MEN WE WANT TO TRAIN WITH

June 28, 2012 By

 

By Tracey Longo // With a second place finish under his belt at the 2012 Richmond Pro Bowl, this IFPA Heavyweight Pro has his sights set on his first pro win.

The first thing you notice about Donovan is his intensity, even before you are struck by his heavyweight physique, which by the way he keeps totally covered up in sweats in the gym. I know this because I am lucky enough to say that Donovan trains where I train. From all I’ve seen in the past year, he is a man on a mission and role model to many physique athletes: a doting dad, a high-level network engineer working to enhance federal government security and a natural pro bodybuilder who seems born to build and flex muscle. Meet a gentleman you’ll be hearing a lot about in the next year as he aims for the top of his sport.

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NAME: Donovan Darnell Strong, Silver Spring, MD

TRAINS AT: Gold’s Gym/Rockville, MD

CLAIM TO FAME:

2008 Overall Winner OCB Presidential Cup

2009 2nd Place Heavy Weight NPC Team Universe

2009 3rd Place Heavy Weight IFPA Yorton Cup

2012 2nd Place Heavy Weight IFPA Pro Bowl


TRAINING SPLIT:

Monday:       Chest and Biceps

Tuesday:      Quads and Hamstrings

Wednesday:  Shoulders, Abs, and Calves

Thursday:      Back and Triceps

Friday:           Abs and weaker body parts

Saturday:        Quads and Hamstrings

 

FAVORITE BODY PART TO TRAIN:

All of them

FAVORITE FOOD:

Steak and Shrimp

WHAT MOTIVATED YOU TO GET INTO BODYBUILDING:

What motivated me to get into bodybuilding was the encouragement I received from Yohnnie Shambouger (BTW, having Mr. Universe, Pan-American Games Gold Medal winner and IFBB Pro bodybuilder Yohnnie Shambouger tell you should be a bodybuilder, is akin to having Arnold tell you).  He approached me one day in the gym and suggested that I try it out because he thought that I had good potential.

GREATEST CHALLENGES AS A BODYBUILDER:

The greatest challenge for me is finding the best diet macros (ratios of carbs, proteins and fats) and training to be at my best on the day of the competition.

 

LESSON LEARNED THE HARD WAY:
Listen to your body.  I did not listen to my knees telling me to cycle the heavy squatting.  I now have arthritis in my knees.  However, this ailment has forced me to cycle heavy lifting and volume training and my legs are now improving and growing at an alarming rate.

NEXT UP FOR YOU:

My short term goals are to win the IFPA Yorton Cup Pro World Championship and earn a supplement sponsorship. With the help of Team Wilson (run by Cliff Wilson, who specializes in natural bodybuilding training, nutrition and peaking, www.teamwilsonbb.com), I plan on bringing my best for my next competition.

PERSONAL:

I am a Security Network Engineer for the Federal Government. I have two children Taylor Strong 12 and Dorian Strong 10.

WEBSITE/FACEBOOK/TWITTER:

I can be contacted at donovanstrong@yahoo.com or at http://www.facebook.com/donovan.strong

Lifestyle Photos by GEO Physique Photography