following.

TBH: You mean the schmoes?

SD: I’d rather say they are ‘appreciators” “Supporters” of female bodybuilding.

TBH: Well, I call them schmoes. Since the money is scarce in female bodybuilding and the lifestyle to compete at your level makes it difficult to hold a 9-5. Is hustling down schmoes the usual bread and butter of income for you ladies?

SD: Hahaha…I knew this one was coming. You’re a trip, Block. For some girls. Lots of us have husbands or boyfriends who may take care of us or some have regular day jobs but to say that letting an appreciator ‘sponsor’ you doesn’t happen wouldn’t be true. Just like with the men. Most of the men have the same type of ‘sponsor’ if they aren’t placing in the top 5 of most shows.

TBH: So is that a source of income for you?

SD: I make my living my Personal Training. In-Home mostly. I’ve done web cam before for various sites but it’s all so professional and organized. Just simple flexing. I’m always fully clothed unless you consider a tank top or sports bra racy. Otherwise I make my money by In Home Personal training which has been going very well. I have a handful of higher end clients I meet up with during the week at $100 and hour so I’m comfortable right now. I also have been as of late doing some pre-contest coaching. I have lots of theories and ideas on how to come into your show looking your best. I have a knack, I think for getting people in shape. The last girl I worked with e-mailed me asking for my help as she was 4 weeks out of her show. Bodybuilding. So I tweaked her diet for her and her physique changed dramatically it was crazy. She ended up winning the overall at a state show and qualified for nationals. I was so proud of her.

TBH: Interesting. What do you charge for contest preparation? May I ask?
SD: It all depends. I have different rates depending on how long they will prep, if I have to Personally Train them, travel to see them to make assessments, help them with their posing, color all the little odds and ends. My rates are reasonable. All it takes is an e-mail to me and I’ll talk with them. (dieslgrl2006@yahoo.com)

TBH: Good. Good way to give back and get paid to do what you love to do. So where do you see yourself in let’s say 5 years from now? Married with a kitchen full of rug rats and a bun in the oven?

SD: Honestly all I can really say is that in 5 years I just want to be HAPPY first and foremost. I don’t really think about the whole marriage thing or having kids right now because there is still so much I want to do with myself first so my attitude is like if it happens then GREAT if not then I won’t beat myself up over it. In 5 years hopefully I will have done everything I wanted to do on the competitive side of being an IFBB Pro and by then maybe I’ll chase my dreams of being the next female Arnold hahahaha. I want to get into acting maybe be a back up dancer for like some major pop superstar and go on tour. Just take over the world and be a superstar! Hahaha, hey, it’s good to have dreams and ambition, right?

TBH: Dreams and Ambition is what keeps us moving in the right direction, Sarah. No doubt! So do you have any regrets? With life? Your career?

SD: No. I don’t. Everything I have done with myself up to this point good or bad have been my decisions and my choices. I believe you should just live your life and if you make a mistake then so what? Keep living and make 2 more. You live and you learn. Life to me is one big lesson. You learn and you move on. If I gave a shit about what others thought of me it would be this big giant waste of energy I don’t have. It just isn’t worth it.

TBH: Well said. Let’s keep on truckin, here. Tell us something that we don’t know about you. What’s something about Sarah Dunlap that most people don’t know up to this point?

SD: Let’s see…I have something. I always wanted to be a ‘Fly Girl’ from that show ‘In Living Color’. Do you remember that show?

TBH: Does the pope shit in the woods, Sarah? Of course I do. JLo and actress Rosie Perez were ‘Fly Girls’.

SD: You’re such an ass! Yea, exactly. I love dancing. It’s like my other passion next to bodybuilding and pretty much my favorite thing to do. I always wanted to pursue dancing and see where it would take me. I think I’m still going to. I also love art. I love to draw and sketch. I even like to paint. Canvas, body painting. I have such an eye for beauty. There is so much beauty all around us if you just know how to look at things. I think the human body is the most beautiful of all things. I’m also very much into culture and learning about different customs and traditions people follow. It’s all so beautiful to me because everybody is so different. Diversity is what makes things unique and is what spices up life. If we were all the same the world would be so boring. I try to keep myself balanced now and not get so caught up in the whole bodybuilding world because bodybuilding can consume you if you let it. I won’t let it anymore because bodybuilding is just a part of who I am it isn’t everything that I am. Life is too short to live in a bubble of bodybuilding.

