Eric Dubas just claimed a haul of medals at the NPC Valley of the Sun Championships in Arizona, but the 39-year-old credits an unusual form of cardio for helping him gain an advantage over his fellow competitors. In a post-win chat with M&F’s Chief Content Officer, Zack Zeigler, Dubas says that unorthodox activities such as painting his house may have given him the edge.
Dubas is a software engineer and an entrepreneur working on real estate projects. He’s competed in around 10 bodybuilding competitions, and ahead of the NPC Valley of the Sun Championships, he also had to contend with moving to Arizona for a job, but his hectic lifestyle never threatened to derail his progress. Instead, he was sure to begin his initial prep last year. “I started kind of ramping down right around the summer,” says Dubas. “I went full on in mid-January, so probably 12 weeks out (from the competition).”
Wings of Strength
Being driven to succeed meant that Eric Dubas had to find a way to make his outside tasks align with his bodybuilding activities. “It’s contagious in itself,” he says of his winning mindset. “You’re really regimented with it.” And when it came to those extracurricular activities around his house move, Dubas was able to make it work to his advantage. “I was paining my house,” he shares. “So, it’s being active outside of [training], for the first time.”
Dubas got his house painted, and there’s no doubt that his hard work of training, diet, and the additional energy expended through painting all helped him to present a ripped physique on the day. By the time the house paint had dried, Eric Dubas was awarded with 1st place in the Masters 35+, 1st place in the Open Class, and he was also named as the overall physique champ. The big man now intends to continue balancing his career while also earning his pro card. “I would definitely get started earlier,” says Dubas of the advice that he would give to a younger version of himself. “In my 20s, I thought about doing a show. I just never really felt ready. Now I realize that you never feel ready, you just have to do it!”
