Crossing the Finish Line

After numerous attempts, David Silbaugh finally fully succeeded and completed his first 12-week physique transformation program

By Sue Mosebar

Who: David Silbaugh
Age: 30
Location: Centreville, Virginia
Occupation: Construction Industry
Goals: Complete a full 12-week transformation program, lose bodyfat, and gain muscle size and strength

About four years ago, a 245-lb David Silbaugh stared at himself in the bathroom mirror one morning and noticed how "life" had taken its toll and had drastically changed the shape of his physique—and not in a good way. It was right then he decided "enough was enough." He resolved to start his first attempt at the Body-for-LIFE program. And he made progress. Great progress. For eight weeks. But then "life" happened again, and he fell off his program.

So he started again. And made more progress... for a few weeks. Then quit. So he started again... and again... Sometimes he followed the Body-for-LIFE program and other times he'd try the ABSolution program. But "something" always came up, and he could never quite finish an entire 12-week program. He wanted to finish—to see what his full potential was because he knew there was "life," and a new David, hidden underneath that sheath of unhealthy, good-for-nothing bodyfat.

Make no mistake, he was definitely in better shape than when he started to change his lifestyle, but he was frustrated, disappointed, and lethargic—again. And, he was quickly falling back out of shape.

As David explains, "I needed to get back in shape, and to do that, I needed a spark. I felt I had lost my spark completely. I'm a hunter, and I used the hunting season and then the holiday season as an excuse for why I had fallen off my nutrition program and gotten out of my routine. On top of that, I had injured my knee, so I was trying to take it easy. But I wasn't happy with how I looked or how I felt. And I hated the lack of energy. I really needed to get back into shape!"

12 Weeks Is Just 12 Weeks, Right?

David set his sights on 12 weeks. He just wanted to get through a complete 12-week program. Wisely, he decided to start off small this time, so he started with four weeks—the four-week Maximum Growth Program. He had everything lined up and ready to go. No more excuses. Even his knee was feeling great now.

"Throughout my life, I've always been a fast starter, but I always seemed to fizzle out. Something would always come up. For some reason, I'd get distracted or find an excuse, but this time, I was determined to get through 12 weeks," says David.

Yet just two weeks into his program, David's knee really started giving him problems. It swelled so much he could hardly move it. A visit to his doctor and a few MRI's revealed that he had torn his meniscus (the cartilage between the knee joint) and needed surgery.

"I didn't want to look at it as a roadblock," David shares. "So I saw it as a fork in the road. I knew I needed to change the way I approached not only working out but my entire life. So instead of using this as an excuse to give up again, I adjusted my program and got through."

Down but Far from Out

David obviously couldn't train legs any more with his knee injury, so he had to get creative and come up with some alternatives for training his lower body. The first was to change his cardio. Even though he was on crutches for five days after his surgery, he found he could get his heart rate up by sitting down and punching his heavy bag for 20 minutes. He also discovered the arm cycling machines at the gym. Finally, he discovered exercising in the pool was invaluable. He was able to get his heart pumping without putting any stress on his knee.

Once he was off the crutches and could use his knee a bit, although he still couldn't run or bike intensely, he would perform what he called "take-it-easy cardio"—that is, 40 minutes of light stationary biking. And he still punched his heavy bag every night, because he found it was a great way to burn extra calories after dinner.

Knowing he would be missing out on a significant way to burn calories (as well as building up his muscle mass)—from leg training—David decided to really refine his nutrition plan, "I didn't think there was any room for error with my nutrition because of the adjustments I had to make to the training program," he explains. (For David's complete nutrition and exercise plan, scroll to the end of the article.)

Goals: The Great Motivator

Goal setting was the first key to his success. Going into his program, David decided he was going to lose 15 lbs of bodyfat and gain five pounds of muscle. He started out weighing 188.5 lbs with around 20% bodyfat.

His second key to success was his constant "internal drive" and motivation to never give up. No matter what. Because he had received the Body-for-LIFE Success Journal from his brother for Christmas, he decided to make use of that, even though he was following the Maximum Growth Program and the 8-week Continuation Plan instead of Body-for-LIFE. Every day, he wrote in it, "I'm going to finish my 12-week program. I'll overcome problems by just being creative."

Besides training intensely like the Maximum Growth Program outlined, the final critical part of David's success was his finely tuned nutritional plan. He followed the meal guidelines prepared in Maximum Growth, though he did cut the calories down a little. He even found he could prepare some pretty tasty meals of his own by experimenting a little in the kitchen with his favorite protein and carbohydrate foods.