TBH: Spoken like lady. Now let’s jump back to your show in 2 weeks. Tell me how you’re training for it. What’s your recipe for success?

SD: Well, I’m just kind of going back and doing what I did to bring in my best presentations which I think was the 2005 Charolette Pro and the 2002 Nationals. I went back to not making any excuses and get my ass on the treadmill every morning for cardio. I hit the weights pretty much every day. Usually 1 bodypart a day. I may even go back in the evenings for another round of cardio if I feel I need to.

TBH: What kind of cardio? How much exactly and how do you break it up upon time. 60 minutes in the morning? Another 60 at night? What time do you hit the weights? Give me more details on your training.

SD: Treadmill in the morning as soon as I wake up because I have an empty take so I’ll know I’m mobilizing fat for fuel instead of whatever I just ate. 45-60 minutes usually. I sometimes use the step mill. That thing is so hard but it works so well. I’ll go train a bodypart in the mid afternoon or after I got at least 2 meals in me and some rest. I try to train to failure and always push myself. I keep my sets in the 3-4 range and my reps like 10-15. It’s always a goal to try to beat my last workout by either weight, reps or both. That’s how you make constant improvements. My night-time cardio is usually for only 30 minutes. I keep it moderate then. Just a slight incline on the treadmill with maybe a 3.0 speed.

TBH: Does your OFFSEASON training differ from your pre-contest style of training? If so how?

SD: Yea, I train less actually. Usually 4-5 days a week. 1 maybe 2 bodyparts a day. I lower my reps and sets and go for weight. I try to build muscle then because I have more food in me. Calories are energy so when I am at my strongest I take advantage of it. My cardio is still in my routine, though but just maybe 2-3 days a week just to keep bodyfat levels in check. I won’t deprive myself , you know?

TBH: I do. So touch up a little for me about how you approach your dieting when prepping for a show and in the offseason.

SD: Offseason I eat like 75% like a contest bodybuilder and 25% like a normal person. Or a non bodybuilding person. I’ll have more red meat and more carbs obviously. I keep my fat relatively low but I won’t deprive myself from a treat here and there. I love to eat. It’s one of the pleasure in life most people take for granted. I don’t think you’re living if you spend all year eating just one way because you are so worried about your abs. Live a little, geez. I couldn’t live like that. Like I said though, as a professional I try to remind myself that my body is how I make my living and is what I do. Pre-Contest I basically eat lots of white meats like chicken, fish and turkey. Red meat from time to time if I feel I need to fill out a little. My carbs are lowered and cycled depending different factors and my healthy fats are increased a little to keep me from turning into a mindless zombie. Vegetables with most of my meals. Lots of Crystal Lite and Diet Coke.

TBH: How about supplements? Over the Counter I mean. Most professional bodybuilders never use supplements despite what the print magazines try to jam down our throats. Do you use them and if so what kinds? What labels?

SD: No, I use them. I like to use Gaspari’s SuperPump250. I used that today. It has creatine in it, arginine and a little caffeine. I love it pre-workout. Umm..I use BSN’s Syntha 6 protein powder. Their strawberry is so good. I drink a shake usually at bedtime. I also like Optimum Nutrition’s 100% Whey. Rocky Road is awesome. Oh, I also love Lipo6. I use 2 of those white capsules before my morning cardio. I won’t even do cardio without it. It works so well and it gives me pretty abs. Have you ever used Lipo6?

TBH: Yea, I like Lipo6. For sure. Cool, Sarah. How about a little name and WORD association? I drop a name and you blurt out the first thing that comes to mind. A fun way to close off every interview. You ready?

SD: Oh, God…yea shoot.

TBH: Jim Manion.
SD: Pittsburgh.
TBH: Irish Kyle.
SD: Specimen.
TBH: Jay Cutler.
SD: Huge.
TBH: Ronnie Coleman.
SD: Dumb but cool.
TBH: Branch Warren.
SD: Such a hardcore cutie. Yummy!
TBH: Bob Chick.
SD: Funny. Laid back guy.
TBH: King Kamali.
SD: Should have never left Bethany.
TBH: Bethany Howlett.
SD: Was cooler when she was a bodybuilder. She changed.
TBH: Ya, think? Muscular Development Magazine.
SD: I’m a fan.
TBH: Getbig.com
SD: Gossip Central.

TBH: Ms Dunlap it’s been a slice. Thank you so very much for your time. You’ve been splendid company.
SD: Thanks, Block. I had so much fun. Let’s hit shoulder this week together.

TBH: It’s on!