UPDATE:
What's up everyone? Hopefully you are all staying healthy and fit as this year is starting to wind down and we head into the big holiday season. Remember to balance it out (If you don't know how, make sure to check out my past blog "Balancing Act").Okay, so a quick update on myself and my current training, nutrition, etc.:
Well as most of you know, i don't compete, i'm not a bodybuilder, but I enjoy being in shape year round and being healthy as possible. With that said, my birthday is coming up on 11-11-11 and every year i like to diet down for a month or so before, so I can celebrate my birthday feeling good and being a little leaner helps me (mentally) to indulge on some tasty foods without causing too much damage if any at all.
Basically I'm trying to tell you 2 things:
1) Feel free to send me presents on November 11th
2) I'm pretty lean right now
But enough about me, lets talk *The 2011 Olympia*!
This was the 2nd year in a row I attended the Expo in Las Vegas, and I have to say that it is a must if you're a fan of Muscle & Fitness. <--See what i did there ;)
The reason why i make the drive from where i reside in Los Angeles to Vegas is because not only do I love meeting the professionals and important people in the industry, but also as you know my little brother does the Olympia Expo Jiu-Jitsu tournaments.
Here's a step by step recap of the pros and cons of the weekend:
Travel:
Con: Driving 4 hours to get there. That's never fun with 2 sleeping passengers.
Pro: I had a couple delicious Isopure Berry Pomegranate smoothies to hold me over during the drive. The only way I'll ever drink and drive is if the drink consists of a nice creamy protein. Definitely a must on road trips.
Hotel: Stayed at Circus Circus.
Pro: Pretty much nothing besides the fact that it was the cheapest on the strip, and very close to the expo.
Con: "Fitness room" had a dumbbells up to 12lbs, parking situation was so bad that it was only good for forcing me to do cardio everytime we wanted to leave the room, and the list goes on.
Advice: Pay the extra $$ and stay somewhere nicer w/a decent weight room so you aren't stuck in the hotel doing chair lifts and bed dips for a workout.
(Even though you can tell by this pic, the room workout wasn't too bad)
Expo:
Pros: EVERYTHING! Free samples, product releases, and the different events such as the strongman and grappling.
A major positive of this years trip as well as last years was my little brother winning 1st place in both his divisions and walked out of the expo with 2 Gold medals and a championship belt.
Cons: NOTHING! Just get there early for parking or better yet take a taxi from your room.
Products/Companies/Booths that caught my eye:
-Muscle&Fitness and Flex Magazine- Crazy booth exhibit this year, full of weight challenges, hall of fame walk-through, and loads of athletes and superstars to talk to.
-Optimum Nutrition- Tons of samples, new Amino Energy flavor and tons of shirts, bottles, and other Team Optimum products. They go all out!
-Bodybuilding.com- Lines around the corner! Probably because they give out a whole supplement drawer that basically pays for your entrance fee to get in the expo. Always popular at the expos.
-FatGripz- Came across this product and was given a pair to try out. Actually threw thew on some DBs the other day and did some curls. Crazy!! If you're looking for building some pipe looking forearms and grip strength check'em out!
-Lee Lebrada & Labrada Nutrition- Met Lee and chatted with him for a few minutes and he's a really nice guy with a great company. Their LeanBody bars taste insane!
Gaspari Nutrition- Great booth, lots of athletes, their Myofusion protein is always a hit! I also spoke with their athlete Krissy Chin about competing in the O and she was very cool.
Tons more, too many to name! Just go check it out next September 27-30 2012! I'll be there!
For now contact me on twitter:
@OBARmuscle or Email me: StephenObar@gmail.com
