I recently had the pleasure of spending a day at Ultimate Performance in Mayfair, London. The idea of the day was to watch the IFBB Pro Ben Pakulski be trained by Nick Mitchell in preparation for the upcoming Arnold Classic and learn as much I could from the experts. The day would also include a personal training session, led by Ben and Nick; an opportunity the likes of which cannot be bought.

Fry Up + Nuts

My morning began early, travelling down to London via train from the North West of England. Thanks to Richard Branson I was able to start the day with the appropriate fuel in the form of a fry up, and with the addition of a handful of nuts I would hope to get the UP seal of approval.

Arriving in London, the walk to UP’s Mayfair gym from the tube station is certainly an interesting one. As a regular London goer I’m well accustomed to the latte scented corporate flurry of the City or the open-topped bus filled streets of the West-End, so I was not expecting the sights that lay before me. Mayfair is rich. Very rich. Every other building appears to be an Arab bank or holiday home, and the streets are lined with black Maybachs, Mercedes and Maseratis, with the occasional roar of a passing Ferrari breaking the silence of this quiet neighbourhood.

A Ferrari California 30 with a £16,500 number plate parked opposite UP

As I walked through Mayfair I passed the Saudi Arabian embassy guarded by three armed policemen. I did wonder if my day at UP would be equally as intimidating.

I needn’t have worried. Despite the slight “military bunker” feel of its underground access, upon entering I was warmly welcomed by a few of the UP trainers and sat down in the reception area. The view at this point is certainly interesting, directly facing a wall of Supplements all arranged and labelled in precise fashion. You instantly know this place means business.

Wall of supplements in reception at UP

The gym itself is laid out as one long rectangle with equipment running along both sides and with a 38 metre track down the middle for pulling sled, sprints, lunges and generally any other hellish activity. This place doesn’t feel “normal”. It has no giant LCD TV’s showing Sky News or banks of exercise bikes operated by riders engrossed in their copy of Fifty Shades of Grey. It’s actually a quiet place, occasionally interrupted by intense grunts and groans. On my arrival the overriding noises were those from Nick and the unmistakeable barking noise of Ben Pakulski, who were both working out together.

Ben warming up

After being joined by my fellow trainees, Nick and Ben came over and everyone introduced themselves and agreed their goals from this experience. Everyone’s first impressions of Nick and Ben was “Wow! They’re massive!” Nick is in great shape, and together with his height he has a commanding figure. And whilst not as tall, every muscle on Ben is absolutely huge. Together they would make a brilliant wrestling tag team. Nick discussed the general plan for the day which would begin with training Ben on Triceps and Shoulders, varying the intensity to prevent any issues with an existing injury. Ben had literally not worked his triceps for a year so this was going to be an interesting workout. Nick also detailed how Ben would utilise reverse bands for better deloading at the bottom of the bench press movement. He then advised how he would let Ben perform his warm up his own way due to his vast experience. He recommended that ordinarily PT’s should push their clients in their warm up, but in this case Ben was already performing what was a very extensive warm up session.

We then watched Nick take Ben through two very intense sessions either side of lunch, being careful not to aggravate any injuries but keeping the intensity right up, as high as Ben was happy to go. Ben knew that training with Nick was a real opportunity to improve before the upcoming competitions and so was eager to squeeze everything he could out of his time there. This led to many long technical conversations with Nick around which exercise, movement pattern, loading and tempo would be optimal. They experimented with different methods and chose what was best. Just watching those two guys converse for a few minutes you realise how knowledgeable and intelligent they both are. It’s like watching two scientists discuss the propulsion system of a new rocket. They seem to detach themselves from their own bodies and muscles, treating them like pieces of a complex machine in need of precise manipulation. But ultimately it came down to Ben doing the work and this is where Nick adds even more value by being able to push Ben harder than he thought he could go. Nick’s style blends a caring uncle with the drill instructor from Full Metal Jacket. Despite your protests, he knows exactly how far he can take you and will extract every last drop of effort before leaving you in a sweaty heap. But crucially he doesn’t go too far. He knows when something isn’t working and ensures form is correct at all times. He makes you feel every rep, targeting specific muscles rather than just moving the weight from A to B. His balance of encouragement and friendly beasting leaves you destroyed by the workout but masochistically wanting more next time.

One of the things that makes workouts at UP different is their intensity. The ethos seems to have little regard for how hard you’ve worked before and what other trainers might have told you. In the afternoon I was taken through a shoulders workout by Nick and Ben and I can certainly vouch for this. I was taken through a warm up of a few reps of the exercises I would be performing, varying the weights and explosiveness to ensure I would be ready for what was coming. Yes my muscles were ready, but mentally I was not. I knew this was going to be hard but I had no idea how hard I could actually be pushed. Nick and Ben alternated in their training of us and both ensured we had nothing left to give after the hour. By the end I could not lift my elbows up to my chest. I was empty.

