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This is the second year in a row I have competed at the Masters Nationals and I have to say Gary Udit puts on a nice show where the athletes are really taken care of.
Last year was my come back after a 10 year retirement. I competed as a light heavy in the 35+ and placed 4th in a VERY tough class. Well this year guess what I did the same - 4th place in a VERY tough light heavy class. I would like to add that my husband, Dave Palumbo and many others actually had me 3rd, but I am okay with 4th as it is still top 5 and anytime you can make top 5 in a national show you should not complain. Based on how I looked last year my goal this year was to come in better condition, which I definately did. However, there is still more to work on based on what I, my husband, Dave Palumbo and others saw of me this year and that is more upper body size, but conditioning was right on.
Now I would like to talk about my experiences leading up to, during and after the show.
Last year I had Dave Palumbo help me with my diet and he helped me again this year. His diet is not too different then the way I had dieted, but there are differences for sure. I like having Dave help me for several reasons one he is a great guy who I really trust, two he knows what he is doing and finally it takes the stress off of me having to figure things out - I just do what he tells me. I visited Dave two times prior to the show one was in NYC at the NY Pro and the last time was 4 weeks prior to the Masters at the Jr's. Seeing Dave in person is not something that the people he works with need to do, but was something I wanted to do. The diet was just as difficult this year as it was last year, but it is worth it in the end.
Beyond the diet leading up to the show another really great thing I had happen prior to the show was I hooked up with NeedToBuildMuscle.com this year. I have dealt with many companies over the years, but I have to say their products ROCK, definately some of the best out there and if you are unfamiliar with them then go to the site and check it out & do not hesitate to ask questions. I have always been very picky about who I align myself with and do my best to make sure the company is reputable with TOP quality products and needtobuildmuscle.com is right there. After conversating back and forth for awhile and getting to know one another I am now a sponsored athlete of needtobuildmuscle.com and THANK them for their support in helping me prepare for the 2009 Masters.
Now lets talk about the days leading upto and the show. Tuesday the week of the show we drove down to Albuquerque as it is a 3 hour drive and I did not want to make the drive and flight all in the same day. Wedensday morning we had a very early flight out and arrived in Pittsburgh around 4pm, caught a taxi to the hotel and got checked in. I was a little suprised that I did not see any bodybuilders at the airport or hotel, but I figured I would start seeing them the next day and that I did. Thursday afternoon I went to the contest hotel for weigh ins & to have Dave Palumbo take a look at me. He told me that he would be arriving around 4:30pm. Irronically, right when I arrived at the contest hotel his cab pulled up - talk about timing... Dave took a look and said he liked what he saw. After that I weighed in at 135. Friday was relatively uneventfull other than getting tanned. Friday night no matter how hard I tried I could not sleep.
Saturday the day of the show started at a bright and early 3am. I got myself ready and then had to be over at the contest hotel by 5:30am to get a touch up on my tan. After my touch up tan I went to the restraunt to have some eggs. While there I had a great conversation with Michael Alexander who lives in Colorado and competed in the mens heavy class the night before. At 7:30am I went to the meeting and after the meeting relaxed for a short bit before I had to go back stage. It is always fun doing this show as you get to see and talk to the other competitors who most of us have known each other and competed against each other for years so often the conversations are talking about the good ol days... Around 10 or 11am the light heavy women went on stage. It was different than any other time I have been on stage as during the comparison round they did not move us around, which is very unusual. My assumption for this is there were quite a few of us that were just barely haning in there, the judges saw this & tried to get us off stage as quickly as possible. I certainly was not unhappy about getting off stage quickly. I was called out in the top 5 call out and was quite excited about that. After prejuding we went out to have a burger and fries, wow that tasted great!!! After lunch I took a nap, got up and returned for the night show. Back stage they lined the light heavys up then called the numbers that did not make top 5 into a different line, sent them up to be introduced then had the rest of us (top 5) go up to do our routines then lined us up to hand us our trophies. As I stated above I got 4th place. Dave stated he had me 3rd and when they called me 4th he heard quite a few boos, but as I said, I have no complaints - anything top 5 is good.
