| Archives June 1, 2008


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Natalie Waples (top) and
Chantal Dicaire are two of Canada's most successful physique competitors. They follow the
five key principles described to help them achieve continued succeed. |
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Getting the Basics Right My
Five Key Principles to Compete Successfully
Over a number of years, I have developed a reputation for
coaching physique competitors and putting them on the fast track to success. For example,
theres Chantal Dicaire. In 2001, a national-level fitness title was only a dream for
her. I started coaching her at the beginning of 2002 and she ended up not only winning her
class at the CBBF National World Qualifier that year, but the Overall title as well. Since
then, shes won that title three more times!
Then theres figure competitor Natalie Waples, whom I
started to coach in 2005. In the first three months of coaching Natalie, she won two
regional titles in a row. In 2006, she won a provincial title. One year later, she won her
class and the Overall title at the CBBF National World Qualifier (Chantal won the fitness
competition that same year). Most recently, Natalie won her class at the 2008 Arnold
Amateur IFBB Figure Championships. Natalies not just a national champion now, but an
international one as well. Few people have had that kind of success that fast.
Ive helped many other people in that time, including
other figure champions and even some male bodybuilders, and with all of them Ive
used the same approach to achieve success quickly. As a result, people want to know what
some of the "secrets" are that help these people get ahead. However, most are
surprised to learn that there are really no secrets at all. In fact, what Im going
to explain below is common sense and, to some, it may seem too simple to be true.
But, as simple as it seems, these are some basic principles
that many people hoping to succeed overlook and often completely neglect to their
detriment. With the people I coach, mind you, these are the first things I teach them to
instill in them the key principles it takes to succeed and, eventually, become a champion.
So, here are what I believe are five keys for competing successfully:
1) Training consistently: Far too often, people
dont train regularly. They might not go to the gym frequently enough, often finding
the flimsiest excuse to skip a workout, or they dont train for weeks or months at a
time. At the end of it all, they wonder why they dont make much, if any, progress.
The people I coach take breaks from time to time recuperation and rest are
important but over the long term, their training is consistent week after week,
month after month, year after year. You need that kind of consistency to succeed
2) Understanding the importance of nutrition: To
build a great body, you need to supply it with the proper nutrients. As a matter of fact,
many believe that for physique competitors, nutrition is more important than training! Of
course, that doesnt mean that if your diet is perfect, you dont need to train
they go hand in hand. It just means that you must realize that what you put in your
mouth has a huge impact on the results you achieve. For the people I coach, proper
nutrition is never neglected.
3) Possessing the proper mindset: If you look at any
great champions, youll find that they have minds as powerful as their bodies. In
fact, the most successful champions often "train" their minds just as hard as
they train their bodies. Just ask Vanda Hadarean, an amazing athlete who has a string of
competitive accomplishments (she was in the 1992 Olympics!) and who is also part of our
SAF Elite. Vanda places just as much emphasis on the mental aspects of her training as the
physical. So its not just about training and eating well, it also has to do with
having the mindset necessary to succeed.
4) Maintaining "balance" in everything:
When I coach people I use the word balance a lot; however, when it comes to physique
competitions, it means more than one thing.
First, theres balance in the physique, something many
competitors overlook. If they overlook it, theyll probably end up with some body
parts that are strong and others that are weak. For the people I coach, we minimize their
weak body parts by focusing our efforts on them so, over time, they match the strong
parts. When they get on stage, their physiques are usually so well-balanced that, to the
judges eyes, they look as faultless as possible.
Second, theres balance in life, which means keeping
everything in check. Although competing is important and training consistently is crucial,
its just as important to have other interests and to take the occasional rest.
Otherwise, burnout usually occurs. For the people I coach, we train hard and often in the
months leading up to the competition, but afterwards we pull back a little and take time
off, or greatly reduce the training time, to recharge the batteries before we go at it
again.
5) Staying away from drugs: Drugs are all over the
news today, and when you talk about physique competitions, the subject often comes up.
Without doubt, drugs are a huge issue and a big problem. Furthermore, because I achieve
results so quickly with certain people, others often think that I must have some trick up
my sleeve like drug use. I can assure you, thats certainly not the
case.
The fact of the matter is that while some drugs can
increase muscle size, decrease fat and do many other "miraculous" things that
physique competitors want, drugs also have nasty side effects, many of which present grave
health hazards to the user. In my opinion, from a health perspective, its just not
worth the risk.
Furthermore, I firmly believe that for female physique
competitors, drugs like steroids decrease any chance for long-term success despite
the fact that they might build some muscle size. The reason is that when women take these
drugs, they often develop masculine characteristics a change in the appearance of
the jaw line, increased facial hair, deepening of the voice, etc. When that happens,
"femininity" is decreased, and so, too, are their chances of winning in
fitness and figure competitions, the judges usually want to see an attractive,
athletic-looking woman, not a woman with the characteristics of a man. Whats more,
these masculine characteristics dont always go away when the drug use stops.
Instead, theyre usually there forever. Thats why all the people I coach
men and women dont take any drugs whatsoever.
Conclusion
In my opinion, adhering to these five keys is critical for
success, which is why I instill these things in the people I coach right off the bat. And
while some people might succeed without following some or even all of these key points,
Id say that theyd be very lucky if they did. I believe these five points form
the basis for long-term success.
So dont neglect the basics. Women like Natalie and
Chantal had dreams of becoming well-known champions and now they are. By putting in the
same kind of hard work that these women did and adhering to these five key principles,
perhaps the same thing can happen to you.
...Doug Schneider
das@seriousaboutfitness.com |