Transformer in training

So, people constantly going through cycles in life…sometimes your up and sometimes your down…there are moments of great confidence and then moments of great shyness. Then people fall into ruts, into categories where they are apathetic and unwilling, for one reason or another, to live up to their fullest potential…aannnndddd that is me.

So, I am trying to vow to do several things:

1. Realize that I actually am making good progress and I have a decent physique.

2. Gotta start realizing that bad nutrition and heavy weightlifting is sooo counterproductive.

3.Focus more on my assets than my negatives.

So, today I got over myself….and hopefully some of you will too. It’s a hard process…but somebody’s got to do it.
Today, while eating my chicken nuggets and french fries,I realized that I could do so much better. Sometimes…okay many times…I get on here a complain about my progress and how I am not where I need to be. Well, hell the nutritional facts on the back of the chicken nugget and french fry bag will tell me why I am not progressing!

Excuse me sirs, the sauna is meant for the enjoyment of everyone WITHOUT having to thinking about nasty funguses that may be prevalent because of misuse of the facility. Excuse me, but please don’t walk into the steam room with your boxers (Guy 1) and briefs(Guy 2). First, for your safety you should wear something more than that….and for our safety we would not like to have germs from your nuts that may have slipped through thin underwear. I mean really people?!?!?!?!

Excuse me sir, I know that you have a shirt on that says "Lambuth Football" and you are probably very interested in strength,size and power seeing your stature. However, can you please not, in stalking manner, walk over to where I am on every set…even though where you are working out at it on the other side of the gym, to see what I am doing. Oh and sir…it is not kosher for you to follow me back to the sauna, which is in the back of the gym away from everyone else! I make look small…but that won’t matter because you might not see me at all after I press your button from you making some aggressive move!

Maybe it’s because I have worked in the judicial arena that I am so cautious of my surroundings…sometimes it seems borderline paranoid. But, for the most part….people, as usual, in my gym just do some really awkward things!!!

I really don’t know how many people can say that they have made it through the world alone? Sometimes, you have people who say "I did it all on my own" and, to some degree, that is most likely true. However, it seems to me that many times when have informal mentors and inspiration that seem to come from someone and sometimes….somethings.

Rationale
Since I know people won’t read long blogs…let me put it to you like this. I often times peruse this site and am very critical of some of the people who use this site. Why? Because some people are super vein, pushing their own agenda, or are trying to sell you something….like ‘on-line’ training or some supplements.

What I am trying to say.

In all of this, I may fail to mention the bigger purpose that this site provides…mentoring and inspiration. I stil consider myself to be the novice bodybuilder (No planned routine, no real knowledge on good nutrition and not dedicated as much as others).So, for me this site gives me the opportunity to meet people who are more advanced at this who can provide a form of mentorship and inspiration. I also can just find, at times, pictures of others guys who provide inspiration for me to ’stick with it’ or ’shut up and lift’!

So, with all of the things I have to say about bodyspace and some of what I believe to evil tactics…there are many good and I am appreciative of that! So, go out!!! Use the site to find you a mentor or some inspiration! It may actually motivate you to stop slacking (Like I am currently doing) and get to the gym!!!!

Best of luck to you!

Well, the end of summer has come, actually its tommorow…but it’s close enough. My goal? Was it met? Well not really…well maybe it was. I did meet a sub-goal….get stronger but can never reach that elusive goal off being lean…like competition type lean. Then…as I drove through the city, I figured I would stop in to Vitamin Shoppe. I was tempted…really tempted to by the nice shiny bottle of Hydroxycut Black label or rocket pills or Lipo6 Ultra…I stood there just contemplating whether I wanted to spend this mere $40.00 bucks to have those striations crawl across my body as if it they were the pieces of thread delicately keeping my body tight or if I wanted to remove that layer of fat to see the muscles that ache so many days after training?

Then I thought. HELL YEA!!!!! But, I want to be alive to see all of that too! So, I think I will just continue to diet and run and I left the store!!!
But it was soooooo sooooooooo tempting!
Whatever, we can’t all get what we want can we? Well most of us can’t at least!! Happy lifting folks and this blog does not mean that I have something against you because you use these products.

Often times, it seems really weird to me that I see people saying this in the gym (LITERALLY) or raising up their shirts in the gym after doing an arm workout….but their in the mirror,by me!!!!!, flexing their abs and then….omg…then….you have people on bodyspace who have all of these super creative pictures with these crazy lighting effects and titles. Is it me?? Am I just being to critical of some people and things? I don’t really think I am.

