Ray’s BodyBlog

I’ve been very fortunate to receive a lot of nice compliments from other BodySpace members.  Well over half of the comments end with something like “… for your age” or some other reference to age.  I’m always flattered and motivated when I get a compliment, but I wonder why it is apparently so unusual for a guy my age to be in shape?  I see guys on here all the time who are near my age or older, some of them are even competitors!  So, it makes me wonder — Why do guys stop working out?

I also wonder — If I was 38 and in the same shape, would I still get compliments or would I just blend in with the crowd?  I’ve had a broken shoulder, 2 bulging discs in my lumbar spine, and a broken foot and finger, but these were just bumps in the road.

I realize by not starting to lift until I was 45 I got a late start and have a lot of catching up to do, but honestly, short of some physical disability, I see no reason to stop.  Lifting makes me feel good about myself, it keeps me as active as guys 20 years younger than me, it makes it easy to buy and wear clothes and it gives me a lot to look forward to.   Why would I, or anyone else, want to give all that up?  I have no idea?

~Ray

Does It Bother Anybody Else?

Sometimes don’t you wish there was a special place for those BodySpacers who like to repost their progress photos, day after day, hour after hour, minute after minute. I’ve come to learn there is even a term for this – flipping photos!

When two or 3 guys (or 5 or 10) post their photos over and over and over, it makes it hard to weed through the first couple of pages of “flipped photos” to find the photos that were posted ONE time of a guy who really made some serious progress and should be recognized for it.

I thought BodySpace was for helping and motivating each other to be our personal best. But, what is appears to be for a few is a hotly contested popularity contest which if often NOT won by the person with the best physique or the greatest progress, rather is it won by the person who reposted – flipped – their photos the most or posted the most provocative photos.

It’s interesting to watch someone repost their photos for several days – they make it to the top 6 and they stop flipping photos – then when their numbers start to drop, they start posting the same old profile and progress photos again. I frankly get tired of the seeing the same guys on there all the time. I mean, once you had your shot at it, give someone else a chance! Bow out gracefully, not pathetically. You sure don’t want to ask anybody about it – they get very defensive.

I will encourage, compliment and motivate anyone who has shown some determination to reach a goal or is making progress – I will not, on the other hand, feed your ego. Put the popularity contest somewhere at the bottom of the page and give prominence to those demonstrating real progress.

As always, this is just my opinion and you are welcome to share yours, as well! ~Ray

Why Don’t We Motivate, Support, and Compliment Each Other In The Gym The Same Way We Do On BodySpace?

The motivation from BodySpace members is phenomenal! It has given me the drive to get in the best shape of my life! I’m thankful for what I sort of stumbled into on here, but I’m also puzzled by why we don’t give the same credibility and support to guys at the gym?

I’m really lucky to know several of my BodySpace friends personally. But, I’ve only been on here about 3 months and have literally gotten over a thousand encouraging comments from people I’ve never even met. On the other hand, I’ve been a member of a gym for over 12 years. I see the same people frequently but with only a few exceptions, we don’t pat each other on the back. We talk, we are friendly, but we just don’t say - DAMN, NICE WORK MAN! or WOW, YOUR ARMS ARE LOOKING PHENOMENAL! like we do on here. We don’t motivate and push each other, unless perhaps it comes from a training partner.

It seems like an opportunity missed!

I’m fairly shy and rarely speak first, but once I get to know someone, its hard to shut me up! I find myself wanting to compliment other people in the gym, but because it is not the “common” thing to do, I usually don’t. I guess I think they will view me as some kind of weirdo!

Do you find the same to be true where you train? Do you have any ideas as to why we DON’T do the one thing we could to help each other be our personal best?

Regardless of the reasons, I’m very thankful we are secure enough to talk to each other on here! It certainly has made a HUGE difference in my training and in the way I look and feel!  ~Ray