Cover Number Two!!

What's goin on people. I have been busting ass in the gym to bring you guys a new package for 2009. I am really looking forward to the Tampa Bay Pro in August and I wanna say I am not just looking to qualify for the Olympia but it would be nice to get my first pro show win under my belt! I don't like to make predictions so I won't but I will just say, I am past the point of just being happy to be there....I want more! Wantings not enough though so I have been killing myself to put the pieces of the puzzle together.

At one point this past month I had to take a moment to reflect on my career. MuscleMag International decided to feature me on their cover for the second time and I was really excited about that. I think the cover turned out great (if I might say so myself...lol), thanks to Paul Buceta for his awesome photography. I don't really know how to express myself about it I guess I just want things to keep rolling the way they are so I gotta keep killin it in the office.

Training is going well. I suffered a minor back injury a few weeks back but after some extensive chiro work I was able to keep smashing the weight without really missing a beat. I am still lifting heavier than I ever have before and I have maxed out the dumbell's for some exercises and some of the machines as well. I guess now I have to break records with reps when it comes to those movements.

My goal this year along with Hany's was to really overhaul my physique by bring up my strong points and making sure the lagging ones weren't lagging anymore. One of the goals was to bring up the quads which I have been killing myself in the gym to do. I am bangin out legs twice a week heavy and high volume and although I am seeing some growth its not what I want yet. I guess it means I just have to keep hammering away and let nature take its course. I seem to be stuck when it comes to the squat at a weight I am trying to break but my body just won't let it happen...its discouraging but I gotta keep reminding myself I am a bodybuilder not a powerlifter, the size will come with time.

Not too much has happened on the personal front. I am toying with the idea of adding a supercharger to my Mustang but still haven't decided if that's what I want or if its better to wait for the 2010 Camaro to hit the road. Maybe you guys should weigh in and let me know what you think. I have always been a Mustang guy so I kinda feel like a traitor looking at the Camaro but man, its a nice ride. If I get it, you guys will be the first to know.

The ASC is a few weeks away now and I am really looking forward to it. I'm not competing in it this year because I just don't feel ready to stand in that line up but I am working a booth there. You guys can find me at the MMI booth or at the Muscletech booth all three days. I will have shirts, pics and DVD's for anyone interested but I am happy to just say hello and snap a pic with you so don't be shy to pop in! Oh, if you see me out at one of the clubs, I wasn't drinking if Hany asks....

Alright, that's about all for today, just a short one to keep you all kinda informed. If there is anything you guys wanna know about that I haven't written about, feel free to email me at fouadabiad@gmail.com and let me know.

New Year, New Strategy

Hey everyone, I know, I feel horrible its been over a month but I have a lot to go over with you now so its better than getting a boring one every week...right? Anyway, some of you have been busting my balls about updating you on things so here goes.
Okay so you guys know now that Hany is now my nutritionist and things seem to be working better than I could have imagined. Last time we talked I was bitching about my joints being sore and not being able to move. Well its been a little over a month now and my body is really responding and getting used to the heavy pounding of the iron.
I'm wearing Patella Tendon bands for my legs when I train them and the bands seem to really be helping and I have really increased the amount of joint md I am using. On a really positive note I have been breaking some of my old records and I am really happy with the strength gains. Just today I did 8 plates a side for hacks and 4 plates a side for front squats, both things I couldn't do before.
I think the clean eating and taking all my vitamins and minerals everyday is really helping. In the past I was of the impression that I only needed my vitamins and minerals in precontest mode but this year I have kept them in and it may have been the added help I needed to keep me recovering and growing.
On the personal side of things life is finally settling down and things are really falling into place. I just signed a three year deal with MuscleTech, so career wise things are moving in the right direction.
I know I told you guys I bought a condo and man that has been stressful. I took possession back at the beginning of December and the place was in rough shape. I had a friend come in and start tearing it apart. It has been about a month of renovating now but the place is redone from top to bottom. It was decorated by me personally and I must say I think I did a pretty good job...lol, maybe a career in interior decorating after bodybuilding...lol?
Anwyay so that just finished up today and I have all sytems go on the new place. At the same time I just finshed up packaging and sending out all the pre-ordered DVD's. I think the DVD turned out great and I think anyone who watches it will get a real idea of who I am and how I got here which was the reason for making it in the first place. This one was more of an introduction to me and the next one will be the hardcore training vid you guys love so much.
Well, that's about all and I know it doesn't sound like much but with the holidays and the renovations it just seemed like so much. I got out for the holidays and hung out with some old friends and maybe had a little too much fun. I can't be faulted for that though, we all need to let loose once in a while so that's what I did. The fun's over now and its back to work, I need 09' to be my biggest year yet and I have a lot to prove to myself as a bodybuilder. If all goes well and I can stay healthy you guys will see a new and improved Fouad in August at the Tampa Bay show. Till next time...

