Chad Shaw's Story

My Story!

I have 2 older brothers, one is 7 years older and the other is 10 years older. They introduced me to weightlifting and I fell in love with it. It was also very theraputic for my severe asthma which I suffered from throughout my entire childhood. All the months spent in the hospital with only machines and drugs keeping me alive caused my body to remain very weak and underdeveloped. This went on for 14 years. It was a tough childhood! My parents had to learn how to give shots of epinepherine and suspherine to give me at home to keep me alive long enough to get to the emergency room. At home I had to keep a nebuelizer machine to administer asthma drugs and also had to use 3 different inhalers plus continuously take 3 different oral medications including prednisone which really messed up my body. When I wasn't in the hospital and was able to go to school, I could never participate in gym class because my health was too poor. There were 3 seperate occasions when the doctors told my parents I was too far gone, too weak, and at the max amount of drugs that I could be on and things kept getting worse and that they should start planning my funeral. Along with the grace of God, bodybuilding was my answer to reverse the effects of this life threatening disease. Beyond that, bodybuilding has helped me cope with a number of different injuries. It has helped me recover from ruptured discs in my spine due to a severe back injury, scoliosis, a ruptured bicep tendon, ulnar nerve damage, a torn rotator cuff, and being absent an anterior cBig Imageruciate ligament and also a medial meniscus in one knee which resulted in many dislocations and cartilage tears that required surgery and then also the opposite leg was 4 inches longer than the other leg which also required intense surgery to correct. I was a train wreck! I had several top orthapedic doctors tell me I would never ever be able to get into bodybuilding or lift heavy weights again because some of those injuries were impossible to recover from. Doctors even wanted to put steel rods in my spine (a spinal fusion) to protect it from further damage but I refused this surgery. Still the prognosis was I would never lift weights again. I couldn't take no for an answer, I just refused to accept that would be the endBig Image of my bodybuilding dreams. I made a decision that I would never give up and I was gonna either become a bodybuilder or die trying. At the age of 16, I entered and won my first bodybuilding competition, it was greatest feeling I had ever experienced! I know now from experience that you should never ever give up on your dreams or anything your passionate about and don't ever let anyone tell you that you can't realize your dreams and make them come true no matter what your circumstances are! You create your own reality and your own destiny, don't ever let anyone create it for you! It is possible as long as you believe it is. Don't be disheartened by statistics or odds because the only people they are against are those of weak faith and that doesn't have to be you! Developing my physique for me was like building a suit of armor to protect the frail sick little kid that I remember being. I love bodybuilding and I will do it till I can do it no more. I choose to follow this path without the use of drugs, I've got stronger forces that drive me. Hopelessness is only a state of mind, therefore impossibilities are only illusions

Strictly Bodybuilding Food! - Layne Norton

The Following Is A List Of Acceptable Protein, Carbohydrate, & Fat Sources While Dieting:

Protein:

* Tuna or most any fish.
* Cottage cheese.
* Eggs (especially the whites).
* Chicken breast (boneless skinless).
* Turkey breast (boneless skinless).
* Lean beef.
* Low fat or no fat cheese.
* Low fat pork.
* Milk protein isolate.
* Whey protein.
* Soy protein.
* Essentially most any other source of protein so long as it is low in saturated fat and carbohydrates.

Carbohydrates:

* Sweet potatoes.
* Oat meal, oat bran, oat bran cereal (i.e. cheerios).
* Bran cereal.
* Brown rice.
* Wheat bread (try to limit to 2 slices per day).
* Beans.
* Low fat popcorn (low fat butter spray makes this a delicacy).
* Fruits (limit to 2-3 servings per day).
* Malto dextrin (during workout).
* Dextrose (during workout)
* Vegetables.
* Stay away from refined grains and anything that says "enriched" or "high fructose corn syrup" on the label!

Fat:

* Omega 3 capsules (i.e. fish oil capsules).
* Flax seed oil.
* Primrose oil.
* Borage oil.
* Olive oil.
* Nuts (limit to 1 serving per day), peanut butter (as long as it does not contain hydrogenated oils).
* Egg yolks.
* Fish (salmon especially).
* All other fat should come as a by-product of your carbohydrate and protein intake.

Sign's You May Be A Bodybuilder

1 You've used a nail file on your palms.
2 You'd rather get a new pair of wraps than socks in your Xmas stocking.
3 You claim to 'eat chocolate' but are referring to protein shakes.
4 Their is a shelf in your fridge devoted to eggs.
5 When you answer the question 'how many sets have you got left', he/she thinks that you're being sarcastic
6 Why are your friends UPSET(!) when they gain weight?
7 You use a calculator to add up the amount on the bar.
8 You no longer possess 'gym gear' - just 'clothes'.
9(If you are a man) straight men spend more time eying you up than women.
10(If you are a women) women and men often do a 'double take' - the second time is to make sure.
11 You no longer use the traditional days of the week ('Monday, Tuesday, etc'). Now it's 'leg day, shoulders, big back, bench work' etc.
12 The 'all you can eat buffet' runs out of chicken, tuna and eggs when you visit, but the sauces, olives, cheeses and croutons remain level.
13 Trousers that to fit around your waist don't fit around your thighs.
14 T-Shirts that fit around your waist don't fir around you arms, shoulders or chest.
15 You've been accused of wearing a 'muscle top' when you weren't.
16 You've been accused of 'posing' when lining up at the till.
17 For some reason you no longer have to weave through crowds.
18 You know off had how many grams of protein you've eaten today.
19 Lunch break is the hardest you work all day.
20 You regularly - systematically - ingest substances that most people haven't heard of.
21 One day your neigbour will have a Jaguar. One day you will have a squat rack.
22 (The big one) When you read No20, you didn't consider yourself 'most people'. In fact, it is a phrase you have used before to in defense of your lifestyle.
PS:23 You HAVE defended your lifestyle.