2009 NPC Natural Midstates

November, 22 2009

Promoter Kevin Noble put on another great show Saturday, November 14th, in Rockford, Illinois. The NPC Natural Midstates attracted 117 competitors from 5 states and featured IFBB Pro guest poser Ricky “Tricky” Jackson, one of the best in the sport.

Congratulations to the overall winners!

Men’s Open – Fred Williams
Women’s Open – Tischa Thomas
Figure Open – Maria Cruz
Novice Men – Ryan Mark
Masters Men – Aaron Santos (40-49)
Grandmaster Men – Eric Ericson
Masters Women – Tischa Thomas
Masters Figure – Maria Cruz

Competitor Interviews

Greg Gabriel placed second in the Men’s Open division light heavyweight class. He’s been competing for several years and achieved his most ripped condition to date at this contest..

ABB - Greg, how old are you now?

Greg - I’ll be 37 in two weeks.

ABB - How long have you been training?

Greg - For bodybuilding, I’ve been specifically training for 2 years.

ABB - How many years were you weight training before that?

Greg - Since I was 13 or 14 years old.

ABB - You’ve been competing for 2 years now?

Greg - Yes, almost exactly.

ABB - Tell us about your diet because I have seen remarkable improvement in your physique and conditioning. What changes have you made to get so ripped?

Greg - Well, I researched a lot of diet strategies and I ended up going with what worked well for me. I started carbing up for this contest on Friday night instead of Thursday night because I peak better 24 hours after the fact. As for the day to day stuff, I alter my calories when I stop seeing progress in the mirror. Maybe go another 200 calories down. I start my diet about 16 weeks out and monitor it every day.

ABB - So you just monitor your carb intake. That’s how you got so lean?

Greg - I figured out, about six months before doing a show, that I might be carb sensitive. So I experimented with taking out the carbs, figuring there had to be something easier than taking in carbs every three hours around the clock from Friday to Sunday. My diet is basically high fat, moderate protein and zero carbs for about 3 days. Then you have one cheat meal. Every 18 meals I have a cheat meal. Since I eat 6 meals a day, that works out to a cheat meal every 3 days. This is when you carb up and it fools the thyroid into thinking that you’re not dieting anymore. It also gives you a much welcome break from dieting.

I start off my contest prep diet eating red meat from 16 to 12 weeks out, and then I switch over to chicken from 12 to 8 weeks out. Then I go to fish from 8 weeks to the contest. If I feel like I’m getting too lean toward the end, I can upshift to chicken, which fills me up a little more. Otherwise, I’ll stick with fish for the last 8 weeks and just take lot of naps to conserve energy. I also take in the Branched Chain Amino Acids during the day, which helps to preserve my size.

ABB - How many calories are you consuming on this diet?

Greg - When I start my diet at 16 weeks out, I want my body fat percentage to be about 10%. I do skin fold caliper tests and, when I am at 10% body fat, I’ll start my diet at about 2600 calories and go down to about 1600 calories during the last 2 weeks. So, for the last 2 weeks, I’m eating about 1600 calories a day. I’ll gradually lower the calories as I see myself making the progress I want to make.

ABB - How much does your weight change from off-season to the contest?

Greg - Off-season, my weight will peak at 218, but I’m still pretty lean at that weight. I was probably about 198-199 two weeks ago. The water depletion for the show I competed in three weeks ago brought me down to 195. I weighed in today at 190, which is a little bit shocking. But it is what it is!

ABB - What is your next show, Greg?

Greg - I’m doing the OCB Midwest States show in DeKalb, Illinois next weekend.

ABB - What about next year?

Greg - Next year, I really want to take some time to put on more size. I want to compete in the light-heavyweight class in the mid-190s or even at 197-198 pounds as ripped as I am today. To do that, I’ll need more size on my legs, maybe a bigger chest. I think if I did a show in May, I’d be cutting too much, since I’ve been cutting for almost two years in a row. I need to take some time off and maybe come back in the fall and do some shows.

Annie Le Fever took second place in the Women’s Open division at the Natural Mid-States. She was competing in her second contest in 2 weeks and was planning to compete again the following week.

ABB - How many years have you been training Annie?

Annie - I’ve been training about 4 years.

ABB - Was that weight training just for bodybuilding?

Annie – I’ve been lifting weights for the last 10 years, but I’ve been training as a bodybuilder for the last 4 years.

ABB - How many contests have you competed in?

Annie - I’ve competed in 6 shows, 2 in the last week!

ABB - What were those shows?

Annie – There was the NPC Midwest Ironman last weekend where I placed 2nd out of 4 women in the women’s middleweight class. Today, I took second in the women’s open in the heavyweight class.

ABB - How many days a week do you train?

Annie - I train 6 days a week, hitting each body part twice a week.

ABB - Do you use heavy weights in your training?

Annie - Yes sir!

ABB - What’s your pre-contest diet like?

Annie - No carbs! Right now, I’m on a no-carb diet.

ABB - So, you eat no carbs at all? How long have you been following this diet?

Annie - It’s going on two months now.

ABB - How long do you diet for a contest?

Annie - The total diet is 4 months but I’ve only been eliminating carbs for the last 2 months.

ABB - Is it hard to workout when following a no carb diet?

Annie - No, not at all.

ABB - Do you eat more fat so you have more energy with no carbs in your diet?

Annie - Not high fat, but I do eat almonds three times a day.

ABB - How much protein are you taking in a day?

Annie - About 150 grams of protein each day.

ABB - What are your overall aspirations in bodybuilding?

Annie - I would like to be an all-natural pro. If I could achieve this goal in the next year, it would be great.

ABB - What bodybuilding organization do you want to get your pro card in?

