physique not were i want it

[enigma34]

I'm 31. My body isn't were i want it to be. Plus 2020 going backward 110% reversing a whole 12 months of 2019. What are others train of thought for positivity, with getting older, and feeling like your youth is running out. Not a mass monster yet. That's my goal im still trying to achieve. I know some current ifbb pros are reaching #1 at Olympia at 40.

Im hopping I'm like YouTube stars Seth or fouad when I'm 36-40. Saying that means id reach my best physique as i age. But has that been the case and ideal for others? Nick walker and others at 26 are built like a house already.

 

[Eman]

I don't compare myself to others, it's a fool's errand. But, I have no aspirations to be a mass monster either...

If I want more, I just keep working at it... What else can you do, give up because you didn't reach your goals? No, you just crack on. If it's not happening in a reasonable pace within a reasonable timeframe, I take a look at what I need to optimize.

Any muscle loss over the past year doesn't mean it'll take another year to regain it either. A higher level of strength can take a while to regain but muscle size tends to return pretty quickly.

 

[enigma34]

Maybe I'm not as strong minded as some .sucks to feel like my goals will be reached mid 35s to 40. But guess life is all about having a goal and trying to reach it.

 

[Eman]

Maybe I'm not as strong minded as some .sucks to feel like my goals will be reached mid 35s to 40. But guess life is all about having a goal and trying to reach it.

I'm not really sure exactly what you mean... But, to put it in perspective, the vast majority of gym goers could spend a lifetime in the gym and be a hermit in every other aspect of their life and still not look like Seth or Fouad in a lifetime.

Thus, I don't know if you're actually setting realistic goals when you say you "hope to look like them" by a certain age. Statistically, that is very unlikely to happen. I'm not saying it's impossible, but if those are the level of goals you're setting then you're setting yourself up for a lifetime of disappointment.

Try setting smaller goals, it's easier to stay motivated when you're setting goals that aren't THAT far out of reach. If someone wants to squat 1000lbs and they're bummed out that they can only squat 400lbs, it'd be more reasonable to set a goal to squat 450 first and then set new goals. Eventually, they might not even care they never got to 1000 because they're satisfied with the goals they already met.

 

[enigma34]

I'm not really sure exactly what you mean... But, to put it in perspective, the vast majority of gym goers could spend a lifetime in the gym and be a hermit in every other aspect of their life and still not look like Seth or Fouad in a lifetime.

I get what your saying.

In a way i mean spending most your life getting somewhere. And that "Somewhere" that you wish you achieved in your youth not in your 30s to 40s. Maybe covid restrictions and gym closures got to me. Can't wait to lose the mask, be able to visit a strip club without restrictions, get back to life. So much of life being wasted with this crap. Wont get that back, and worse seems yet to come .

 

[Millard]

Maybe I'm not as strong minded as some .sucks to feel like my goals will be reached mid 35s to 40. But guess life is all about having a goal and trying to reach it.

Achieving short- and long-term goals is important but that's not what life is about.

The last part of your statement is what should always be emphasized: Life is about the process. When you learn to truly enjoy and appreciate the process, everything else falls into place more easily.

At least for me, this made all the difference.

 

[MFAAS]

One more comment for the fact that it's best to focus on the journey, not the destination.

It sounds like COVID hit you hard, perhaps investing in some home gym equipment would be good. I have a bench, bunch of plates, the bowflex 552s and 1090s, a power tower, weighted vest, bands, and elliptical at home. Now, I have slowly accumulated those things over the course of the last 15 years, but damn I get can a SHIT LOAD done right in my workout room at home. I enjoy working out and like @Eman the only person I really compare myself to is the one in the mirror. I want to be the best person that I can be, not someone else.

I don't have an instagram, no twitter, login to facebook like 4 times per year, no tiktok or any of that shit. I have reddit, but I don't follow subs where I am exposed to a bunch of other people's physiques, whether that is male of female. The last thing I want is to just feel like I am not good enough, not only does it just not feel good mentally, but it also zaps your confidence which has a downstream effect on motivation IMO. For some people it might motivate them to bust their ass even harder, but idk, a lot of people it deep down it is secretly a little demotivating and reinforces negative psychological cycles and bad habits like eating worse or using drugs.

Just find what works for you, embrace it. Make small-to-medium sized lifestyle changes here and there so you can sustainably grow and improve your physique and strength. If your physique concerns are due to fat accumulation, then change what groceries you buy. If it is muscle loss, well..that is an easier fix to be honest, just get back on the bicycle and start lifting again, that muscle will be back in no time. Those myocytes are still there, waiting to grow again!

IMO your next steps are: identify exactly WHY your physique has gone downhill, then list out the options you have to reverse that trend. Take action on them. It may be getting some home gym equipment, it may be changing the foods you buy and eat, it may be ensuring you're getting enough sleep, it may be starting a new lifting program or going for bike rides again to get some cardio in (if you are northern hemisphere and spring is coming soon ).

