 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Having entered into the previous 20 Week Challenge and failed miserably (I pulled out after 2 weeks), I had spend 5 months getting myself completely out of shape. By this I mean that I had not entered the gymnasium for a total of 5 months, I had smoked a lot of cigarettes and I had consumed alcohol and food in quantities that were taking its toll on my physical and mental state. To put it bluntly, I was unmotivated, lethargic, and unhappy with who I was becoming.
Before
20 weeks later
Click to view their testimonials
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Then came a visit from my friend and super trainer Dwayne Thomas, “guess what?” “There’s another 20 Week Challenge about to start and you need to enter it.” He was right, I did need to enter. We could both see that it was time to make some changes to my lifestyle that would pull me from the deepening rut that I was creating.
They say that every great journey begins with a single step, and for me this first step was simply saying “yes, I’m in.” “That’s fantastic,” said Dwayne. This was just before the awards night of the previous challenge. So, I thought I would support the team by attending the awards night and state my intention to complete the challenge to Broni and as any other people as possible. There was no backing out now, I was committed.
Photos and measurements were taken and the true extent of my physical degradation was quantified. It was not pretty at all. Thankfully I had Dwayne to keep the process moving forward and before I could even begin to feel sorry for myself, I was thrown into a goal setting workshop in which it was determined what categories I was going to enter in this challenge. These being - Strength and Best abs. I choose these because I felt they would provide me with the greatest challenge, but also because I have had the dream of a 6 pack tummy for a good few years (ever since my early twenties), and I knew that to achieve this goal I was going to have to be really strict with my exercise and diet.
Next we did a workshop on nutrition and how to apply the Katch-McArdle formula to calculate our required calories for active and passive days. Dwayne showed us and then asked us to do some practical applications of the formula; we repeated this process until Dwayne was certain that we had a strong understanding of what was to become a vital tool in completing the challenge successfully.
Along with the nutritional coaching I was given a booklet with a series of dynamic stretches and exercises which I was to perform every day. Regretfully I was not as diligent with these exercises as I could have been and did not reap the full rewards in the flexibility department. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the core exercises and stretching was a part of every workout.
Dwayne designed a routine which would see me building muscle and strength for the first 10 weeks of the challenge through the correct application of a calorie positive diet and 3 weights based workouts each week. This was complimented by 2 days of cardio or home based stretching and dynamic movements. As we hit the gym for the first time it was obvious that Dwayne was going to use my competitive nature as a motivational technique and he proceeded to do 17 pull-ups, telling me that he expected me to be able to beat his mark by the end of the 20 Week Challenge. I laughed at him, believing this figure to be an impossible target for someone of my size and given the fact that I had only managed 7 during the first strength test it was going to be a big ask. Incredibly I was able to complete 20 pull-ups in the final test at the end of the challenge. This is a mind-blowing result for me as I have never completed this many pull-ups at any stage in my life. Throughout the whole challenge but particularly during the first 10 weeks when my friend and training partner Dennis McGrath (also in the 20 Week Challenge), were lifting ever increasingly heavy weights. Dwayne was observing and guiding our every move. He would make sure that we use proper technique and form to complete the strength program that he had given us. Utilising the diet and exercise program that Dwayne Thomas created I was able to gain a total of 7kg during the first 10 weeks of the challenge, taking me to a weight of 110.7kg my fitness and stamina all increased and as for my strength, well I believe that my results speak for themselves.
I would like to state that during the first 12 weeks of the challenge I was hampered by a right shoulder injury which prevented me from lifting heavy bench presses. With physiotherapy and a cortisone injection my shoulder injury recovered and I was then able to really work at improving my strength in all of the upper body pushing movements.
The next 10 weeks saw a dramatic change in diet and training methods. Calories and weights were reduced, but training intensity went up DRAMATICALLY!!!! Again, Dwayne Thomas led the way with a cardio feat involving the leg-press machine stairs weights lunges, hopping, squatting and many other exercises. The challenge was laid for us to beat his time, but it is accurate to say that no-one has even attempted the seriously gut busting routine that he completed. Exercise consisted of a weights based cardio routine called the 300(Spartan Workout), this involves doing 300 repetitions of various exercises in rapid succession while maintaining a high level of cardio output. It was the hardest workout that I have ever done. On days when I wasn’t in the gym, I was completing a variation of the 300 at home. The main reason that I used a weights based cardio routine was because I have a permanent left leg injury caused by Necrotising Fasciitis that prevents me from running any distances. I was totally amazed by the results I got from the second half of the challenge, my stamina and fitness improved and I just felt more alive in my day-to-day activities. Something else that I am really excited about is the fact that although we were not lifting the same heavy weights that we had been our strength was still improving.
