PJ Braun's Blog

June 3

2011-06-03T12:28:00.000-07:00

Please check out my latest article ar www.rxmuscle.com "How did I get here, do I want to be a Pro?"
Let me know what you think!!

March 19

2011-03-19T06:58:00.000-07:00

Body weight today is 248. Its finally creeping up slowly. I am training hard and eating more, but my sleep is down. About 6 hours a night. I need to fix that problem. Work is going great and I have a bunch of clients competing soon! I will be going on SUPERHUMAN RADIO again on Tuesday at 1! Hmmmmm.....That's all I got for now, lol. Trying to stay consistent with these though :)

Arnold Recap... A Bit Late

2011-03-17T09:41:00.000-07:00

OK well, its been almost 2 weeks since the Arnold and I know I am behind, so I'm going to just recap this fast... so without further hesitation here we go:

THURSDAY- Met up with fellow SPECIES athletes Juan Morrel and Kat Ramirez at Juan's house in New Rochelle and flew out of Laguardia together. The flight was smooth and we landed in Columbus around 2ish. Checked into my hotel and then spent that night hanging with lots of friends and my roommate Aaron Singerman.

FRIDAY- day 1 of the expo, I got up extra early to get my face painted like Arnold from the movie Predator. The theme of the SPECIES booth this year was army camouflage and I decided to take it really over the top and come up with a character GI BRAUN. I had Bullets, grenades and a fat cigar lol.
Before I went to the expo I swung by Evans room to see how he looked. He was really amazing! I thought he was beyond ready!
Expo was fun, I got to meet lots of awesome fans and make new friends. It was a great day all around. That night I took it easy with some friends and stayed in my hotel.

SATURDAY- got up early again to go check on Evan once more. He really blew my mind!! I knew he would be a serious contender!
Expo was INSANE on Saturday! So many people!!! Its a really tiring weekend being out there for all this madness and I cant really describe what its like being there, you kinda just have to see it for yourself.
Men's final came down to Branch Warren first, Dennis Wolf second, Victor Martinez third, and then Evan fourth. Many thought Evan should have been second, but it was Branch's show. I'm glad he finally got an Arnold Victory, he is such a HARD WORKER!
Saturday Nite a bunch of us went to the After Party they have every year. It didn't seem as crazy as years past, but it was still a fun night.

Sunday- Last day of the expo, everyone is usually tired as hell by this point and the crowd is much smaller. Still a very busy day! My flight was at 5 so I left the expo around 2:30

FLIGHT FROM HELL : so my plane gets delayed about 45 min because of a "storm" in NY. We finally take off and I pass right out. I wake up and turn on my phone and realize we should be landing. The captain comes on the pa and explains that because this storm is so bad we cant land. Then we start going through some crazy turbulence! People were crying and scared. We tried to land TWICE and both times the aeroplane got tossed around so much we missed the landings. At this point we started running out of fuel so they did an emergency landing in Providence, Road Island. There were no more flights when we landed so 6 of us rented a mini van and drove all the way back! I got home around 3 in the morning...I was supposed to be home by 7.

Over all it was a really great weekend and all though it took me a few days to recover I had a great time.

Now Its time to focus on myself and try to make some big gains!

Off to the ARNOLD!

2011-03-03T04:28:00.001-08:00

Its 7:30 am Thursday morning and I am getting set to get out of my house and head to the Airport for the ARNOLD CLASSIC! This is the biggest weekend of the year for bodybuilding and fitness related activities! I am super excited to get out there and see the madness, meet fans and friends and just have a great time! I will give a full recap when I get back! Good luck to my boy Evan Centopani coming off his big win at the FlexPro show!!!

Check out my latest video training at GOLDS VENICE with Jose Raymond and Aaron Singerman, its not an intense workout by any means but the audio is on the whole time and we bust each others balls alot. Its a funny watch. Its right on the front of www.rxmuscle.com and I have it posted on my facebook.

march 1

2011-02-28T21:15:00.000-08:00

Told ya I was gonna be consistent!
Training has been going great. Had a kick ass leg workout today. Got under 500lbs on the squat for the first time since last spring and it felt fine. I only did 4 reps, but I had more and I didn't want to get crazy since I have only been at 405 for a couple weeks. Feels good to move some heavy weight and I don't stop till my ass hits the floor. 2 more busy days of work and then I'm off to the Arnold! Cant wait.

This past Saturday I did a store Grand Re-Opening in Scranton PA. I had a great time and met some really cool people. They had a really neat ultrasound machine that tested body fat. I let them do mine....7.o% pretty pleased considering all I have been going through. That's all for now.

WHERE HAVE I BEEN?!?!?!?!

2011-02-25T19:58:00.000-08:00

Ok Everyone, its been a while and I really must apologize. A swarm of bad luck came my way and it distracted me from my normal behavior and that isn't right. I am not one to make excuses so I will detail whats been going on and try to get back into the grove of regularly blogging! My apologies to all my fans, clients and friends who have been asking about the lack of blogs. Its actually really nice to see how many of you appreciate it.

Went to a few Jets games this year including the Thanksgiving game with my Step Dad. We had a blast deep frying Turkeys with a bunch of great people. Talk about a cool way to spend Thanksgiving!!! Unfortunately my beloved Gang Green let me down at the end as usual. Right around that time I hurt my knee and had to skip training legs for about 5 weeks. This was really frustrating as legs are my body part in need of the most attention! As soon as I came back from that I strained my anterior delt on my left shoulder and had to skip most upper body training for about 4 weeks.

I managed to maintain most of my size and fullness but certainly was not improving...NOW...durring the last few weeks of December I came down with a really nagging "cold" that I could not seem to beat. I think that since I was training alot, working like crazy and basically running myself into the ground, I just couldn't kick it...

That's when I got really ill. Had it not been for my friend rushing me to an emergency clinic I don't know what would have truly happened. I had such a bad infection in my throat that it completely closed. I had to take Prendisone steroids to get the swelling to come down just so I could swallow water. I also had to take 2 different kinds of strong antibiotics. This wiped me out for about 2 weeks and I lost over 20lbs!!! I have not been this sick since...well I guess ever!

Once I got better I was back in the gym around 231lbs and the weights felt WAY to heavy. I decided to go very easy for a week and let my body adjust. My second week back Nicole's father got very Ill and had to get rushed to the hospital. He wound up dying of Leukemia about 2 weeks later. This 2 weeks was one of the saddest times of my life. I have never witnessed anyone die from cancer before and being in the hospital really wore me down. Seeing sick children really messed me up the worst, sometimes I found myself sitting at home alone thinking about the poor families and what they were going through and I would just cry. Its hard to sit there and watch when you cant do anything for the people you love. I think I was most sad that I could not offer any words of wisdom or advice for the tragedy that Nicole's family went through, I like to think of my self as a good motivator and beacon of wisdom, but I had nothing. All I could do was offer hugs. It was really hard to train during that time and I missed meals consistently. Sometimes Life gets in the way and puts things in your regular routine on the back burner and you have to just accept it. Going through this made me realize how fortunate I am to have a healthy family. I will never hang up the phone on anyone in my family again without saying I love you first. You never know when something horrible can strike. Life is short and precious.

The funeral was a really beautiful service. The singer that came to the church sang like an angel and her rendition of Ave Maria was the most beautiful display of live singing I have ever witnessed.

RIP ALPHONSE VITALE- You were a great man loved by so many.

Once everything calmed down a couple of weeks ago I was able to start slowly getting serious again, and focus on myself and my training. My appetite has not been the same since I got sick, but this past weekend out in California for the Flexpro I think it started to finally come back!

FLEX PRO- I went out to the Flex Pro for the main reason of helping my good friend Evan Centopani with any little thing he may have needed. I wound up doing 4 different videos for www.rxmuscle.com and running around like crazy. I had a fun time with Dave Palumbo and Aaron Singerman as always and was there to help Evan get a few coats of tan on and offer my opinion to him through out has last hours of carb loading to make sure he was as perfect as can be. No one is more meticulous and careful with his planning than Evan, it is truly impressive to watch. Evan wound up BLOWING EVERYONE AWAY! He shocked everyone (except me) and established himself as one of the best in the world now and a threat to take the Arnold crown next weekend. I was so happy to be there!! Evan is a true champion with the heart of a lion and if I wasn't fired up enough already being out at golds gym in Venice ( the mecca of bodybuilding), seeing my boy dominate like that got me so amped up to train when I got home!!!

This week has been my best week of eating and training this whole off season! My weight is up to 244 and I am very lean despite doing ZERO cardio. Hopefully I can really improve now and make it to the USA's or I will have to abandon my original plans and compete later in the year. I hate to do that but I am WAY behind where I need to be.

I think that pretty much brings me back to today now and I am going to be back on here consistent so keep checking in. I love my fans and my clients and I should not have let so many people sit waiting to see how I was doing. I am very fortunate to have that many people care.

