StressMonkey’s BodyBlog

I’ve been on here for one year.  Well, I lurked for a few months before that but I’ve been a member for one year.  I can attribute any success I’ve had with lifting with two main factors: BodySpace and my personal trainer.  BodySpace was really the kick in the pants that I needed to get myself to join a gym.  When I found this site I initially made these assumptions:

“Hmmmm, I bet this site is full of jocks and someone like me would be out of place.” - Nope

“I’m already 35.  There will be practically no one that started that late.” - Ugh, how embarrassing that I even thought that.

“Well there certainly won’t be anyone who was also never into sports on here.”  - Wrong wrong wrong.

When I started looking at profiles on here I was just amazed.  Amazed that there were lots of other people like me and amazed at the progress they made.  Seeing guys with similar starting builds and/or ages that had made incredible progress was beyond motivating.  I wanted to be one of them.

BodySpace is great because in my “offline” life I don’t have anyone I can discuss lifting with.  I’m an oddity among my acquaintances because I go to the gym, but on here I’m part of the norm.  I’ve gotten WAY more positive feedback (which is appreciated and motivating) than I ever thought I would.  I’ve learned so much from this site and I’ve also had a lot of laughs.

I’m looking forward to year two on BodySpace!

I got an anonymous blog comment that I felt that I had to respond to:

Hey,

I was just surfing the net, and stumbled across this page.

IMHO, you looked great from only doing your pushups. Actually, I think you looked better then than now. I suppose tastes differ, but I find myself moving away from gym workouts and protein bars.

You’ve already demonstrated that you can be healthy and strong by simple calisthenics. Will a seventeen inch arm really bring more fufillment to your life?

Your call. 

First off, thanks for the props and if that’s working for you more power to you.  As for me protein bars and the gym are one of the best things that’s ever happened to me.

Where my clothes used to swallow me now I fill them out.

Instead of being weak I feel strong.

Instead of being unhappy with how I look I can feel proud of what I’ve done and look forward to reaching for even higher goals.

People that used to joke about how skinny I was now can’t believe how much I’ve changed.

The gym is part of who I am now and I couldn’t be happier.  Bring on the 17 inch arms!

Whenever I read about reasons why people end up giving up on the gym boredom seems like it is always one of the main reasons. When I’m at the gym lots of thoughts go through my head.

"Ow, this hurts."
"Just have to make it through two more reps."
"I can’t believe I can lift this much more weight now."
"OMG this is heavy!"
"I really enjoy this particular exercise."
"Ew, who left a giant sweat puddle?"
"Oh no, they’re playing that Rob Thomas song again. "
"Yay! I gained weight."
"****! I lost weight."
"Wow, this pump feels amazing."

But I never, ever get close to thinking "I’m bored." I can’t wrap my head around how someone could think that. An intense gym session is such a rush. It’s the opposite of boring. Is this because I’m a cardio slacker? If all I did at the gym was walk on a treadmill then maybe I could understand.

After experiencing both for roughly the same amount of time I still haven’t decided which one is better.

Working out with a partner has a lot of benefits.  The most obvious one is always having a spotter.  With barbell benching my personal trainer would have me attempt weight that I would never even consider trying by myself (one rep max type lifts).  Dumbbell benching is also so much easier with a spotter.  Having him hand me the dumbbells when I’m ready is so much simpler than when you’re alone.  When I start doing heavier weight it’s not the benching itself that gives me trouble, its getting into position that is really awkward.

Another difference with working out with my trainer is that he pushed me way, way, way past my comfort zone.  When your arms are jelly and you don’t think you can do another rep he can give you assistance and you keep going.  Straight barbell curling comes to mind especially.  I remember thinking “There’s no way I can do another one” but he wouldn’t let me stop.  A little help with the upward movement and there’s another rep!  If you’re alone and you can’t do another rep with good form then than set is over.  The problem is that he pushed me too hard sometimes.  There were two instances in particular where I almost blacked out and we had to stop the session for that day.  When I’m on my own I can pace myself appropriately and if I need to take a longer break no one is watching the clock.

Having a workout partner can also be a lot of fun.  My trainer and I really shared a lot of laughs.  He’s a funny guy and we joked around a lot.  When I started out I thought of going to the gym as something I had to endure to look the way I wanted to.  He helped me understand that it can be a fun activity even though you’re working harder than you ever have.  Of course people can take this too far.  I shake my head at the people I see standing around and talking endlessly.  You’re at the gym people!  Work out!

