# James Llewellin's off season phase leading into the British Grand Prix 2011



## supercell (Aug 23, 2005)

Ok, its now been 3 weeks since returning from Sacramento where I feel I presented my best 'Pro' package to date. This also coincided with my worst placing as a pro, :lol: LOL but hey, I was pleased with what I brought to the table and at my heaviest bodyweight to date and best conditioning of the year, I couldn't really have done an awful lot more since the 5 weeks from the Detroit show in September.

I was seriously considering sitting the whole of 2011 out in order to add mass to the areas that I feel are still letting me down, i.e pretty much everywhere!! I still am sitting around 14lbs below the weight limit, so still have a lot of growing to do.

However, after countless people asked me whether I am doing the British show I have decided that after a short rebound leading into xmas, I will do the British Grand Prix and then take the rest of 2011 out to make the improvements I need to realise my dream of standing on the Olympia stage, whether that be next year or in the next few years.

I rebounded well coming out of this show and for the first time in ages just eat what I wanted to; in fact one day I had 5 large Big Mac meals!!

My depleted weight for Sacramento was around 13st 1lb and my loaded dried out weight was bang on 13st 8lbs. I increased my bodyweight up to nearly 15st within the week but now it has settled back down to around 14st 7lbs and I am still eating pretty much what I like. With my conditioning still 'good' I see no reason to change this protocol for now as its allowing me to eat a lot more calories (dirty calories) rather than the normal clean cals I take in year round.

I feel very strong, very full and feel very well indeed right now, if a little tired from all the travelling and jet lag.

The diet will slowly start to clean up a little but as long as I am getting around 300g of protein a day I'm not really fussed unless BF levels start to spiral. I am currently doing no cardio and also taking no fat burners.

It feels good to finally relax a little after dieting for pretty much the whole year and already my physique has responded very well indeed to the more 'relaxed' nutritional approach.

My diet will start probably in january at some point depending on my conditioning and as was the case for my last show I will be using the guidance and help of Harold not only for my pre contest prep but also for my off season phase next year. As many of you know I have used neil for the last 2 years but with his commitments and also the distance between us I felt it more beneficial to work with somebody closer (around 45 mins away) rather than 5 hours away plus as is the case with Neil I respect H a great deal.

I owe Neil everything as it was him that helped me gain my IFBB Pro card in 2008. H and I only worked together for the final week or 2 in Sacramento and I was pleased with what I presented using a different protocol in the final week which meant me taking in far less carbohydrates.

H, like Neil, knows that I know how to diet, it really is that last 4-6 weeks where things become critical where another pair of eyes is so crucial.

So this journal is going to really look at my training and diet protocol up to the start of my prep.

I have now backed off training just 3x a week and training each bodypart around every 8-10 days. I have also stopped training arms and delts for the time time being, just concentrating on chest, back, quads and hamstrings. Working on a day on day off training schedule I have plenty of time to rest and grow and it allows me to train more intensely with heavier weights. This approach worked well when I trained like this with Matt (Nytol) back in 2009, so it is the approach I am adopting now too.

The photos below were taken from the evening show at the Sacramento show on the 6th Novemeber 2010.

As always questions will be addressed within the journal

J


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## supercell (Aug 23, 2005)

Pics from the Sacramento show 6th Novemeber 2010....


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## Incredible Bulk (Sep 19, 2007)

1st post in what will be a cracking journal

all the best james


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## RACK (Aug 20, 2007)

All the best James


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## God (Sep 3, 2009)

Will be following as always. Learn a lot from your journals. Hope everything goes well.


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## 3752 (Jan 7, 2005)

great to hear you are working with Harold James he is one of the most overlooked and underrated coaches around.......good to see you prioritising your bodyparts to get a more balanced look....all the best for the forthcoming months...


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## ashers (May 8, 2010)

Will be following, look great in the photos James.


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## XL (Aug 12, 2009)

Do you still train at the Ministry, James?


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## supercell (Aug 23, 2005)

Thanks guys and yes Paul, at the level I am competing against it matters SO much when all the guys are so bloody good!! I do think though (and I am the first to admit my faults) that I DO have a better structure than a lot that placed above me in the last show. Yes they had more mass but some where smooth and others were not particularly aesthetic, so with more mass in the right areas, my small hips and waist, I feel I can move up a little through the placings. As long as I can show improvements then I'll be a happy man!!

J


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## THE COLONEL (Mar 25, 2009)

All the best James You will get there mate Im sure of it.


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## big_jim_87 (Jul 9, 2009)

supercell said:


> Thanks guys and yes Paul, at the level I am competing against it matters SO much when all the guys are so bloody good!! I do think though (and I am the first to admit my faults) that I DO have a better structure than a lot that placed above me in the last show. Yes they had more mass but some where smooth and others were not particularly aesthetic,* so with more mass in the right areas, my small hips and waist, I feel I can move up a little through the placings*. As long as I can show improvements then I'll be a happy man!!
> 
> J


agreed mate you have a very pleasing look and like you said with a little more mass in areas and all over then deffo do well imo

good luck i will be following this one buddy


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## GM-20 (Feb 5, 2009)

all the best


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## Haimer (Sep 1, 2008)

What's your current diet roughly James?