On a side not I have a nice spread in the March MuscleMag as well as a cool shot in March's Planet Muscle

Time to get my game face back on for good and make the most of the remaing offseason!

Nov 13

2010-11-13T07:45:00.000-08:00

Holy Crap I am so busy!!!! Business is booming so I will never complain! it would be nice to have some down time. Wed I recorded my 4th episode of SUPERHUMAN radio. This episode was on back training. I strongly urge you guys to go to www.superhumanradio.com and check out my past episodes, I guarantee you will learn at least one thing you thank me for!!
Training is going great, my body weight today was 251. I am big hard and strong!

I decided to get to baby kittens this week so Piglet could have companions since I am home so little and he gets lonely. The babies are only 6 weeks old and are a bit of work, but I love them so much!

Nov 5

2010-11-05T07:46:00.000-07:00

Its almost 3 weeks since I left Atlanta now and I think my rebound has finally slowed. I was 247.4 yesterday but 246.6 today and this is the first day it hasn't gone up. I am very excited about what is going on these first three weeks and I am assuming I can still capitalize on this rebound another 2-3 weeks! Ideally I would like to be a very solid 255 at the end of those 2-3 weeks and I will then back off and take it easy so I can let my system clean out for about 6-8 weeks. My body could use a bit of down time. I am back to training intense and I love it! The pumps I am getting are great!!
So far I am only training 4 days a week:
Mon- legs
Tues- chest
Wed- off
Thurs- back
Fri- shoulders and arms
sat and sun- off
Next week I am going to get back to a 5 day split.

The Future of PJ....?

2010-10-27T05:43:00.000-07:00

Well nationals has come and gone and for those of you not very close to me or not on the bodybuilding chat boards or face book, I did not win. I placed 9th. I was in the best shape of my life and I looked AWESOME! For some reason I got overlooked. It happens sometimes. I do not feel I should have won. Fred Smalls was the true winner and I am happy for him, however I do feel I should have gotten compared with the top 5 and I had a bitter taste in my mouth after the show since I wasn't. I am over it now and have moved on.
I am very fortunate to have such a supportive family, not only do my parents love what I do, but my grandparents and Step grandparents support me like crazy too! Its really special to have my family in my corner!
I also have a really great group of friends. So many actually. I can say with all honesty if you treat people the way you want to be treated it comes back to you ten fold. I have awesome friends who take good care of me!
After the show I did a kick ass shoot with Juan Morel for MUSCLEMAG. I will be sure to post when it comes out!
I took the week after the show to totally relax and eat like a slob. I really poured everything I had into this and needed some time away from the gym. Taking a week off is strange for me and I have a new fire now that I am back into the gym!!
So what does the future hold? Considering I was next to death making the heavyweight cutoff there is no chance I can ever compete in that class again. I have decided to take a step back from the top of the game to focus on the Junior Nationals in June. I want to establish myself as a new and Improved BIGGER version of myself in the super heavyweights and I feel that I should go to Juniors first so the Judges can get a good look at my transformation. From there I will decide what to do next.

2 days out!

2010-10-13T06:11:00.000-07:00

This will most likely be my last blog before Nationals. I leave in a few hours for the airport, just getting the last of my stuff together over here. I suffered with very low calories through yesterday to get whatever remaining bit of fat I could off and today my body weight was 225.6. I woke up about 90min earlier than normal so I would guess normal time it would be 225. I am very flat and depleted but in damn good shape! Best condition of my life! Today I start carbing up and reducing my protein. Usually when I do this the first day I drop some more weight so that should put me right where I need to be for weigh ins tomorrow. Most likely I wont be able to drink water tomorrow until the night weigh ins but I have gone through dehydration before. I am very thankful for all the support I have in my life from my family and awesome friends as well as all my awesome fans. Its easier to keep pushing when you know how many people have faith in you!
I am very confident in what I look like this year and after Friday I will be a champion. I have some really cool pics up on my facebook so go check them out! For now I am off! Thank you so much Everyone and thank you SPECIES for taking good care of me!

4 days out!

2010-10-11T08:11:00.000-07:00

After my low calories yesterday I am down to 227.8 which really fired me up! 225 seems so much closer now. I am going to continue with the lower calories again today and maybe go just strait protein and veggie for 6 meals tomorrow, but I am feeling confident as ever. One key element for the next few days is that I am going to try to really increase my water intake. I usually do about a gallon a day...some days I may get up to a gallon and a half if its a very hard training day. Well for the next couple days I am shooting for 2 gallons just to keep my self peeing and flushing weight out. I still don't look that overly flat yet which is a positive. I mean I am not full like I want to be, but I am not totally emaciated like I expected.
I have a photo shoot today, I will talk more about it in tomorrows blog but I am looking forward to working with this gentleman!

5 days out!

2010-10-10T08:31:00.000-07:00

For starters I want to congratulate my client Nick Lepore for winning the bantam weights at the Eastern USA yesterday! Nick looked awesome and was a pleasure to work with! More clients like that please!!!! Also a HUGE congrats to my friend and fellow SPECIES athlete Melissa Di Bernardo for winning the woman's overall bodybuilding title! She looked AMAZING!

Yesterday was a long tiring day. I was up 2 hours earlier than normals to make it down to NYC for the show. I had packed an extra meal of just fish and asparagus because I know how long and draining of a day those shows can be. After the Prejudging me and SPECIES athlete Juan Morel ( a favorite in the heavyweights) went to his gym on 14th street to train. We were both dead but it was just arms so we got through. Then I headed over to my buddies house to practice posing, and I had 45 min of cardio to do!
Today my weight was 230.4lbs so I am going to remove some calories...about 400 to be exact all from carbs. I am also doing double 45 min sessions of cardio today but in between I will be resting and watching football. Only 5 more days!

Easterns and 1 week out!!

2010-10-08T21:25:00.000-07:00

VERY long day today and I apologize to those of you attending or thinking of attending Eastern USA's in NYC tomorrow for not posting this early. I will be at the prejudge repping SPECIES and I also have a client Nick Lepore competing in the bantam weights. He looks awesome and is going to do damage in his class! Also good luck to my friend and fellow SPECIES athlete Melissa Di Bernardo competing in woman's bodybuilding! She looks awesome!

I am one week out today and I have to thank my boy IFBB pro Guy Cisternino for destroying me in a back workout Thursday! I never would have went that hard or heavy without him. I felt like I was going to pass out by the end of the workout and he kept telling me I was a pussy and he was working out like that 2 weeks before his show! LOL, Of course I reminded him that I am 1 week out and that makes a HUGE difference in energy! The workout was Intense as hell and he was telling me no one is working harder than me...and I believe that. I also believe that no one is prepping more intelligently then me. I have really got in tune with my body and mind as one this year. Its amazing. I am never satisfied and know I can still Improve greatly each day until the show and that excites me greatly based on what i look like now!!
Today I got a painful deep tissue massage from my therapist Tatyana. I made her go as hard as she could on my legs and back especially because I believe it helps rid your muscle of waste and scar tissue and helps your separation. Nothing like a sharp elbow being driven into the back of your hamstring!
I have been having dreams, or nightmares I should say, about food now. This is common for me before a show.
body weight this morning was 230lbs.

1 week till I leave!

2010-10-06T07:55:00.000-07:00

1 more week and I get on my flight to Atlanta. 1 more week of cardio. 5 more workouts in the gym. Its all coming together! I am in that last stage of suffering but its all gonna be worth it when I taste victory. My trouble spot for years, my glutes, have striations that I have never seen and I have so much separation in my legs! I cant wait to see the finished product. Today is a much needed cardio only day and I am going to rest as much as I can! body weight this morning 231.

Last leg workout!

2010-10-04T11:13:00.000-07:00

Today is the last day I will crush my legs. With 10 more days until the show I am going to kill them today and then let them rest. Of course they will still get lots of stimulation from the cardio, but no more direct work. This should help my separation really pop by the time I get on stage!
Bodyweight this morning was 233.

Down with the SIKNESS?!

2010-09-23T20:26:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been happy about getting sick? Well this week it happened to me. I havent felt right lately and Monday I was just exhausted. I felt so weak and out of it. I have been tired on diets before but not like this. My training partner for legs thought I looked pretty shitty, but I just laughed it off and toughed it out through a kind of mild workout. Nothing like what I normally do for legs. When I was done I got very dizzy and lite headed. I went home and passed out on the couch. I never take naps ever so I guess I was happy to get the sleep but surprised I passed out. That night I slept a good 8 hours and woke up feeling awful Tuesday. Doing my morning cardio was brutal and exhausting but I made it through. I sat on the couch and dozed off for an hour after I ate my breakfast. When I woke up my stomach was very upset and I had to run to the bathroom. I wound up going to the bathroom about 5 times over the next 2 hours...still I pressed on.
My chest workout Tuesday was awful. I went about 75% what I normally do and it felt like I was going 150%...I made it through the workout and at the end my partner said my lips were very white and my eyes were glassy...I said to him that I never felt so mentally defeated and I wasnt sure how I could make it 4 more weeks like that. I said I felt like I was gonna drop any second.
I cancelled all my work that night and drove to CVS so I could buy a thermomiter. I checked my temp in the parking lot and it was 100.3.... So I went back in and bought some tylenol. by the time I got home I was freazing cold so I checked my temp again and it was up to 101.9. I took the tylenol and layed on the couch. Eventually I started burning up and my fever broke.
Wed I stayed home and rested all day and I am finaly starting to feel better today. I was able to get an OK back workout in, but mentally feel alot better. I know now I can regroup this weekend with some rest and press on!

