[quote]Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
You actually remind me of a client of mine. He actually used the same words at one point (lifting being the only joy in his life… and at the time it was likely true).
Some people are naturally born to be strong and muscular. They will progress at a super fast rate and to those who don’t have the same gifts they can be a source of frustration because no matter how hard we try we never reach a rate of progression remotely close to what they are accomplishing.
They should be a source of motivation, and they can be when they are the “lifting stars” we see in internet videos, but when they are guys we see training in the gym they can do more harm then good:
Because they are progressing so much faster than you, you might be left constantly questioning whether what you are doing training-wise is good or a waste of time. This puts you in a constant state of negativity which will impact your performance and gains. It also will make it hard to stick to a plan since you will se the gifted get more results from other programs and will change yours every few weeks.
It’s a hard truth to accept but someone people are born on upper extreme of the genetic pool when it comes to being able to build muscle and strength. Others are born at the absolute bottom and most of us fall somewhere in between.
Until you accept that, your quest for more strength and more muscle will always give you more frustration than happiness.
I’ve trained guys who worked up to 600lbs+ deadlifts, 360lbs+ cleans, 400lbs+ front squat, 225lbs+ military presses, 315lbs+ push presses in very little time without even focusing on pure strength… I’ve trained WOMEN who worked up to 225-245lbs cleans, 175-195lbs snatches, 330-375lbs deadlifts and 315lbs+ squats, again without focusing on strength all that much.
I’ve had guys add 30-40lbs on a big lift in a matter of weeks.
But I’ve also had clients who fought HARD and LONG to add even 5lbs to a lift.
I’m the same coach. I use similar methods and have the same knowledge. I don’t work with people who aren’t dedicated. The difference simply is genetics.
People easily accept that some people are born with a natural advantage when it comes to a sport like basketball for example… if you are born to be 6’8" you have a better shot than if you are born to be 5’8"… PEOPLE UNDERSTAND AND ACCEPT THAT. But the same is true for muscle and strength too, sadly.
However contrary to height, everybody can increase their strength and muscle mass given proper hard work over time. Some will progress at a much slower pace but if they stick with it and work hard day in and day out they WILL make improvements.
The client I mentioned earlier started out at 175lbs on 6’2"… could barely lift the empty barbell on the bench press.
Our first session he couldn’t curl 5 reps with the empty barbell.
He had to fight for every pound of weight and strength. While he isn’t what I would call “strong” yet. He does put up respectable lifts that are better than 90% of the normal gym population and his bodyweight is in the 230s now. Took 2-3 years of constant hard work.
Many times he was discouraged when he saw the big lifts from some of my other clients. But in time he understood that each person was different and he began to focus on his own progression and stopped comparing himself to others.
When you desperately want something that you don’t have it sometimes occupy your mind so much that it can become painful! I know, I’ve been there.
And because of that we want results NOW… it makes us sick that we aren’t strong yet. But you really have to be patient. As it was mentioned the pursuit of strength is a lifelong one. Unless you are born with gifts that most of us don’t have you will have to work super hard and long for small progress. Gains will not come instantly and will always seem to be slower than you want. But you must stay the course. You must continue to work hard, challenging yourself to do better everytime you are in the gym.
Stop comparing yourself to someone else or to what you believe should be a normal rate of progress.
Focus on the process and results will come.[/quote]
Christian Thibaudeau… its an honer for me that u actually replied to me…
in these 2 month i had i lost about 39 lbs and i didint lose strngth …actually today when i was doing back day i finally could do the dips… 5reps… i can do the 1 arm dubmell row with the 88 lbs dumbell… for 7 reps… strict form…push up is better and squat is okay too… but bench numbers stays the same… ppl tell me i look diffrent now… for these 2 month i ate clean… no even cheat or re feed day… i wanna be strong… i wanna be able…to bench and squat and deadlift and shoulder press tons of weight…for 5 reps i wanna reach the 12 %fat… digtial scale said i was 20%tow days ago
so i think iam about 18 or something … i wish i could be ur clint… but im in egypt and this is too far…so please help me with advise on workout …and supllment… i have hidrolzied whey and caisen and l carntine and fish oil…and fat burner called hd and nitric oxide called no3…i also bought creatine mono 2 days ago…so Christian …please help me be happy by reacing my goals…thank u so much for ur time …Ry
will power and dreaming made me lose fat…