Yes Bodybuilding is a life style change, but its not a year round deal.
How I look at it is in the off season(aka bulking time) I can go out fairly often(weekends only) I still don’t drink though, mainly because I don’t really have a desire to.
But damn man, you need that social interaction, if you’re looking good people at a social outting are going to tell you, and say hello ladies.
Pre-show though its a differant story it has to be dialed in on overdrive, now if you have a girlfriend or wife ect, going to a movie isnt going to hurt you(that was absurd btw) If you have good friends though they will understand that you don’t really want to go out at night, but if they want to hang during the day, lunch ect thats prefectly fine.
[quote]Sliver wrote:
lifter85 wrote:
evansmi wrote:
so tell me, whilst giving up soo much and making soo many sacrifices, how many pounds did you actually add to your squat and deadlift?
on my squat, i’d say about 60 lbs… from 270 to 330, and it keeps going up…deadlift, well before i never did any single deadlifts, just reps, and i didn’t use straps…however bck then i might have done about 320-330.
Now am close to 405, so about 70-75 lbs, and it’s growing too. I’ve gone from 150 lbs super cut to 180 lbs now not very cut at all. but my bench press has gone up maybe 10 lbs max.
Nor do I look big with only 25 inch thighs, 14.5 inch calves, a 35-36 inch waist, a 42 inch chest, and 13.2 inch arms…all relaxed.
Do you do any direct arm work on your triceps and biceps?[/quote]
yes, i do. at my college gym i do the entire stack for tricep cable extensions with a v-bar and straight bar for 10 reps. my arms just don’t grow that much.
You’ve gotten good advice here and you should take it, but it’s really as simple as this:
More weight on the bar plus more weight on the scale equals more muscle on your body.
That’s it. Drive up your lifts, drive up your bodyweight, and you are gaining muscle. The rest is just details.
As for whining about why girls’ arms don’t have to be as big. I really don’t know what to say to that. I hope you weren’t serious. That is one of the whiniest, sorriest things I’ve ever heard.
[quote]Ramo wrote:
As for whining about why girls’ arms don’t have to be as big. I really don’t know what to say to that. I hope you weren’t serious. That is one of the whiniest, sorriest things I’ve ever heard. [/quote]
i’m not so much whining as to wondering why the fitness person’s outlook on a guy’s body has to be so much more away from the normal than a females body. most females could probably get into competition shape after just a year’s worth of training, whereas just like CT said, maybe 5-7 years for me, if lucky. That’s just quite an offset if you ask me.
[quote]lifter85 wrote:
Ramo wrote:
As for whining about why girls’ arms don’t have to be as big. I really don’t know what to say to that. I hope you weren’t serious. That is one of the whiniest, sorriest things I’ve ever heard.
i’m not so much whining as to wondering why the fitness person’s outlook on a guy’s body has to be so much more away from the normal than a females body. most females could probably get into competition shape after just a year’s worth of training, whereas just like CT said, maybe 5-7 years for me, if lucky. That’s just quite an offset if you ask me.[/quote]
Yes, let’s ignore the whole issue of testosterone and the simple fact that most women will never gain as much muscular size as a man no matter how long they train. I now see that you are simply being discriminated against for being able to achieve more. I think you should sue.
[quote]lifter85 wrote:
Ramo wrote:
As for whining about why girls’ arms don’t have to be as big. I really don’t know what to say to that. I hope you weren’t serious. That is one of the whiniest, sorriest things I’ve ever heard.
i’m not so much whining as to wondering why the fitness person’s outlook on a guy’s body has to be so much more away from the normal than a females body. most females could probably get into competition shape after just a year’s worth of training, whereas just like CT said, maybe 5-7 years for me, if lucky. That’s just quite an offset if you ask me.[/quote]
Because “so far off normal” on a female is un-feminine. When men get bigger, no one says that they look less masculine. I don’t think it’s worth complaining about.
Uh, Prof, I merely pointed out, and quoted examples of, how this “perfection mania” (with it’s negative word cues) can turn some people off from training that may have hung in there with some positive coaching rather than the dogmatic all or nothing approach the original authors advocate…
[quote]Professor X wrote:
Equally dumb. Many people on this forum have stated their sleep is less than “perfect” yet have been lifting for years. Many here have gone to college and received higher degrees while continuing to train regularly.
In short, where you lack in one area, you can very often make up in the others. That is why I made sure I was eating enough to gain instead of trying to play some balancing act where I “may” gain some weight or “might not” like so many here seem to be doing.