Tired of being TIRED!!

2010-09-21T09:39:00.000-07:00

I have been so tired lately. I am actually sleeping a bit better...THANK GOD...but still so exhausted. My workouts are suffering slightly but I am listening to my body and giving all I have. If I have to back off the volume I will, but I push myself hard. I cant get hurt this close to a show. I honestly cant remember feeling this tired this far out. Inside of 4 weeks so I can handle the suffering but its strange. Whats the most strange is that I am not hungry at all! Just tired. I am trying to get all the rest I can.

I had a great time guest posing on Saturday Nite despite how exhausted I was. For those of you who couldn't see it, the video is up on www.rxmuscle.com as well as my facebook page.
I have now decided to see if I can make the journey down to heavyweight. After discussing things with people I respect a lot, many feel I will be unbeatable if I can make that weight and then fill back out again. So the push for 225 has begun! This morning my weight was 239.

NPC BROOKLYN THIS SAT COME SEE ME!!

2010-09-16T21:00:00.000-07:00

I am guest posing this Saturday at the NPC Brooklyn. If you are in the NY area come check it out. I am in damn good condition and ready to rock the house. Also SPECIES own Juan Diesel Morel will be posing too...and guess who the MC is? The godfather of SPECIES himself Dave Palumbo! Lots of reasons to come check it out! Don't miss it!

Just outside of 4 weeks and sleep has become scarce. I would kill for sleep at this point. My body is so tired but my mind wont rest. I visualize myself at Nationals at nite, I think about my business ventures, clients, love, what I can do to improve...My brain wont stop! Eventually it catches up to me and I crash bad.

Weight this morning was 238. I am looking really lean and am happy with my new size and grainy condition. I am going to do my best to keep blogging.I know many of you enjoy this and I am a giant douche for not doing it more often!

Bump in the road...

2010-09-08T20:57:00.000-07:00

So my week started off fairly normal. Big cheat on Sunday, blast legs Monday...
This time things went a little different. Sunday I decided to go for a bit of an out door hike for my cardio. It took about an hour and at the end my knees were quite sore. Monday during my leg workout, I had to back off the weights on some of my exercises because my knees felt like they were going to literally explode! At the end of my workout I got very sick to my stomach. I thought I was going to puke but I wound up being OK. For the rest of the day I didn't feel right so I just layed on the couch. That night my knees were so sore it kept me from sleeping!
Tuesday rolls around and I am exhausted. I had tons of errands to do, and I felt so crappy, I almost canceled work and my workout! I never do that! I decided to tough it out and I managed to get it all done.
On my way home I was sitting at a traffic light and I fell asleep! I saw some green as I came too, and I got startled and hit the gas...unfortunately it was for the lane next to me and I wound up smashing the guy in front of me. Everyone was fine, but I dented his bumper. I was pissed at myself, but shit happens, and it could have been way worse! That night I finally slept and I felt better today! Back to being focused on my show!
weight is 241. I have some exciting news I will reveal in my next blog!

6 weeks out!

2010-09-04T06:20:00.000-07:00

Very light today- 237.5. pretty flat, but very lean. I will bust my ass through today then eat up again tomorrow. Training is going awesome. I have some freaks to train legs and chest with! I am feeling confident and ahead of schedule. Wish I could sleep better, but that's always been an issue for me.

Congrats to my boy and fellow SPECIES sponsored athlete Juan "Diesel" Morel for top call out last nite at the North Americans. Juan looked Nasty and should finish no worse than 2nd!

Leg Destruction!!!

2010-08-31T06:57:00.000-07:00

So I have been using Sunday as a "re-feed, or cheat day" to really load my body up with calories and glycogen. Then Monday I absolutely kill my legs. Well yesterday I really turned it up and I had 3 guys all training hard with me. It was a brutal high volume workout and I am really sore today! This is what we did:

Lying hamstring curls- first 4 sets were 15, then a set of 10, followed by a drop set to finish. 6 total sets.
Leg press- 5 sets of 20-30 reps, the last set I failed at 20 we increase the weight each set.
Front squats- 4 heavy sets of 10
SUPERSET- leg extensions for 25 reps with hack squats 12-15 reps- This was brutal for 3 sets
Sumo style dead lifts- 3 sets of 10 reps
regular close stance dead lifts to finish- 2 all out sets, I finished with 365 for 13 and I was fried!

I love a killer leg workout. The rest of the week should be a breeze now.
Body weight was 243.8 today. I have been as low as 238.8 and looked very dry there. Everything is going great!

9 weeks out

2010-08-15T10:24:00.000-07:00

Morning body weight 240.2
Today is my "refeed day" so I will be eating whatever I want and loading up with glycogen and water! It makes legs very intense on Mondays! Training is going great, no major pains, but I did tweak my knee last week so its a bit sore.
Congrats to my buddy Guy Cisternino for taking 5th in the 202 at the Dallas Europa and to his fiance' Bethany Wagner for winning the fitness!

10 weeks out

2010-08-09T09:57:00.000-07:00

Had a long and tiring weekend in FL and I am so happy to be home. I missed one session of cardio but managed to stay exactly on point with my diet. Considering I got booted off my flight there and then stuck in numerous hotels and airports I am pretty pleased. I had a couple cheat meals yesterday to fuel my body up for a brutal leg workout today. This morning I was 245.6 and I am glycogen loaded and ready to destroy my lower body!! Feels good to be home! Congrats to my friend Kat Ramirez, a fellow SPECIES athlete on her great placing in Jacksonville!

Jacksonville Pro

2010-08-05T16:11:00.000-07:00

2 weeks ago I was onstage guest posing at the NPC Empire States, this weekend I head to Jacksonville for the Jacksonville Pro! After this I don't want to go anywhere other than the Olympia till after Nationals. This weekend should be fun though.... My buddy Aaron Singerman is competing and I will be there to help him along the way. Fellow SPECIES athlete Kat Ramirez will also be competing and I am hoping they both kick ass!

My training is going great. I feel I am ahead of schedule so have been loading up the calories on Sunday which has cased some SICK leg workouts Monday! I am very pleased at this point. Body weight this morning was 243.5

Empire States

2010-07-22T06:06:00.000-07:00

Saturday I will be guest posing at the NPC EMPIRE STATES in NY. I guest posed there last year and it was a really great experience. Also this weekend is the Hartford Europa. Its a two day event and although I'm busy with the guest pose Saturday, I will be there all day Friday. Good luck to my client Jillian Reville competing in the amature figure and to my good friend Guy Cisternino making his pro debut in the 202 class!!

Team Universe!

2010-07-09T06:42:00.000-07:00

I will be at Team Universe tomorrow all day long! Gonna be a huge show! I have clients as well as tons of friends competing and will be in the SPECIES booth so look for me if you are there!

Diet has begun!

2010-07-06T11:43:00.000-07:00

After a week of pigging out which reached its climax on the 4th of July, I have officially disgusted my self enough where I am excited to diet. The diet started yesterday, July 5th at 253lbs. This is roughly 20lbs lighter than when I started last year and I feel I put on some quality muscle too. I would guess I am about as lean as I was at 8-9 weeks out last year. Considering how much I learned about my body last year I am really excited to be this far ahead of the game. I really want to have the best condition on stage!
More updates to come.

For those of you who havent seen it, check me out in the August MUSCLEMAG in the East Coast Muscle section. Thank you Tony Monchinski for the article and picture!

INBF HERCULES AND PROS VRS JOES!

2010-06-25T21:52:00.000-07:00

Good luck to my client James Webb competing in his first BB show tomorrow The West Coast Classic in California....Also Good luck to my client Michell Deleo Competing in her first Figure contest tomorrow the INBF HERCULES...And Finally good luck to My man Luke Badaracco trying to beat Ben White at the Pros VRS Joes tomorrow

Junior Nationals Weekend

2010-06-21T09:11:00.000-07:00

Had a great time at Junior Nationals. Got to catch up with a bunch of friends and do some mild partying. It was a fun weekend! I trained at the famous QUADS gym in down town Chicago and boy was it AWESOME!!! Top 3 best gyms I have ever been to. I had some great workouts there!
The show was good, alot of competitors brought some serious condition and I M fired up for my own diet to start soon. I flew back very early Sunday morning so I could see my step day for fathers day. Today its back to the grind and a few more weeks of off season!
weight is 256.

