The $100,000 Man

Glenn Lovelace won a hundred large in Bodybuilding.com's $250,000 Transformation Challenge with a few not-so-secret weapons in his back pocket: Jim Stoppani's Shortcut to Shred program and JYM supplements.

Written By Jim Stoppani, PhD

Updated September 28, 2023

By Joe Wuebben, Editorial Director, JYM Fitness Network

Glenn Lovelace is one of the fortunate few who have managed to get paid for working out. As the male grand prize winner of Bodybuilding.com’s recent 12-week $250,000 Transformation Challenge, the 35-year-old Lovelace won a check for $100,000 for having the most impressive before-and-after physique overhaul.

That’s not a typo. Glenn Lovelace trained his ass off and stayed strict with his diet and supplement regimen for three months straight and won $100,000 for his efforts. One hundred large!

Here are a few of the before-and-after pictures that sealed the deal for Glenn’s win:

And here are the before-and-after “measurables” of his transformation:

Before After

Weight 226 lbs 187 lbs

Body Fat 20% 5.5%

*Glenn also lost over 10 inches on his waist. “I feel it’s beneficial mentally to track all three metrics – weight, body fat and waist size," he says. "If the scale doesn’t move, hopefully my waist or body fat changed that week. These changes gave me confidence to keep going, or the lack there of was an indication to switch and tweak something to keep it moving.”

We know what you’re wondering…

How did he do it? What training program and diet did he follow, and what supplements did he take?

The answers…

(1) Jim Stoppani’s Shortcut to Shred for both training and diet.

(2) Pre JYM and Shred JYM were two of his main go-to supplements.

Aside from a great program and great supplements, Lovelace did it all through sheer determination and an almost superhuman work ethic. He’s married, has five children (including a new baby just born last month, months after the challenge), and works multiple jobs – primarily as an internet marketing consultant, with a part-time job at UPC doing an early morning pre-load shift. Up until recently, he also worked for a local Fire and Rescue team.

He also overcame hernia surgery in October and bilateral carpal tunnel surgery in November, making his transformation all the more impressive.

So yes, he managed to train diligently for 12 weeks on top of all of these work and family responsibilities, plus a couple medical setbacks. Truly a workhorse effort right there!

Want more details on how Glenn accomplished such a great transformation and won a nice chunk of change for all his hard work? Here were his keys to success, straight from Glenn himself:

The first step in his transformation:

“I started with the simplest possible thing: I went to the store and picked up a cheap notebook. I started creating my own personalized plan based around meal plans I had purchased and from some articles on bodybuilding.com. I mapped out everything I could think of – training schedules, goals, visions, meal plan options, supplements, music, etc.

“Once I had my thoughts, plans and goals down on paper, I had a newfound strength and drive. All I had to do was stick to my plan one hour and one day at a time. I knew the results would be slow at first and pour on fast later. When the difficulties came, I would simply refer back to the plan and the goals and the hard times quickly passed.”

His specific plan of action:

“I used Jim Stoppani’s Shortcut to Shred program found on bodybuilding.com as my foundation for workouts and nutrition.

“Upon arriving to the gym, I’d incline treadmill walk at 11% incline, 3.0 to 3.5 mph, for 12 to 15 minutes. My goal was to get my heart rate up to 130-140 as quickly as I could and then maintain that for the remainder of the time block. Then I’d hit the suggested workout based on Shortcut to Shred.

“I followed that up with more incline walking. I started at about 20 minutes after my workout and built up to 40 minutes.

“Then I’d go back to the gym at least eight hours later and do another 40 minutes of steady-state cardio with perhaps some stretching or body weight-type exercises. In the beginning, I did this two to three times per week. I just wanted to be more active. With four to five weeks left, I ramped it up to a daily gig where I worked out twice a day. It took a LOT of time but I was rewarded by a lot of progress.”

His biggest struggles during the 12-week challenge:

“My struggle was trying to figure out how to get adequate rest. I have too much going on in my life and I don’t make room for recovery. Then comes Sunday and I completely crash, hoping my body can be ready come Monday to break it down again.

“On days where my appetite was limited, I’d hit my minimum protein levels, which was 188 grams. (My high end was 225 grams of protein per day.) I really tried to listen to my body instead of just sticking to such a rigid plan. The way I used to do it, it would be 11:00 at night and I’d need to get to sleep, but I’d be chomping on protein trying to squeeze it all in – literally force-feeding myself, and I hated it. This time around, I didn’t sweat the small stuff day to day.”

How he pushed through and finished strong:

“I held myself accountable daily and weekly. I made detailed notes in my training log. I also tried to hide my doubts, and I simply ignored them. There was a day that I thought about quitting, or at least easing up – that was about three or four weeks before the end. I messaged a good friend of mine and told her my plan. To my surprise, she basically told me I was an idiot and that I should do the complete opposite.

“I gave it some thought and decided she was right – that if anything, I should put the gas pedal all the way down, as if it wasn’t already before. Somehow, each week I continued to be capable of more and more, physically and mentally.”

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