Sacrifice Without Regret,
Fouad 'Hoss' Abiad

Feels Good To Be Back!

Hey hey, everyone, whats going on. Things are on a roll again and I am feeling good! It has only been one full week since I have started training again in the gym but man I am feeling like 09' is going to be a good year.
Well, I told you all that I might be hitting the stage soon. After some long deliberation with my nutritionist (Hany Rambod) we have decided that rushing back onto the stage would be a bad career move and wouldn't allow me to be my best. Over the course of my career I have had a pretty good track record of coming back each season better and better and its just too soon. We were thinking of hitting the IronMan Pro show but I told Hany that I had a goal of winning a show this year and I don't think its time....yet.
Hany's main training philosophy is the FST-7 principle which is based on stretching the muscle fascia for more muscle growth. To learn more about the program pick up this months MuscleMag International (I think Johnnie Jackson is on the cover). Anyhow, I started fitting this principle into my workout program this week and I can't tell you guys how sore I am. I'll give you a small example of what I mean. The day after training legs I was sitting around watching TV. I would have to get up to get something but it was like I was getting myself ready for a big set. I couldn't even get up off the couch....to get up, there was a minute of contemplation, then psyching myself up, and finally slowly get up....it was ridiculous and I have a feeling its going to be like that all year. So be it, if that's what it takes to win then it must be done.
Since I am not doing the IronMan I have started eating again. I haven't received my offseason program yet so I have been working on my old offseason program. My weight hasn't really changed but my muscles feel more full again and I look different so I know things are falling into place. Lately I have been eating a lot of ground turkey and ground steak. I was never a fan of turkey but ground up its much easier to cook and eat so its fast becoming a staple in my offseason diet.
On the business end, things really are starting to pick up. My online nutritional business Platinum Nutrition seems to really be taking off. I have many more clients this year and people seem to really be happy with their programs. I enjoy helping people get to where they want to be and when they are serious and don't cheat its very rewarding for me.
The DVD I have been working on is coming along nicely I have finally received my rough copy of the final product from the editor. After watching I decided that you all deserve some nutritional advice so I am going to add a section of cooking and show you all what I eat on the average day in the offseason. It might take a little longer to finish but I know you will all like it more with the added info.
I don't know how many of you all are car nuts but if you have been reading along at all you guys know my car is my baby. Well it looks like the time is near and I am going to have to store her for the winter. Its kind of depressing me but I think its best and it doesn't really make too much sense to be driving around a Mustang in the winter so away she goes. In its place I think I am getting a Jeep Cherokee, not the coolest car but its a 4X4 and since I am like a little kid I'm sure I'll have some off-roading pics for you all to laugh at. Knowing my luck they will be pics of me stuck in the mud or something along those lines.
Okay, that's about it for now. I have to ice my elbows, after that FST-7 training on my triceps I feel like my elbow is blown out. Don't worry its not the program, I had bad elbows to begin with. That's what you have to do when you get to this level, train with the pain because there is no time to waste....