The show was lots of fun just as it was last year. What I enjoyed most was getting to meet up with old friends such as Cathy Conners, Michele Ivers, Lisa B and also getting to hook up and talk with old friends such as Vinny G and Sebastian Zona.. There are however things that went on at the show that I do not think were right and the biggest one was what happened with the womens 35+ overall and 45+ overall. Taking nothing away from Tracy, I think it is great she got her pro-card, but they are suppose to give out 2 cards one for the 45+ and one for the 35+ and they gave it all to Tracy. They should have given the 35+ to Michele Ivers (sorry I forgot what her married name is...). I was actually suprised that they let people do cross overs when they are providing a pro card in each division. I feel there should be no cross overs allowed and they need to have 4 weight classes in the 45+ division same as in the 35+ division. Other than that I thought the show was great.
Now my task is to put lots more size on in the off-season this year and present a package the judges will like even more than what they have seen the past two years.
I would like to thank Curtis Schultz (my husband) for all of his help and support, needtobuildmuscle.com for their support, Dave Palumbo for all of his assistance and support, Colette Nelson for her help, Bill Crawford for his assistance and support, Species Nutrition, Top Choice Supplements and everyone else who was behind me while I prepared for this show. I could not have done it without all of their support.
On this thread I would love to see people comment on their thoughts regarding not having cross overs in divisions when both offer pro cards. Also, one other topic I think should be addressed is not being a prude or arrogant. What I mean is that almost everyone at the Masters has been competing for MANY years, we have all placed good and bad and are all very good bodybuilders. Basically all of us "old timers" are very down to earth, not arrogant and very friendly. However, there are those & typically it is the newer bodybuilders who are quite arrogant and rude. Take heed - it does you no favors when you are arrogant at a show. In other words when someone says hi or in passing smiles at you don't act like you are king or queen and it is below you to address them.
The Pics below are as follows:
Anita
www.anitaramsey.com - Personal website, online training, store, fitness retreat, etc...
www.highpeaksbarbellclub.com - High altitude training facility, mma/ufc, sport training retreat, etc...
www.needtobuildmuscle.com - Supplements, articles, etc...
www.christinemarshdesigns.com - Posing suits
Last year was my come back after a 10 year retirement. I competed as a light heavy in the 35+ and placed 4th in a VERY tough class. Well this year guess what I did the same - 4th place in a VERY tough light heavy class. I would like to add that my husband, Dave Palumbo and many others actually had me 3rd, but I am okay with 4th as it is still top 5 and anytime you can make top 5 in a national show you should not complain. Based on how I looked last year my goal this year was to come in better condition, which I definately did. However, there is still more to work on based on what I, my husband, Dave Palumbo and others saw of me this year and that is more upper body size, but conditioning was right on.
Now I would like to talk about my experiences leading up to, during and after the show.
Last year I had Dave Palumbo help me with my diet and he helped me again this year. His diet is not too different then the way I had dieted, but there are differences for sure. I like having Dave help me for several reasons one he is a great guy who I really trust, two he knows what he is doing and finally it takes the stress off of me having to figure things out - I just do what he tells me. I visited Dave two times prior to the show one was in NYC at the NY Pro and the last time was 4 weeks prior to the Masters at the Jr's. Seeing Dave in person is not something that the people he works with need to do, but was something I wanted to do. The diet was just as difficult this year as it was last year, but it is worth it in the end.
Beyond the diet leading up to the show another really great thing I had happen prior to the show was I hooked up with NeedToBuildMuscle.com this year. I have dealt with many companies over the years, but I have to say their products ROCK, definately some of the best out there and if you are unfamiliar with them then go to the site and check it out & do not hesitate to ask questions. I have always been very picky about who I align myself with and do my best to make sure the company is reputable with TOP quality products and needtobuildmuscle.com is right there. After conversating back and forth for awhile and getting to know one another I am now a sponsored athlete of needtobuildmuscle.com and THANK them for their support in helping me prepare for the 2009 Masters.
Now lets talk about the days leading upto and the show. Tuesday the week of the show we drove down to Albuquerque as it is a 3 hour drive and I did not want to make the drive and flight all in the same day. Wedensday morning we had a very early flight out and arrived in Pittsburgh around 4pm, caught a taxi to the hotel and got checked in. I was a little suprised that I did not see any bodybuilders at the airport or hotel, but I figured I would start seeing them the next day and that I did. Thursday afternoon I went to the contest hotel for weigh ins & to have Dave Palumbo take a look at me. He told me that he would be arriving around 4:30pm. Irronically, right when I arrived at the contest hotel his cab pulled up - talk about timing... Dave took a look and said he liked what he saw. After that I weighed in at 135. Friday was relatively uneventfull other than getting tanned. Friday night no matter how hard I tried I could not sleep.
