Body Transformation: Shane Stadtmueller Body Transformation

Lifestyle Prior To Change

What was your lifestyle prior to your transformation?

I have always led a very active lifestyle, whether is be playing sports such as basketball or soccer, enjoying the outdoors snowboarding, hiking, running, biking, water sports, or in the gym lifting weights. When I got to college my training slid to the wayside and little by little I lost what I had gained.

Before I started my transformation I was working hard in the gym to gain as much strength and mass as I could before I had to undergo jaw surgery in December, over my winter break, which I knew would be a major set-back. I wanted to try and build my body up as much as I could beforehand so that maybe the impact the surgery would have on it wouldn't be as devastating than had I not.

What was your low point or turning point?

My “low point” was definitely the day I had my jaw surgery in December – officially called a “Le Forte I Maxillary Osteotomy”. Basically they cut my upper jaw loose, slid it forward and aligned it with my lower jaw, then plated it back into place. During the first two weeks of recovery all I could take in were liquid, and they were difficult to manage at best. My body was dealt a huge blow – I lost close to 20 lbs of bodyweight and and I never felt so weak in my life.

Gradually I worked my way out of having my jaws rubber-banded shut to being able to “chew” very soft solid food and being able to speak. The thought of just walking into the weight room again was still weeks away, as per doctors orders. So I spent the rest of the month of January on the couch watching television and drinking homemade, calorie-abundant gainer shakes.

I finally got the go-ahead from my doctor to resume my lifting at 5 weeks out, however at severely decrease loads (nothing much over 100 lbs.). That day, when I got home from the doctor's office, I looked at myself in the mirror and seemingly was looking at a completely different person. Then and there I knew I had to do something big if I wanted the real me back.

Were there any unique challenges or circumstances that made your transformation particularly difficult?

Definitely coming off recovery time from my surgery while returning back to college for the start of the new semester, juggling my training around pain-management, class schedules, and other extra-curricular activities.

Shane's Training And Cardio Approach

What was your weight training approach and split during your transformation?

I actually designed my own weight training program. I created a format that combines elements of both a “split” and a full-body plan. I call it a “Full-Body Specialization Routine” that cycles every 4 weeks between Low and High Percentage (of 1RM) Levels that change the working weights while using a forced progressive overload system (adding 5 lbs every week until minimum rep range can't be achieved, the deload and progress again).

Basically I chose 5 mainly compound movements that combined hit the entire body. Of the five lifts, one is the main “specialized” lift and the others are “secondary” lifts. The specialized lift consists of 7 working sets during the Low Percentage Level, and 9 sets during the High Percentage Level. Low Percentage working weights start at 50% 1RM and increases to 75% over six sets.

The rep scheme for the first six sets is pyramided – 10, 8, 8, 8, 6, 6. The last set is a “drop-set” that lowers the working weight to 45% for a max rep effort (until good form cannot be maintained).

The High Percentage Level follows a similar pattern – the first and second set at 50% and 55%, respectively, however the working weights through the next six sets are 80%, 80%, 85%, 85%, 90%, and finally 95%. The rep scheme is: 8, 6, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 1.The final set is, again, a max rep effort at 45%.

Secondary lifts are done at 3 sets or 10, 8, 6.

I also supplemented my lifting with 2 short, but intense, plyometric/core workouts on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Level one - low percentage.

Level two - low percentage.

*When I continued on to Levels III and IV, I swapped out some exercise for others. Such as:

• Monday – Specialized lift was flat bench press, secondary were front squat, push Ppress, deadlift, and Yates rows.
• Wednesday – Specialized lift was still back squat, secondary were incline bench, power snatch (w/ barbell), dumbbell military press, and rack chins.
• Friday – Specialized lift was still military press, secondary were hang cleans, rack pulls, bench press, and T-Bar rows.

Please detail your cardio approach during your transformation?

I used my plyometrics workouts as my “cardio”. Did jumps as a circuit, and kept rest periods relatively short between sets. I also played intramural basketball on Wednesday nights for about 30-60 minutes.