Congrats to Stephanie Ney!

2010-06-14T09:38:00.000-07:00

Congrats to my client Stephanie Ney who won the figure overall at the NPC CT state champ this weekend. She worked her ass off and deserved it!!!!!

Atlantic States

2010-06-04T06:33:00.000-07:00

This Weekend is the Atlantic States Bodybuilding championships in NYC. This is another huge Bev Francis show that usually gets a very impressive turnout. I have two clients Competing: Stephanie Ney who will be in the figure medium class, and Marc Andrade who will be in the LT Heavies (if all goes according to plan) Both are set to do some serious damage and I am very excited about this. My client who one the OVERALL at the gulf coast, Shora Fiedler will be competing down in Florida again this weekend as well. I am very excited about all this!
GOOD LUCK TO ALL MY CLIENTS!!!!

As all ways I can be found at the SPECIES booth at the show so if your attending please come say hello!

ARM VIDEO IS UP!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-05-28T21:26:00.000-07:00

My latest video, an arm workout with big Juan Morel is up on www.rxmuscle.com
go into muscle central and leave a comment in the thread. Positive or negative, all comments are welcome!
At the end of the video we take our shirts off and pose down!
I'm currently lean and mean at 255. Very happy about my progress, and strong as ever in the gym!

Heavy Muscle Radio/ another win!!

2010-05-24T08:43:00.000-07:00

I did an episode of Heavy Muscle radio....Finally. It will be airing tonight at 7pm Eastern Standard time. Check it out, it was funny. The show is on www.rxmuscle.com for those of you who don't know!
I also did an arm workout that will be up in the near future!

Also, I have to congratulate my client Shora Feidler for winning the open short class and OVERALL title of her show this weekend!!!!! Another Victory for a Braun trained client. Get this, it was her first show!!!!!

New Client Testimonial

2010-05-18T11:30:00.000-07:00

Check out my latest client testimonial in the training section of my website. Heavyweight bodybuilding champ of North Carolina Dustin Helms! Just scroll all the way to the bottom of the personal training section and you will see him!

New Arm Video!!

2010-05-16T16:45:00.000-07:00

I went down to Bev Francis' Gym in Syossett yesterday to shoot an arm workout for www.rxmuscle.com. It was the first time I have done an arm video since 2007 with Evan Centopani. I think the video will go over pretty well with the fans, Juan Diesel (my partner for the video) and I did a lot of volume. I am excited for it to come out. At the end of the video we did some posing.
Training is going well, and the business is keeping me busy, I have a bunch of clients competing in the near future!

JUNE IRONMAN!!!

2010-05-10T21:23:00.000-07:00

This will be my third strait month in a major magazine!! The June issue of IRONMAN is out on stands now and I was selected as a rising star by Lonnie Teper!! Page 225! Pretty Awesome!
Huge thank you to Lonnie Teper for selecting me!

NY PRO!

2010-05-07T20:30:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow is the NY Pro show in Tribecca and I will be in the SPECIES booth all day.
Come say hi if your in attendance, its gonna be a great show. My buddy Aaron Singerman (host of OFF TOPIC RADIO) has been staying with me since wed, and we are both very excited with conflicting opinions of how the show will go.
My Predictions if everyone comes in shape (which never seems to happen):

1- Dennis Wolf (I've heard inside rumors that he is not in shape, but I hope he brings it)
2- Toney Freeman
3- Roelly Winklaar
4- Ben Pakulski
5- Hidetada Yamagishi

Now, there are a number of things that could come into play here and I would not be surprised if Hidetada placed higher being that he beat Tony in Arizona. NY has favored big boys in the past so it will be very interesting!

Aaron is looking over my shoulder and wants to add his opinion. Here are his pics:

1- Toney Freeman
2-Roelly Winklaar
3-Hidetada Yamagishi
4-Dennis Wolf
5-Ben Pakulski

****Aarons note*** "I want it to be known that I was the only one in the bodybuilding community to pick the correct top 6 at the Arnold. Thank You."

Best of Luck to my friend Tabitha Leandri making her pro debut in bikini!!!

Training is going great. I am 255 and as lean as ever!!!

New Testimonial

2010-04-28T11:51:00.000-07:00

Check out my latest client testimonial in the training section of my website. Jill Tellefsen-Crean is a two time cancer survivor that I have been working with for about 7 months now. Her pics speak for them selves!!!!

My training is going great....I cant give a weight update right now because I left my scale at the gym. I feel large though, lol.
I will update again soon with a body weight!

4-23

2010-04-23T07:06:00.000-07:00

Went to Fox Lane High School in Bedford New York Yesterday with another bodybuilder Jeff Beckhem, and IFBB Pro Fahkri Mubrak. We were invited by MUSCLEMAG photographer Tony Monchinski who happens to be a teacher at the school. Tony invited us to the school for earth day because they were doing lots of fitness related activities. We spoke to the students about why we got into bodybuilding, what we have got from bodybuilding, and living a healthy lifestyle. The kids were in awe of our size and asked some really intelligent questions. It was a great experience and I would bet at least 2 of the kids I talked to will get into bodybuilding now.

Weight this morning was 255. Staying lean, making gains.

Fitness Atlantic

2010-04-17T07:02:00.000-07:00

Another Weekend, another client competing. This one takes me to The Fitness Atlantic. An all natural competition held in Connecticut every year. I have a client, Jen Olsen who is a mother of 2. 37 years old looks better than most 25 year olds!! This will be her first show ever and she is more than ready! Good luck to her!
My training is going well. I seem to be getting leaner and leaner so I am planning on adding in some calories. Body weight is still in the low 250's but my stomach and quads are chiseled and I can even see lines in my glutes when I first get up in the morn.

Another Client Success Story

2010-04-12T19:40:00.000-07:00

Congrats to my client and main man, Dustin Helms for winning the Heavyweight Championship of the North Carolina State championships this weekend. Dustin is a beast and a pleasure to work with. He Dominated his class and got Screwed in a Bizarre Overall decision where the least respectable athlete beat out some good bodybuilders. Regardless Dustin kicked ass and he once again proved my theory that if you follow a good plan and trust your coach, you don't have to see each other in person for success. Hopefully now that its all done I will actually meet the guy in person, he made me proud!

April 5

2010-04-05T12:26:00.000-07:00

Had a good time at the NY Metropolitan this weekend. Both my clients looked great!!! Congrats To Jillian Reville who took 2nd in a very competitive B class! Also congrats to my boy Nick Freglette who took 2nd in a close battle with Species and RXMUSCLE's own Sean Andros.

I am still sick but trucking through somehow!

NY Metropolitans Tomorrow

2010-04-02T07:39:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is the NY Metropolitan, the first of the 3 biggest shows in the est coast all held in the Tribecca Performing Arts Center. I will be there all day!! I have 2 clients competing in figure and a few friends competing. I will also be in the SPECIES booth so if your attending please come by!

Training is going well, came down with a nasty cold this week. I'm fighting through it with Nyquil and Sudafed. body weight is 253 and I have gotten leaner the past few weeks.

Aaron Singerman visit

2010-03-25T12:35:00.000-07:00

First off let me start by saying I am not 35olbs, I am currently 252lbs!! lol, sorry for the typo in my last blog!

My good buddy Aaron Singerman the host of OFF Topic Radio, is here visiting CT for the next two days. I picked him up last night from the airport. Poor Aaron's luggage was lust and has finally just arrived a whole day later so now he can finally get his ass in the shower and we can go do something! lol
We are going to go to the Montanari Bros golds to train. I haven't been there in a few months and am really looking forward to it. Aaron is gonna love this gym. I am sure he hasnt been to a gym like this before!
All in all training is going well. Still doing cardio at least 5 days a week and eating lots of clean food.

CONGRATS TO MY CLIENT JILLIAN REVILLE FOR BEING THE MD FORUM BABE OF THE MONTH!!!

March 17

2010-03-17T07:18:00.000-07:00

The Arnold was a blast! I got to work with some awesome people in the booth and meet tons of really cool people. I managed to get a workout in out there despite the long days. The after party was INSANE!! Now that I am back I am officially back to my off season full speed ahead. my weight has been steady around 350, but I am leaner and getting stronger. I have never been this lean at this weight before! The plan is to keep doing cardio and add some more cals in slowly and see if I can put some good mass on while maintaining this level of body fat. I am confident in my plan!!

ARNOLD HERE I COME!!!

2010-03-01T09:33:00.000-08:00

I had a blast Last weekend at the Phoenix pro! Home for ten days and then its time for the ARNOLD CLASSIC in Ohio! I cant wait!!
I am very excited to be in 2 magazines this month! Flex magazine put me in the 4 to watch column and MuscleMag gave me 12 pages of pics!! Both re April issues in stores now.
Training is going well, and I plan on going full speed as soon as I get back from the Arnold! Body weight is steady around 250.

