Your Questions Answered Plus The WINNER Announced

By Vince On March 29, 2009 Under Miscellaneous

So my Inbox has been getting rained on with about 350 unique emails and between my 2 email assistants and I – we can’t keep up!  Thanks for being patient and I hope you find your question or a version of your question posted below.

I’ll begin doing this on a more regular basis because I understand how helpful it is to have your individual questions answered with a personal response.

Enjoy…

Question: Who was the winner of the No-Nonsense DVD Series?

Answer: Answer:  Congratulations to Marios Prodromou of Larnaca Cyprus who won a copy of my No-Nonsense Muscle Building & Six Pack DVD Series for submitting my favorite entry to the question of “If you were going to recommend my system to a friend, what would you say to them?”

I first have to say, I don’t know what in the world I was thinking of doing this contest.  As I was reading through the responses, I felt so guilty awarding only 1 free No-Nonsense DVD Series.   If you have not read the responses yet, get ready to be inspired beyond belief.

–> http://vincedelmontefitness.com/blog/2009/03/win-a-free-no-nonsense-dvd-series/
Now here is Marios winning submission (and before and after pictures that were submitted after I announced him the winner):

“I purchased the EODD from Jon Benson and received free access to your fitness Exercise Generator. I was very impressed and thought LOL, Vince really knows his stuff. I immediately forked out $100 and bought the complete No-Nonsense Muscle Building Program.

My years of frustration on trying to bulk without packing on fat were finally over. I was amazed by the amount of information that I was able to download. I had all the information that I needed to succeed at my fingertips. I couldn’t stop downloading, reading and listening until I finally downloaded it all. I loved your audio reports and interviews with some of the top fitness specialists in the business.

If this is not enough, you do all the hard work for your clients and also provide tools such as a metabolic calculator and mass meal plans for both men and women. I love the way that you bust the top muscle building myths. This information alone is worth the whole price of the program.

Before the start of your program, I was 200lbs at 17% bodyfat. After 12 weeks on your program, I became 210lbs at under 10% bodyfat. Don’t take my word for it. My picture is on my website and on Twitter.

I finally learned what to eat in order to gain lean mass without the fat and how many calories to consume each day. I learned which exercises build muscle, what tempo to use, and which exercises to avoid. What type of cardio to do, and most importantly that you don’t need to spend hours in the gym in order to build your dream physique. I was once a supplement junkie but not anymore thanks to your no bull guide on supplements. This info alone has already saved my hundreds of dollars. My friends ask me what steroids am I on when they see me each day getting better and better. I laugh and tell them that I am hooked on Vince Delmonte.

For the lousy $100 that I gave you in exchange for your program, I have received so much! I will even compete in the Cypriot Fitness Nationals at the end of this year. I also have the guts to offer my own fitness advice to all my friends and even on Twitter since I finally have the body to back it all up. I am now the man at the gym and I am being chased by all the gals. Your program will change the life of everyone that purchases it. All that I can say is:

“Get the Vince Delmonte program now!” “It will be the best decision that you will ever make in your life.”

Cheers,
Marios Prodromou
Larnaca Cyprus

WOW!  I want to congratulate each one of you who submitted a success story and have experienced life-changing results.  Each one of your results motivated and encouraged me to keep raising the bar higher for all of us.   Keep going for it.

Question: I’m not your typical client – I’m 18 years old, almost all solid muscle, but no matter who’s program I try, I can’t seem to grow anymore.  You’re my last resort and I’m off to college next year so I need some advice.

Answer: Considering you’re only off to college, I know for a fact that you’re not done growing.  The biggest gains of your life are just around the corner.  I trust you appreciate that amount of time it takes to manufacture new muscle – your body can only grow 3-4 pounds of dry muscle a month, on average. I trust you have a love for the sport of building your strength and conditioning because that will allow you to continue training over the years which will lead to thicker and denser muscle mass.