This is life. Everything will not always work out to be perfect. Therefore, common sense dictates you do what you can while still trying to reach your own personal goals in life with the other many facets of your existence that don’t include lifting weights. If you can’t use your mind to come up with some sort of balance here, no one can think for you.
Some of you sound like you simply need to learn to grow the fuck up. Optimal may be a nice goal, but that doesn’t mean that “damn close to optimal” isn’t going to work either. This all or nothing bullshit that you just expounded upon shows you missed the point completely.[/quote]
There is a saying in one of the old Kung Fu tv episodes that goes something like:
Q: If I train 1 hours a day, how long before I
become a master?
A: 20 years
Q: If I train 2 hours every day, how long?
A: 30 years.
Q: If I train 4 hours every day, how long?
A: 40 years.
Q: If I train 8 hours a day, how long?
A: A lifetime.
Q: Master, why if I work harder, does it take longer?
A: The other things we do in life impact our
ability to master something.
Anyway, if you search google, I am sure you’ll find a more specific quote. Man, you need some balance in your life.
And I know that is difficult these days. There is an article in the current Harvard Business Reviews that talks about folks working nearly 100 hours a week. Of course, their personal life suffers because of it. Anyway, think about having balance.
[quote]Blacksnake wrote:
Uh, Prof, I merely pointed out, and quoted examples of, how this “perfection mania” (with it’s negative word cues) can turn some people off from training that may have hung in there with some positive coaching rather than the dogmatic all or nothing approach the original authors advocate…
[/quote]
The same people who would avoid making this a workable enjoyable lifestyle are the ones who wouldn’t stick with this anyway. I ENJOY the way I approach training. My food for tomorrow is cooking right now. It isn’t a forced habit. It is simply how I live my life. At no point as a beginner would I have thought otherwise if for no other reason than that I wanted to reach a goal bad enough to work for it. Obviously, the higher you go up the bodybuilding ladder leading to competition, the more focused you would become. For some relative beginner to act as if he now has to give up every aspect of life that isn’t bodybuilding not only shows an inability to understand the bigger picture, but also points out someone who may not have the discipline to even accomplish this long term.
This site is not for the “half assed” trainer who may or may not lift this week. It also isn’t for those who would bitch and complain at the thought of making this a lifestyle along with continuing to reach every other goal you may have in life.
It IS a lifestyle no doubt. For the serious non competitor it can neither be the beginning and end of life nor a simple addition to the way most have already been living.
It does however have to be one of the foundational aspects of weekly scheduling in my opinion. I buy all my food in bulk to last at least one week. We buy beef 10 - 20 pounds at a time for instance depending on the sale and I weigh it into one pound packages and freeze it. One pound of liver gets whipped through the food processor and hand mixed into each ten pounds of beef.
I also make my food the night before for each work day without fail. I schedule training along with the rest of my responsibilities so everything gets it’s proper attention.
People find time for all kinds of things, many of them utterly meaningless and without long term import at all. It isn’t that damn hard, even in this modern rat race to get everything taken care of in a workable manner if time and energy is prioritized rationally.
If it’s burdensome drudgery than you’re either doing it wrong or just not cut out for it at least at this stage of your life.
This whole thread is screwy, but I can’t read this and just let it go!
WHERE did you get the idea that any woman could be ready for the Pro’s in just one year? You were talking about the pros for yourself, right? Women BBers train for years, competing, growing, cutting, and competing again; and listening to the Judge’s opinions of what is too small/too muscular/too soft etc.
WHY do you think we can just grow arms (or any OTHER body part??)
As far as the rest, my 2 cents is that it IS a lifestyle. It takes a certain amount of dedication to shop, cook, eat right and eat frequently, and train with the intensity needed to achieve your goals.
Does that mean you exclude the rest of all that’s important in your life? Hell No. Bodybuilding is just one part of your life.
All right, for me, a huge part!! But you can’t just sit at home and ignore your friends and family.
Guess what, we have lives! We work, have families, have fun!
AND still make progress!
My first coach had a great rule, and it seems to apply here:
“Never Give Up (and don’t whine!)”
I’m new to this site, but I am not new to Weight Training. I’ve been competitive in sports when I was very young, and all through high school, here I am out of High School for just a bit and in the worst shape of my life.
Fuck me that’s going to change!
I was Varsity Captain of my schools swim team for years did they hand that to me?