Now, let me just say what really gets me and I guess this comes from my lack of playing on sports teams. But, why do people in the gym seem like they want to compete with you? Is this some manly gene that i don’t know about. Why is that people act is if, while I am in my corner of the gym working out, that you need to come AAAALLLLL the way over where I am….load up some heavy weight and go to work? I’m not impressed! As a matter of fact, there are many things that I am not impressed with. What I am impressed by is people with hubris,tact,drive,a sense of reciprocity,excitement. If you can find a way to do that, even thought you are not looking for me to respect you, then plenty of people will respect you as hardworking honest man…not some weird show off!!

Okay…I’m off my bandstand!!! Man…I feel much better after this blog.

Peace!

That it was important to rest. It may have been a bodybuilding magazine…but I am pretty sure I read it in the bible somewhere too.So, my latest workout regime and ‘dieting’ has brought me up in weight a cool 6lbs.Sounds good right? I think so. Over the past few days, I have been waking up every morning just aching…chest aching,legs aching…tendinitis of some sort in my elbow. I am literally over here tearing my self down.

Well, today? I decided a no gym day was going to be a good one.So, I took a break…well actually I had a busy day at work and meetings for most of the night and I have to study (That’s the real reason). But, I must give myself credit when I can.

Simple tactics,simple ways…doing what bodybuilders have been doing for years….Lesson # 1 - Rest

Yesterday was the first day of class and I had a later workout than usual. Since school is back in session the gym now closes at 10:30pm. So, I am like "Cool nobody will be there it will be great". So while I am in class learning about holdings,dicta,Stare decisis et non quieta movere,  and how reasoning - facts = rules…I also pondered on the time I have spent trying to upgrade my physical health. As a result of that, I decided this morning to review past journal entries that have marked my trials and tribulations and success during this awesome quest over the last few years. If you look to a previous blog…I have always seemed to have this uncanny knack to say some of the dummest and sometimes funniest things! Speaking of that…let me try again today….

I know that everyone has to start somewhere. Yesterday, the gym looked as if most do after the New Year…crowded as heck!!! Man, people where in their playing on the cell phone, hanging out in there as if it was a club, talking about fighting and beating up people,yelling across the gym about how they are just hitting light weights today..when some of them were clearly struggling, and others who act as if we are on the prison yard and they mug you around the entire gym (You move to one machine…they move to one next to you, mug you and when you are finished with that machine they go check out the weight  and see if they can increase it or not and so on and so forth)and then you had the ones who were just starting to hit the gym. You know, those who seem to be intimidated by the crazies I mentioned above.

So, yesterday? It was a an interesting one…but tonight? I gotta feeling it’s going to be a good night!

Peace out folks and happy lifting.

Don’t be tricked..First let me say that this about someone I saw at the gym…not me. There is a guy, who comes in every time I do and does squats and a few bench presses. He does about 3 plates on the left and three on the right;when he bench presses he does two on the left and two on the right.

Well for the first time, in at least about 3 to 4 weeks of training..I saw him do bicep curls. He was using some 30lbs and had a hard time with them?!?!?!?!?

I know there is someone out there that can explain this phenomenon to me.

I figured this deserved a repost for the am crowds.

http://blog.bodybuilding.com/dnsigma/2009/08/03/people-in-the-gym-in-their-30s-40s-50s-and-b
eyond/

So, today I had just finish swimming like 30 something laps and was tired as crap. I then walked over to the sauna to do some stretching and light ab work. There are two other guys in the sauna. So, I being my ab work (Unfortunately, with no headphones) and their conversation goes something like this

Guy1: " Yea..I can do the weightlifting or much of any of the things I used to do. In my younger days I would go over and do this and do that…."

Guy2: "Yea, I hear ya…I’m the same way."

Guy1: "The weights just seem so monotnous, blah blah blah"

Guy2:"I agree..blah blah blah blah"

The reason there was a lot of blah blah blah was because while they were talking…I mentally tuned them out and thought about the following people:

http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/oldsuperman/

http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/TheBeastWCBB/

http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/timsahr/

http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/marcoschacon/

http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/thebigguy1/

http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/challenger889/

http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/bachintoon/

Okay you get the point…why people why….if you’re going to go the gym be committed. I saw a guy in our gym that was twice theys guys age. The guy was on the lower back machine, working out with the dumbells, doing some cable machine work and then would go swimming!!! R U SERIOUS? Obviously so because you said it. Sometimes I just wonder.