Sacrifice Without Regret,
Fouad 'Hoss' Abiad

Chompin at the Bit

Hey everyone, its been a long time I know, I apologize. I have been caught up taking care of other things for the last few weeks and haven't really had time to share new things going on my life. I guess we can start with the training. There is nothing to report...lol...no in all seriousness, there really isn't much to report since I have been off for the last three weeks.
You know, I don't think people in this industry really realize how much they love training until its taken away from the them. I hear people say all the time, 'oh, I don't have time' or 'I'm too tired to go today'. At this point I don't think I will ever say those things again, I miss going to the gym more than anything on earth right now.
I actually started back last Thursday just doing some cardio because I was told I was aloud to get in there for that. Today I couldn't really take it anymore and I just got in and trained calves a little and that alone brightened up my entire day. I think as of next week I will be back into the swing of things 100%.
Even though training has been non existent I have still maintained a bodybuilding diet consisting of chicken, egg whites, ground turkey, rice and oatmeal with the odd cheat meal here or there. I thought eating this way without training would make me fat but it really has simply kept me bigger and fuller than I thought I would be from not training. Today I weighed in at 270lbs, flat and soft..lol.
Things outside of bodybuilding seem to be going well. You guys know I have a habit of buying things, well I finally bought something I can be proud of. All this time I have been renting a condo, well I finally am able to purchase a condo of my own. Its small and by no means a long term dwelling but for the next couple years its perfect. It overlooks the water and definitely will give me a nice view doing cardio every morning on my StairMaster. I guess its going to keep me busy since it needs some minor renovations, you know, paint, carpet, some added fixtures but other than that its all good.
Something I think some of you will like and some of you won't is a piece of art I have been waiting a while to get and I finally got it a couple weeks ago. I don't know if any of you guessed but yes I got new ink. I have a new tat running down the back of my right arm and I apologize to those of you who don't like tats but its something I have wanted for a while and I think it looks just like I imagined it. Once I get back into training and I'm not so scrawny I will get some pics up for you guys to judge for yourselves.
Well, I think that's about it, I know, not too interesting but what can I say its my time off and its boring as hell. One thing I can keep you guys guessing about is when I am going to hit the stage next. I guess all I can say is it might be very soon, keep your eyes peeled to my blog for more info.

Sacrifice Without Regret,
Fouad 'Hoss' Abiad

Tough Pill to Swallow

Whats up everyone. It has been about four weeks since the Olympia and things seem to getting busier by the day. I have an appearance in Texas in a couple weeks so I am looking forward to that since I have some good friends down that way. Plus, what can I say about those Southerners, they really know how to get it done. Maybe I will hit up MetroFlex just to get that dirty hard work feel that I had the last time I banged out some iron there.
It should be fun regardless but that is only some of the good news. My first DVD, 'Sacrifice Without Regret' should be done soon. We are just putting the final touches on it so I am really looking forward to seeing the final product. I am trying to incorporate some nutritional advice into the DVD but am still unsure how to do it. I think I may just take you all for a walk through my kitchen to show you some of the things I eat and take on a regular basis.
That's really all I got for good news. I have been going through kind of a tough time lately so I have been compensating by shopping again...its my vice what can I do...lol. Although I have to say at least some of my purchases have been smart. I have bought a few things for the home and since I did I thought I would reward myself by buying something for my car...lol. I guess I'm the only person on earth who rewards themselves for buying something by buying something else...how stupid..lol.
The other bad news is I have been ordered to take a rest. I am to take a break for the next couple weeks by order of my trainer. Since I did four shows and I haven't taken a break yet he thought it would be good for my physique and my mental state to take a break now and I don't have a say in the matter. I am a full time bodybuilder and don't really do to much of anything else other than watch TV and shop. If all I can do is buy stuff for the next two weeks, man I am gonna be broke as hell.
The rest should be good for me though. My joints are really starting to get sore now and I found I have really been sleeping a lot of the time, not by choice. I will just be sitting there and find myself nodding off in the middle of the day, so I guess that's my body telling me something. Maybe I will take up yoga for the next two weeks, I'll have to hide out in the back though, I have a reputation to keep...lol.
I have received my first start up program from my nutritionist and I have to say I feel much better. Its not as much food as I thought it would be but my body feels much better. I guess my fears of the last few weeks getting a new nutritionist were overblown. I thought it was going to be a lot harder than it has been. I get two cheat meals a week and the diet is set up so that I don't ever really get hungry but I think its enough to keep growing.
I have been learning moderation. My cheat meals in the past when I did my own offseason nutrition weren't cheat meals, they were cheat days. I would take a whole day off and eat whatever I wanted. I am learning now that everything doesn't have to be black and white and instead of eating a bucket of ice cream and two large pizzas, I can have a good meal that my body can use and that get back to the program. So far it feels good to have control over myself. I have to try and employ the same technique when I go out...that might not be as easy, I let you guys know how that works out.

