Nancy Hanna didn’t expect to win the WNBF World Championships in 2005.
“My personal goal in addition to being in the best condition ever was to
medal – placing in the top 5. Honestly – winning the overall
didn’t cross my mind,” states the newly crowned world champion.
Don’t get me wrong, she’s used to winning as a competitive junior
national-level gymnast in Canada and then as a competitive provincial
water skier, but this is “Worlds.” You don’t win Worlds unless
you’re a genetic freak – a legend – and Nancy only began lifting weights
five years ago.
She got her feet
wet with a couple of shows and as any winner does, she locked her sites
on lofty goals and to dug her heels in and did what others weren’t
willing to do. First, she attended Nancy Andrews Pro Series Weekend
Camp in January of 2002 where I met her for the first time. I was
fortunate that she decided to hire me to assist her nutritionally for
her contest preparation. Fortunate because I love working with a hard
worker. Nancy is a pit bull. No, she’s a Tasmanian devil who eats pit
bulls for breakfast. Nothing shakes her, she never complains, she just
works. Sixteen months later she was a WNBF pro, having won her card at
one of the most competitive shows in the INBF, the Northeast Classic. At
114 pounds, she relied on good symmetry and great conditioning.
As many lightweight clients of
mine do, she beat much bigger competitors by being sliced to the bone.
That, however, would only
carry her to sixth place in her first WNBF World Championships that same
year. Welcome to the WNBF.
Bury your head
in the sand, disappear as a one-contest pro, or go home and get to
work? Duh. Nancy’s long-time trainer, Martin Oliver, affectionately
know as Satan to Nancy, told her the truth: “You’re just too skinny.”
(Or maybe he was more tactful – but I doubt it.) Only having lifted
weights for three years at that point, Nancy, Martin and I agreed that a
prolonged comprehensive training offseason and a controlled, but
aggressive nutrition plan to match was a necessity. Neither Nancy nor I
was especially happy to “have to” force her body weight up to 138
pounds, but I knew she was committed to a 2-year program to build and
she would never actualize her size potential if she was dieting half of
every year for contests. “To be honest,” Nancy says, “I found it
difficult to believe I would ever be back to 120! I don’t like being
135!” And, of course, I didn’t like her being there either but for a
bodybuilder so young in her career, it was necessary.
Her training
involved heavy movements and the addition of deadlifts. “I hate
deadlifts, but I like them more now with the results I’ve obtained,”
Nancy adds. Keenly aware of manipulating Nancy’s training around the
responses he saw in her, her recovery needs and an understanding of
periodization, Martin watched his student mature and grow under the
force of cleans and squats.
Contest
preparation started in January for a June contest that was cancelled.
Having lost about ten pounds, I ramped Nancy’s food back up to a level
that was closer to maintenance amounts with her eyes now set on the
World Championships in November. Both of us hoped for a contest weight
of about 120 with the newly forged muscle yet with a body fat percentage
below her standard of 7. With the amount of time we now had, it was
easy to coast through the summer on higher amounts of food but still
slowly shed body fat. As the pages of the calendar turned, we locked
into more frequent communication; I monitored progress and nutrient
intake closely and called in plays from the sidelines.
At about
120-122 pounds, neither one of us was completely satisfied with body
hardness. I know what perfection is needed for Worlds and I know what
it looks like. Nancy knew what she was capable of. We weren’t there
yet. Still with the advantage of having lost weight very slowly with
only moderate levels of cardio, Nancy had a full tank metabolically and
we had another gear. Martin and Nancy both were shocked that after all
that hard work; she was heading toward past contest weights. “But,” I
assured them, “look at her pictures - her shoulders, back and quads are
HUGE! Much bigger even though her weight is moving lower than we
thought it would. She has to play her ace; she has to beat the
heavyweights based on her condition as well as her size and shape.” I
most often have multiple clients in the same classes at the same shows
and with the highest ethics I make sure each client has their best shot
at winning. I can’t control genetics, posing, the intangibles such as
suits and tan, the judging panel or even which clients will be perfect
and which will cut corners, but like every good coach, I will have all
my players ready to play their best game. As this contest turns out,
the entire top three were clients of mine, but I would never have been
able to predict the outcome – I just make sure they all are at their
best. I knew for Nancy to be at her best, she would have to be the
hardest lightweight with the most muscle to win that class; not an easy
feat.
But, if she could do
that, I knew she would likely be harder than any heavyweight and she
would need to have enough size remaining to not be “the skinny
lightweight that got beat by a heavyweight.” We had time to push the
limit on her hardness and still bring fullness back in slowly.
Nancy Hanna
WNBF Pro Natural World Womens's
Bodybuilding Champion
One
month before the show...115 lbs; a pound lighter than her pro debut.
