A great old school Australian story I Came across ! by Les spendlove Great story! Skinny bodybuilder to Mr. Southern Hemisphere in 6 weeks. When I returned to Australia from England in late 1968 the pressures of securing employment took a back seat to any training endeavors I had back then. So, as is the case when a bodybuilder ceases training, he reverts back to his normal physical appearance and for me that meant becoming “skinny” again. After my work-day I used to go to the gym but only to socialise with my mates and especially my best friend Barry Hart who owned the Coogee gym. Barry was into playing chess in those days so I’d go to the gym almost everyday with my other best friend, my dog Rocky and we’d play for hours while all the guys struggled through their workouts. Of course I’d be constantly subjected to their friendly jibes and comments about my lack of muscle size, “hey bones . . . skinny . . . stickman . . . but the worst funnily enough was to be called an average man” . . . hahaha. Barry would always stick up for me though and remind all the muscleheads by stating this, “it’s better to be a has-been than a never-wasser.” This used to shut ‘em up pretty quick. One night at the gym in the winter of 1969 while Barry was taking an unusally long time to make his chess move I studied the guys in the gym with much more scrutiny. I could feel this heightened sense of activity and determination in the gym and about four of my mates seemed to be training with a frenzied intensity. I called out to my mate Robert Nailon (who’s nick name is Brain), “hey Brain . . . you guys are really training hard, is there a contest coming up or something?” I didn’t get a response so I asked him again and finally he tells me, “yeah . . . the Mr. New South Wales is coming up in 2 weeks and we’ve been training 6 months now for this contest.” I thought for a moment and then said, “Mr. NSW . . . . I won the Jr. Mr. NSW 5 years ago but I never won the Senior title. Maybe I should start working out and enter the contest, it’ll give me something to get me motivated again.” Robert said something like, ”you must be nuts, you’re all skin and bones and no one in your condition could get themselves in shape to compete in 2 weeks . . . . and besides, you’ve already won the Mr. Australia and if you compete now you’ll come last and everyone will laugh at you.” This was true but I just laughed back and told him, “yeah Robert but it’s only a bodybuilding competition and it’s all about having fun, right? And besides, what are they going to do, strip me of my past Mr. Australia victory and ask me to give my trophy back?” That was it! The next night I was back in the gym but this time I went to train, no more chess with Barry and Rocky would wait patiently for by the gym counter. I amazed myself, the tissue memory kicked in and my body responded rapidly to every exercise, sets and reps that I did. The day of the contest arrived and at the judging I was pleasantly surprised to find myself in the final line-up comparison, I couldn’t believe it! When I went back that night for the evening’s performance my friend and idol from that time, Ron Rowlands who was also competing, was there and he greeted me. He put out his hand and said, “congratulations Les, you won the contest.” I was shocked and asked him why he thought that because the show hadn’t even begun yet. He said, “the Press was at the judging and they showed the footage on the Evening News and I could see that you were the best, you’re the winner mate.” Well it was nice of him to say that and as it turned out . . . . . I did win. And you can bet that all my mates from the Coogee gym who had entered the contest were a little pissed off . . . . hahaha. I couldn’t believe my luck in winning the title and the quick transformation that I had achieved from a skinny bodybuilder to Mr. NSW with only 2 weeks of training. When I went back to the gym to train the next day, Robert told me something that ignited new sparks of motivation within me. He confided in me that the Mr. NSW was just a prelude for the bigger contest they had been training for . . . . the Mr. Southern Hemisphere to be held in Melbourne which would take place in 4 weeks time. Wow! Could I do that? My brain started to tick over, if I could whip myself into shape in 2 weeks to win a State title, would it be possible for me to stand a chance to improve myself further and win a National title like this