As I reduced my calories to a level below what I needed to maintain my current weight, I had to develop new eating habits, learning to prepare a day’s meals the night before. It was important to have as many healthy options readily available in order to avoid falling back on the poor options. Before long I was enjoying the positive benefits of my new more salad filled diet and my body was happily losing body fat. I reduced my weight from 110.7kg to 103kg in 10 weeks with a large majority of this weight being lost in body fat. I now have abs that were just a dream 20 weeks ago and I am in the kind of shape that I never thought possible after so long abusing my body.
At the start of the 20 Week Challenge I set the following goals:
Get into the best shape of my life mentally and physically achieved
Six pack Abs; Achieved
Give up smoking; Almost there
Healthy diet with reduced drinking; Achieved
Winning best Abs and Strength categories Fingers crossed (I gave it my best shot)
Completing the 20 Week Competition has been the most satisfying experience that I have had in many years and it is definitely the greatest gift that I could ever give my body. I feel 15 years younger and I look fantastic. I am the strongest I have ever been in my life, and I have more stamina than I had 10 years ago. Old unhealthy habits have been replaced with new positive and healthy habits. I have proved to myself and others that you are never too old to get in to top shape.
I would like to give a big thanks to everyone involved in making my journey so positive and productive. My partner Jessica has been a pillar of support and a smacker of hands every time I attempted to eat something that wasn’t on the healthy menu. Dennis my training and business partner, having someone who is pushing themselves to the extreme to compete against, made me try so much harder to get the results. Dwayne Thomas, the brains and motivator behind the whole fitness regime I have just worked through. Dwayne took my goals and dreams and created a practical way for me to achieve them. He was always available for advice and his unwavering positive energy carried me along whenever he was near. Dwayne’s visualising techniques have been invaluable in pushing through my mental and physical boundaries and I use these tools on a daily basis.
I would like to finish by thanking the 20 Week Challenge team, without your hard work none of the elation and pain of the past 20 weeks would have had a real purpose. The regular news letters were a constant source of inspiration. Keeps up the fantastic work, it really is making a difference to people’s lives.
Sincerely,
Aragorn Urquhart
They say that every great journey begins with a single step, and for me this first step was simply saying “yes, I’m in.” “That’s fantastic,” said Dwayne. This was just before the awards night of the previous challenge. So, I thought I would support the team by attending the awards night and state my intention to complete the challenge to Broni and as any other people as possible. There was no backing out now, I was committed.
Photos and measurements were taken and the true extent of my physical degradation was quantified. It was not pretty at all. Thankfully I had Dwayne to keep the process moving forward and before I could even begin to feel sorry for myself, I was thrown into a goal setting workshop in which it was determined what categories I was going to enter in this challenge. These being - Strength and Best abs. I choose these because I felt they would provide me with the greatest challenge, but also because I have had the dream of a 6 pack tummy for a good few years (ever since my early twenties), and I knew that to achieve this goal I was going to have to be really strict with my exercise and diet.
Next we did a workshop on nutrition and how to apply the Katch-McArdle formula to calculate our required calories for active and passive days. Dwayne showed us and then asked us to do some practical applications of the formula; we repeated this process until Dwayne was certain that we had a strong understanding of what was to become a vital tool in completing the challenge successfully.
Along with the nutritional coaching I was given a booklet with a series of dynamic stretches and exercises which I was to perform every day. Regretfully I was not as diligent with these exercises as I could have been and did not reap the full rewards in the flexibility department. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the core exercises and stretching was a part of every workout.