So, I just wanted to add that the reason I wrote about people and their huge traps and other lagging body parts kind of duped me for a minute. Often times, I would see people who would have shirts or tank tops on and look absolutely HUGE!!!!! Then they take their shirts off or put on some shorts and you’re like WTF??? People would have this HHHHUUUGGGEEEE traps to make them look so big and then legs were like 12 inches in diameter or chest were as flat paper! I mean really…stop fooling me…better yet…stop fooling yourself!

For a while, I was a little skeptical about the whole get your mind into it deal. But, over the last few months the techniques of getting mentally prepared before working out seemed like they worked.However, I really didn’t know if it was working or not. That was until i went to the gym today. The entire day I was dreading going to the gym at all…but then there was something that said ‘you need to go before you get on a trip of not going at all’ so I went.

Man, I was doing a leg workout and was not into at all and it was terrible…I mean I even the 50lb weights on the leg extensions were killing me!! It was terrible…I suffered through this workout all because I was not mentally focused.

So, lesson learned today? Like EA sports says….GET IN THE GAME!!!!!

Have you seen ‘em? There are some people on here with sooooommmm huggggeeeee traps and the rest of their body is just like ok. Interesting, I guess this is what people are talking about when people over develop one part of their body and forget about the rest….just a little interesting.

So, just a few people on bodyspace…maybe they know it and maybe they don’t…have lost their mind. I applaud you for your success, however you did it, but that does not give you the right to go and talk smack to somebody else who is trying to do the same thing you have done or for your ego to be so huge that your are blinded by the fact that everyone has to start somewhere..Idiots I tell you…idiots…

This was just a small rant that I had to get out after perusing through bodyspace today and seeing the idiotic things people call informative statements.

CLAP!! CLAP!!!! Maybe I should do this everyday…may I would fill a little bit better about myself. So, today…as I decide to take another sabbatical from the gym. I began to think about the many people who are out there struggling with achieving whatever look or health status they conceived in their minds before actually making a commitment to the gym. So, although looks can be deceiving and I think they are in this case, I really do struggle with this whole concept. Some of you may have read my interesting views on the over usage of supplements, people who are to much of them selves and various other things in relation to bodybuilding. People seem to struggle and cope with those struggles in different ways. Today, I have come to the partial conclusion that all of those things I write about maybe the motivating factors or coping mechanisms for people to succeed and that’s why they, in most but not all cases, are doing so well?!?!?!?!?!? It’s just a thought…

Enough about them…about me. So, sometimes people say what are you taking, what are you eating? The answer is protein and a mult-vitamin every once in a while I will try a new supplement, mostly if it’s free, but besides that…it’s just protein and a multi-vitamin. What am I eating? Not what you think I am!!! I try to eat as healthy as possible…but money and lifestyle doesn’t necessarily permit it. If this was a several years ago and I had less responsibilities than I do know? I probably would be much more ‘jacked’, as people would say than I am now. But, the book of life has prescribed something different for me.

Now, to the point of this blog. If I was to offer a discenting opinion on motivation for bodybuilding I would say something like this: ‘Healthy living is more of a lifestyle formation rather than a fad.It cannot and will not happen in a day or a week and for some even a month. Healthy living, like most things in life is all about keen knowledge and persistence. If you cannot afford all of the ‘hype’ supplements…think about the people who were lifting before these drugs and how well they did. You can do it too. Eat in moderation…try to eat more good foods than bad foods, treat yourself every once in a while. Exercise in moderation until your body and mind yearns for more. When all of the entities are in sync with one another you can increase your workouts and enjoy the results more.Finally, stop trying to be everybody else….they’ve acheived their goal…be yourself and achiev your personal goal….unless you want to continously live vicariously through the lives of others…which is not, necessarily, a good life to live.  So no matter who you are long,short,big or small…I believe that God created us all with the potential to live out our dreams…so, as Nike sorta says…go do it!’

Alright folks…Imma get lost from the gym for a few days….happy lifting and best of luck to everyone who has competitions,photo shoots or other things coming up.

This should be gym etiquette but more of a comment. Dude #1  and Musty dude #2. I see you all are in the gym working other body parts as I see Dude #1 in the gym everyday and he does a set, talks on his phone for about 5 minutes, goes around the gym to look at his self, then talks to his friends some more and then comes back to do another set. Musty dude#2 please stop walking by me to see how much weight I have on my bar when you clearly are not just coming over to workout since you were on the other side of the gym….also your funk is burning up the hairs in my nose and throwing off my concentration..I don’t know if I should be more fearful of your lack of concern for putting on deodorant or H1N1. Both of you dudes, don’t see me pressing and then come over to the bench next to me and start pressing, on your first set, what I am pressing on my last set…I am not impressed.

