So it was my birthday last month and usual birthday card comments appeared like: "A year older, a year wiser". And it made me think... "Am I?.."
Well, the short answer is "Yes". Life's a lesson, and as I say to lots of people (particularly when it comes to exercise) "No one knows everything" and "Never stop learning."
Exercise is often a trial and error process and it can take years to form opinions or learn "what works". So I thought I'd be the nice, caring, sharing kinda guy I am and share some of the things I've learnt with regards to exercise which I wish I had learnt before I did. You may know some (all) of these already, but (another cheese-fuelled phrase I use) "If you learn one thing, it's been worth it!"
So give it a read, there's 20 something years of lessons learnt the hard way below!
Squat...
The importance of lower body work and in particular, squatting was never really communicated to me at a young age. Strange, given that I was pretty tall and also playing lots of rugby.. anyway.. I wish it had! Avoid the top-heavy physique that the majority of UK men sport, avoid the majority of knee issues caused by a weak lower body and build strength that will compliment other lifts and also encourage an improved metabolism. SQUAT!
2 back to every 1 chest...
Partly motivated by the "avoiding the crap physique that most gym goers posses" it's essential to focus not only on what you see in the mirror, but your back too.. more back than front if anything! There are loads of reasons why this is true on top of general aesthetic appearance. Read some of them here if you like on another blog I wrote: http://blog.myedo.co.uk/top-tip-take-it-back/
Strength alone is useless. Mobility is key...
Everyone's been there, some people have left; others are eternally stuck on an ego-trip where nothing and nobody can tell you otherwise. You want to lift the biggest weight you can, somehow.. ANY how. Just as long as it's lifted. In your mind, big weights make you big, stretching and mobility doesn't so that can be skipped. But, there comes a point where your lack of mobility will become a limiting factor on future strength gains. Without mobility, your strength becomes capped and ultimately, useless! Get mobile, spend time every session making sure you're mobile and if you have a rest day/recover day and have time, get mobile again! Foam roll, stretch, perform yoga/Pilates, swim, walk - be active!
Don't do a whole day of arms!
This is a personal pet hate. You're not a body builder (probably) so stop behaving like it, or at least trying to. If you're getting just one session in on a day, don't waste it JUST on arms. Why not do a load more back work and work your arms at the same time? T-shirt bursting lats and big arms?.. Win, win! Isolation work in general is an over-focus for most people - get more bang for your buck: work the big muscle groups and ecorporate larger, compound movements.
"Bigger boys said"...
Don't just do what a big guy at the gym suggested. You have different genetics, diets, training schedules and training histories. Chances are, if they're big and made of good quality muscle, they've been training for years so their body requires a different training stimulus to someone relatively new to the gym. Even if you were similar, remember, "there's more than one way to skin a cat". There isn't ALWAYS a right and wrong way to do everything. If it works for you and you can justify it, stick with it.
Make a plan...
Even now, I like to scribble something down, even if it's on my phone, prior to every session. Without a plan you are MUCH more likely to drift around the gym and do "bits and pieces". Know before you enter the gym: the purpose of the session, what you want to achieve and how you're going to achieve it. When you get time to yourself, have a much longer structure: Why are you training, what do you want to achieve, by when and how will you do this. Get this in place and you're off to a good start!
It's easy to make things hard, it's harder to make someone better...
the amount of rugby training sessions I've been to as a youngster for pre-season fitness and been made to feel sick and left thinking "Wow that was hard"/ "Wow that was a great session". Don't always be fooled by quantity. Again, knowing what you want to achieve is essential for all sessions. You could sit on the floor, stand up, sit down, stand up over and over for half an hour and it would be hard but you wouldn't be getting better... unless your objective is to be good at sitting and standing loads! This leaks over into many group exercise classes. OK, I'm guna say it: Long duration intervals in badly designed circuits classes, body pump and the like do not get the thumbs up from me. Don't be fooled by the sweat!
Longer sessions doesn't always mean a better session...
How many times do I hear people brag "I've been here nearly 2/3 hours, I'm nearly done" and the chances are they're doing all isolation work like 2 hours of chest!?.. Firstly, you can't work hard for 2 hours so you're probably cruising or resting loads. Secondly, more is not always better. I've done it before, aged 16 my session plan was: 2 sets on every piece of equipment. Three hours later I was feeling dizzy and had made no real gains. Take a specific, and bespoke plan to each session and stick to it. Don't add things for the sake of it or join in with pals to be more sociable. Do what you gotta do! Quality NOT quantity!
Sleep...
Probably the easiest thing to improve your training is more sleep. Its free, you know how to do it, you already do it a bit, you can do it at home, you've been practising for years and doing it involves doing nothing. But still, we don't get enough. Sleep is KEY! More sleep = more rest, more alertness, more recovery/repair, more growth and more progress. Get early nights in your schedule with equal importance as your "Big bench day". I know, it's easier said than done and to be honest, one I'm still trying to nail. Always learning!
Technique is key...
It may seem boring or frustrating at first, but grind in your technique and movement patterns for any exercise before you start to train your ego... I mean body! I was very guilty of this. Find a new exercise give it a go, then start to lift weights that someone of my size/weight should attempt. Rather than weights that someone of my current CAPABILITY should use. Get technique nailed and watch your progress rocket. Skip the foundations and expect results to plataux and eventually regress as you ultimately reduce the weight to sort out your technique once you realise the errors of your ways!
Read, absorb, analyse, discard...
As exercising becomes more mainstream, more and more literature appears without much means of quality control. Heck, look at me spouting off on a blog. iImight just be making up nonsense (I'm not - but you get the idea). What I'm trying to say is, just because it's in print (even high street, "Top" magazines!) doesn't make it worthwhile. A quick way to demonstrate my point: 6 week, 6 pack routine. HELLO 99% of people! You will NEVER get a 6 pack in 6 weeks! Sure some people can, but these suggested plans are unrealistic for most! Just remember, they have a LOT of pages to fill every month, hence why so much crap makes it in. Always read and assess what you've read, double-check it with other online sources if you're ever sceptical or unsure., but don't just read and absord everything as gospel.
Is there anything YOU wish someone had told you at an earlier age before you had to learn the hard way with years of getting it wrong?... Share!
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