I used to have friendly comp matches with varsity tennis, golf, basketball, you name it and hell I even went up against rugby giants in some friendly strength contests, did I a god damned swimmer have to earn my matches…guess…
I was a damn fine surfer; did they hand that to me?
I have a second-degree black belt; did they hand that to me?
I don’t have the greatest body building genetics, I get strong fast, but that’s about it. Hell I barely know what bodybuilding is, I really only know strength/sports weight training.
What needed to be said has already been said better than I can, by Professor X, Christian Thibaudeau, and Modi.
Damn, son (you are probably older than I am) but take this weight training like a man! Just because you’ll never be the best, doesn’t mean you can’t “perfect” what you got! How do you think I got where I did in high school, and how do you think I am going to get it all back and then some?
Dude… lifting should improve your quality of life, not take away from it. Only thing I changed when I started lifting was what and how much I ate, and actually lifting. I still drink, stay up late, pig out, etc, and I’m still making gains… just gotta remember that moderation is key. 1 night of partying won’t hurt, partying every night will.
badgrl is right. It isn’t any easier for women to improve, in fact its harder. It’s true that in the past, making it as a physique athlete was easier for women who were serious because they were few of 'em competing, so the competition wasn’t as strong (for example, Rachel McLish won the Ms.Olympia in bodybuilding, but she would likely not place at a state level figure show nowadays).
Now there are more women competing in bodybuilding, look at the women from the Nationals and the USA… pretty darn impressive physiques! And then you have figure competitions, which is fairly new. At each figure competition there are dozens upon dozens of competitors. Heck in Quebec last November we held a physique competition for first time competitors and out of 54 athletes (men and women) they were 36 figure competitors for 15 male bodybuilders!
So this means that a woman who wishes to compete in physique sports will face a super strong competition and will have a harder time winning. This means that being in perfect shape becomes paramount.
Now, understand this (this is to the original poster) there is a difference between bodybuilding and figure competitions. Women can do both and they are both physique competitions. But figure isn’t about maximum muscularity, but rather about shape, proportion and overall look. So having 17" arms is not only unnecessary, but would hurt the girl chance. It doesn’t make it any easier for them. Okay, they don’t have to max out their size BUT they must present a more complete package and even subtle changes can make a huge difference. While in bodybuilding you can win simply by outsizing the competition, in figure you cannot. You must have the best overall package, the most complete physique on stage.
And you think it’s easier for women? My girlfriend Christiane has been training since she was 14 years of age (she is 35 now) and competing in bodybuilding since she was 16! She has trained, ate and slept this sport for more than half of her life. Yet she hasn’t won her pro card, in fact she hasn’t placed top 5 in a National show. Go tell her that it’s easy for women!!! I have attached a picture of her for good measure. She is a lifetime natural BTW and she has been at it for more than 20 years! Yeah… it did come easy to her (rolleyes).
Heck, for over 10 years she trained while working on a farm 50 hours per week, barely having enough money to buy food… had to live in a shack with little or no heating… and she never complained ONCE .
[quote]badgrl wrote:
WHERE did you get the idea that any woman could be ready for the Pro’s in just one year? You were talking about the pros for yourself, right? Women BBers train for years, competing, growing, cutting, and competing again; and listening to the Judge’s opinions of what is too small/too muscular/too soft etc.
WHY do you think we can just grow arms (or any OTHER body part??)
[/quote]
Admit it badgrl, you just gained an inch on your arms just typing that!
yes, i do. at my college gym i do the entire stack for tricep cable extensions with a v-bar and straight bar for 10 reps. my arms just don’t grow that much.
[quote]Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
badgrl wrote:
WHERE did you get the idea that any woman could be ready for the Pro’s in just one year? You were talking about the pros for yourself, right? Women BBers train for years, competing, growing, cutting, and competing again; and listening to the Judge’s opinions of what is too small/too muscular/too soft etc.
WHY do you think we can just grow arms (or any OTHER body part??)
Admit it badgrl, you just gained an inch on your arms just typing that!
[/quote]
Very Funny!
Seriously though, Christiane is my idol. She’s beautiful and her physique is so impressive. I love it when you use her in your articles. She’s a great role model for us.
Thanks for supporting my post.
bg
Seriously though, Christiane is my idol. She’s beautiful and her physique is so impressive. [/quote]
I only use her pictures because deep down inside I’m still a fat boy and I want to show everybody that I go out with a hot girl I honestly don’t know why she’s still sticking with me…
I honestly don’t know why she’s still sticking with me…