Saturday the day of the show started at a bright and early 3am. I got myself ready and then had to be over at the contest hotel by 5:30am to get a touch up on my tan. After my touch up tan I went to the restraunt to have some eggs. While there I had a great conversation with Michael Alexander who lives in Colorado and competed in the mens heavy class the night before. At 7:30am I went to the meeting and after the meeting relaxed for a short bit before I had to go back stage. It is always fun doing this show as you get to see and talk to the other competitors who most of us have known each other and competed against each other for years so often the conversations are talking about the good ol days... Around 10 or 11am the light heavy women went on stage. It was different than any other time I have been on stage as during the comparison round they did not move us around, which is very unusual. My assumption for this is there were quite a few of us that were just barely haning in there, the judges saw this & tried to get us off stage as quickly as possible. I certainly was not unhappy about getting off stage quickly. I was called out in the top 5 call out and was quite excited about that. After prejuding we went out to have a burger and fries, wow that tasted great!!! After lunch I took a nap, got up and returned for the night show. Back stage they lined the light heavys up then called the numbers that did not make top 5 into a different line, sent them up to be introduced then had the rest of us (top 5) go up to do our routines then lined us up to hand us our trophies. As I stated above I got 4th place. Dave stated he had me 3rd and when they called me 4th he heard quite a few boos, but as I said, I have no complaints - anything top 5 is good.
The show was lots of fun just as it was last year. What I enjoyed most was getting to meet up with old friends such as Cathy Conners, Michele Ivers, Lisa B and also getting to hook up and talk with old friends such as Vinny G and Sebastian Zona.. There are however things that went on at the show that I do not think were right and the biggest one was what happened with the womens 35+ overall and 45+ overall. Taking nothing away from Tracy, I think it is great she got her pro-card, but they are suppose to give out 2 cards one for the 45+ and one for the 35+ and they gave it all to Tracy. They should have given the 35+ to Michele Ivers (sorry I forgot what her married name is...). I was actually suprised that they let people do cross overs when they are providing a pro card in each division. I feel there should be no cross overs allowed and they need to have 4 weight classes in the 45+ division same as in the 35+ division. Other than that I thought the show was great.
Now my task is to put lots more size on in the off-season this year and present a package the judges will like even more than what they have seen the past two years.
I would like to thank Curtis Schultz (my husband) for all of his help and support, needtobuildmuscle.com for their support, Dave Palumbo for all of his assistance and support, Colette Nelson for her help, Bill Crawford for his assistance and support, Species Nutrition, Top Choice Supplements and everyone else who was behind me while I prepared for this show. I could not have done it without all of their support.
On this thread I would love to see people comment on their thoughts regarding not having cross overs in divisions when both offer pro cards. Also, one other topic I think should be addressed is not being a prude or arrogant. What I mean is that almost everyone at the Masters has been competing for MANY years, we have all placed good and bad and are all very good bodybuilders. Basically all of us "old timers" are very down to earth, not arrogant and very friendly. However, there are those & typically it is the newer bodybuilders who are quite arrogant and rude. Take heed - it does you no favors when you are arrogant at a show. In other words when someone says hi or in passing smiles at you don't act like you are king or queen and it is below you to address them.
The Pics below are as follows:
- First pic is of Dave Palumbo & I at his RXMuscle/Species Nutrition booth after the show.
- Secon pic is of the top 5 line up of the womens 35+ light heavys.
- Third pic is of my back double bi on stage at night show.
- Fourth pic is of old time friend Cathy Conners and myself after the show.
- Fifth pic is of Lisa B and myself after the show.
- Sixth pic is of old time friend Sebastian Zona and myself after the show.
Anita
www.anitaramsey.com - Personal website, online training, store, fitness retreat, etc...
www.highpeaksbarbellclub.com - High altitude training facility, mma/ufc, sport training retreat, etc...
www.needtobuildmuscle.com - Supplements, articles, etc...
www.christinemarshdesigns.com - Posing suits
Congrats on 4th place, that is really exceptional!!! I don't know how you can get up at 3am though, LOL I am glad you had a busy, yet wonderful time!