I know you said you are eating "dirty" but I wonder what you class as dirty!


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## supercell (Aug 23, 2005)

Ok Haimer.

yesterdays diet was as follows and was/is fairly typical of what I have been eating the past few weeks

meal 1 120g oats, 1 pro MR, 1 spoon PB, Banana, yogurt (starts off well)

meal 2 chocolate flapjack, chocolate covered rainsins

meal 3 Beer battered cod and chips, coke

meal 4 2 flapjacks, 1 muffin, 100g oats, 1 pro MR, banana, 2 slices toast with cashew nut butter

meal 5 Tortellini with a marscaponi and tomato sauce, 3 handmade chocolates, 1 flapjack

meal 6 50g oats, 2 scoops pro peptide, yogurt, raisins, tablespoon cashew nut butter, skimmed milk.

so as you can see there are a lot of sugary carbs and this has been the protocol for a few weeks now. The thing is I have very little water retention and am extremely vascular even in the abs!! Glutes still there but I think the main difference is just the immense fullness I have all the time. Remember I have been dieting ALL year since Jan so I feel I deserved a bit of down time. Obviously if I ate like this for a prolonged period I would just get incredibly fat but all the time my bodyfat isn't going up I just think, 'why not?'

J


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## LOCUST (May 4, 2006)

Will be following mate


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## Dai Jones (Dec 1, 2009)

Will be following..will be good to see what a Pro does, good luck


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## Suprakill4 (Jul 11, 2008)

Good luck with this mate!!! Will be very interesting to see how a pro (bet that never gets old  ) eats and trains in the off season.

Quick question James, I am visiting family in the new year in Maidstone, Kent, am i right in thinking that the gym you train in, in your dvd was in Kent??? I just want to get a session or two in whilst im there for the week and dont know the area. Thanks.


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## Dagman72 (Apr 2, 2009)

kieren1234 said:


> Good luck with this mate!!! Will be very interesting to see how a pro (bet that never gets old  ) eats and trains in the off season.
> 
> Quick question James, I am visiting family in the new year in Maidstone, Kent, am i right in thinking that the gym you train in, in your dvd was in Kent??? I just want to get a session or two in whilst im there for the week and dont know the area. Thanks.


Kieren it is - called Ministry of Muscle but I think James also trains at beefs which is also in the surrounding area.

Beefs website matey: http://www.beefs.moonfruit.com/


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## glanzav (Sep 11, 2008)

how do you stay lean on that diet the only crack i have is maybe half a bar of chocolate eod a red bull a day and i can never get my abs through, rest of diet consists of rice, potato, rice cakes, ready break, eggs, meat, fish, fruit, veg, olive oil, peanut butter


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## borostu82 (Aug 8, 2011)

supercell said:


> Ok Haimer.
> 
> yesterdays diet was as follows and was/is fairly typical of what I have been eating the past few weeks
> 
> ...


I put on 3lbs after reading what you eat! lol

Hope all is well mate


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## Rekless (May 5, 2009)

some crazy traps!

All the best will keep an eye on this


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## strange_days (Aug 6, 2009)

As always this will be a top journal.

Subbed.


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## coyneteesside (Jul 11, 2008)

Sounds like fun! I will be keeping a keen eye on this James, One question though, What carbs would you suggest to eat whilst carb loading pre-contest?

I was using baby rice and pineapple and I immediately started to retain water in the mid section.

As your midsection is pretty much flawless I wanted your views on this!!

Thank you and good luck, I will be there with a few mates in 2011 supporting you!

Good luck!


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## supercell (Aug 23, 2005)

borostu82 said:


> I put on 3lbs after reading what you eat! lol
> 
> Hope all is well mate


Yes thanks Stu, all good here thanks mate. Bet you cant even get to the gym up there at the moment. My bro in Durham said there is a crazy amount of snow!!



Rekless said:


> some crazy traps!
> 
> All the best will keep an eye on this


Thanks mate, there should be some bits from the journal you can take away and try for yourself!



strange_days said:


> As always this will be a top journal.
> 
> Subbed.


Thanks buddy, now I'm back on line I'll be keeping this updated more frequently



coyneteesside said:


> Sounds like fun! I will be keeping a keen eye on this James, One question though, What carbs would you suggest to eat whilst carb loading pre-contest?
> 
> I was using baby rice and pineapple and I immediately started to retain water in the mid section.
> 
> ...