Dude #1 I am not impressed that your upper body is moderately huge and your lower body is due to genetics….I know this because everyday you only do chest and arm workouts…over the last 2 months I haven’t seen you on any leg machine whatsoever…oh wait I forgot about when you sat down to talk on your phone that was plugged up by the leg machine.

Dude #2 grant it you played football in high school because you were the same shorts everytime you come to the gym with the same football t-shirt. But, I unlike your teamates am not in competition with you and I am not impressed but what you can or cannot lift, your diet or anything else concerning you….hence the reason I turned my Ipod up even louder when you stood next to me talking to dude #1.

You know what? Maybe it’s me…that’s what I get for being so freaking vigilant of my surrondings! I gotta learn how to block these people out some more!

Okay okay, if you haven’t look at the previous post…it might help to spark some points of relation to this. Some of the people, but not most, that I mentioned in the last article also have done this too.

So why must people put on all of this tan crap for a show and think that it looks good? My co-worker’s husband is a personal trainer and he sees people who do this stuff all the time. The rationale is that it helps the muscles to look more ‘defined’. Are you kidding me? I have seen several people who muscles are really defined without any tanning. When people put tans on I have seen several problems with it:

1. It makes you seem like you are of a completely different race than you actually are, unless you are already of a very dark complexion.

2. People have it running across their numbers, their undies and then sometimes its even beading up from them sweating. When this happens, their are strands on their body that is lighter than the others because of the beading.

3. It makes people look like the trophies that people win at the end of the show.

So does tanning help to create and ‘equal’ playing field. I know some people have fairer skin than others, but maybe natural tanning can help take care of that. Then, I thought we where judgining muscular development or are we judgining shinyness,beauty and muscle?

I mean I’m just saying. Again questions from the uninformed…because I will admit that I have never competed in a show and really don’t know the logic to the madness.

Well…I think for some yes…for others it is false hope.But, I guess you have to start somewhere right? I, personally do not consider my self to be a pruning person (i.e. you want see me talking smack about how huge I am and how you can come and get some or how much muscle mass  I have or how much I can bench,press or curl). But today, I am looking around the site and see people just ecstatic about their accomplishments and talking mad game.

Nothing against them, but I just wonder how much attitude does it take? All comments are welcomed…the floor is now open…

Previously in my blogs I have stated that I am trying to stay away from "supplements" for various reasons. Among them are the cost and the risk that are associated with them. However, most recently I was reading a blog by a gentlemen that talked about the supplements he used.In his list he included: zinc,multivitamin,magnesium and some other items and I am like ‘wwhhhhhhaaaaatttttt???,these are supplements?’.

Yes, dummy they are. Technically supplements are things that complete or enhances something when added to it. So, technically these things are supplementing what we already or may not have in our bodies. This is a bummer because I don’t really consider ‘multivitamins’ as a supplement neither do I consider protein to be. Now, some of those items that you see on my profile page…yes they are supplements.

I guess I could take this opportunity to reintroduce my mantra is saying that I am trying my best to stay away from the more ‘designer’ if you will supplements..you know NO products, fat burners, super creatine, kre-akalyn…you know most of the things that are hyped up in the muscle magazines. My reasons are simple and I have nothing against the people who use them….well maybe sometimes. The sometimes lies within these types of situations.I don’t really like it when people enter ‘natural’ contest and have used all of these supplements to get to where they are…I mean really…what does natural mean these days? Everything but steroids?(No pun intended).

That last line brings me to another topic, after perusing the site for a couple of days I have found that several people, at one time or another and some currently do, use steroids to build their physiques. Now, to be honest, I do not have enough knowledge about steroids to say ‘Boooooo you’re bad’. I think some people may use it to get them a boost and some are abusers. Whatever the case, I have to leave that one alone until I can research the topic some more. But, I am disappointed that I saw some awesome people including this young fella who is just massive and then I find that he has been using steroids for at least 3 or 4 years and has been winning bodybuilding competions to!!!! Arrrrggghhhhh the fleecing of bodybuilding as a sport.

Chime in folks! I know I am ignorant in certain areas and sometimes glad to be…but if you can provide some insight directly or anonymously that would be great!!!! Until next time stay safe and happy lifting!