[quote]Digity wrote:
Professor X wrote:
Digity wrote:
Professor X wrote:
Digity wrote:
Just to add…looks can be deceiving. I saw Berardi on a show here in Toronto and the guy DOES NOT look big at all. However, they showed some photos of him in his bodybuilding days where he was ripped! Therefore, even though he looks a lot smaller now you can’t really judge him on his looks alone. You’d have to understand his past to have a clear picture of his expertise.
Therefore, to say that some personal trainer at your gym is too small to know what he’s talking about isn’t a fair statement. If you pass these people off right away from the minute you see them then you might be missing out.
Please. The chances of the out of shape guy who weighs all of 140lbs being a GREAT personal trainer who has trained several athletes and competitors is slim to none. Pointing out one or two exceptions does not mean we all need to be on the look out for people who show no personal results but know more than most.
Most people still retain a look to them even if they do drop weight later in life.
I was talking today to a 65 year old gentlemen who runs the supplement shop near my house. He isn’t that big anymore but it is CLEAR AS DAY that he is still in great shape (I don’t even need to write “for his age”).
There are very few people walking around who you just can not tell whether they have ever lifted a weight if they were ever once truly very muscular.
Obviously, this does NOT include those older guys who ALL claim they used to be 260lbs of all muscle and could bench 400lbs…once…even though they somehow only weigh 170 with a gut and no muscle mass at all.
Whatever. I’m sure there’s tons of cases where people put on muscle and later let themselves go and got fat. The prime example is someone who worked out in high school and college…but then gets married, has kids and stops going to the gym. Next thing you know they’re fat asses. Even though, they were muscular at one time. That past experience gives them credibility despite their looks.
You just described 90% of the people in America who only did any physical activity in school because someone else instructed them to do so or it was directly related to whatever sport they were playing.
Those same guys quit training in the thousands and become couch potatoes faster than anyone else once the drive is no longer there and they graduate.
I would no more go to one of these people for advice on training than I would go to anyone else who can’t stay committed.
MOST PEOPLE did at least some physical activity in high school simply because they were in high school and there was gym class. You will see even more obese people in the future now that physical activity is being phased out of so many schools.
There is a HUGE GIGANTIC difference between someone who only worked out because a coach made them and someone who actually trained for physical improvement for years under their own determination.
Someone who would quit simply because they graduated is exactly who I would stay farthest away from.
I was mostly thinking of the kind of advice I’ve looked for, which is primarily on how to start out. I spoke with my brother in law…who use to lift, but has since stopped. He gave me a lot of the same advice as people here on how to start off. That being said, I can see how in the long run he wouldn’t be useful and how I’d want to turn to someone more experienced.
I guess what I’m saying is it’s not all black and white…maybe we just need more developed/experienced people’s advice as we get further down the road. However, I would think that you could get advice from a wide spectrum along the way, but at some point you move on to someone better and so forth.[/quote]
You can learn “something” from anyone. However, I will NOT learn how to make this a long term part of my life regardless of what comes up (be it higher education or long hours on the job) from someone who QUIT as soon as they had to deal with any more than average hours in college classes.
I’ve never quit doing this. Through mid-terms, finals, board exams, or whatever came up, I kept training because it was how I found peace. Someone who has never kept this up when times got tough for YEARS can’t teach me how to keep going. They don’t have a clue what this takes once you get past the easy part. That includes PhD’s or what have you.