Gabrielle Reilly: What/who was your
first inspiration to begin body building?
Mark Dugdale: I
would say two men sparked my interest in bodybuilding and
both inspired and guided my path as a teenager. The first
was junior
high school
science teacher named, John Burkholder. I bought my first weight
bench from him in 1990 at the age of 15. John brought me with
him to a local
high school gym to train after school and later helped me with
my mandatory poses before my first contest in 1993. John’s
bodybuilding achievements included winning the 1977 Mr. USA
as a lightweight as well as an overall
win in 1979 at the IFBB North American. I consider John not only
an inspiration, but a personal friend and brother in Jesus
Christ. John
is no longer a science teacher, but is involved in a local prison
ministry – we
still talk from time to time. He will be featured in an interview
in my upcoming sequel DVD to DRIVEN, titled Beyond DRIVEN.
Second, would be 6-time Mr. Olympia Dorian Yates. He was the
first professional bodybuilder I saw at the age of 17 back in
1992. I
read his book Blood & Guts and adopted much of his training
philosophy which is known today as High Intensity Training (HIT).
Dorian is
now in his 10th year of retirement from bodybuilding, but I had
the pleasure
of traveling to Birmingham, England to personally train with
him in his infamous Temple Gym, nicknamed The Dungeon. It was
a super
cool
experience getting to train with the guy who inspired my induction
into the iron game. The entire trip was filmed and the DVD is
titled A Week in the Dungeon.
Gabrielle Reilly: What do you do to keep
motivated?
Mark Dugdale: I
think it takes a special, if not slightly obsessed, person to
compete in professional bodybuilding.
I’m a bit of a perfectionist and
have always possessed a drive to be my absolute best in whatever
I undertake. I consider everything I undertake an opportunity
to succeed
and absolutely hate failing. As one of the smaller guys in terms
of stature, I will probably never have the opportunity to be
crowned Mr.
Olympia, yet it’s not just about winning on stage. I want to
use the gifts God has given me to inspire others to change their
lives for the better. Until I know I have achieved all I’m
physically capable of I continue to strive for improvement.
Gabrielle Reilly: How do
you fit your overall training/dieting into your lifestyle?
Mark
Dugdale: My schedule is
tightly packed with a wife,
three daughters and business
to run. I only train
4 nights a week and do most of
my cardiovascular
exercise before my family is awake. With several pieces
of cardio
equipment in my home, my daughters often join me in exercising
when I’m
performing more than one session per day in preparation
for a contest. Eating healthy
and exercising is really
a lifestyle in which my
whole
family subscribes.
Gabrielle Reilly: Do you have days when the last thing you want to
do is step foot in a gym?
Mark Dugdale: Not
really. I’ve always enjoyed lifting weights and pushing
my body in the gym… perhaps more so than competing.
I only lift weights four days a week and it’s become
an integral part of my life. If I don’t go to the
gym something doesn't
feel right.
Gabrielle Reilly:
Do you change up your routine to fight boredom or do you use straight
discipline and stick to the same regiment?
Mark Dugdale:
I tend to switch things up every 6 weeks or so. I do it partly
to avoid boredom, but also because the human body is great at adapting.
You
need to constantly keep the body guess to trick it into improving
and this requires some variety.
Gabrielle Reilly:
Do you have allocated binge days/meals?
Mark Dugdale: I consider eating a
part of my job, not something I do for pleasure.
I’ve become so in tune with
my body and it is accustomed to healthy, quality food that binging
on
bad food
isn’t even fun or tempting
anymore.
Gabrielle Reilly: What do you do when you
feel like breaking your diet?
Mark Dugdale: I simply put it out of my mind. I’m a pretty
disciplined guy and sticking to my game plan is very important
to me. I want
to walk
on stage knowing I did everything in my power to be my personal
best. I guess one thing I may do to curb hunger is to juice with
vegetables.
I’m a big fan of the benefits of juicing
and find it is an easy way to fill you up without
adding
a bunch of calories.
Gabrielle Reilly:
At what age did you start training?
Mark Dugdale: My parents bought me my
first plastic weight set when I was about
13 or 14.
Gabrielle Reilly:
Did you play any sports?
Mark Dugdale:
I had a real love for soccer and was pretty good having played
since I was 6 years old. I was also involved in track, cross
country and
football.
Gabrielle Reilly:
Were you really muscular as a child/teenager?
Mark Dugdale:
I always had a better physique than most kids my
age, probably because I was so active in sports. I wouldn’t
say I had a ton of muscle, but I was pretty symmetrical.
Gabrielle Reilly:
For parents out there concerned about their children’s
health and obesity what words of advice would
you offer them on fitness,
motivation and diet for children?
Mark Dugdale:
You show me an obese, unhealthy child and I can guarantee they
have obese, unhealthy parents. Americans have become exceedingly
lazy both
in lack of exercise, but also in a willingness to plan and
cook healthy meals. My wife, Christina, and I both exercise together
and she is
committed to buying healthy food and preparing nutritious dinners.
The best thing you can do for your child is be a positive example.
If you are sitting down and eating healthy food as a family
and
your children see you exercising vs. watching TV in the evenings
then they
will follow in your footsteps. I have no doubt in my mind that
my daughters will never struggle with obesity because they
are being brought up
in a healthy environment.
Gabrielle Reilly:
What age do you think is ideal for children/teenagers to start
lifting weights?
Mark Dugdale:
This is an often debated subject, but I personally
think lifting light weights from the teenage years
is not a risk. They key
is to lift lighter
weights as a young person’s bones
are still developing. There is no need
to lift
extremely heavy weight at a young
age. Weight
training coupled with some cardiovascular
exercise is idea.
Gabrielle Reilly:
Do you work outside the fitness industry?
Yes, I’m a 50% owner in a company called Garden Fresh Foods.
We are a fresh-cut produce manufacturer who services both the food
service industry as well as institutional users of fresh-cut produce
in the Pacific Northwest on the wholesale level. Many professional
bodybuilders only job is training and competing, however despite the
wonderful support my sponsors at Nutrex Research provide me; I cannot
support a family on bodybuilding alone. Additionally, I have to think
beyond the muscles and how I will provide for my family’s
future when my time in bodybuilding is
over. Some may consider working a
job aside from competing as a detriment,
but I consider it a blessing. If all I
did was eat, sleep and train all day I
would probably
go nuts.
END OF INTERVIEW
Well thanks very
much for your time Mark. If you would like to find out more about
Mark please visit his site at www.markdugdale.com.
If you would like
to learn more about children lifting wieghts this article might
help "Is
Your Son Tough Enough?"
"The power of imagination
makes us infinite."
– John Muir
Gabrielle Reilly Weekly ©