April MuscleMag

2010-02-17T07:27:00.000-08:00

Wanna let everyone know, I have a big spread in the April Issue of MuscleMag!~ The first picture is pretty awesome! It should be in stores now!

Feb 15

2010-02-15T07:31:00.000-08:00

Last week was my first week back to training on a 5 day split. I was very sore all week despite only going about 70%! my weight this am was 253 and i am very pleased with my condition at this body weight!

I have alot going on lately and have been so busy, but I try to get on here to update all of you on whats going on. Over the weekend I had to go down to Jersey for a good friend of mines mothers funeral. It was very sad and my heart goes out to the whole family.

This weekend is the Phoenix Pro show and I have the pleasure of being able to not only attend the show, but I am going to be doing the Live Play by Play with my friend from OFF TOPIC RADIO Aaron Singerman. I am really excited! I leave for Phoenix on Friday!

Great Birthday Wekend!

2010-02-08T11:27:00.000-08:00

I had a great birthday weekend! Started on Friday night and went right through to the Superbowl. I spent alot of time with loved ones and great friends and ate a ton of good food!
My current body weight is exactly 250lbs. This week I am going back to my regular 5 day split. Still not full speed yet, but stepping it up more and more each week!
I want to thank all the people on the Forums, facebook and everywhere else for making this birthday really special!

Up to 4 days

2010-02-03T18:17:00.001-08:00

So I am up to 4 days a week training now. Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri. I plan on taking this weekend off and then getting back to my regular 5 day split next week. Injuries are slowly getting better!
Body weight today was 246.4 Still pretty lean.
My best friend Jay Castaldi got married over the weekend and I was the best man. I gave an Awesome speech and had a great time. The wedding was videotaped by TLC for a show called four brides. I'm looking forward to the airing.

Good Season for the Jets

2010-01-25T06:45:00.000-08:00

Tough loss for my beloved NY Jets yesterday, but they were not anywhere near as good a team as the Colts. It was a tough but exciting season and I think the Jets are gonna be pretty damn good next year. I love our new coach!
I pigged out on food all day for the game, but its back to normal this week and I am adding a 4th day to my workout split that has only been 3 days.
Weight this am was 247.8 but thats alot of water weight that will be gone in a day or two.

J-E-T-S JETS< JETS< JETS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-01-18T11:52:00.000-08:00

What a game Yesterday! This is the happiest I have been in a while! I love this team, and I love our coach! We play hard nosed, smash mouth football! Off to the Colts for the AFC championship! I am so excited!

Still training 3 days a week trying to get my injuries healed.

New Year New Beginnings

2010-01-14T07:37:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!
I know its been a while since I have posted, and I apologize for that.
Its 2010 and I am very excited to announce that as of January 1, I have signed my first REAL contract exclusive with SPECIES NUTRITION!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am very excited for the upcoming year!
I am still taking it easy training 3 days a week. Doing cardio about 5 days a week and eating very clean. I weigh 240lbs. I am the best man in my best friend Jay Castaldi's wedding at the end of the month and I cant really expand my frame any more or I will not fit in my tux! come February I plan on getting back to my regular 5 day split and making some serious improvements.
Still going through some drama in my personal life, but I am hoping to put that to bed for good soon.

ULTIMATE TANNING

2009-12-23T20:45:00.000-08:00

Check out my friends tanning salon, Ultimate Tanning located at 603 Clocktower Commons, Brewster NY 10509
www.Ulttan.com
Ask for Lisa and tell her PJ sent you!

Dec 17

2009-12-17T17:39:00.000-08:00

Lost my License, credit card, bank card, Costco card, etc yesterday! AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!! Terrible timing. I canceled everything, now I just have to wait for the new cards and go get a new license tues from the DMV.
Training is going great. For some reason my strength in my chest is totally stuck all ready, but my squat day and dead lift day are going up fast! My current weight is 243.5 very solid!

Deadlift day!

2009-12-12T17:07:00.000-08:00

Friday I picked up my new Deadlfit/back day partner Luke Badaracco and brought him up to Montanari Bro's Golds in New Haven. I assured him when we went up that this gym would be the best gym he had ever seen. Luke is only 21 years old, but weighs 300lbs and competes as a natural Power Lifter. This kid is as strong as an ox and I wanted to see if he and Evan could take each other too a new level and I would simply feed off the energy! Luke was in love when he entered the gym just as I expected and the showdown was nothing short of INSANE. we got right into it. 1 plate per side for 10, followed by 2, followed by 3, then 4. At this point I knew after only 1 prior week of serious dead lifting I was getting into uncharted territory since I have not tested my bad arm in over a year. I opted to go 4 and a quarter for 10 while those two went up to 5 for 12! Seeing them try that inspired me to try it myself. I said leave the 5th plate on and I got Over the bar. Staring down at the weight I said to myself, "I gotta get at least 5" As the 5th rep was coming up I was dead, but Evan and Luke were screaming at me and I didn't want to pussy out in front of those two so I fought for 8. Those beasts eventually got up to 6 for 5 reps each!
Then we did a whole back workout high intensity with plenty of volume! We all agreed that it was the best workout we had in a long time! This off season is gonna be fun!!!!

The New Split

2009-12-10T06:21:00.000-08:00

After nationals I decided two things.
1- my body is beat up and I need some rest
2- I need to go back to my roots and get back into some serious power training.

They both go hand in hand because I cant achieve one without the other, so this is what I came up with:

After resting for about a week I designed this plan that I feel will yield some serious results! I will only be training three out of the seven days in a week, but the days I am training will be brutal so I will need the extra rest. I am also not directly training shoulders, or arms during this time, because they are my two best body parts, but also the areas where I seem to be most beat up.
I am keeping a log of my training and each week I aim to beat either the number of reps I performed the week before, or the weight I used the week before on every set! I plan on using this program for the next 4-6 weeks.
So here it is:

Mon:
warm up with 2-3 light sets of squats
Squat- 4 sets of 6-12 reps
Hack squat- 4 sets of 8-12 reps
Leg press- 3 sets of minimum 25 reps
Leg extensions- 3 sets of minimum 15 reps
Lying ham curls- 4 sets of 8-12 reps
standing single leg curls- 3 sets of minimum 15 reps
Donkey calve raises- 6 sets till all out failure increasing the weight on every set

Wed:
warm up with 2-3 light sets of barbell bench press
Barbell bench press- 4 sets of 8-12 reps
Incline barbell Bench press- 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Hammer strength incline- 3 sets of 12-15 reps
Incline or flat dumbbell press- 3 sets of 12-15 reps
cable crossovers- 3 sets of minimum 15 reps
seated dumbbell side lateral raises- 4 sets of minimum 12 reps
Abs- 3-4 varying exercises done for 3 sets each varying reps

Friday:
warm up with 2-3 light sets of dead lifts
Dead lift - 4 sets of 6-10 reps followed by 1 all out set of at least 25 reps
Underhand barbell rows- 3 sets of 8-10 reps
1 arm hammer strength low rows- 3 sets of 8-10 reps
seated close grip/underhand pull downs- 3 sets of 12-15 reps
Strait bar or rope pull downs- 3 sets minimum 15 reps

By the way, my weight is 235.6 so only ten lbs off my contest weight still and I am pretty damn shredded!

Orthotics!?!?!?

2009-12-09T06:40:00.000-08:00

Many people have asked me if and why I wear orthotics, so this is for all you peeps out there that want the best!

Check out www.whatsmyfoottype.com

Basically Doctor Roberta Nole, MA,PT,CPed developed this system, "the RX24 Quadrastep System" based on a clinical algorithm identifying 24 unique foot types. These 24 foot-types are subdivided into 6 groupings of 4, known as "quads". Each Quad has its own foot and gait characteristics.

My Quad Foot- type is D which is based on
*neutral toe out
*pronation through midstance
*midtarsal joint instability

Fancy terms,lol...when i walk or stand the weight is transferred to the outside of my feet. This can cause:
Plantar fasciitis
Metatarsalgia
Fucnctional Hallux Limitus
Patellofemoral pain syndrome
Posterial Tibial tendonitus
Neuromas
Dorsal Bunions

By wearing these inserts I correct my problems based on how I walk. It good for your whole body. Before I started wearing these I had issues with my back and knees. Now, nothing! Plus my leg development has improved.

Anyone interested should Email me and I will give you my DR, DR Craig Salosse's number!

Diamond Gym

2009-12-06T09:22:00.000-08:00

I went to Diamond Gym in Maplewood New Jersey Yesterday with my bro Evan for an Animal Barbell Club Event. WOW! I wasn't even going to train, I was just gonna check the place out and hang with a bunch of buddies because it was a scheduled off day! Things totally changed when I walked in! One of the most bad ass Gyms I have ever been to! So cool, the atmosphere made me have to train! So much history! I highly recommend checking this place out!

