Flip flops or old school Chuck taylors, deep dish York barbell plates, wooden floors, kick ass training partners and a kick ass atmosphere. What else did they need!?!?
We're ALL "Bodybuilders" - like it or hate it, that's the truth. We're building our body and whoever you are reading this, you are simply using your own methods to make it look and perform the way you want it to.
I've been bodybuilding since age 13 and I have made a shit ton of mistakes. Many of which cost me today.
I am about to make a long list of my mistakes below, many of which I am sure I will forget or leave out, but if you can help, go ahead, add your own mistakes to the list and tell us how you've learned and what you're doing differently now.
- Copying the workouts in FLEX magazine - I did these set for set, rep for rep!
- ALWAYS doing forced reps, drop sets, negatives and other insane "intensity" techniques - I NEVER listened to my body. My attitude was that of a warrior and all I wanted to do was destroy my training partners and make them crawl out of the gym or quit before the workout was finished. I HAD TO WIN!
- Hello, my name is Zach, and I'm an iron addict - I trained 7 days a week and often trained 30 days in a row. HARD, every single workout. I also cut school 10 times a year so I could train in the morning and AGAIN at night. If you had more than 10 unexcused absences you went to summer school. I NEVER went to summer school 🙂
- Not enough ground based lifts - I did a boat load of exercises that allowed me to lie down or sit down.
- Not using the 50 + stones laying in my parents back yard, especially when I was a high school wrestler.
- Believing "functional" training was anything on 1 leg or using a stability ball.
- Using wrist straps to hold all barbells and dumbbells which NEVER gave me stronger and deadly hands!
- Performing distance jogs - I would run 4 - 5 miles every other night starting 1 month out from wrestling season and did so all season long.
- I stopped weight training in season during wrestling.
- I did not utilize the jump rope nearly as much as I should have.
- I should have played Football to make me meaner for wrestling.
- I should have BELIEVED in EVERYTHING I did.
- Not eating enough fruits and veggies on a daily basis.
- Training TOO long each workout.
- Not stretching.
- Not incorporating recovery and prehab methods.
I bet I can add a ton more to the list above, but you know how it goes, with a list so BIG, one too many things just slip my mind.
My time is NOW and so is yours. Focus on the NOW and in a nut shell, Kick Ass every second of every day!
Live The Code 365
--Z--
PS: Wanna do it the right way and Kick Ass when it comes to bodybuilding and strength training? Check out https://UndergroundStrengthCoach.com and get your FREE Gift: The Underground Sandbag Assault Course!
PPS: Wanna kick ass in the business world and do what you love? Let me show you how you can make it happen HERE.
6 Responses
Yah Zach. That’s a killer list. I’ve been guilty of many of those things too… overtraining, being militant about sets/reps, not listening to my body (just two days ago I went for an 8k run with the stomach flu, learned a big lesson THAT day about listening to my body)…not doing enough ground based lifts (way too many isolation moves, not enough full body compound), not stretching… yep, I hear ya!!
thanks for that. on a couple of them I did need a little reminder again… *w*
keep on killin’ it!! you’re a huge inspiration to me.
Jackie (aka @girlwithnoname on Twitter)
Z,
If I knew then what I know I definitely would have been much better off. Here are some of the things that I used to do:
1. Always trained the anterior part of my body.
2. Ate a small breakfast in the morning and dinner at night, no lunch. Crazy!
3. Always trained for a gun show.
4. Hardly ever warmed up
5. Never cooled down after workout.
6.Always used machines for my training
7. I thought to get a big chest was to work the chest over and over.
8. Thought more was better.
Check out coach Z and his underground gym. You will defiantly walk out of there a bad ass coach/athlete. I know I did! Thanks for helping me out Z.
1) used machines
2) training 2 – 3 hours a day
3) isolation exercises like crunches
4) pump and burn mentality
5) trained to look pretty
6) not enough over head work
7) not enough body weight training
8) wasted money on supplements
9) used cookie cutter programs from flex, and muscle and fitness
10) used straps instead of strengthening my grip
I loathe who I used to be
the mulletry is over
Same same same same…
But the biggest mistake was to subscribe to Flex Magazine and Muscle and Fitness…
1. long runs to train for 2 minute rounds
2. Beleiving the primary reason for cardio was to burn fat
3. Believing anyhting that didn’t leave me exhausted was a waste of time
4. throwing away pull ups for hammer strength pull downs
5. liveing low fat, low carb, low sugar or low anything
6. Ignoring the importance of a proper pair of shoes
7. Not drinking water durring a workout
8. Trying to find that perfect workout that would make me look like Bruce Lee
9. Using wrist curls for my 4-arms and then neglecting ground based exercise.