2011 NPC Teen Nationals

NPC Superstar, Larry Neri, Speaks!

Hello my name is Larry Neri. I am originally from Lacey WA, but live in Federal Way. The way i got into bodybuilding is kind of a funny story which hopefully i get the chance to share with you guys soon. I have been competing for about 3yrs. Earlier this year i placed 3rd in the Emerald Cup as a lightheavy, and just recently placed 1st in The Oregon States July9th as a lightheavy while narrowly losing the overall to the superheavy by ONE point.. Recently there was a discussion held on rxmuscle.com forum where people got to vote on whom they thought should've won the overall, me or the super. Apparantly my back, hams/glutes were a hit.;-) I've been asked to list excerises that i use, etc.

First let's talk back... For me its DEADS DEADS DEADS! I usually do full deadlifts from the floor but will do rack pulls on occasion as well. I also have my steady diet of rows as well. I usually opt for the barbell row or dumbell rows. I also do a variety of pulldowns and pulldowns behind the neck which lot's of trainers have tossed out of their programs because they feel its hard on the shoulders.. it feels fine on mine so i do them regularly.. I also believe in using more freeweights for the back as well..

Next my glutes/hams... for my hams I usually will do lying leg curls or a single leg curl. also I find that putting your feet together and higher on the leg press hits the hams and the tie-in as well..  I also do straight leg deadlifts, usually with a barbell as the dumbell version seems to do a number on my low back for some reason..  I think for me a lot of my devlepment is also a result of doing my hams on a separate day from quads..  I found that after all the squats, presses, xtensions, hacks, etc. you do for quads I was toast and never gave them enough intensity. once i did them on there own day i was able to really get after it and I made some great gains...luckily, due to my conditioning drying out my glute/hams before a show hasn't been a problem.
I hope that helps everyone that needs help in those areas.. well before i go i just wanted to let you guys know what's up next for me.. this Saturday i will be competing in the WA State Championships. I also plan on getting on the national stage soon so keep an eye out for me.. Lastly, I just wanted to thank Christian Duque for giving me this opportunity to blog on his site.. Also big thanks to rxmuscle and rxmuscle.com forums and everyone that commented on the the thread and voted for me...    

What About Forearms?

Whether you train biceps with your chest or shoulders, and whether you train your triceps with your back or you stack 'em with biceps on a day all their own -- few people train their lower arms! Have you ever seen those idiots with synthol biceps and the laggin tri's - or even the guys with the 22" guns and the weak grips? You know the ones.. the guys that look like they can rip phonebooks in half, but need straps just shrug 225 or worse yet - row 135!

You ever shake hands with your wife's father, an employer, or just greet a new friend? You know what's right up there with having sweaty palms? It's having no grip to speak of! Biceps and triceps may look great, but if you're juiced to the gills and have the handshake of a fourteen year old girl, then you've got work to do buddy!

It seems everyone got the memo "triceps are 2/3 of your arm," only problem is, they're 2/3 of your UPPER arm. Your LOWER arm consists of your forearms.so unless you're a genetic freak like Lee Priest, you had better incorporate some exercises for these truly essential muscles. For instance, strong forearms coupled with an iron grip, can make your lifting straps essentially obsolete. Imagine being able to do deadlifts without straps - or even chalk. Imagine doing real shrugs, where you don't look like a schmuck having to do alternate grips just to lift 225 (alternate grip is for deadlifts! lol).

Beginner's Forearms Assault
3 Exercises, 3 Sets of 8 Repetitions Each.

15lbs. - Hammer Curls
20lbs.; 25lbs

20lbs. Reverse Curls - using the EZ Curl Bar
20lbs., 30lbs

15lbs. Pinwheels
20lbs., 25lbs

Thesse are light exercises for starters. If you can lift way more than this, then lift them increasingly strict form, pausing at the top of the movement to achieve ultimate contraction and control the weight completely during the negative. You will see veins begin to POP throughout your forearm. Put the weights down and flex; in between other sets, put the weights down and massage your forearms in between sets. You should take thrity seconds in between each set.

Do this routine for 3 months. Then up every set by 5lbs, but keep the the first set at the same level. I am a big proponent of warming up.