Sacrifice Without Regret,
Fouad 'Hoss' Abiad

Gonna Be a Tough Year

Wow, what a turn since the last time I talked to you guys. In the last two weeks my life has taken a drastic turn in what I hope will be the best decision of my life. I have decided that I will work with a nutritionist all year and I have chosen Hany Rambod to be that guy. I think his focus on his athletes and attention to detail will really help me get the most out of my physique.
That being said, my god I am in for hell this year as is everyone around me. From what it sounds like Hany is going to have me on what seems like a contest diet pretty much year round. No, in all honesty I really don't know what he has in store for me other than he doesn't want me to get fat and that starts with dropping the binge weight I have already gained. He has put me on a low carb diet that started about four days ago, the nice thing is I am able to breath again and I have lost ten pounds so I don't feel like a beached whale anymore (maybe a beached baby whale).
I have never really done anything like this. Throughout my career my life has been black and white pretty much. When its time to diet I hit the switch and I bust ass to look as good as I can. When its the offseason then I eat a base diet and then pretty much whatever I want on top. I have never really been meticulous with taking vitamins and I think in the past I might have drank a little too much when I was supposed to be sleeping.
This year will be different. Hany is teaching me moderation and that starts with getting rid of the binging and that means binging with food or alcohol. So this new diet I have is low carb with only a couple cheat meals (that's right meals not days...shitty) a week. Although I am scared of this new philosophy I trust Hany and I am willing to do what it takes to get to the next level. Whats the point in competing if you never get better right.
Ya know its weird. I had all these plans to go on vacation and do a whole bunch of nothing after the show and then I go and hire a nutritionist for the offseason and there is no rest for the wicked. I think I will still get that vacation it just might have to wait until Christmas time or after the New Year.
The other exciting part of working with someone in the offseason is he will be writing my training programs for me as well. This is something I have never had before. I have worked with Chad in the offseason once before but that was just nutrition. This will be the first time I have someone guiding my growth in the gym and I really think Hany will be able to bring up the weak points in my physique.
Enough of all that it gets a little boring after a while...lol. So I have pretty much finished screwing around with my car. Last week I put in a new GPS/DVD system and that has pretty much finished off any major purchases...for a while anyway. Now I have turned my attention to my apartment. I know, I know, who fixes there car before there apartment, what can I say, she's my baby. Regardless I figure its time for a new bedroom set and maybe some new paintings of something to spruce the place up a bit. I have been living as a minimalist for a long time now trying to get my career off the ground and I think I have finally reached a place where I can afford to live a little.
Other than that everything else is pretty much the same. My friends are terrified of this new program because they think if I have to eat clean all year I am going to be a complete ass....they might be right..lol. I do have a little bit of a procedure getting done this week but its kind of a secret so I won't let you guys in on it just yet. All I can say is that it will make my stage appearance a little different, some of you will think better and some of you won't even notice. Anyway, until next week or the week after or until I have something to talk about, train insane and always keep your focus, nothing is more important.