2 new testimonails!

2009-12-03T10:27:00.001-08:00

2 New Testimonials are up in the training section of my website! Check them out! Adams transformation was insane!!!

Where have I been????

2009-12-02T05:50:00.000-08:00

Where have I been since my last post from Florida? I have been asked this a few times lately... Finals came and went and I finished tied for 11th, so 12th. Not what I expected and certainly not what I busted my ass for 16 weeks for. All though I was disappointed by my placing, the class was damn tough, and very deep (29 great bodybuilders) and truthfully, I was my best ever! Walking off stage bummed, I was immediately approached by the Editor of MuscleMag magazine who wanted to shoot me the following day! Cool! So I swithched my flight, stayed the extra hours and did an awesome shoot that I will let you know about when it hits the stands! I was also approached by another company that showed some serious interest in me, but more on that later. The whole time down there I was not alone, I was with my step dad. I cant explain how much it meant to me to have him there, and how calm and relaxed I was with him there to help me. I never get to spend father and son time with him, so it was alot of fun, and my step dad truly is the best guy I know, I hope someday I am as good a man as he is.
I also had the support of Nicole, My boy Kris Lecomte and his girl Jen Smythe ( who took 3rd in her class in figure! Go Jen!!) as well as pain in the ass but good friend Guy Cisternino there for help! Huge thanks to Kris for helping me with my tan!
Once back home I was in need of some serious R&R, so I took a week off from training, but kept up with my cardio. I did pig out on thanks giving and boy did I enjoy myself!

Saturday night was my ten year High School Reunion! I had the best time catching up with old friends! It was so great to see what everyone is doing now!

I did another shoot Yesterday with Chris Zimmerman. He is a really talented photographer and I was siked to work with him. I think that is the last shoot for me, so now I can focus on training hard and GROWING!

Thank you so much to my friends, especially EVAN CENTOPANI, who was instrumental in getting me to my best ever version of me! Thanks to my family for being so understanding and supportive! I truly am fortunate to have them!

Anyone who hasn't seen my video from Easterns, its up on the gallery page of my website, and wait till you see this testimonial I am going to put up soon!!!

So there you have it!! one week summed up for ya!

show time!!!

2009-11-20T07:44:00.000-08:00

Just got back from weigh ins and things are going great. weighed in at 223 and everyone that saw me last week said I look weigh better this week! Thqats what I said I would do and I did it. I have a final spray tan at 2, competitor meeting at 3, and pre judge starts at 4:30. Cant wait to go get it on. I am amped up! This is my destiny! Love you all!

1 day before Nationals

2009-11-19T12:06:00.001-08:00

Well, I managed to get to a computer after all. Flew in yesterday around 5. Very smooth flight. finished my meals and had my buddy Kris Lecomte help me get the remainder of last weeks tan off and a new coat on. Passed out and I'm back to the carb up today. Today I also have two spray tan sessions. I will not be weighing in tonight. All though my weight this am was 223.8 by the time the weigh in starts tonight around 8 I will be too heavy. So I will do the late weigh in tomorrow at 9 am. Everything is going very smooth and I am just sticking with the game plan. I have so many people to thank when this is all over. None of you will be left out!

Off tho Nationals!!!

2009-11-18T05:53:00.000-08:00

Off to nationals to battle for the championship. I am going to be way better than I was at Easterns. Body weight this am was 222.2 which is very lite for me, and I am extremely flat! That's what I wanted though! Now I can take a very similar aggressive carb up approach like I did last week and really fill my muscles up!! I am so excited to get out there and battle! Keep sending me your positive energy! I am feeding off it! Talk to you all when I get back!

Last gym day before Nats!

2009-11-17T05:45:00.000-08:00

Morning body weight is 225.4 which is 1.5lbs lighter than I was at this point last week and I definitely lost pure fat. My legs are as dry and separated as ever and I am really excited to watch myself fill out. I am very flat, so I wont be going zero carb today, but my carbs will be low. I am dong 40 min of cardio as soon as I finish typing this. I will then get two meals of low carbs in and go train some shoulders, arms, abs and butt blaster, then finish with 20 min on the STEPMILL!!!! After that I have a couple clients then I just rest and pack for my journey to Florida tomorrow! I am so excited but VERY CALM. I am ready for this. I have never been so ready. I have put in the work and its my time. Carb up begins tomorrow. Thank you to everyone who has supported me through all this!

Video Interview!!

2009-11-16T16:40:00.000-08:00

Check out my video interview on www.musculardevelopment.com after winning the heavyweights at the Eastern USA!

Easterns, A bittersweet victory

2009-11-15T21:36:00.001-08:00

I am already back to my diet for Nationals, but I will rehash the weekends events first!
Friday, there was a terrible accident somewhere on 9a going into the city. So what should have been an hour and 15 min ride turned into 3 hours!!! Seriously! That is no exaggeration. Once I got to my hotel I had to tan more. It was all ready late and when I was done I just passed out! I woke up at 7 and checked my weight. It was 224! Perfect. The scales are always lite at these shows so I knew I was good. I pounded 4 whole eggs and a1/2 cup of cream of rice with a banana and went to check in.
My weight at check in was 223.2. Like I said, I knew I would make 225 cus the scales are always lite. I went to a little spot in the corner and sat and ate until it was time to go. There were 207 competitors in the show so I sat for a while! My class had 24 guys in it, and ten or so were very good! Most notably this one guy Paul Sousa. This guy was shredded. Possibly the best condition in the show. I knew if I could get by him the show was mine!
When they called us out it was a showdown between Myself, the guy Paul, and a 4th place Junior nats and recent East coast over all champ Robert Youells. We were immediately removed so I knew I was at worst third, but truly felt like my combo of shape and size could not be beat!
By the time the nite show came around I was very dehydrated, but I didn't want to drink cus I had a feeling I was in it for the overall. I hit the stage for my routine like an animal! I was beyond fired up! The crowd was insane!
First place! I won my class and went on to the overall!
Unfortunately I did not win the overall. I am still kinda confused by this and one of the judges actually told my mother that I got robbed! Oh well, that's the past. Nationals is the future and I am gonna be even better!
Thanks so much to everyone that was there! It meant so much to me!!!!
If you want to see my routine from the Nite show go to www.rxmuscle.com and look in the recent videos section!

1 day out of Easterns!

2009-11-13T09:41:00.000-08:00

I am one day out of Easterns and this will be my last blog until its all said and done. I woke up this am at 6 to see where I was at. When I looked in the mirror I was shocked at the body that I saw. I have never looked like this. I was PERFECT! So I got on the scale and it said...226.8! Uh oh, I thought, that's kinda heavy! So I worried for one second, and then I removed those thoughts from my mind and went to bed saying everything would be PERFECT! I got up for good at 8:30. Looked in the mirror and noticed I had lost some fullness, so I had a good feeling about the scale. Stepped on and it read 224.5! Perfect! I am gonna be a BIG, BAD, heavy weight tomorrow! This prep has been so awesome and I have so many people to thank, but I will do that all when I return. I am headed to Manhattan this afternoon and from now till then I am just gonna keep getting better. It is truly exciting to watch!

Almost game time!!!!!!

2009-11-12T21:09:00.000-08:00

I am about to go to bed. Tomorrow will be my last day of prep in my strive for perfection. I can honestly say, that for the first time in a while... I am DAMN pleased with how I look. Its a tug of war match with my metabolism right now, its revved up like never before. I am eating 600 grams of carbs a day to try to maintain my size and fullness. So far it is working, and I'm getting leaner! How awesome is that?! I will give you a final body weight tomorrow morning, but I all ready know, I am gonna wind up a ....Heavy weight! That's right! I cant believe it. Down almost 50lbs. Best condition ever, and full too! No flat PJ this year! I cant wait to display this. One more day to improve!

Help a good cause!

2009-11-10T18:38:00.000-08:00

http://www.fightblindness.org/site/TR/VISIONWALK/VisionWalktr?pg=personal&fr_id=2650&fr_id=2650&px=1965721

Please check this link out and make a donation. Its for a really good cause, and it has effected someone very close to me. Any donation would help!
Thanks!

4 days out!

2009-11-10T05:07:00.000-08:00

Today will be my hardest day. Usually I sleep from anywhere till 8 the earliest, to 9:30 the latest...today I was up at 6. I was so hungry that I couldn't sleep. Plus, the peeing every hour wasn't helping. Today will be ROUGH. Bout to start my cardio. gonna get 2 meals in and then blast my back. No easy workouts for me. Lots of guys go easy at the end. Not me!! I will be doing barbell rows and heavy Dead lifts! Then its off to work to train clients. Hopefully I wont pass out when I am training them!
I cant thank all my friends and family and friends enough for all the support I have gotten. Today's morning body weight was 229.

2 more days in the gym!

