“And bad mistakes, I’ve made a few,” – Freddie Mercury

Apart from images like the one above making me feel massively inadequate (I’m only half joking) there are some pretty big (AND STRONG!) guys at my jiu jitsu club, and having a bit of extra padding would certainly help when rolling. It might not be the “elite athlete” strategy, but it’s surprisingly effective. A bit of extra skill would also help I imagine, but let’s be honest, the extra weight is showing up first.

I first found this out after attempting to compete against a celebrity middleweight – he was a blue belt then, now he’s a purple belt – and still, a no show. I’m fairly sure I’m allowed to say I have a win over him – even if it is by “walk over”…which is 100% the only way I was every winning that match.

Anyway, I found I could roll against bigger, stronger guys when I was also a bit bigger and stronger – I know, shocking right?!?

As I usually compete at lightweight (76kg category, so 74kg-ish out of the gi after a short weight cut *IBJJF) I generally walk around at about 78-79kg. Not an unhealthy weight for my 5’11 height. But over the next few months I’ll be gaining some muscle to put me at the top end of the middleweight category (84kg out of the gi *Grappling Industries).

Goal: Gain 5kg (79kg/174lbs > 84kg/185lbs) of mostly muscle between 2nd September and 31st December but I must also:

• keep my diet reasonably clean (this is not a “dirty bulk”)
• train BJJ 3-4 times a week (Mon, Thu, Fri, Sat or Sun)
• include “Grease the Groove” push ups and pull ups 3-4 times a week (Fri, Sat, Sun, Mon) to monitor strength:bodyweight ratio
• include 4 x 45 minute zone 2 cardio sessions (Tue, Thu, Sat, Sun)

As I’ll eventually be coming back down to 74kg (January to April) to compete (May 2025 goal), there is no point in going over the 84kg mark. Cutting weight is fairly easy, but maintaining as much of that muscle/strength gained while losing mostly fat is a real challenge. I’ll worry about that in January!

Failed, time and time again!

Over the years, I have tried to “bulk up” or gain a considerable amount of muscle mass more times than I can count – always with limited success:

• Teens/early twenties: I’m a “hard gainer” i.e. no matter what I ate, or how I lifted, I never seemed to get any bigger.

• Mid-twenties: I started to have some success due to working with in a restaurant (so snacking constantly on protein-rich milk, chicken and eggs from the kitchen) and working with one of the best trainers (kickboxing and body transformation) in the area at the time.

• Early thirties: I tried the Tim Ferris “Geek to Freak” protocol and reached the heaviest I’ve ever been – 89kg. The main issue being it was definitely mostly fat, and this actually propelled me into running and eventually, running marathons.

Now in my 40s, I’ve made it a priority to add a annual phase of hypertrophy focused training (September to December), as building and maintaining muscle is going to get progressively more difficult due to my age, hormone levels, etc and yet it is so important for healthspan.

Whilst I could accelerate reaching my 84kg goal by cutting out all cardio (except rolling), dirty bulking (eating whatever I like) and taking supplements other than creatine (not really in alignment with good sportsmanship) – these actions wouldn’t help my longer-term goal of remaining healthy and fit enough to train and finally achieve a black belt.

The General Training Plan

Monday and Friday – Legs and Shoulders

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday – Cardio and Core

Wednesdays – Chest, Back and Arms

The General Eating Plan

Throughout the year I normally do all of my training fasted, but during this bulking phase on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays I will add a pre-training breakfast to fuel my workout.

Apart from that I will mostly being trying to get as much protein (milk, meat, fish, nuts, eggs, whey shakes) and healthy fat into my body as I can, eating every 90-120 mins.

Starting Next Monday

As I’m intending on making this blog a weekly commitment, I will be mixing it up with a mixture of “here’s some great tips or food for thought” and “here’s what I’m currently doing”.

Next Monday I’ll take you through a “Legs and Shoulders” day, which some of you may find useful. The following Monday, I’ll have a little whine about something like “how to find the time to train”, because I already know that work-wise, September will be carnage.

Until next time, hasta la vista!