I always use carbs that I use during my diet. Why people suddenly swap to carbs they dont or haven't used for 16 weeks is beyond me. Thats probably why you retained water. Either that or that water was fat!! lol

J


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## supercell (Aug 23, 2005)

glanzav said:


> how do you stay lean on that diet the only crack i have is maybe half a bar of chocolate eod a red bull a day and i can never get my abs through, rest of diet consists of rice, potato, rice cakes, ready break, eggs, meat, fish, fruit, veg, olive oil, peanut butter


Its a bit of a mystery to be honest but I guess my metabolism is still pretty good. I have dont no cardio now since the 3rd November and havent trained with weights for 10 days until today plus I have eaten what I have wanted. It was weird because although I have held water its all in the muscle as my legs and calves are still very lean and these are the areas that normally disappear with water within 2-3 days of eating like I have!



kieren1234 said:


> Good luck with this mate!!! Will be very interesting to see how a pro (bet that never gets old  ) eats and trains in the off season.
> 
> Quick question James, I am visiting family in the new year in Maidstone, Kent, am i right in thinking that the gym you train in, in your dvd was in Kent??? I just want to get a session or two in whilst im there for the week and dont know the area. Thanks.


Thanks Kieren, I train at the Ministry but not the one that was in the DVD as the gym has now expanded and moved to huge premises. Its still in Aylesford (around 500m from the last one) but I also train at a gym called Iron Works which is the other end of town. Its a small gym and only been open a couple of months but has got some good kit for quads, back and chest.

If you want proper hard core and loads of weight then The Ministry is where its at but Iron Works offers something a bit different for me on certain body parts. I have and do train at Beefs gym occassionally but havent for around 7 weeks now as its a bit further away as I have moved back to my parents house which is in the opposite direction!!



Dai Jones said:


> Will be following..will be good to see what a Pro does, good luck


Thanks Dai, hope you find something in this journal of benefit!!

J


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## leafman (Feb 8, 2009)

supercell said:


> Yes thanks Stu, all good here thanks mate. Bet you cant even get to the gym up there at the moment. My bro in Durham said there is a crazy amount of snow!!
> 
> J


Your right about the snow james, really bad over boro way, and all the best with the diary cheers for taking time to do it. Subbed leafy


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## supercell (Aug 23, 2005)

Update time.

So after ten days or so off from the gym and a very nice relaxing holiday in S Wales with my lady, I was back in the gym today and started with good old quads!!

I took it fairly easy because I knew they would be unbearably sore plus I knew the pump would be insane. I wasn't wrong. After the first set of leg ext they were pumped to the max!!!!

The workout was simple but effective and 6 hours after training DOMS are already setting in, so I did more than enough!!

Leg Ext 6x8-15

Front Squat Machine 3x8-12

Lunges 2x15 (each leg)

Sissy Squats 2x15

Doesn't sound a lot but they were just a mass of veins and swollen tissue afterwards and I couldn't bend my knees for love nor money!!

I am feeling incredibly full right now but suprisingly lean still after all the eating and no cardio for so long. Never before have I been able to do this and stay this lean, its just crazy!! But Im not complaining. BUT all good things must come to an end and I am stopping my dreadful eating and starting back on what resembles a BBers diet. However I am still having 1 cheat a day plus a few extra bits and bobs if I am still hungry between meals!!

So all is good in my camp right now. I have a seminar down on the S Coast on saturday and then a guest spot in the NE on the 18th, so I have to resemble a body builder and not just some random fat bloke!!!

J


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## big_jim_87 (Jul 9, 2009)

lol when i take time off i start back on upper.... i need a upper body pump!


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## supercell (Aug 23, 2005)

big_jim_87 said:


> lol when i take time off i start back on upper.... i need a upper body pump!


Yeah well I like to be different mate  Plus I seem to have a monster upper body pump all the time right now. Holding the dumbells doing lunges my arms and traps were bursting!

Legs are mashed. Just walked upstairs and coming down was not good!

J


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## JB74 (Jan 6, 2008)

good luck with the training 

was watching that dean & ???? show on the sky channel other and it was you training your chest with the chains on the barbell!!!

good show:thumb:


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## supercell (Aug 23, 2005)

jay_bla said:


> good luck with the training
> 
> was watching that dean & ???? show on the sky channel other and it was you training your chest with the chains on the barbell!!!
> 
> good show:thumb:


Yeah I looked proper p1ssed off in that. Took over 3.5 hours to film. I had to eat twice whilst we filmed that!! Poor Neil was on his zero carb day and I thought at one point he was just gonna fall over!!! That would have been good tele though eh?!!

J


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## XL (Aug 12, 2009)

supercell said:


> Update time.
> 
> So after ten days or so off from the gym and a very nice relaxing holiday in S Wales with my lady, I was back in the gym today and started with good old quads!!
> 
> ...


Have you planned what this will look like yet, James?


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## JB74 (Jan 6, 2008)

supercell said:


> Yeah I looked proper p1ssed off in that. Took over 3.5 hours to film. I had to eat twice whilst we filmed that!! Poor Neil was on his zero carb day and I thought at one point he was just gonna fall over!!! That would have been good tele though eh?!!
> 
> J


ha ha he looked pretty fcuked like!!!!! you could see you didnt look that bothered moping about lol

that channel has some decent programmes on sometime's, my 3yr old practice's the moves when i have the BB on ha ha


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## hermie07 (Sep 16, 2008)

hows the prep going james?


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## strange_days (Aug 6, 2009)

Yeah, we ain't heard much from James ? What's the score ?


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## Suprakill4 (Jul 11, 2008)

Updates??


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