Annie - It doesn’t matter.

ABB - When is your next show?

Annie - I’m going to be competing in the OCB Midwest States contest next weekend in DeKalb, Illinois.

ABB - When will your next contest be?

Annie - I’m going to compete in the John Hansen show (the ABA Natural Illinois) on April 10th, 2010.

Nancy Wehbe won Class C in the Figure Open division of the NPC Natural Mid-States. She competed last weekend at the NPC Midwest Ironman and made great progress in her physique to win her class one week later.

ABB - How many years have you been weight lifting?

Nancy - I’ve been weight lifting since I was 18 and I’m 35 now so 17 years total.

ABB - Was this your first year competing?

Nancy - No, I competed 7 years ago at this same show. I won my class and the overall 7 years ago.

ABB - At this show? Wow, I didn’t know that.

Nancy - Yes, I got married and I had two other children and I decided to compete again. So, I have three kids now.

ABB - How old are your children?

Nancy - I have a 10 year old, a 2 ½ year old and a 7 month old baby.

ABB - So, you had the 2 ½ year old and the 7 month old baby in between the last time you competed?

Nancy - Yes, I only trained for 5 weeks for this show.

ABB - You had a baby seven months ago and you competed today and you only trained for 5 weeks for this contest?

Nancy - Yes, because I found out about the Midwest Ironman and I decided to do that show. I placed fourth in the C Class and then I figured, since I trained for that show, I might as well do this show too. But I always work out. I love working out!

ABB - So, tell everyone how you got in shape so quickly after having a baby.

Nancy - Well, I worked out through my whole pregnancy. Usually, I’m always late with my kids. I’m there at the gym until the last day. People will laugh at me, they will say, “You’re still here working out?”

ABB - Are you doing cardio and weight training when you are pregnant?

Nancy - Yes, I do cardio and weights throughout my pregnancy. I don’t push too hard where I’m going to do any harm to myself or to my baby. I listen to my body and I always eat healthy. This is my lifestyle. I’m not doing this to lose weight; it’s how I live.

ABB - How much weight did you gain when you were pregnant?

Nancy - I gained 34 pounds when I was pregnant. My baby was about 7 pounds so I had 20 some pounds to lose and I usually get back into the gym within 3 weeks of having a baby.

ABB - That’s great that you got back into shape so quickly! Some women say they are trying to lose the fat gained from having a baby years later.

Nancy - Yes, I know. The doctor said you usually need 6 weeks before you can go back to the gym but he told me that I was someone who was fit so I should just listen to my body. He told me if I felt that I was ready to go back, I should go back. And, I do. As soon as I have the baby, I start eating high protein and low carbohydrates. I always take my supplements. I start with walking, I don’t start weight training right away. I do a little bit of cardio first and I build up to bigger challenges. When I start lifting again, I begin with low to medium weights and then 6 weeks after the pregnancy, I give it my all.

ABB - What type of training program do you follow during a typical off-season?

Nancy - I’m trying to build more mass because I’m naturally very lean. If I don’t work out, I’ll lose weight and become really skinny, like those skinny models, which I don’t like. I like building up muscle. So, I do more 8-12 reps in my training, 4-6 sets per exercise.

ABB - How many days a week do you train?

Nancy - I work out 5 days a week, sometimes 6 days a week.

ABB - Now, because you are naturally lean, do you have to do cardio when you’re preparing for a contest?

Nancy - Well, at last week’s show, they said to me, “Don’t do any cardio because you’re naturally lean”. So, I didn’t do any cardio. I just lifted weights and was doing lunges for 20 minutes a day. That was my form of cardio.

ABB - You did 20 minutes of lunges?

Nancy - Yes, I was using those stepper blocks at the gym lunging just with my own bodyweight. Last week, they said to me, maybe you need to come in a little harder. So, I changed my diet around a little bit. I ate more seafood, instead of steak and chicken. I had tilapia for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It was disgusting but I had to do it. I also did 45-60 minutes of cardio this week and I got first place.

ABB - Yes, I noticed a big change in your physique from last week to this week.

Nancy - Thank you! I think my competition was a little bit tougher at the Midwest Ironman. The girls were a little big bigger. But, this was a natural show and I figured I would do better in a natural contest.

ABB - Do you normally eat low carbs when you diet for a contest?

Nancy - Yes, I do. I don’t count the carbs but I know how much I should have. It’s because I’ve been eating good for so many years that I know my body. Also, I’m Middle Eastern, so we eat a lot of bread. We have pita bread with everything, so I really try to watch that. I’ll have the whole wheat bread in the morning and I eat a lot of salads and cook healthy. My whole family eats healthy.

ABB - What do you think your next show will be?

Nancy - I will do the NPC Illinois State in May. I want to put on some weight. I need to add more muscle to my shoulders and legs. I also want to thicken my back.

ABB - Do you want to get your IFBB Pro Card?

Nancy - That’s always been my dream. I’m Assyrian so I’m the only Assyrian girl who has gotten this far in the figure competitions. I’ve competed on the National level before. Seven years ago, I competed in the NPC Jr. Nationals and I took 7th place. That was good.

ABB - Do you think you will compete in the Jr. Nationals again next year after doing the NPC Illinois?

Nancy - Yes, that’s my plan. Compete in the Illinois and then do the Jr. Nationals and hopefully go pro. It’s in God’s hands!

Watch for more competitor interviews from Mr. Natural Olympia, John Hansen. He’s ABB’s man on the scene for bodybuilding competitions coast to coast. You can read more of his blogs at RippedAcademy.com. And if you’re looking for a routine to get yourself into terrific shape, try MyFreeTrainer.