2009-11-09T16:52:00.000-08:00

2 more days in the gym, and then I rest for 2 days. Then... I hit the stage! Today was tough. Just protein and greens today...again, but its all gonna be worth it when I hit the stage with my all time best level of condition. I trained chest today, it was rough but I pushed hard. Tomorrow will be the hardest day yet. 45 min of cardio in the morning. A grueling back workout in the afternoon followed by the dreaded STEPMILL after! God I hate cardio! lol. I don't complain though. I just do it! I cant wait to see everyone Saturday!

6 days till Easterns

2009-11-08T19:01:00.001-08:00

I cant wait its almost here. My current body weight is 233lbs. That is a solid 10 lbs bigger than I was at this point last year with just as good condition! I am very excited to go through this week of prep and watch my body change. I am feeling pretty tired and weak, but that's expected at this point. Pretty soon I will be showing my new and improved physique on stage! i hope many of my East coast fans and friends can come check out the show.

2 weeks out!

2009-10-31T08:02:00.000-07:00

Morning body weight today was 234.8. Lots of things popping this morning. Legs are starting to really separate and I am seeing some lines in my glutes that I have never had. Just makes me wanna keep pushing harder. Starting to get excited now! Training is going well. Still killing it! My leg workout is up at www.rxmuscle.com I also take my shirt off and pose at the end, so check it out. Its a very good video!

2.5 weeks out!

2009-10-28T08:14:00.000-07:00

Well, its only 2.5 weeks till my big day in NYC for the Easterns. My body weight is 236.6 and I am very lean. All I need to do is get these damn glutes striated which is very hard for me. I will not give up, I will do what it takes to striate them. At this point a typical day for me looks like this:
wake up and get right on the treadmill for 45min of cardio.
Eat breakfast and answer emails from fans and clients.
get food prepped for the day.
Leave for the gym to train clients.
Train my self extremely hard for 60-90min depending on the body part.
Train more clients
Tan and hit the grocery store.
Cook more food for the next day.
back on the treadmill again for 45 more min of cardio, usually around 10-11 at night
shower
eat once more than back to bed.
Its a long draining day, but its gonna be worth it!
I shot a bad ass Leg workout for rxmuscle.com at Bev Francis powerhouse gym on Monday. It should be up any day now. At the end of the video I take my clothes off and hit some poses in the gym. This will be the first and last anyone sees of me until the show is over.

5 weeks and Maury Povich

2009-10-10T09:11:00.000-07:00

Ok, I am now 5 weeks from Easterns and after really pulling the cals back I am starting to look the way I want. Morning body weight today was 247. Strength is still up and workouts are great. Doing to 30 minn sessions of cardio, Moderate intensity. Increasing it on monday, sigh! lol

Just found out that my Episode of Maury Povich will be airing on thursday Oct 15th! Check it out!

New Video

2009-10-08T08:08:00.000-07:00

I shot a video with Muscular Development about 10 weeks out from my show. Go to www.musculardevelopment.com and check it out. I'm training shoulders with Evan Centopani.

R.I.P. Kaye Braun

2009-09-22T18:25:00.000-07:00

My aunt Kaye Braun passed away this weekend and the funeral service was today. Its unfortunate that I never see alot of people on my fathers side of the family until occasions like this. I didn't know her well but from what I understand she was with me quite a bit when I was a baby before my parents separated and thought the world of me. I wish I could have known her in my adult life. She is in a much better place now.

Kaye Elaine Braun
July 26, 1941 to September 18, 2009

Team Universe

2009-09-22T18:16:00.000-07:00

So this past weekend was the Team Universe which is the biggest Drug tested competition for Bodybuilding, fitness, figure and bikini in the country if not the world. The weekend was a success for many of my friends including SPECIES own Kat Ramirez who won the E class and is a new IFBB Pro.
I was there helping Nicole who looked by far the best she has ever looked. She worked her ass off and I came up with what I believe was an excellent game plan for her. Unfortunately the judges thought otherwise and did not place her well. This left us both EXTREMELY upset and me down right MAD!
I talked to numerous people including a judge who thought she should have placed at the worst...2nd!
Oh well, I would be lying If I said I wasn't still mad, but I need to move on and focus on me now!
Training is going great! I will give you guys a body weight update soon!

Team U and the lost Cell phone!

2009-09-17T21:55:00.000-07:00

SO I have been having the most Intense week of workouts and things were going great until today...My phone is destroyed, yup its done. I lost all my contacts!!! I lost so many numbers and I don't remember anything off the top of my head! So everyone please email my your numbers to pjbraunfitness@yahoo.com I got a crazy new blackberry today with Internet access so once I figure out how to use this damn thing I will store all your numbers.

Tomorrow I head to NYC for Team Universe. So many of my friends are competing its going to be a really awesome and LONG weekend. Good Luck to my client Nicole Vitale who looks amazing!

10 weeks out!

2009-09-14T11:36:00.001-07:00

Well, as of Saturday I was 10 weeks out and my body weight was 254.2. All though I am right on track, I have decided to bump things up a bit. Cardio is up to 30 min in the am from 20 and I have reduced my calories by about 400 cals a day. This will be a test stage for a week or two too see how my body responds. I have not had a cheat meal yet either.
My groin is feeling good today and I took it easy all weekend so hopefully I can train legs hard with No problems.
lastly, I want to congratulate my good friend James "Flex" Lewis and his wife Shina for both winning the Atlantic city Pro. Flex won the 202 class and Shina won the Bikini overall! Great job too the both of them!

Sept 8

2009-09-08T11:33:00.001-07:00

Strained my groin yesterday! Very mad! Just need to take it easy and hopefully I will be OK by next week! i got stupid on the Leg Press yesterday and tried to do too much weight, I felt a strain and immediately stopped. I had to scratch most of my leg workout after that with the exception of Leg extensions, which I wound up doing 10 sets of to try to make up for what I couldn't do.
Morning body weight is 256. I love what I look like this far out! I stared doing cardio a week ago. 20 min moderate intensity. This week I am going to start playing around with the incline when I walk! Fun stuff, lol.

North Americans and Maury Povich

2009-09-03T20:43:00.001-07:00

I've been very busy as usual. Always working and on the go. Always traveling around. How do I find the time to train like I beast everyday!?
Last week I was in Cleveland from Wed to Sunday attending the North Americans with my good friend Kris Lecomte. Kris is a good bodybuilder who is sponsored by Dorian Yates' new company. Kris wanted me to come out with him and make sure he was on top of his game, which he was! He weighed in at exactly 198 lbs with crazy condition including striated glutes!!
Kris wound up finishing 8th in a very tough light heavy weight class, and although he was disappointed, I was very proud to be a part of it because he was at his all time best!

While out there I trained at IRON ASYLUM GYM. Owner Jerry Beck invited me to come and I was glad I did. The gym was totally hardcore and the basement was like a dungeon. The gym was equipped with tons of good stuff and had an over all Bad ASS attitude! Overall the trip was exhausting and I was glad to get home Sunday night.

Today I had a small part on the Maury Povich show. I along with Big Sean Allen, aka BSA were asked to be shirtless on stage during a couple performances by some talented little people. I got to meet Maury as well as Midget Mac, and IT from I love NY, LOL!!
I'm looking for ward to a relaxing weekend! I'll give a weight update soon.

Iron Asylum Video

2009-08-25T10:00:00.000-07:00

Shot an Iron Asylum video for rxmuscle.com Its up now so go check it out! I trained chest just inside of 15 weeks out from nationals.
Tomorrow I leave for Cleveland to help my good friend Kris Lecomte who is competing at the North American championships. Kris is a very hard worker and I'm excited to be out there helping him. Anyone who reads this that will be out there please come introduce yourself!

New client testimonial

2009-08-23T18:03:00.000-07:00

I have another testimonial up in the training section of my website. Check it out. My client and great friend Jillian Reville. Her before and after pictures are quite impressive.

8-22

2009-08-22T19:34:00.000-07:00

13 weeks out from Nationals and I'm feeling very pleased about my progress so far. I am about as lean as I was at 10 weeks out last year so I think the extra time dieting is gonna serve me well. No cardio yet because I am still dropping at a steady pace from the diet. As soon as I hit that plateau...Cardio starts.
Work outs have been balls to the wall! I have never trained this hard in my life, but that's whats gonna separate me from everyone else. This damn arm injury is still nagging me like crazy but I must push on. Here is what I did for my last back workout:

Lat pull downs to the front, super set with stiff arm pull downs. all sets are of 15 reps for both exercises. 60 sec rest in between sets.

