Coming from martial arts, some of the guys who were best in their discipline nearly did not train at all since there are no tournaments. So I ask myself, are they really passionate about their sport or do they just want to be the best in something...
Yeah everything Alan said is a pitfall in the gym and alot of other pursuits. Though the minutiae about training optimally actually gets me more interested. But I'm just nerdy that way.
For me it's been depression. Though I've been training at home and that helps me lose focus. The depression makes life difficult. Shit, I lay in bed and put off going pee in the morning because I'm just not motivated in getting up. My workouts take twice as long and I've had to take a nap mid session a few times. Total opposite from a year ago when I was motivated and at the Seattle seminar with you and Jordan. I've never once felt “tired” during the day, outside of sleep deficiency, until recently. At times, it's almost paralyzing. Even eating is a chore. And yeah, somewhere recently I became disillusioned. I work very hard, and all that is easily dismissed by people saying “I'm fat” at 5'7, 88kg, after like 5 years of consistent training. Because I don't look like a body builder, people don't understand. And be honest, I feel like I still have at least a couple of years until I look like I lift at any bodyweight past 80kg. My tummy gets fluffy right around 83. The fat comments, it's like I wanna say I don't care, but I do. And I don't want to hear it. I hate having random people, literally random people, tell me I'm fat. Sometimes its kids. Some it's a relative of a client that I don't know, but they know me. So I can never freely just tell them to fuck off. Thinking about it, today was the first time in a while I had... two people actually comment on having muscles. Haha.
Next time you get overwhelmingly depressed/anxious try this: Get angry at your brain for making you feel this way, get in your car, and drive to the gym out of spite for your brain pumping these oppressive feelings into your mind. Get on a treadmill/stairmaster and walk/run with anger until that anger turns into exhaustion. I promise you if you do this you'll feel worn-out and relaxed for the rest of the day. Its therapeutic. Also you should find a therapist to talk to once a month. Having an unbiased source to pour your thoughts into is relieving.
I just did a video on Depression and people with weight loss/gain issues. I think it's very powerful and can definitely become a problem for many. The thing with exercise is that we love to take care of ourselves and we always feel better after exercise. Whether the feel good neurotransmitters or just accomplishing something we set out to do and actually doing it. Many will choose sugary/salty foods that are high in calories because it's an instant reward, and we want that reward right now. It's not an easy battle but there are many ways we can get those "rewards" that we are looking for, just need to find which one works best for you. Goodluck on your journey!
I'm 66. I love working out and mostly use dumbbells, kettlebells and my barbell for deadlifts. I do this to stay healthy. Started just a couple of years ago, but what a difference! Your videos are very motivating. Train untamed!
I quit for a few reasons. The main one being Bailey's being overly crowded after 1700 hours and a bunch of kids glued to their phones or doing arm curls in one of only two squat racks killed it for me. Thankfully I was able to save. Invested in a free weight / smith machine for my garage and I have been good ever since. I have zero excuses for missing a workout. It's in the garage. No fees. No waiting. Cant beat convenience.
My housemates at uni had the "kitchen tax". There was a pull up bar in the kitchen doorway and you couldn't pass it without doing 5 pull ups. For a little while my work had a gym and whenever I had 5 minutes to wait for a timer or something, I'd just wander in and do a set of curls or something. (I find arm work to be a real chore but it feels good in the middle of a workday). It's easier for me to stay motivated when it's a constant part of my life, not partitioned away into a different room or building. My gym now is in my office at home.
I quit for 2 years. I got super depressed. I never thought I could live without lifting. I was getting really strong. Numbers were going up, strongest guy in my town. I stopped training and after 2 years, I lost all my strength and size. From 245lbs down to 168lb. Emaciated to the bone and a mess mentally. It took so long to brush the dust away.. I explored meditation, wim hof method, psychedelics (lsd, mushrooms, dmt) reading psychology, philosophy and other consciousness expanding subjects, I also quit pornography. Through continued use and some combination of these methods and tools, I am starting to become a mind that observes, instead of a mind that reacts. I'm back in the gym and eating good consistently. I'm looking good and have got back to 195lb bw. I hope others are able to rise up again as well.
