Team TPN: Season Recap

Team TPN 2019

The season for most coaches and athletes starts right around the New Year.  Holidays are over, goals are set, show dates are starting to be released and the spring-season is right around the corner.  I’ve been in this game for around a decade now and if there’s one thing I know, it’s this:  the more time you give yourself to prep, the better.

First athlete on deck for me was going to be Jacob Thomas, athlete, model, and food blogger.  Make sure to follow him on Instagram @lifelikejake.  Jakes a dude who is always in good shape but we all know that’s very different from ‘contest ready.’   We decided to hit up a warm up show late March 2019 WNBF Green Mountain Thaw and started off with a bang, Jake put a solid W on the board winning his class and the overall Men’s Physique Title.

Next up was the WNBF Jersey Cup Classic and we were gunning for that pro-card.   I know what Jake is capable of at 80%, anything above 90% and he will HARD to beat in Men’s Physique.  Jake locked it down mentally and physically, brought an even tighter and more polished package.  BOOM ! another big W and his WNBF Pro Card.   We’d later find out that the organization had to revoke his card due to the amount of competitors even though Jake not only won his class, but he won the overall again!  Bitter sweet, but we own any outcome and keep moving forward.  I was extremely happy for Jake and as you can see here, so was he lol I love this photo.

After this show we decided to shut it down for a while, reverse diet to a healthy place and stay at maintenance level in terms of his nutrition with a slight surplus some days.

Next up for the team was Andrea aka Mambacita!  I was beyond excited to unveil this athlete because her physique is something special and I was confident I could bring her into peak conditioning.   It was such a pleasure coaching Andrea, she was a Division 1 NCAA Basketball player in college and a huge Kobe Bryant fan (hence her nickname.)  With her athletics background I was confident she had the discipline to handle a contest prep.  We cliqued quick, established trust and decided to debut at the WNBF Northeast Classic.  Andrea won her class and won the overall bikini title.  Hell of a way to enter a sport.  Living up to her nick name.

This was suppose to be 1 and done for Andrea but her competitive spirit took over and wanted to keep going.  I love when that fire gets lit!  So the next show for us was the WNBF Hercules Championship.  This will always be a very special event for me because it was where I made my own debut and where I won my professional natural bodybuilder card.

This was gearing up to be a fun one because I had another Bikini Competitor preparing for this same show. Tasha Hunter, one of my favorite transformations of the year but we’ll get to know more about her in a bit.  Tasha and Andrea both won their class, Bikini short for Tash and Bikini Tall for Drea.  This means I now have both my clients going up against each other for the overall title… Bitter sweet but a good place to be if you’re a coach lol.  Here are some great pictures of both champions, Tasha ended up winning the overall and receiving her pro-card (mind you this was her DEBUT show.)  Tremendously proud of these champions and it’s an absolute honor to have them representing the team.

As the spring season comes to an end we need to take our foot off the gas a bit but also ramp up the mental toughness.  Being disciplined during the summer months has proven to be tough for some athletes.  Jake and Tasha had decided to compete during the Fall season and  make a run at WNBF Worlds.

Both athletes handled their summers like pros.  We took a few “diet breaks” to support healthy hormonal function.  Cut back on training and cardio, and ramped it back up when the time came.

Tasha was up next making her pro-debut at the WNBF Pro Universe late September.  She finished 2^nd place in a tough line up!  Tasha and I have known one another for a few years and I always knew I would be the right coach for her.  She decided to give me a chance and the results speak for themselves.  Tasha is in the green.   Have to give a shout-out to Nikita and Jess, tough competitors, great people and just a pleasure to be around.

Fast forward a few days I get a message from Jake “bro, what do you think if we do an IFBB International show in Mexico October 13^th?” …. SMH typical of Jake to hit me with some wild shit! That’s why I love him haha  I agreed but told him we are NOT going to peak here, lets just roll into the show as is because we had a more important show just one  weeks later.  Jake did what Jake does …. Showed up in phenomenal shape and took 2^nd place in an untested show (Jake is 100% natural) the IFBB International Cup.

7 days later and Jake was back at it again WNBF Mexico Natural Cup winning his class but finishing 2^nd in the overall.  Its safe to say this guy is a MACHINE!

I had a previous client Chanel Price (who had decided to leave me for another coach lol) shoot me a message a few weeks prior to this show.  She came to me roughly 6 weeks out severely under eating , struggling to lose fat and frustrated with the plateaus. First thing we did was INCREASE FOOD and DECREASE CARDIO (a tool I learned from my mentor Jason.) We immediately saw progress, this reset is exactly what she needed to get things rolling. We hit new lows weekly and she peaked great for her NPC Bikini comp.   Placing top 5 in a untested show as a natural athlete is always an accomplishment.  I’m happy to have Chanel back on the team and representing like a true champion.  Chanel is on the far right.

The finish line is now in sight, WNBF Worlds has arrived.  This is the BIGGEST and TOUGHEST Natural-Show there is, period.  Every class was STACKED with championship caliber competition.  Long story short, Tasha Hunter 3^rd place bikini, Jake Thomas 3^rd place Men’s Physique!  What a way to finish a LONG and grueling season.  I wish people could understand what it takes mentally and physically to compete for an entire year.  The early mornings, late sessions in the gym, self-doubt creeps in, the internet competitor stalking (we are all guilty of this lol), the insane food cravings that happen when you reach true contest ready body fat percentage… the list goes on.   Like true champions they maintain discipline, they put their full trust in me, our communication never wavered, and they executed every step of the way.  Check out these amazing pictures from Worlds.

2020 is gearing up to be another exciting season and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for myself and Team TPN!  Thank you to all the amazing athlete’s mentioned in this blog post.  Now we maintain our discipline, work towards our goals, and have fun during the process.