At the end of the program, not only had David accomplished his biggest goal and finally finished a 12-week program, but he exceeded his physical goals as well. He lost 23 lbs of fat and gained five pounds of muscle—getting his bodyfat down to just 8.5% bodyfat.

A Physique Transformation Leads to a Life Lesson

The greatest lesson David learned from this "fork in the road" is that in all aspects of life, when you're faced with adversity, there's always a way around it. Simply put, these are just bumps in the road that you have to get over to accomplish your goals.

"No matter what life gives you, you've only got the one to get through, so you've got to make the most of it," says David. "I finally felt like I made the most of something, so I can build on it!

"Really, when you succeed, it gives you so much momentum, and knowing that you can overcome obstacles, and you can apply it to other facets of your life, whether it's your work or your personal life, at home, or what have you, it becomes easier and easier to become successful at all other aspects."

From a Spark into a Full-Blown Flame

Since David is in the construction industry, he's moved from city to city quite a bit over the years, but he still visits his hometown and runs into a lot of people who haven't seen him since the "old" David, some four long years ago. Now people don't even recognize him, and it's never long before someone asks him how he did it. "Nearly every person I see, that used to know the 'old' me, stops to ask me how I built the new, improved, muscular, strong physique and what I did to get where I am now and if they can make the same types of changes."

The answer is always a resounding yes, and David is delighted to help. "You guys at Real SOLUTIONS with your magazine and your company are so sincere in wanting to help people. I think that rubbed off on me. And now, I feel the same way when I talk to people. I've joined a fitness support group, and some of the members are just starting out, and I really want to help them.

"I got the information from Real SOLUTIONS, and you helped me build confidence—the light bulb went on for me. I feel confident I'm doing the right thing in the gym. I'm continually making progress now. I can see the progress. And to be able to help other people get to that point where they too can make a positive change in their physique and life is amazing. I went through three years of being frustrated about the way I looked and not knowing the information—not knowing the 'right' information.

"I always send people in the support group I'm in to Real SOLUTIONS. I tell them, 'You've got to read the information in there.'"

David says that the best thing anyone can do is educate themselves. The knowledge you gain will help you throughout your life. It all builds from a solid education.

For David, this is just the beginning. He continues to fine tune his best body—building on what he's already accomplished. One 12-week program at a time.

David's Real "NUTRITION" SOLUTION for Success

• 4:15 a.m.: 3 Lean System 7 capsules, 2 cups water
  
  
• 4:30 a.m.: workout (David followed the Max Growth and then the 8-Week Continuation Program to a "T" except for legs because of his surgery.)
  Non-lifting days, David did cardio and trained his abs.
  
  
• 5:30 a.m.: Post-workout—Meta-CEL (orange)
  
  
• 6:00 a.m.: Cup of egg whites, 3/4 cup oatmeal, 1 medium apple, 2 cups water, multivitamin
  
  
• 9:00 a.m.: 1/2 cup fat-free cottage cheese, 1 cup fat-free/sugar-free yogurt, 2 cups water
  
  
• 11:30 a.m.: 3 Lean System 7 capsules
  
  
• Noon: 1 can of tuna, 1 cup brown rice, salad, 2 cups water
  
  
• 3:00 p.m.: Meta-CEL
  
  
• 3:15 p.m.: Meal Replacement, apple, multivitamin
  
  
• 6:30 p.m.: grilled chicken breast, yam (with Butter Buds, 1 pkt Splenda, and cinnamon), broccoli, 3 cups water
  
  
• 9:00 p.m.: 1 scoop of whey protein mixed in skim milk

Workout Schedule

David followed the four-week Maximum Growth Plan and the 8-Week Continuation Program (except for leg days). He did cardio on the off days four times a week. During rehab, David sat in a chair and punched a heavy bag for 20 minutes. Before his surgery and after rehab (week 10), he used a stationary bike. He also trained abs three times a week using the ABSolution exercises and techniques.

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• Avg Muscular Bodyweight Gain = 8 Lbs!
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• Avg Leg/Thigh Circumference Increase = 2.30 inches!
• Avg Bench Press (Barbell) Strength Increase = 30 Lbs! (This is remarkable!)
• Avg Squat (Barbell) Strength Increase = 65 Lbs!
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