with a further 4 weeks training? I remembered reading an article by John Grimek from a 1964 Muscular Development issue where he wrote, “How Steve Reeves Trained.” It started off, “Yes, we saw Steve Reeves change from a ‘skinny bodybuilder’ to a Mr. Universe winner in just seven weeks!” Now I know I’m no Steve Reeves and this wasn’t a Mr. Universe contest but it did show me it would be possible. Steve Reeves did it all natural back in 1950 and with this history in mind, I decided it would be possible for me to emulate him and do it “natural” in 1969 to train for a much lesser title. I knew though that the 2 weeks of training I had already done had really just given me a sustained pump and to go to the next level I would not only have to maintain this but go beyond it. I needed to put on real, dense muscle and more of it if I was going to stand a chance against a higher level of competitors. There were two other champion bodybuilders in Australia of that time, Peter McCarthy and Frank Columbera and I expected both of them would be competing in this contest. A loss to either of them would be no disgrace because they were the cream of the crop in Australian bodybuilding and it would be an honor just to compete against them so I decided to throw my hat in the ring. It was time to get focused and to gain the necessary beef I relied on the dietary skills of me dearest Mum, she was always “the wind beneath my wings.” There were no high-tech protein powders and other supplements available in Australia in those days so in effect you had to make up your own. But for breakfast my Mum would make me porridge with honey and wheat germ flakes, 2 poached eggs on wholewheat toast and a cup of hot Ovaltine using milk not water. Next we’d mix up my protein drink that I would take to work. This was 4 pints (80 ozs) of whole milk, 8 tablespoons of Calcium Caseinate powder, 8 tablespoons of soy powder, 6 raw eggs (yolks and all), 2 bananas and 4 tablespoons of Ovaltine powder. My Mum also packed me a lunch of 2 sandwiches, ham and cheese, and peanut butter. With that done she’d send me on my way . . . . haha. I had a morning break at work at 10 AM and I would drink half of “my mixture” and eat the sandwiches. At lunch-time I would go to the local pub and have a T-bone steak, 2 fried eggs, vegetables and wash it all down with 2 pints of Guiness Stout. Afternoon break at 3 PM I would finish the rest of my mixture and eat a couple of granola bars. After work I’d catch the train and a bus back to Coogee and start my workout at 6 PM and at 8:30 PM my Mum would have dinner prepared for me. Each day she would make me something different; steak, roast chicken, pork chops, fish, beef curry, chicken curry and the 7th day it was my favorite, sheep’s brains. Of course a salad or vegetables would be included as well as a couple more eggs too. Before I went to bed I’d have a big glass of milk with some calcium caseinate powder and some yeast tablets. That took care of my diet and it helped me pack on the 20 lbs of lean muscle I needed to gain in the next 4 weeks. For my training I knew that I would have to step up the intensity of my workouts and also incorporate some bulk builders for the larger muscle groups. I hated deadlifts so I opted to do power cleans instead and also heavy half-squats. I worked out 6 days a week in the old school style of the day and it’s the way we did it back then. Modern day trainers or a Vince Gironda may say it was all over-training but it worked for me and how can you argue with success? If I did less would I have made even better gains? If a guy takes steroids he can get big just by looking at a barbell but I did it natural and so I had to work at it harder. Besides, I was only 22 years old, at the peak of my testosterone levels and my body’s recuperative powers were at their highest. I believe that overtraining and recuperation is all relative to one’s age. This was my training routine: Monday/Wednesday/Friday – Back/Shoulders/Arms – 2 hour workout Warmup with hyperextensions – 3 sets 15 reps Power Cleans – 5 sets 12, 10, 10, 8, 6 reps Chin behind neck w/dumbbell – 5 sets 10 reps End bar rowing - 5 sets 8-10 reps Seated pulley rowing – 5 sets 10-12 reps Seated Press behind neck – 5 sets 8-12 reps Standing lateral raise – 5 sets 10 reps Bent-over laterals – 5 sets 10 reps Barbell curls (slight cheat) - 5 sets 8-10 reps Incline DB curls (supinated) – 5 sets 8-10 reps Standing cable