Without knowing anything about your current program, I would  flip it completely upside down.  If you’re doing chest on Monday, do it on Friday.  If you’re doing calves last in the workout, do them first.  If you’re doing 3 sets of 10, start doing 10 sets of 3.  Commit to this the next 6 weeks and I promise that you’ll break through your rut.

Question: Are your meal plans hard to follow?  I can’t afford $200 a week and my family has horrible eating habits so I’m not sure if I’ll be able to follow them…

Answer: “Hard” is a relative term.  You get what you focus on so if you view them as hard, of course they’ll be hard.  View the meal plans as scoring 100% on an exam.  If you view them and discover you’re only scoring 20% on the exam, focus on improving your score 10% every week.  In 9 weeks, you’ll be scoring 100% and seeing and feeling some dramatic differences on your body.

As for cost, certain proteins, fruits and vegetables can add up.  Shop at “bulk” and “no frill” grocery stores.  Purchase sale food in bulk.  Substitute more expensive foods with cheaper foods of the same food category.  Don’t buy name brands.  Don’t eat out at restaurants or fast food.

Question:I have a question about the Upside Down Training routine… Why is almost 50% of the routine body weight/endurance exercises? Are those an INTEGRAL part of gaining muscle?  Or are they primarily for fat loss.  I’m sure there is a scientific reason for it but maybe being a little more advanced, should my routine focus more on resistance rather than endurance? I really want to take it to the next level.

Answer: Remember, UDT is like an automobile tune up and the goal is to get your car ready for a long road trip.  Most people avoid this preparation phase and begin building their “building” and get to the 10th floor and discover there is a crack on the foundation and have to start building again from the 1st floor.  This phase focuses on “non-conventional” advanced techniques to prepare you for the heavy and dense training in later phases.  So UDT is not directly related to building muscle but it’s indirectly related to setting up the bedrock for future gains and healthy lifting.

You’ll notice I provide so many different programs because no program can hit every element of fitness under one umbrella although I do my best to come close.  You can’t prioritize your strength when you’re focusing on your conditioning.  Fat loss can be achieved with a “muscle” or a “fat loss” weight training plan.  The key factors to determine the response is your diet and cardio plan supporting the resistance component.

Question: How do I incorporate Upside Down Training and the Razor Sharp cardio workouts together?

Answer: Two options:

1. Do the weights on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday with the cardio workout AFTER the weights or body weight workouts.The workouts will be much longer though.

2. Do the weights on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and do 2 cardio workouts: one on Wednesday and one on Friday and take Sunday off.

Question: Vince what is the optimal time of day to workout if you want to build muscle?

Answer: Whenever your body feels strongest and the most fresh.  I personally have the most energy after 8-hours of sleep, even if I have not had a few meals in me.  This is completely individual.

If you want me to make the decision for you and you’re a hardgainer then have at least 2-3 whole meals in you before training and avoid training on low glycogen levels.

If you wish to lose fat I suggest training earlier in the morning when your glycogen levels are lowest.

Question:  I’m not a little guy.  I need to lose about 20 pounds. Is there any advice you could give me to help start this?  I lift weights and the weight doesn’t seem to come off.  What am I doing wrong?

Answer: My best advice is that you need more than advice.  You need a complete plan to follow. Tips and tricks are good if you’re advanced and need a little edge.  Once you have a pre-designed plan then you can standardized the entire routine and make 1 or 2 adjustments at a time and measure the response and have control and feedback from the outcome.  This is called trial and error and far more effective than “advice.”

Question: Can you suggest a few techniques to boost my testosterone levels?

Answer: Sleep 8-hours a night.  Eat mono-unsaturated fats with each meal e.g. natural peanut butter, a variety of mixed nuts, avocado, olive oil.  Lift heavy.  Incorporate a lot of “fun” and adventure into your life.   Avoid alcohol.

Question: I am certainly making some gains with your muscle program but I’m putting on a lot of fat too. In the past couple weeks Ive gone from 180 to 188.5 and a lot of it is fat – my parents are noticing it as well.  What would you recommend I do in terms of cardio and should I curb my meal plan at all?