You aren't going to wake up one day and be like "Hey, I am finally a mass monster, I am happy in all aspects of life and my physique is perfect and it literally could never be better!" The human brain will always find something wrong, some spot where your physique isn't good enough, some muscle that isn't as defined as the other guy you're looking at on insta or competing against on stage.

Don't fall into that trap. In the end, research has shown that the people who are happiest in life have found joy in the PROCESS of living. The PROCESS of self-improvement. Life is about living, so live it. Fall off, get back on. I have fallen off more than a couple times, too, in one way or another. You don't feel good about your body? Fuckin take action to fix those feelings! You'll find that the simple act of doing something makes you happy and feel good too. The journey is the destination.

 

[enigma34]

@MFAAS

I know what your saying. What has kept me from putting the effort towards acquiring home workout items during 2020, is I enjoy the routine of getting prepard for the gym, and doing my workouts around an energetic atmosphere. As a whole process it is what motivates me.. It's the Only hobby that stuck that I'm good at, and can show the world. Working out , even stretching at home is unmotivating to me.

My gyms are open now, i had a great routine going all January. Until I dislocated my patellar/knee cap none gym related activity. Been 4 weeks so far in recovery on the couch. I'm in a situation that's like what's next. I hope I can finish the year healthy, and hope the world moves on and not backwards this summer with covid.

I use to go 12 months at a time with no goal. I'd still be going to the gym during those times out of pure routine. Now when I think about goals I think about age. That's something I didn't think about as much until I turned 30.

 

[malfeasance]

What does your physique look like now, and how long have you been building it? What have you done to build it? What sort of doses do you use to build? Do you have any vague idea what and how much the names you mentioned used? A couple of them are pretty open about what and how much. How much do you eat? Fouad Abiad (you mentioned him) has entire videos and podcasts about what he eats. Are you eating like that?

You can't expect to look like that without the hormone use and food they use, no matter how hard you train.

You can't find out what your genetic potential is until you push yourself to your genetic potential. You aren't going to discover what it is on a 500 mg of testosterone cycle for 8-10 weeks, eating 3000 calories (although you might look good for the beach this summer).

31 is still pretty young, but without knowing how close you are to your goal, it is tough to guess how far you are away from it.

How have you done in prior contests? What were your weaknesses compared to the others in contests in which you did not do well? What do YOU think it is going to take to get you to the next level of competition? You have to take it one step at a time, and we do not even know what step you are on from your post.

Post up a clear photograph of your physique in one or more of the mandatory poses.

 

[malfeasance]

Can't wait to lose the mask, be able to visit a strip club without restrictions, get back to life.

Wait. They have strip clubs in Egypt?

 

[malfeasance]

Just taking a quick look through your post history, I see you have run 1400 mg test with no AI.

How were your results?

I guess it is tough to answer all of your questions without knowing a little more about where you are in your journey now.

Mr. Olympia is from Egypt, too.

 

[enigma34]

Just taking a quick look through your post history, I see you have run 1400 mg test with no AI.

How were your results?

I guess it is tough to answer all of your questions without knowing a little more about where you are in your journey now.

Mr. Olympia is from Egypt, too.

I'll pm you.
I don't compete. I just enjoy the life style. A 8 years training natty and about 2 years on gear.
My questions are on the mental side, and others thought process relating to age, goals, wisdom. Not so much on how to achieve, diet , or drug related. Training for 8 years. November 2018 first year using peds. My natty bloods before this was 839 at 28. Have had levels as high as 4600 since using . have done 5 ish cycles. I do follow and read/watch as much info from every angle about anything drug, training, diet wise . And then make ny own judgment for me.

Edit: in a nutshell, I was on my way to my goals, but dealing with set backs and age. A better title for this should be called setbacks and age. But I ramble.

 

[malfeasance]

I trained for decades natty. Training natty sucks, LOL!

Certain side effects are more pronounced with age, like blood pressure (many get blood pressure increases with age regardless of any PED usage).

And if you think about it, the heart needing full perfusion in a 250 pound muscular body probably works the heart as much as a fat 250 pound body. This lifestyle is probably not healthy even if you try to do everything right. Just carrying around extra weight on your frame is hard on your body. We can minimize risks, but there is no eliminating them without dropping bodyweight, dropping dosages down to TRT, and doing list of cardio with a healthy diet . . .

But at 31, you ought to be young enough to still put on a lot of size if that is your goal.

Competing would focus everything a lot more for you with respect to bodybuilding. Everything becomes more important when you know you are going to be on stage in your underwear being judged.

 

[janoshik]

And if you think about it, the heart needing full perfusion in a 250 pound muscular body probably works the heart as much as a fat 250 pound body.

More, actually.