I can somewhat related to that story. You should def check out the book Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle if you want to become better at observing your thoughts and emotions, it helped me alot with my depression and anxiety when I could step out of those depressive thought patterns and just observe those thoughts pass by without believing in the negative story they were creating. Best of luck man! depression fucking sucks so hard
Lol its a real problem. Doing lat pull Downs the beard always gets a ruff Beating. The stupid Joint between the bar an the cable is like a vacuum for beardhair... Cheers
Injuries are the worst enemy of motivation. Make sure you do general total body prehab exercises before you injure yourself aka compensatory exercises: for the knee (hamstring curls, monster walks) for the low back (decompressing in pull up bar or with gravity boots, reverse hypers and suitcase deadlifts for lateral stability) and for the shoulders (rear delt work, facepulls, serratus anterior work and general back exercises, also doing enough reps of light pec flies in warm up might avoid you a pec tear). I have had problems in these three main areas. Do these exercises before you get injured instead of after. Cheers everybody.
Yeah, injuries are what have knocked me out of the gym at times over the years. Have way less now that I do more prevention work (like band dislocations for shoulder health)
I started out just trying to deal with thinning bones and weakness and got hooked chasing five pounds. I really don't care about competing, I just think of my bones and muscles getting stronger instead of weaker and keep going. I am just grateful I can do something like this for myself and really training three times a week isn't that difficult to do, for the results I get. I do get a lot of comments mostly positive, being the older fat woman that lifts in my gym. I am usually surprised when they notice me going for a new PR. A few comments are not so kind, but I just focus on my lifts.
I find if I don't set outrageous goals and stay sensible it keeps me motivated. Training with friends helps too. But mainly I lift because, lets face it, the weights aren't going to lift themselves are they?
I'm starting to come to grips with that mentality; thank you for bringing it up in a clear and concise manner. Training, to me, is a lifestyle, and will exist in my life in many different forms.
Love this. Countless Injuries, family problems, relationship problems, school, full time work, and the list goes on. I have had something in the way for the last three years but I keep chugging on. Don't quit. Just change things up for a while and reasses your goals
Hey Alan! for me it was injury! had zero plan on stopping training, competed in power lifting and bodybuilding successfully! but a knee injury has really had me stuck for motivation and stuck in the mud for like 2 years now! gets you down mentally over time!
Exactly. Trained off and on for 20 yrs, but no matter anything and everything the nagging injuries come and do not subside unless I completely stop lifting. I'm naturally stronger than the average person my size, but apparently I have more inflammation and less connective tissue regeneration too.
My reasons: -I need surgery on my ankle, I have a bone spur that doesn't allow me to get my knees forward, can't squat properly nor reach the barbell when deadlifting without pain. (even with squatting shoes) -Injuries: tied to the ankle bit, a back injury puts me behind for a couple of weeks and knowing it's not technique means that I'm almost guaranteed to get injured again until I fix that ankle -College -Coronavirus However, I have a pull up bar at home and have been relatively consistent at it, went from not being able to do 1 to being able to do 10 with decent form. Even if I haven't been going to the gym I still don't consider the years as wasted time, I've been learning about my body and the things I need to do, I also realized the reason I hurt my back and have general tightness on the left side of my body is because of that dang ankle, so there you go. Another thing about all of these problems is I have let go of the idea that I need to be lifting a certain number or that I need to be "a powerlifter" I've taken advice from everyone who's healthy without necessarily being "big" or lifting a lot of weight on a barbell, I think that's the best approach to fitness for me, at this point I value being pain free and flexible more than a number on a specific lift.
baboon it’s rough, I had a right heel fracture and ankle, plus right shoulder replaced all at the same time. I still intend to return to training , but I have to do it carefully
"oh, you should have more discipline" "you should not do that" "you should not look like that because no one will respect you" "oh, good luck trying to work like that because you will have no money" and then "you should do that training, bc that training is the best out there" Guys, school, work and most people teach us to be a slave. They teach us how to be resilient against our own nature to serve their interests. But is not their fault because they learned that way. And for a happy life we NEED TO LEARN TO DO WHAT WE REALLY FEEL CONFORTABLE DOING. No matter what it is, we were gifted with a incredible imagination and creativity and if there is no place for us in society, we can always build a new one. My country is one of the most affected by the vírus and I need to stay a long time in quarantine. But for me it was incredible, I had nobody saying things to me to do. So, I did everything that I wanted. I start studying graphic design for my own, I let my hair grow and start doing weighted calisthenics in home. The results? I got a new and better job, I am talking with a few girls that everyone of them says that love my new hair (?) and two of my friends that saw me going into the grocery store asked me if was taking hormones haha. Guys, idk anything about the future, but I will do alot more the things that my hearth asks for because it brings great results.
its funny how often that ive noticed that the days i feel the shittiest going into the workout are often the days i have many of my best, strongest workouts with an incredible post-workout euphoria....
