Huge: hardgainer's ultimate growth enhancement system; gut tenacity; how to fuel the fire in your belly

Some guys cite a warrior's heart as their source of strength, some credit their genetic blessings, but me? I, too, have been blessed with all the tools to be a professional bodybuilding champion, but putting those tools to work requires a force that synthesizes them and imbues them with a higher purpose.

I've given this a lot of thought and have concluded that, in me, that force is not my competitive instinct to beat the other guy, or my quest for fame and fortune, or even the desire to be the best in the world for the sake of inspiring others. My self-respect is at the heart of my tenacity and motivation. I want to be able to go home at night knowing I did my very best, both physically and morally, with the tools I have. With that attitude, I figure the toughest competitor I'll ever face is myself.

I never compete against the physiques of Ronnie Coleman, Chris Cormier, Kevin Levrone or anyone else on the stage. Each of us is endowed with unique aesthetic potential, and it's our jobs to try to realize that potential. If I were obsessed with being a better Coleman-type than Ronnie or a better Levrone-type than Kevin, for example, I would just end up distracted from trying to be my personal best. I therefore simply strive for the best look that I, Jay Cutler, am capable of presenting.

The only way to beat the best is to set your sights beyond them, and the only way to do that is to never be satisfied with where you are at the moment, no matter how good you are. I've always had some sort of formulation of the ideal physique I wanted, but as I continually take myself to new levels, that ideal keeps improving, and those improvements renew my motivation. When I see in a mirror that the training and discipline I've invested are paying off, I want to apply those principles all the more. Compare that feeling with the distress you experience when your diet's not right and your activity level is down. Those are the days you'll wake up in the morning feeling lethargic, not very proud of yourself, and on the verge of backsliding.

I never underestimate the importance of diet to my motivation. When I know I'm eating healthfully, I feel the difference both physically and psychologically. You are what you eat; I totally believe that. People ask me how I make such dramatic improvements to my physique, and I genuinely believe that 90% of it is my diet. It took a long time to learn what foods work for my body. Now I'm convinced you can moderately eat almost anything--as long as you avoid saturated fats, which are of no benefit to bodybuilders or anyone else.

For anyone, professional bodybuilder or not, any positive moment or gesture of support is a source of motivation. My success, at this point in my career, is a good example, and I have to say that my fans are responsible for much of that.

They drive me to succeed with their letters and e-mails of encouragement. I'm also motivated when I read compliments about me in publications. As a kid, I dreamed about picking up magazines and seeing myself in them. Now, virtually every bodybuilding magazine I open has me in it, and that makes me want to be even better for my fans.

We all go through ups and downs, especially when we compete, but I'm inspired when I pick up videotapes and back issues of FLEX and MUSCLE & FITNESS and see how much I've improved over the past three years. It's incredible, almost as if my body has taken on its own development. I'm shocking even myself because, honestly, "my regimen hasn't changed much; yet my improvement has accelerated.

Now I'm more tenacious than ever. I can see that consistency got me to this level and that it can take me even further. That's a satisfying principle for me, because I don't like change. I believe that once you reach a certain goal, you shouldn't deviate too often from the routine that got you there.

To maintain my training intensity, I'm always mentally visualizing my next workout. As soon as today's workout is finished, I'm thinking about tomorrow's. I'm also feeding myself for tomorrow's workout, since the energy you have tomorrow will come from the foods you eat today.

If I sense my workouts are stagnating, I have several remedies at hand. I may change to a different gym, with a different atmosphere, until the stagnation passes. I may train at a different time. I may split my workouts, or I may train with a partner for a while. These deviations from my norm, however, are almost never necessary.

Sometimes, if I think I'm becoming a little too satisfied with myself, I'll test my tenacity by asking myself, OK, how dedicated are you, Jay? I'll then train very late at night, or even in the middle of the night, instead of at my normal seven or eight o'clock in the morning. I challenge myself and play games with myself. I'll also train with higher volume, although only after increasing my calories.

Approaching a show, my intensity becomes insane. I'm in bed at seven, up at four. That fires me up all the more, knowing I'm in and out of the gym before anyone is even out of bed. As a professional bodybuilder, I don't have to punch a clock, but I know that my workday has its own schedule and I'm getting the job done. That makes me feel better about myself. I don't mind training four times a day, because that's what I do. It's my job, and I'll gladly do whatever it takes to be more successful at it.

RELATED ARTICLE: TENACITY TIPS

* Split your routine into two-or three, or even four-workouts a day if your lifestyle permits it. This allows you to renew your intensity for each workout, since each workout should be shorter, your intensity will be sustained through a longer portion of each workout.

* Start each workout with a power movement, when your strength and intensity are at a peak, and you're more likely to set a personal record for the repetitions you'll be able to do with that weight. There's nothing more inspiring than that.

* For the sake of your self-esteem, use free weights as often as possible. When you lift a barbell or dumbbells, you are assured that it's "all you." With machine and cables, your subconscious has to wrestle with the guilt that you are being assisted by lever actions, fulcrums and/or pulleys.

BE AN EXPLOSIVES EXPERT

The more explosive my repetitions are off the bottom, the more power and sense of power I have which motivates me even more and fuels my tenacity to keep those reps going. That initial explosion drives the contraction deeper into the muscle. I can feel it more, which perpetuates my tenacity and my desire to prolong the set.

Practice these explosive reps yourself, but make sure you maintain control of the movement throughout the full range of motion by concentration on feeling the resistance penetrating like a pile driver into the core of the muscle you're trying to work. Don't waste the explosion by relying on other bodyparts to sling the weight. In other words, become an "explosive expert."

COPYRIGHT 2002 Weider Publications
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