Ben teaching Carl

I later asked Ben about the notion of intensity and if it is a purely mental thing that can be realised or if it is something that one must learn over time. He believed it to be the latter and to me this makes most sense. In my own gym sessions since my day at UP I have certainly been able to push myself significantly harder, partly by imaging Nick or Ben behind me, but mostly through the knowledge that I do have more to give despite what my body is telling me. Ben agreed that no-one can ever give 100%. “There is always more!” he said.

Nick giving it his all

Ten minutes after my workout I was finally able to lift the protein shake that Nick had provided. I was asked what supplements I would like it to be made from, but I could only manage to utter the words, “Chocolate…..Everything in it…” But damn that was a nice shake, easily the best I’ve ever tasted. I must find out what they use but it was a thick and malty chocolate, definitely on par with the £5 shakes from the likes of Gourmet Burger Kitchen.

As with the shakes, everything at UP’s Mayfair gym is top class. The whole environment is newly built; the equipment is top of the range, new and clean; and the talent and professionalism of its staff is unquestionable. There are many Personal Trainers floating around the gym at any one time and appear to operate in one of five different states:

1. Training clients and colleagues
2. Typing up notes and plans for clients
3. Working out themselves
4. Drinking protein shakes and taking BCAAs
5. Eating from tupperware bowls of chicken and rice

I was highly impressed with the team ethic that the PT’s convey, training each other in their free time and discussing dietary and training regimen over lunch. They all made us feel very welcome and physically they each stand as great examples of the lessons they teach.

If I could compare the experience to another sport it would be like training with the Barcelona football team at the Camp Nou. Having the very best facilities filled with athletes at the absolute top of their game is highly inspirational and represents the type of environment we should all strive to train in.

Despite the intensity of training, the gym does maintain a healthy balance of humour. At one point Ben was pushing Nick on some bicep curls, and received a brief response.

Ben: “COME ON! Touch that bicep!!”
Nick: “F**K OFF!”

The unmistakeable sight and sound of Ben training:

http://youtu.be/lHK12gNtqv0

Ben enjoyed getting his revenge on Nick

Nick getting intimate with Ben

During the day we were fortunate to have a lengthy Q&A session with Ben. Here is a summary of Ben’s personal opinions and recommendations.[Please note these points are somewhat out of context and are very generalised statements and pointers. They are not specific advice from Ben, Nick or UP.]

• Ben’s not a fan of Pre-Workout carbs, since they elevate serotonin, a neurotransmitter with sedative properties which can adversely affect motivation and energy levels. They can also create a hypoglycaemic effect during the workout. Instead Ben recommends focusing on dopamine and acetylcholine neurotransmitters through particular foods (e.g. meat and nuts) and supplements.
• Ben uses post workout carbs after hypertrophy sessions and generally not for strength focused sessions.
• Ben recommends the intake of Lysine with BCAAs (such as in BCAA Excellence 2.0).
• Ben’s not a fan of Intermittent Fasting for optimal body composition.
• Ben recommends the use of Proteolytic Enzymes, such as Trypsin and Bromelain, to deal with muscle soreness.
• Ben likes HIIT in very short bursts. Last year Ben did no more than 60 seconds of HIIT per workout.
• One technique Ben has used in the off season is to perform 6 weeks of bulking and then 3 weeks of cutting.
• One of Ben’s favourite educational resources is at www.abcbodybuilding.com
• One of the reasons Ben’s legs originally grew so big was his early training sessions with his friend where they would challenge each other to work harder and do more reps in the gym. One technique they used was to add an extra rep to their next set for every second the rested between sets.
• Ben recommends to try and keep workouts between 40-60 minutes in length.
• Ben rarely wears jeans, but when he does he wears out a pair in 6 days of wearing. He says that his legs rub together so much that he just tears straight through them.
  

  Nick’s Coconut Water

• Ben and Nick highly recommend practising posing. Ben said that by spending 2 hours each day for 2 days, doing nothing but posing, he was able to improve his physique by 25%
• Nick is a fan of coconut water due to the electrolyte content and drinks from a 1 litre carton during his workout.

The day finished upon the conclusion of Ben’s final workout. I did the usual super-fan thing and took the opportunity to get a few photos with Nick and Ben who were both very accommodating. As I left UP I reflected on the day and my great fortune for being invited down by Nick. I came away with a huge level of respect for the trainers at UP, and especially for Nick for what he has built and the way he conducts himself in the gym. And finally my absolute respect has to go to Ben who demonstrated to us all what it means to be an elite athlete at the top of their game. For Ben going to the gym isn’t about fun or vanity, it’s not a hobby or even a job. This is a way of life to Ben and he is truly committed to the cause. Everything he eats and drinks, every workout he does and every minute of rest he takes are all for the sole purpose of winning at competition. Ben works hard because he has to. He will train harder than you and eat better than you. He doesn’t see any other way. I think we can all learn something from this mentality.

Carl and Ben

Carl and Nick

Nick trying to look menacing