Please list 3 things you learned about exercise, weight training and/or cardio during your transformation that helped you succeed:

1. Compound movements are greater than isolation movements.
2. Forced progression works for a time, but sometimes you have to take a step back in order to take two more forward (a.k.a. deload).
3. Having a very detailed and structured plan that tells you exactly how much you have to lift how many times is an excellent tool. Just having a plan in general, even if you're fuzzy about the numbers, is better than nothing.

How are you currently training, and has your training changed since the completion of your transformation?

I am currently using Jim Wendler's 5/3/1 training system. I am still training 3 days/week, however now I have incorporated more cardio/sprint conditioning/plyometric work as I am training to do the decathlon for my university's Track and Field team.

Shane's Diet And Nutrition Approach

What was your diet and nutrition approach during your transformation?

Eat as much food as I possibly could, spread out over 4-6 meals per day. Being at a university usually means that I had access to a large buffet-style cafeteria and the food was generally healthy. I stayed away from the fried foods as much as I could and always had generous servings of an assortment of vegetables, pasta, and meat.

I didn't focus on the specifics, such as PCF ratios or anything like that. I calculated my BMR and it was around 3500 but I didn't count every calorie that I ingested – I basically said to myself, “Alright, I have to eat a lot and that's just what I'll do.” I also drank almost a gallon of water a day – hard to estimate but I always had my blender bottle with my and I refilled it at least 5-6 times over the course of the day.

• Meal 1 – Oatmeal w/Whole Milk, Apple, Large Glass of Whole Milk.
• Meal 2 – Yogurt, Bread/Muffin/etc.
• Meal 3 – Carrots, Potatoes, Salad w/ French Dressing, 2 Grilled Chicken Breasts, two 12oz glasses of Whole Milk.
• Meal 4 / Snack – 2 Granola Bars.
• Meal 5 – Pasta, Bread sticks, Salad, 2 Salisbury Steaks, 2 12oz glass of Whole Milk, Mixed Vegetables.
• Meal 6 – Bread Chicken Tender Wrap w/ Lettuce, Bacon, and Bleu Cheese, French Fries, Whole Milk.

Did you allow yourself cheat meals?

Occasionally I binged on foods I had been craving such as large cheeseburgers, onion rings, milk shakes, etc. But I didn't make a big deal about it.

Please list 3 things you learned about diet and nutrition during your transformation?

1. It's not hard to eat healthy, you just have to take a second to think it over.
2. Eating a lot is hard at first, but your body slowly becomes accustomed to it – especially if you are burning a lot of calories during your workouts.
3. You can get everything you need from whole foods. Supplements should be used for exactly that – to supplement your diet if you need to make up for certain areas or need a little bit extra. They SHOULD NOT be your diet.

What supplements did you use during your transformation?

I ran a stack of VPX products – VPX Anarchy, VPX PowerShock BCAAs, and VPX Syngex Protein.

Advice For Others

What are your best tips for someone looking to make their own transformation?

1. Find something that motivates you to achieve you goals and use it – everyday. Be it a quote, moral support from family/friends/co-workers/etc, or a picture of you before with progress pictures along the way, or whatever it is.
2. Keep track and keep on track – use a journal and make notes of personal bests, goals, failures and what you plan to do about fixing them. You'd be surprised how the smallest “victories” that you keep track of will add up in the end when you can go through and look back from start to finish.
3. Never give up.

How do you stay motivated? What advice would you give to someone who’s having trouble staying on track?

I had my family and my girlfriend behind me the entire way, wanting to see me fully recover after my surgery. Since I had titanium plates in my face now, my girlfriend refers to me as her “Titanium Man” and I used that to push me to make my body fit the title. I also kept a journal, and compared it back to the journal I had kept prior to my surgery and saw where I wanted my numbers and such to be.

I knew it wouldn't be an overnight thing, but I was ready for a marathon however long it took. This contest was also a big boost because of the support through the online community at M&S and the other participants all urging each other on.

More From Shane Stadtmueller

What is your life like now that you’ve made a transformation?

Above and beyond my level of strength and performance before my surgery and still climbing.

What motivates you currently to keep improving yourself?

Sports. I'm a collegiate athlete and an overall competitive person so by using my sports performance as a motivational tool I know I can always improve whether it be bigger, faster, stronger, etc and it will always give me an advantage on the playing field.