Dwayne designed a routine which would see me building muscle and strength for the first 10 weeks of the challenge through the correct application of a calorie positive diet and 3 weights based workouts each week. This was complimented by 2 days of cardio or home based stretching and dynamic movements. As we hit the gym for the first time it was obvious that Dwayne was going to use my competitive nature as a motivational technique and he proceeded to do 17 pull-ups, telling me that he expected me to be able to beat his mark by the end of the 20 Week Challenge. I laughed at him, believing this figure to be an impossible target for someone of my size and given the fact that I had only managed 7 during the first strength test it was going to be a big ask. Incredibly I was able to complete 20 pull-ups in the final test at the end of the challenge. This is a mind-blowing result for me as I have never completed this many pull-ups at any stage in my life. Throughout the whole challenge but particularly during the first 10 weeks when my friend and training partner Dennis McGrath (also in the 20 Week Challenge), were lifting ever increasingly heavy weights. Dwayne was observing and guiding our every move. He would make sure that we use proper technique and form to complete the strength program that he had given us. Utilising the diet and exercise program that Dwayne Thomas created I was able to gain a total of 7kg during the first 10 weeks of the challenge, taking me to a weight of 110.7kg my fitness and stamina all increased and as for my strength, well I believe that my results speak for themselves.
I would like to state that during the first 12 weeks of the challenge I was hampered by a right shoulder injury which prevented me from lifting heavy bench presses. With physiotherapy and a cortisone injection my shoulder injury recovered and I was then able to really work at improving my strength in all of the upper body pushing movements.
The next 10 weeks saw a dramatic change in diet and training methods. Calories and weights were reduced, but training intensity went up DRAMATICALLY!!!! Again, Dwayne Thomas led the way with a cardio feat involving the leg-press machine stairs weights lunges, hopping, squatting and many other exercises. The challenge was laid for us to beat his time, but it is accurate to say that no-one has even attempted the seriously gut busting routine that he completed. Exercise consisted of a weights based cardio routine called the 300(Spartan Workout), this involves doing 300 repetitions of various exercises in rapid succession while maintaining a high level of cardio output. It was the hardest workout that I have ever done. On days when I wasn’t in the gym, I was completing a variation of the 300 at home. The main reason that I used a weights based cardio routine was because I have a permanent left leg injury caused by Necrotising Fasciitis that prevents me from running any distances. I was totally amazed by the results I got from the second half of the challenge, my stamina and fitness improved and I just felt more alive in my day-to-day activities. Something else that I am really excited about is the fact that although we were not lifting the same heavy weights that we had been our strength was still improving.
As I reduced my calories to a level below what I needed to maintain my current weight, I had to develop new eating habits, learning to prepare a day’s meals the night before. It was important to have as many healthy options readily available in order to avoid falling back on the poor options. Before long I was enjoying the positive benefits of my new more salad filled diet and my body was happily losing body fat. I reduced my weight from 110.7kg to 103kg in 10 weeks with a large majority of this weight being lost in body fat. I now have abs that were just a dream 20 weeks ago and I am in the kind of shape that I never thought possible after so long abusing my body.
At the start of the 20 Week Challenge I set the following goals:
Get into the best shape of my life mentally and physically achieved
Six pack Abs; Achieved
Give up smoking; Almost there
Healthy diet with reduced drinking; Achieved
Winning best Abs and Strength categories Fingers crossed (I gave it my best shot)
Completing the 20 Week Competition has been the most satisfying experience that I have had in many years and it is definitely the greatest gift that I could ever give my body. I feel 15 years younger and I look fantastic. I am the strongest I have ever been in my life, and I have more stamina than I had 10 years ago. Old unhealthy habits have been replaced with new positive and healthy habits. I have proved to myself and others that you are never too old to get in to top shape.
I would like to give a big thanks to everyone involved in making my journey so positive and productive. My partner Jessica has been a pillar of support and a smacker of hands every time I attempted to eat something that wasn’t on the healthy menu. Dennis my training and business partner, having someone who is pushing themselves to the extreme to compete against, made me try so much harder to get the results. Dwayne Thomas, the brains and motivator behind the whole fitness regime I have just worked through. Dwayne took my goals and dreams and created a practical way for me to achieve them. He was always available for advice and his unwavering positive energy carried me along whenever he was near. Dwayne’s visualising techniques have been invaluable in pushing through my mental and physical boundaries and I use these tools on a daily basis.
I would like to finish by thanking the 20 Week Challenge team, without your hard work none of the elation and pain of the past 20 weeks would have had a real purpose. The regular news letters were a constant source of inspiration. Keeps up the fantastic work, it really is making a difference to people’s lives.
Sincerely,
Aragorn Urquhart
