When is your training most focused: when things are going good, bad, etc?

[Al Doggity]

... in terms of training/ appearance? Are you at your peak when things are going better for you or when things are sort of out of control and you need to exert your will over your life?

There was a thread on here yesterday about how some guys were in the best shape of their lives eating tuna and egg whites in their late teens, but as soon as they could afford not to be on that diet, they had no will power to stay on it.

-I had a similar experience right out of college. Once I got my first "serious" full-time job, I still worked out regularly, but my diet loosened up a lot. I wasn't in terrible shape, but I didn't appreciate how important nutrition was at that time.

-Was talking to a female friend who is unemployed right now and sorting through job offers and she was joking about how she's in the best shape right, working out is almost her entire life and she's just enjoying it while it lasts.

-I can stick to a diet fine and I can find time to work out even if I'm tired and my schedule is packed, but what gets me off track most often is when my schedule is erratic. I can deal with fitting a workout into a 12 hour day if I can plan for it, but when things constantly pop up that alter my schedule, that's when I start finding excuses not to work out. I always feel like I'm trying to find some imagined balance between being disciplined and being an obsessive psychopath.

-Some people use the gym as a form of therapy, unfortunately for me, I'm not one of those people. If I'm dealing with unexpected financial stress, unsettled home life or work life, I'll usually pull back on working out.

-I had been in excellent shape up until about a week ago, to the point that people were asking if I was getting ready for a show. Then out of nowhere, I develop a knee injury and pick up some sort of stomach bug. The combination just killed my motivation, mainly because I had been so disciplined on leg training and diet.

[Mr Anabolic]

For me:

Physique wise: Age 20 - 35.  Was training 6 days/wk, no problems.  Getting old is not fun, but training smarter will increase gains and decrease injuries.  Must take more days off, but I am still using some respectable poundages for a 51 years old natty.

Financially: Age 30 - 51 (now)  
I was a saver since I was very young.  I got the timing right on the majority of my investments.  Having a decent skills-set is a big part of it, but not being married or having kids makes a world of difference.  Simple observation will teach you many things without having to experience mistakes and setbacks first hand.  Marriage, kids and divorce has financially destroyed many of my male friends and family members... DON'T DO IT.

[BB]

Strength Sports/Hobbies -

Olympic Lifting - You're best early through mid 20's, maybe a few years beyond.

Bodybuilding - early 20's - 35.

Strongman - Late 20's - mid 30's, sometimes you can add a few years.

Powerlifting has the longest arc. You can get up into your late 30's, early 40's and make stuff happen.


-------------------

Lifewise - 35 - 50 are usually the prime years.

[Al Doggity]

These answers weren't really what I was asking, so I reworded the title, but there's no reason your physique should decline in your mid-30s if you're steadily training and eating well. Most bodybuilders whose physiques deteriorate that fast are really abusing their bodies.

[Primemuscle]

Pretty much anytime I'm at the gym. Problem is taking that initial step....life gets in the way.

[DroppingPlates]

It doesn't matter that much. Once I'm in the gym, it's game time and then I don't give too much of a fuck about what's happening outside the gym.

[Al Doggity]

It doesn't matter that much. Once I'm in the gym, it's game time and then I don't give too much of a fuck about what's happening outside the gym.

I think this is true of most people, though. The hardest part is not working out, but actually making time for/ getting to the workout. You don't have periods where you're less motivated to actually show up at the gym?

[FREAKgeek]

-I can stick to a diet fine and I can find time to work out even if I'm tired and my schedule is packed, but what gets me off track most often is when my schedule is erratic. I can deal with fitting a workout into a 12 hour day if I can plan for it, but when things constantly pop up that alter my schedule, that's when I start finding excuses not to work out. I always feel like I'm trying to find some imagined balance between being disciplined and being an obsessive psychopath.

12 hr work day without thinking about food is exactly what I need to lose fat. Forced labor 

[DroppingPlates]

I think this is true of most people, though. The hardest part is not working out, but actually making time for/ getting to the workout. You don't have periods where you're less motivated to actually show up at the gym?

Everyone's life situation is different, but often people prioritize non-work/family related things over training. That's up to them, but often they come with all kinds of bs excuses. You see, anyone loves getting results, but not everyone loves the process.

I'm as human as anyone else, so I def have my motivation issues from time to time, say once every 10-15 sessions. What I often do in those cases, is switching to completely different exercises. This stimulates me to refocus on my training. A bit more social interaction helps as well.

[Al Doggity]

Everyone's life situation is different, but often people prioritize non-work/family related things over training. That's up to them, but often they come with all kinds of bs excuses. You see, anyone loves getting results, but not everyone loves the process.

   This was the point of the thread.

[Al Doggity]

12 hr work day without thinking about food is exactly what I need to lose fat. Forced labor 

I work in an office with a kitchen. And most of the people who work in that building have deep discounts on the food court downstairs. And someone is running out literally every 5-10 minutes to pick something up at the duane reade, starbucks or dunkin donuts. It's actually a wonder that anything non-food related ever happens there.

[DroppingPlates]

  This was the point of the thread.

Well, that was my response on what you wrote: "The hardest part is not working out, but actually making time for/ getting to the workout"

[Al Doggity]

Well, that was my response on what you wrote: "The hardest part is not working out, but actually making time for/ getting to the workout"

   That's not really a response to what I wrote.


eta but it's all good. If you don't want to participate in thread, you don't have to. And I can't control what you post. 

[DroppingPlates]

 That's not really a response to what I wrote.


eta but it's all good. If you don't want to participate in thread, you don't have to. And I can't control what you post. 

It was a fair and honest response, and so was my first post in this thread. Sorry if you don't like it, but I wrote it with good intentions.

[Al Doggity]

It was a fair and honest response, and so was my first post in this thread. Sorry if you don't like it, but I wrote it with good intentions.

I don't think there was anything fucked up about it, it just wasn't really related to the question, at least not the way I envisioned it. Most people I've ever talked to have said  that the hardest part of maintaining a fitness regiment is getting to the gym. The point of the question was about what's going on in your life that gets in the way of going to the gym.

 I wrote a long opening post giving examples for myself and then re-titled the thread when it seemed like the first two posters didn't get what I meant. Like I said in the opening post, I can still manage to make it if I'm tired and pressed for time, but when my schedule gets erratic, then I start to find reasons not to go. Maybe my question just wasn't an interesting topic, or maybe I'm still not being clear. Either way, doesn't really matter. Just a bullshit thread on a message board.