Of course there are negatives also.  The biggest problem I had with using a personal trainer was the damage it did to my wallet.   Ouch ouch ouch.  I definitely would have continued training with him longer in a perfect world, but the amount of money it was costing me made that impossible.  Also getting my schedule to match up with his was extremely annoying.  Want to work out on Sundays?  Sorry, he doesn’t.  You’d rather work out really late at night?  Sorry, be here at 8pm!  I love being able to make my own schedule.  When I ditched my personal trainer I quickly switched to working out four days a week (instead of three) at times that were convenient to me.

I think the most glaring difference about working out alone is accountability.  Success or failure all rests on your shoulders.  You don’t have anyone to blame but yourself if you slack off or don’t get the results you want.  I’ve continued to make gains on my own.  My personal trainer gave me the knowledge and motivation to continue on my own.  Is being on my own better?  I’m still not sure, but I’m enjoying the ride.

I had an awesome week at the gym.

Tuesday was International Chest Day.  My eyes lit up when I saw that the weight belt was sitting unused on the accessories stand.  I don’t have a weight belt and usually the gym’s one is locked up with the personal trainers’ things.  I grabbed it, headed over to the dip station,  and strapped on a 45 pound plate.  I did 15 reps and immediately started toying with the idea of strapping on another 45 pounds (which I’ve never done).  I debated it for a few seconds and then said “screw it” and did it and banged out 10 reps.  I wasn’t even sure I could do any so I was thrilled that I managed to get 10.  After another rest period I did another 10 reps.  Wow, that was defnitely an “I can’t believe I’m doing this” feeling as I was doing them.

Yesterday I was working the arms with barbell curls.  Those have always been one of the hardest arm exercises for me but I really enjoy them.  I can vividly remember doing them with my trainer.  After a few sets my arms would just be blasted and I would think that I had nothing left in my tank but he made me keep going.  As I was trying to curl he would push the bar up just a tiny bit.  I can remember I could barely do reps with the 60 pound barbell without him helping me.  Yesterday I decided to try using the 80 pound barbell and I was able to get 8 reps with it.  I made it a point to force myself not to swing my back around.  That was a bad habit of mine it took me a long time to break.  Man that felt awesome getting those reps out.

I officially take back what I said about not caring how strong I am.  Strength gains kick @ss!

Hmmm, maybe the fitness equipment in that Brookstone catalog isn’t so weird after all!

Is that thing attacking her?

In three months this kid is going to be ripped!

Er, exactly what muscle group does this work?

Please tell me he’s not doing what it looks like he’s doing.

http://lumq.com/07/vintage-fitness-equipment

One year ago I decided to start training and eating properly. I forced myself to join a gym, which is something I had been putting off for years. I knew next to nothing about weightlifting and was off the charts intimidated and self conscious the first day. I could not have felt more out of place.

I was incredibly lucky that I was placed with a fantastic personal trainer and stumbled across Bodyspace. Both have been great sources of information and motivation.

Now I look forward to lifting and can’t imagine not doing it.

I had tears in my eyes after watching this for some reason.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVjzd320gew

Today I was minding my own business walking towards a station when I heard someone yell out to me “Hey, what are you doing here so late??”  I recognized the voice (or so I thought) and I turned around.  I could see part of the person who spoke but his face was blocked by the machine that was between us.  “Me, what the heck are you doing here so late?” I yelled back.

Then he stepped out from behind the machine.  We stared at each other for what felt like an eternity.  I was thinking “Oh hell.  I don’t know this guy.”  He was thinking “I wasn’t talking to you jackass!”

“I was talking to him bro.”

“Oh.  Sorry.  You sound like someone I know.”

UGH!

Like everyone else I see things at the gym that annoy me sometimes, but every once in a while you see something really cool.

I was using a benching station and this guy next to me loaded up a good amount of weight.  He asked a random person to spot him and he completed a set.  Then he racked the weight, thanked random spotter guy, and then laid down again, grabbed the bar and proceeded to lock his legs together.  This is kind of hard to explain but he then lifted his legs high in the air, almost as if he was pointing at something on the ceiling with his toes.  Part of this torso was off the bench.  I absolutely could not believe how long he was able to hold himself in that position.

After a very brief rest period he did the whole process again.  I was really curious and asked him if the whole legs in the air routine was an ab workout.  "Yeah dude, and it’s freaking hard.  It’s a killer."

I’m still deciding if I want to try it or not. 

Edit:  Ok, someone pointed out to me what these are called (Dragon’s Flag).  The guy’s feet were higher, but this is basically it.  He held that position without moving.

Edit 2: I said "screw it" and tried to do these at the gym today. Ho-lee-cow these are so freaking hard. I couldn’t hold the position for long at all.