I think people should stick to one goal at a time and attack that goal with 100% focus and dedication. From experience trying to juggle a few things at once led to mediocre results in each area. I am talking about dieting, muscle gain, strength gain etc. If you enter a diet and are worried about muscle and strength decreases you probably won't diet as hard as you should. If you try to gain muscle and are too worried about getting a little soft, you probably won't gain as much muscle as you could have. This doesn't mean be stupid and take things too far (sloppy diet and getting fat, V-Diet and wasting away all your muscle), but stay focused on one thing at a time and you'll do better at it.

I am my greatest opposition to progression.

If you have been doing shit long enough your own way and want a change of pace in your training, working with premade programs can be nice.

<3 John Meadows' recent stuff on here.

The past week I've relearned a lot. I was training with moderate volume, and the trainer in the gym invited me to be workout pals. He trains with a heck of a lot of volume, but I'm seeing results strength and mass wise. A friend has told me that my progress has been faster lately. I think it'd be ridiculous if I told you how much I ended up putting on the incline bench (one before the last chest exercise), but the pumps, the weight, have never been better. I'm not as "advanced" as some guys here, but you come to a certain level where you have to create a mindset again. Basically I came to the conclusion that I wasn't thinking that I was capable of doing the things I can do right now (dumbell rowed 155 for 6 reps, squatted 4 plates for about 8 reps even though not atg). These are things that many would say "I can do that, your numbers are low, etc..." but I think that this has put me on my way to get to the next level. I guess you can "have a feeling" when you're gonna have some big gains, I'm on the right track right now.

Very general thoughts, basically abstracting from what I've learned from my biggest mistakes. Not all of it stems from my training, but all of it applies to training, imho.

* leave ego out of discussions and when prepping for something

* learn to commit to something for long *enough* to be able to judge if it works for you or not

* no matter how much you know and did: you can always find new stuff that works for you, even from people who are NOT at your level of development

* doing the necessary/right thing isn't always doing the fun thing; but the ultimate goal should be so that it brings you joy

* when shit hits the fan, the next best thing to progressing is not regressing

* there's always something you can improve on

* doing sub-optimal stuff is better than doing nothing

* take satisfaction in small achievements without losing sight of your goals

* falling off the wagon sucks; just make sure to get back on

* there's not ONE perfect way of doing something

Okay here's some of mine:

- No matter what you think, you can always do more, and do better.

- Ego kills.

- Nothing is optimal. Don't worry about optimality and just get thins done.

-Real Progress doesn't come easily.

-Ask yourself after every workout if you will be able to look back tomorrow and KNOW that you gave your all today.

-Doing what is inconvenient, difficult, or something what others just can't be bothered to do over a prolonged period of time is what makes champions.

-LIFE is much more important that the gym,... but the gym definitely contributes. Keep things in perspective, but be able to respect your decisions years from now.


S

TOO many people I see in the gym my age want results, and when it comes time to put in the work, never follow through, yet they still complain that they are not lean enough, or not strong enough, or not big enough. That is just plain irritating.

Everybody wants to know what you take, no one wants to know how much time goes into what we do.

As for my training, returning to perfect form, and solid technique has been integral for my own development. Heavy weights are great, but don't always build the type of muscle we want.

Being able to train in stressfull times and getting the necessary calories in equals good sleep and good results. The flow... it's there... somewehere... lol.

Thoughts on food intake:



"I'll have seconds, please."


###

"I'll have thirds, please."

Why...Why do i feel the need to do this? Why do i put myself in these situations that if i dont let someone else down, i wreck myself. Why...Why am i in the gym daily, for hours on end. Why...why am i counting nutrients, weighing meat, measuring everything to the T. Why...Why have i been gaining weight for years to only then take a half a year to Lose the weight and STILL not be at a point where i am close to ready? Why am i surrounded by things i cant have, sucked into a world of food i cant touch, and spat on by a society of supersizing, lard injecting, fatassess. Essentially shunned, labeled as an outcast simply because i say No to the drinks at the bar, say 'i cant have that' when someone offers me sweets. THose are my current thoughts on bodybuilding, competition prep, and how it effects me.

Why does no one talk about the pro's use of synthol, DNP, thyroid meds, minimums of 1gram of test yearly, use of blast amd cruise (i.e. excuse to stay "on" yearly)?

In my experience, I have never been made to feel badly about my lifestyle because I feel that people see how hard I work and respect it. I have a number of friends who all eat, act, and live differently, and we all get along well by respecting what each other values.

That being said, some feel intimidated, angry, and envious of the results, and as such have feelings of disdain. Many don't like to see others succeed or do better than them, regardless of what it is. They would much rather see you fail.

If you just play your game, and not worry about other's issues with what you do (that being bodybuilding) you will be successful and happy.

I outworked everyone in my gym tonight cause I want it more.

It is real hard to get in 300+ g of protein when your're only allowed to eat in an 8-hour window, and your gym time occurs in said window. Other than that, this intermittent fasting thing is the easiest diet I've ever done so far.

Yes I eat that many eggs every day and my cholesterol is just FINE!