1. I hate everyone else in the gym 2. I hate everyone else in the gym 3. I hate everyone else in the gym 4. I hate everyone else in the gym One year later I've bought my own equipment and lift at home.
I just love the feeling of leaving it all behind. I’ve been an endurance athlete and loved it when I couldn’t stand in the shower after a workout. But the hours needed were to many to balance work and family life. As a lifter, I spend less time working out. I love the soreness that follows a brutal workout. I love how it feels when I’ve got a pump. I love how I look in the mirror (even that extra bit of “muscle” around my stomach). I love learning new exercises. Thanks to COVID I learned to power clean (no rack for 5 months). After I put in the effort to get the flexibility for the front rack, I find that I really enjoy front squats. I target PRs over long periods of time. I learned periodicity and patience in endurance sport. Hitting a PR be it higher weight or more reps always always gets me jazzed. Will I lift forever? I don’t know. But for now I love it. If I leave it, it’ll still be for some other activity. Not the couch.
"imagine where you'd be now, if you'd been doing nothing for the past 5 years" - - - this has been an underlying motivation for me 'showing up' at the gym and getting work done. Not a primary motivator, but I know i'd be a less-happy, less-healthy, likely heavier(for the wrong reasons) and generally darker place than where i am now if i chose to not keep with some form of exercise/lifting in my life. Love the content Alan - keep it up!
I found that reading and applying Greek philosophy helped me to understand to focus on the process and not the end goal. Epictetus says "What ought one to say then as each hardship comes? I was practicing for this, I was training for this." and "No great thing is created suddenly any more than a bunch of grape or a fig. If you tell me that you desire a fig, I will answer that there must first be time. Let it first blossom, then bear fruit, then ripen."
I'm working to get back into training after a couple years off, and for me the reason was "Life got in the way." I went from my wife having a baby to 3 months later her father was dying from cancer, after he passed the workload at my job skyrocketed, and once that settled down covid-19 shut down all the gyms. I probably could have re-started earlier but it is so demotivating to start from scratch all over again, and it was pretty easy to push it off with "I'll start next week" for a few months. With that said, I'm re-starting with a new focus which has changed the motivation. The loss in strength really started to show up in day to day life and it was frustrating to struggle to pick up objects that didn't used to be that difficult; and, on top of that, I don't want to be the out of shape dad who struggles to do the most basic of things with his children. This new focus means that it doesn't feel like starting over in the same way.
Godspeed brother. Cliche but the journey of 100 miles starts with a single step. Good luck and you got this, if you have the resilience to get through all that that getting back into old gym routines is definitly achievable. Go hard
I had to reestart several time (mostly due to injuries) and I really like the "come backs" because it's a period where you gain strenght really fast. Then I get closer to my old RP and start to get stuck again lel. That's why I enjoy comebacks.
Great video Alan! As someone who originally started lifting for strictly hypertrophy, having this channel to show me that you can try different things and still look aesthetic has added much more joy to my training because growth is so slow but I can focus on getting stronger
The amount of equipment I have bought from people ar stupid discounts says you are wrong, this is pre covid obviously. When I saw what the prices for even BS equipment was a while ago I dug through some of my less good stuff and listed it for a stupid price and still undercut most of the other price gouging listing. Had a 10lb rubber DB collecting dust, it had been chewed on by a dog and the matching bell was long gone. Couldn't give it away in the past but someone drove from the next town over to pay me $20 and was effusive with his gratitude! A single mismatched 45lb plate I picked up for free on the curb a year or more ago, sold it for $60! When things go back to normal theres going to be a lot of cheao equipment for sale lol.
This is actually great and has so many true aspects to it. Training in some capacity is better than not training at all. It's something I've been working on myself to adapt. Especially when I've been inactive for a while and I try to get back in shape or lose weight, it used to be that it had to be hardcore all in, then I would burn out after a few months. But now I'm just going slowly with it and just saying "it's okay", and "just do more than you did last week". Any work is better than none, like Alan says. I'm planning to get back in shape quite soon I'm building a home gym, but this is also wrong mentality I should still be doing regular easy exercises as im preparing the home gym, instead of waiting.