I’m sure Martin thought
more than once to have Nancy forgo my advice. He had to think I was on
the verge of ruining his and Nancy’s hard work. “I don’t think I was as
worried about it as Martin was,” Nancy affirmed, “but did worry that I
wouldn’t be “big” enough. Visually I looked the same, maybe flatter…
but I still overly depend on the numbers on the scale. Then when we
started to increase food the numbers started going up and which caused
great concern too – for me, more than the lower numbers as I was worried
that now I would not be lean enough – if the numbers where going up –
was my body fat increasing??!!!.. Had I lost my edge of being lean,
which was one of my strengths? Martin was happy because he wanted me to
come in heavier and fuller than 2003. I learned to depend on the
expertise and guidance of those around me – my trainer and Dr. Joe.”
And the numbers did come up. Seeing a “graininess” in Nancy’s upper
body that most competitors will never experience, male or female, and
lower body separations deepening by the day, I reversed gears and not
only asked Nancy to start incrementally increasing foods, but to cut
back on the cardio. Again, it’s such an advantage to be ready early and
hit the precontest starting line in a planned condition that allows for
predictability. As Nancy mentioned, after being hesitant to allow her
body to drop that low in weight and body fat, she was equally if not
more tortured about the increase in food. The scale jumped...and
climbed...and didn’t stop until she was over 120 pounds. Understand my
increases in food were very precise and very incremental, but
nonetheless, she was up six to eight pounds – talk about messing with a
bodybuilder’s mind! As her body absorbed the carbohydrates and
recovered more completely in the absence of double cardio, her
metabolism responded as any should: it wanted more. As her weight
increased, her body fat decreased - two more millimeters were shed from
her quads while she gained six pounds. (Did I mention there are
advantages to being ready for a contest, before the contest?) Now we
had to make sure she made her weight class.
“As usual –
peak week chart arrived by email- like clockwork (from Joe). Everything
that is stated on the chart happened according to plan,” Nancy states
with relief. “Everyone in my home knows that it is Peak Week… and all
this will be over in a week! I think they count down the days just like
I do, but for a different reason….”
On the stress
of peak week, Nancy comments, “I don’t mind peak week because its all
over at this point … and everything is laid out for each day…except when
Joe makes last minute adjustments and you have to find extra/different
foods to add in- which is a challenge when you are traveling and away
from home.” (Hey! Peyton Manning does his best work calling audibles
from the line - sheesh!) Nancy is also accustomed to the
sometimes-counterintuitive methods of peaking that bring my clients into
a show full, hard and dry, but that still doesn’t make them easy. “Two
gallons of water a day makes for an interesting flight...”
“I’m not a
good judge of how I look… there were times when I’d look in the mirror
and think “Yeah! We nailed it this time,” then I’d step on the scale or
have a second look and all sense of self-doubt would set in… this in
addition to the fact that I was stressed over the fact that my weight
was going to be a determining factor of whether or not I was in the
lightweight class…and would I be full enough earlier enough in the
show. The day of the show I looked at myself and thought – we did it –
for the first time ever I had veins in my thighs and calves! I was
fuller, bigger and leaner than I had ever been… so matter what the
outcome, I had won – I was 1-1.5% lower in body fat and approximately 4
pounds heavier than 2003 – WE had met our goals.”
And meet
them she did. Nancy knows what it’s like to leave nothing undone and to
best the best in the world.It didn’t take a village, but
she’s quick to smile, blush and pass the credit. “I am thankful for Dr.
J’s constant communication – no question or concern is ever
looked down upon… there were days when I must have sent 10 emails… and
he always responded immediately – putting my fears to rest. We were
constantly making adjustments – even on the day of competition - to
cardio, food totals and timing of meals based on our communications. As
an individual I may have won the World Championship, however, behind me
stands a team- I could not have accomplished my greatest goal/dream
without the guidance, support and expertise of my team members such as
Dr. Joe and my trainer, Martin to whom I owe a huge THANK YOU!”
Would you like to make a run
at being a World Champion?
Work
harder than anyone else. Get the best information - even if you have to
travel to a seminar.
Trust people who have been there to help you get there. Plan the entire
process and don’t quit. The best in the world will be waiting to greet
you. They’ll be ready. You better get to work.
I’m
fortunate that Nancy hired me in 2002. I love working with a hard
worker.
Dr. Joe Klemczewski is a WNBF Pro and
consults with top pro and amateur bodybuilders through his unique online
Perfect Peaking Program. He can be reached at dr.joe@thedietdoc.com.
Dr. Joe Klemczewski is a WNBF Pro and has graduate degrees in
health and nutrition. From his office in Evansville, Indiana he
works with clients all over the country, including top WNBF
Pros, using his online consulting program. He can be reached at