Sacrifice Without Regret,
Fouad Abiad

Back in the Saddle

Okay, its been a week and it already looks like I have never seen a treadmill in my life. My ass doesn't fit into any of the jeans I bought, my shirts that used to be tight in all the right spots are now only tight on my gut...lol. Man, you work so hard to get it all off and keep it off and then one week of eating and forty pounds later and I don't even look like the same person! No, in all honesty though, most of it is water retention from being on a low sodium diet for so long, my body will balance out over time....I think?..
Anyway, things have been good since the O. People have been very encouraging through email and in person. Everyone has something nice to say about my performance of even the fact that I have achieved that standard for myself. Even though all of the kind words keep me motivated and in good spirits nothing is more motivating than the feeling of standing on stage and NOT being able to compete. Nothing has ever felt worse.
Part of the fire that fuels my sets and reps since the show has been that humbling feeling of the last call out. I took Sunday and Monday off after the Olympia and Tuesday I was back in the gym blasting the weight like never before. The added weight I've gained has made me feel strong again so I am throwing iron around with confidence again and getting mind blowing, skin splitting pumps.....man there is no better feeling. When I put a weight on the bar and get into my set, whenever I feel like I am done that feeling from Firday night at the O replays in my mind so vividly that it makes me train that much harder. I know people are proud of me but I want more from myself!
I think I stayed on a contest diet for so long this year I can't go back to regular life. I am so used to the go, go, go lifestyle of contest prep that now that the time is done I don't know how to relax. I still wake up and go to the gym and do cardio. Then I run errands for a couple hours then later on in the day I go back for my workout. It seems like the only thing about my day that's different is the ten bagels a day I have been tearing through...lol.
I am thinking of working with a nutritionist all year this year. Its something I have never really done before and am unsure if I need to. It seems exciting to me to think that with proper guidance I could go that much further in the sport. For the time being I am writing my own program and it is a little different than last year.
My training is higher in volume and just a little lighter than before, not much though. My diet is more regimented with proper vitamin/mineral supplementation and I actually have added some other supplements to my program that I used before but only sparingly. The NanoX9 from Muscletech was always a favorite of mine but this last week I have been using the Nano Vapour before and during my workout and I think its playing a big part in the good feeling I am getting in the gym.
Food wise I am trying not to eat to much junk but man I love food. It seems like I am getting all the good nutrition I need but then after each meal I end up adding things like M&M's (peanut of course), muffins, cookies, ice cream. I can't help it right now but at least I am getting all the quality too so I don't feel so bad. I'll give you guys a tip that I have been doing this last week and I did a little last year as well. I love cereal (cheerios to be specific) but I am not a huge fan of milk. So I have been buying big boxes of cereal and instead of milk I have been using Nitro-Tech Vanilla RTD's (Ready To Drink) for a milk substitute. It looks like milk and almost tastes like it too, not to mention its an easy way to get my protein in the morning without having to make eggs or anything like that. What can I say, I get kinda lazy in the offseason and what could be better and less work than a ready made shake...lol.
On the career side of things I have wrapped the last session of my DVD and am in the process of editing and polishing it up (don't worry I have a professional doing it, I'm not sitting here cutting it myself)..lol. It should be released in November but if any of you want to buy pre-orders of my DVD email me at fouadabiad@gmail.com or go to my site www.fouadmuscle.com. I think you if you guys like my blog you will like the DVD. It's an honest account of real training sessions, that means you won't see me screaming and throwing weights across the gym, its real. Not to mention you'll see me out at the club (yes big men can dance...lol), the chiropractor's office and bloopers between me and my friends which I am sure so many of you meat heads out there will appreciate.
I am excited for this year, I have achieved most of my goals that I have set out for myself over the course of my career. I have a couple more for next year and I don't know if I already wrote about them but I guess I will tell you all now. I don't normally do this, I like to keep this kind of thing between me and some close friends but here goes. My goals for 09 are to win a small show and crack the top ten at the Olympia. So with that being said I guess I'm gonna take my vitamins and hit the sack, I gotta a lot of growing to do.

Sacrifice Without Regret.
Fouad Abiad