Bent over Barbell rows at a 90 degree angle with a overhand grip
set 1- 135- 15reps
set 2- 185- 10 reps
sets 3- 225- 10 reps
sets 4, 5, 6- 275- 8-10 reps
set 7- 225- 20 reps ( i get sloppy at the end of these)
all sets are done with 90 sec rest

1 arm dumbbell row
3 sets of 8 reps with 130lb dumbbells
90 sec rest in between sets

seated close grip pulley rows
sets 1- 150lbs- 15 reps
set- 2- 170lbs- 15 reps
set- 3 - 180lbs for 15 reps
30 sec rest in between sets

Rack Dead lifts
set 1- 225 - 10 reps
set2 - 315- 6 reps
set 3- 405 6 reps
set 4- 405 6 reps
set 5- 315- 12 reps

There you have it. Lots of volume and a fast pace! This workout wiped me out

aug 19

2009-08-19T12:57:00.000-07:00

Just a little over two weeks of dieting and I'm way down to 261 already. Lost a lot of crappy water weight and now I seem to be stabilizing. I am so excited for this year. Training is going great. Saturday will be 13 weeks out! More updates soon! Check out my guest pose video with Evan Centopani from the Space Coast Classic in Florida. The Youtube video is up. Just type in pj braun and evan centopani guest pose into the search and it will come right up. That is the last footage of me before I started my diet.

3 long months and I'm back

2009-08-12T11:19:00.000-07:00

Well everyone....its been quite a while but I am back.
Where have I been you ask???
On May 17th I watched my best friend Evan win his first Pro sow, the NY Pro. The whole day was an amazing experience. very surreal. I have never been so excited at a bodybuilding show before. Too see my good friend on stage beating guys that I had posters of when I was a kid was truly incredible!
The next day I broke up with my long time girlfriend Nicole. That's all I want to say about that, but for lack of a better word, I was devastated.
So for a long time I really didn't feel the urge to communicate with anyone. I get like that when I'm very upset. I don't like to talk about my problems.
During my depression I lost some weight and injured my arm pretty bad, and my hip as well. This made what was a very productive off season very painful to go through.
With the help of my family and a couple very good friends. I am happy to say that things are getting back on track and I am now more focused then ever before! My business is doing well and my training is going great despite the injuries!

Prep for Nationals started on August 1 at 275 lbs! I am currently at 262 and feeling great. I am going to bring a whole new freak to the stage this year! I've never trained this intense and focused, and believe me, I am always intense, but this is a whole new level!

For all my friends and fans wondering where I have been...Braunster is back!

may 15

2009-05-15T12:19:00.000-07:00

I was on Off Topic Radio last night. It was really fun. Those guys asked me some funny questions. Anyone one who wants to here it can go to www.rxmuscle.com and click on radio, then go into OFF TOPIC, and you will see my show.
Tomorrow is the NY PRO, I am so excited! My friend Evan Centopani is looking so good and I think he is going to take the show! only 24 more hours!!! I will give you all the updated when I get back!

may 6

2009-05-06T09:14:00.001-07:00

Felt good to be back in the gym for legs on Monday, but my hip is still very tight! I need to get some more deep tissue work and focus on some flexibility! Yesterday was chest and I decided to do some flat bench, after I did my heavy sets I repped out 225 for 40 reps. That was a personal best. Every now and then its good to do something out of the ordinary like that. Today is a rest day and I am taking full advantage of it!

may 1

2009-05-01T09:57:00.000-07:00

Great back workout yesterday. Back has been going consistently well for me lately. My main man Albert joined me yesterday. I hadn't seen him in a while and it was good getting a workout with him. Tonight I am going to see the new Wolverine movie, I was a bit of a comic book geek for a little while when i was young and wolverine was always my favorite. I will give my critique tomorrow!
Got some deep tissue massage on my hips yesterday and boy am I sore! I really needed it. All the heavy squats have taken there toll on me!

april 30

2009-04-30T07:31:00.000-07:00

My back work out is up at www.rxmuscle.com Go check it out!

april 27

2009-04-27T10:29:00.000-07:00

The past couple workouts have been OK. Today I am skipping legs. My hip is a little tweaked and I have been fighting off some mild pain that hasn't gone away. I haven't skipped legs since last year, so I think I am due for a break!
I have been loving this summer weather here in CT, but I know it wont be lasting much longer!

april 24

2009-04-24T09:25:00.000-07:00

As i said yesterday, I went down to Bev Francis' Powerhouse gym in Syosset Long Island yesterday to shoot a back video. The video went pretty well, and I think the voice over went well too. The video is edited down, so its kinda quick, but I am moving some decent weight and I think its pretty informative! The video will be up on www.rxmuscle.com this weekend sometime so make sure you check it out!

april 23

2009-04-23T07:44:00.000-07:00

Training has been decent this week, could have been better so far. Today I am heading down to Long Island, to Bev Francis' Power House gym. Its been a while and I'm looking forward to it! The reason I am going down is to shoot a back video for www.rxmuscle.com
My back is a very strong body part and I plan on throwing around some weight! This is gonna be the best workout they post! So, time to get moving. I will be back on tomorrow to give the details about the video!

april 20

2009-04-20T07:34:00.000-07:00

Finished off last week with some really good workouts! Rested yesterday and today I'm back at it for quads! I have been really focusing on my legs and hopefully it shows next time I'm on stage.
That's all for today, I'll be back with more details tomorrow!

april 15

2009-04-15T17:57:00.000-07:00

Off day today and I took full advantage and did nothing but rest! Sometimes its good to do that, sit around, eat and relax! Tomorrow its back to the grind for back. My back workouts have been going awesome lately and I'm getting pretty strong on certain exercises! So far this weeks training has been solid. My hips are a little tight and sore, and my left forearm is still bothering me. Other than those two things, I'm feeling great!

Happy Easter

2009-04-13T08:57:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter all! Hope everyone had a nice time with there families yesterday. I was down in the Bronx with Nicole's Fam. had some fun tossing around the football with her nephew Christopher for a while. Its been a while since I messed around with the pigskin.
My training was great at the end of the week last week. Hopefully I can have a big week this week!
Still sitting at 270.

april 8

2009-04-08T15:20:00.000-07:00

Whats up everyone, its been a while but I'm here today to say whats up and let you know whats going on. I apologize for not blogging often, I know some of you really enjoy this and I really appreciate that. I have been in a rut, but I think I'm out. Nothing too bad, not out soul searching or anything like that,lol. I was just really sick twice this winter, the antibiotics kicked my ass and I was just feeling very drained! I still don't have all my strength or weight back, but I look and feel pretty good, so I'm not gonna complain.
Happy birthday to my boy Evan Centopani. Ev's bday was yesterday, I love that kid like a brother.He is looking insane right now. 5 and a half weeks till he makes his pro debut, I cant wait!
For those of you who don't know, I will be guest posing at the NPC Space Coast Classic in Melbourne Florida this July! I cant wait, check out the website for the show at www.npcspacecoastclassic.com
Also, I was just asked to guest pose at the NPC Empire States as well. that will be in July also, so it will be a busy month! checkout the website for that show it will be in Rockland County! www.npcempirestates.com
That's all for today, I'm off from the gym just relaxing. Aside from a bad tendinitis issue in my left arm I'm feeling pretty good! I'll be back on more often now! Current weight is sitting around 270.

PJ Braun's Blog

June 3

March 19

Arnold Recap... A Bit Late

Off to the ARNOLD!

march 1

WHERE HAVE I BEEN?!?!?!?!

Nov 13

Nov 5

The Future of PJ....?

2 days out!

4 days out!

5 days out!

Easterns and 1 week out!!

1 week till I leave!

Last leg workout!

Down with the SIKNESS?!

Tired of being TIRED!!

NPC BROOKLYN THIS SAT COME SEE ME!!

Bump in the road...

6 weeks out!

Leg Destruction!!!

9 weeks out

10 weeks out

Jacksonville Pro

Empire States

Team Universe!

Diet has begun!

More Client success stories!

INBF HERCULES AND PROS VRS JOES!

Junior Nationals Weekend

Congrats to Stephanie Ney!

Atlantic States

ARM VIDEO IS UP!!!!!!!!!!!!

Heavy Muscle Radio/ another win!!

New Client Testimonial

New Arm Video!!

JUNE IRONMAN!!!

NY PRO!

New Testimonial

4-23

Fitness Atlantic

Another Client Success Story

April 5

NY Metropolitans Tomorrow

Aaron Singerman visit

March 17

ARNOLD HERE I COME!!!

April MuscleMag

Feb 15

Great Birthday Wekend!

Up to 4 days

Good Season for the Jets

J-E-T-S JETS< JETS< JETS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

New Year New Beginnings

ULTIMATE TANNING

Dec 17

Deadlift day!

The New Split

Orthotics!?!?!?

Diamond Gym

2 new testimonails!

Where have I been????

show time!!!

1 day before Nationals

Off tho Nationals!!!

Last gym day before Nats!

Video Interview!!

Easterns, A bittersweet victory

1 day out of Easterns!

Almost game time!!!!!!

Help a good cause!

4 days out!

2 more days in the gym!

6 days till Easterns

2 weeks out!

2.5 weeks out!

5 weeks and Maury Povich

New Video

R.I.P. Kaye Braun