Photo By Terrance Bell | FORT LEE, Va. (Jan. 24, 2017) -- Chief Warrant Officer 3 Truman Ward, an instructor...... read more read more
FORT LEE, Va. (Jan. 25, 2017) -- The alluring smell and sight of freshly baked glazed doughnuts affects Chief Warrant Officer 3 Truman Ward somewhat differently than others. More than a mere decision to indulge or not, it launches him into a fantastical state that provides the sensation of tasting without performing the action. He described a recent occasion:
“My eyes rolled back in my head, I started drooling and I had an out-of-body experience going on,” he recalled. “Just the smell alone was completely overwhelming.”
That bit of imagination is Ward’s defense against a world teeming with culinary temptations. Mind control is necessary for the 43-year-old professional bodybuilder who measures protein and carbs with the same meticulousness as his barbell repetitions. He has won three consecutive bodybuilding titles and his sights are set on claiming an unprecedented fourth.
Nothing, said Ward, as savory as a doughnut or delectable as a hot fudge sundae is going to derail his efforts to become a rippling, muscle-bound legend.
“I cannot be broken, I cannot be persuaded and I cannot be brought off-steer when it comes to nutrition for something I want so bad,” said the Ordnance School instructor.
That “something” is the Professional Natural Bodybuilding Association Natural Olympia Sports Model title that has displayed his name since 2014. “Natural” is the operative term in Ward’s pursuit. He trains without the use of steroids, human growth hormone and other types of appearance- and -performance-enhancing substances that are prohibited by the PNBA, which routinely tests competitors.
Natural bodybuilding grew out of the rejection of doping in some traditional bodybuilding circles and requires a strict adherence to diet and exercise. Ward, who said most natural competitors top out at about 230 pounds, noted many traditional bodybuilders top 270 pounds with 5 percent body fat despite dieting and exercising for weeks.
“You would be very challenged to do that naturally,” said the former scrawny teenager who wanted to beef up his 6-foot, 140-pound frame. “To each’s own, but a true athlete, a genuine athlete, does everything the non-tested athlete does but we have to work a little bit harder to get that lean.”
Diet and exercise are equal tenants in natural bodybuilding. For a competition scheduled in September, Ward is already deep into what he calls the “bulk” training phase. The 6-foot-1-inch Soldier’s goal for the event is 205 pounds and 5 percent body fat. To meet that standard, he has to consume eight or nine meals totaling roughly 350 grams of muscle-repairing protein daily as well as some carbs and fat. His one-hour workouts are comprised of lifting as much as he can on several machines – five or six repetitions of 600 pounds on a leg press machine, for example.
One or two months from the scheduled event, the “cut” phase is implemented. The protein load is reduced but the carbs are almost eliminated; workouts increase to three hours a day but are broken into three sessions. The toll exacted on the body and psyche is unmistakable, said Ward.
“You’re hungry and miserable,” said the native New Mexican. “The only thing feeding you, sustaining you, is the thought that you’re going to be on stage at this time in about six weeks.”
Judging Ward’s physique at the gym – he resembles the caricature of a comic book superhero – one might conclude eating right comes easy for him. Don’t let the appearance misguide you, he said. The level of deprivation he subjects himself to for the look of Mr. America is far beyond the eating habits of mere mortals.
“Most people can fulfill their (eating) desires anytime they want to,” said the 22-year Soldier who is typically much older than his competitors. “For me, I’ll go weeks without it so the one time I do have it, the pleasure, I would imagine, is like being on a drug – it’s all I can think of the minute I have that one scoop of ice cream or stack of pancakes. It’s all fulfilling.”
The bliss he describes when his taste buds clash with the sugar particles is short-lived, however.
“I know I’m not going to have it again for another one, two or three weeks because the competition is around the corner,” he said, “and maybe I’m 2 percent over the body fat I should be at this time. It’s not easy at all. It’s one of the hardest things I could physically do on a daily basis.”
The daily grind will allow Ward to show off muscles of a higher quality in September than those sheathing his frame now. They will show separation, development and leanness, indicated by the “feathering inside the developed muscle,” he said. “When you are ‘cut’ or ‘shredded,’ it’s the combination of such.”
The process of carving muscle through exercise and diet is not for everyone, said Ward. The married father of a 10-year-old girl, he said family life could easily take a back burner to the pursuit due to time demands. He, however, has been blessed with a wife – a personal fitness trainer and fellow natural bodybuilder – and daughter who share his pursuit. The three have never missed a competition. In addition, said his wife Larita, he lacks tunnel vision.
“I don’t know if you can be successful in a hobby if you’re going to let it interrupt or compromise work or family,” she said. “I’ve seen a lot of athletes let that happen because they are so focused and dedicated to their goal. He’s been able to manage everything. I’m very proud of him.”
During September’s competition and another that closely follows, Ward will put up all he has endured to strike a chord with the judges who will examine symmetry, overall muscular appearance and the vocal presentation of a competitor who “could be on the cover of most men’s exercise magazines,” said Ward.
If he wins, the sensation could cause him to drool, roll his eyes back in his head and separate from his body, but in reality, it would be a taste of victory as savory as a doughnut.
And a validation of his will, determination and discipline to be a cut above the competition.
| Date Taken: | 01.25.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 01.25.2017 16:31 |
| Story ID: | 221377 |
| Location: | LAS CRUCES, NEW MEXICO, US |
| Web Views: | 564 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Becoming 'cut' -- dieting, exercise mere bumps in road for bodybuilder seeking gold medal, by Terrance Bell, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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