Answer: It sounds like you’re body is telling you that you can only build so much muscle at a certain rate which is good knowledge to have.  How much muscle have you gained in this time?  Anything over this number can be removed so you maximize the muscle:fat ratio.

For example, if you gained 10 pounds of weight in 2 months and 5 pounds was muscle than you gained an extra 1 pound per week which is an excess of 3500 calories that was either consumed or not burned off.  You have control of this excess 5 builds that was built.   So you have a choice.  Cut back your calories 500 per day or do enough cardio to burn an extra 500 calories a day.

Question: When should I take supplements like creatine, whey protein powder and a multi-vitamin?  Should I take anything else?

Answer: You should take them when you’re scoring 90% on your meal plan.  Are you?  If so, then these supplements will be redundant to your body but can still be added to “keep the cup full.”  I would add 5 grams of creatine to your pre and post workout shake all year round.  I would take a double or triple dosage of your multi vitamin each day.  Take it with each meal.  Use whey protein to mix with your post workout drink or to mix with some home made ingredients for a meal replacement shake when you don’t have time to cook a real meal.  You can add a fish oil supplement and take a few grams of fish oils a day.

Question: Is there a different food plan if your trying to make muscle but also trying to have a six pack?

Answer: Eating in hormonal balance (40% carb,30% protein,30% fat) creates the best opportunity to promote body composition change at the same time.   It’s very difficult to chase both goals at once since bulking and cutting contradict each other in terms of caloric intake however there is one advanced trick you can try.  Eat as if you’re training for bulking and train as if you’re training for fat loss.  A greater amount of calories coming in and out of your body has been shown to accelerate body composition change as opposed to the alternative of eating little and training little for a specific goal.

Question: I thought it was not wise to drink your recommended 500-750 ml of water meals because it dilutes enzymes that’s needed for digestion? What is correct?

Answer: After more and more research I’m discovering that this is just another matter of opinion even though many people make authoritative claims that state you should minimize fluids while eating.  I have read many claims that state you should drink before and two hours after meals because the fluid can cause dilution of stomach acids and digestive enzymes making digestion more difficult.

On the flip side, many would tell you that no two leafs are the same and that stomachs vary in size, strength, secretory powers and shape.  The biggest factor is your bodies motility which means the power of the stomach to receive food, hold the food, mix the food with your bodies juices and at the correct time, pass it on to the duodenum. The size, shape, position, and muscular power of the stomach determine your motility so it’s difficult to give you a straight answer.

If you have symptoms of fullness and heaviness after small amounts of food then you may have poor motility then taking water before and after your meals would be more appropriate advice for you.   However, even if you have a severe symptoms, 250 ml of water with each meal is generally acceptable.

If you have good motility then you can drink with advantage and have no reason not to consume 500-750 ml of water with each meal.  If you are really unsure then solve your dilemma by taking digestive enzyme pills with each meal.

Bottom line – you should be consuming 4 liters of water a day whether it is supplied during or after meals.

Question: I am still skeptical about you and your program.  How do I know your stuff really works?

Answer: You don’t – until you take action and let it work for you.  In all seriousness, I don’t mind this question (I get it about half a dozen times a day) but you obviously don’t believe me or my 30 page sales letter so I’m going to suggest you read what other folk have to say about me.  I have never had an interest in “convincing” someone my stuff works.  It’s not my lost if someone does not follow my stuff which has positioned me selfishly to save my energy and work with action takers who take responsibility and go for it and get amazing results.  Check out what 67 of my impressive trainees had to say here.  I hope this kicks your butt off the fence because it’s worth it :)

–> http://vincedelmontefitness.com/blog/2009/03/win-a-free-no-nonsense-dvd-series/

Vince

P.S. A new contest to win a FREE copy of my DVD series will be announced tomorrow.  And don’t forget, we’re only 8-days away from the official launch of the No-Nonsense Muscle Building & Six-Pack DVD Series on Tuesday April 7th at 12pm EST.

Muscle Building