curls – 5 sets 8-10 reps Lying triceps curls – 5 sets 8-10 reps Triceps pushdown – 5 sets 8-10 reps Kneeling triceps cable extension (with ropes) – 5 sets 8-10 reps Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday – Legs/Chest – 1 and ½ hour workout Warmup with hyperextensions – 3 sets 15reps Bench squats – 5 sets 15, 12, 10, 8, 6 Front Squats – 5 sets 10-15 reps Leg extension – 5 sets 12 reps Leg curls – 5 sets 12 reps Standing calf raise – 5 sets 45 reps (it was like a tri-set, toes straight, toes in, toes out – 15 reps each way without rest) Donkey calf raise – 5 sets 15 reps Incline DB press – 5 sets 10 reps Parallel bar dips w/dumbbell – 5 sets 10 reps Incline DB flyes – 5 sets 10 reps I did no abdominals or foreams at all. As I stated earlier, I thought I would be competing against Peter McCarthy and Frank Columbera and both these men possess outstanding legs, especially calves. I needed to psyche myself up to develop my calves to approach their level so on my leg days I would imagine myself to be a ballet dancer. I borrowed a pair of black pantyhose from my sister and I also wore a long-sleeved, ruffled, light blue, pirate shirt. The first day the guys in the gym saw me in this outfit they laughed and said, “who are you today Les, Rudolph Nureyev?” I did my best imitation of a ballet leap and replied, “I wish I was Nureyev . . . . have you seen the calves on him?” Believe me it worked because in 4 weeks I got my calves to the largest they’d ever been . . . . 18” pumped. I made phenominal gains in those 4 weeks but I can’t recall any of the other guys in the gym commenting on my improvement, maybe they just got used to seeing me everyday and expected me to be bigger. Also, I never did any posing in the gym as I didn’t have time for that because my workouts were too intense and so I practised my posing at home in front of my little bedroom mirror all alone. The week before the contest I asked Robert and the other guys about their travel plans so I could book myself on the same flight but they told me they cancelled their tickets and weren’t going to Melbourne for the show . . . . I’d be going alone. No problem, a quick call to my friend, Clyde Bird who was a top bodybuilder in Melbourne and he told me he’d pick me up at the airport, put me up and take care of all my needs while I was there. What a friend, I couldn’t have asked for more and I will always be indebted to Clyde for his friendship and generosity. The day before the contest Clyde took me to Findlay’s gym where we shared a workout together and with some of the other top competitors too. Before I hit the shower Clyde asked me to strip off and do a few poses and at first I declined but when he asked again, I just couldn’t refuse him. He and the other guys watched in slience as I went through a dozen of my best poses and their lack of comments made me wonder that maybe my development hadn’t impressed them that much. I went off to take a shower and after I got dressed I came out to find Clyde and the other guys milling around together on the gym floor. I walked over to them and Clyde says, “Les, we’ve been discussing your physique and everyone of us thinks that you look better than Frank Zane.” You could have knocked me over with a feather and of course I was very humbled and honored that they thought this but at the same time, they’d never seen Zane’s physique in person. How could they possibly make a precise judgment like that and I knew myself that I was nowhere near the level of Frank Zane but it was nice to hear nonetheless. I won’t go into all the details of the judging and the contest itself but surprisingly to me Peter McCarthy and Frank Columbera decided not to compete in the contest that year. Peter in fact was one of the judges and later he praised my improved development from the last time he had seen me. There you have it, with a total training period of 6 weeks I went from a skinny bodybuilder to win the 1969 Mr. Southern Hemisphere and I was awarded the Best Arms and Best Back as well . . . . . those power cleans certainly paid off in spades. That was my last competition in bodybuilding and I went out a winner which is always a nice way to leave. Oh yeah, and my mates in the Coogee gym stopped calling me bones . . . . . now they referred to me as “the sponge.” ;D
Posted on: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 03:15:02 +0000
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