"imagine where you'd be now if you've been doing nothing for the past 5 years" EXACTLY!! over the past 4 years I haven't become the beast I expected to be. I haven't progressed aesthetically as fast as I wanted. but health-wise my progress has been worth all of it. I started overweight and with high cholesterol. I changed my diet and started lifting, and now every time I get a medical exam for my job the doctors tell me I have the resting heart rate of an athlete. even if you don't want to get swole, even if you're not after breaking records, even if you *hate* the macho, toxic part of the weightlifting community, _everyone_ should be lifting just for the health benefits alone. big, skinny, young, old, single, married, handicapped, depressed,... our lives have become so sedentary but out bodies still need daily stimuli just like our brains do. if I had not changed my lifestyle back in 2016 I'd now probably be obese, with high cholesterol and likely have health issues that come with those things. at the very least I'm no longer ashamed of taking off my shirt. the first time I saw my abs in the reflection of a glass door where I used to see a fat slob with mantiddies I was like "holy shit". lifting weights is better than not lifting weights
@@ilyassy there isn't a doubt in my mind that just lifting has a positive effect on cardiovascular health. I tend to do more cardio during spring and summer and neglect it during autumn and winter, sometimes even drop it entirely for a few months. the only exercise I have consistently done since 2016 is weightlifting. so the fact that I had such a good results during my last examination, which was in february, tells me the weightlifting had to have done something. with progressive overload, squats and deadlifts and bench presses never _feel_ like they get easier. however, the body is becoming more efficient at executing those lifts and adapting to them. the increased demand for blood flow to the worked muscles has to have some effect on the cardiovascular system.
3:23 That mentality boggles my mind a bit. You'd have to tie me to a chair with steel chains to prevent me from training, competition or no competition. I always assumed that every serious lifter shared the same addiction towards the iron; personally, regardless of results, this is what keeps me going. Nothing beats the feeling of training.
Yeah same, I wanna compete but if someone said "would you rather never compete and train when you want" or "compete as much as you want but you have 10 years left to train", I know which I'd choose. So many short term mindsets who are "in it for the short run and need to be the best" would choose the latter
Same bro. I'm by no means a serious lifter as I haven't been lifting for ages because I'm fairly young but I've always loved exercise (whether it be sports or gym). Workouts are my favorite part of each day.
@@catetodepi lmao yeah...I've had the ole 2 year tendinitis as well. I honestly feel for you. I can usually avoid it if I ONLY do pulls with a neutral grip, only do hammer curls, and try to not stress my biceps when benching and squatting. Never thought my ugly ass arms would cause so much strife while training for pl and sm. 🍻
This is exactly the video I needed to see. I injured myself doing rack pulls late last year and stayed away from deadlits and rack pulls for a while. After I got better I started doing trap bar deadlifts and rack pulls for reps. Still stayed away from straight bar deads. Trap bar deads and rack pulls started coming up nicely so I figured I'd start straight bar deads again. I had my first straight bar deadlift session on Tuesday in almost a year and when I got to 405lbs it felt SUPER heavy. 405 is usually a weight I can do for sets of 10 and I could barely get through 2 sets of 5 before I started worrying about injuring myself again. I've been in my head about it since and started asking myself those usual questions of "why am I even doing this? what's the point?". I'm usually able to get out of that head space in a few hours. Really needed this video.
Good video man.. I'm 37 and Ive been one of those off and on gym goers in the past (go for 1-2 years straight, stop for 1-2 years straight, etc) but for me... not this time. I bought a squat rack due to COVID and started lifting again beginning of March. The motivation was strong up until about 1-1.5 months ago. Im not watching what I eat anymore. Sleep isnt so great anymore. And on my days of training.. Im always feeling like "uuggh. I dont feel like lifting today". But I end up saying to myself, "F**k it... just f**kin do it!" And I end up doing it. My personal goal is to not stop anymore. That should be everyones inner dialogue... "Just shut up and f**kin do it". Unfortunately, easier said than done obviously. Thanks to your videos, Ive learned the proper techniques and cues that I certainly did not know back when I was lifting on and off. And I think that plays a part in helping me to stay on track now that I know I'm doing these things right and seeing/feeling the results. TRAIN UNTAAAAMMMMED!!
I stopped going to the gym because I got a squat rack as well as other equipment earlier in quarantine for my own personal gym, I just like not having to rely on a gym anymore, it was expensive but 100% worth it
Great video Alan. I love the shift in your content over the last few years. As a physical therapy student, it's refreshing to see someone in the strength and conditioning world more focused on just getting (and keeping) people active and less focused on powerlifting totals and competition. Keep it up!
Thank you, Alan, that post was so encouraging. I have been a competitive powerlifter and that is what got me addicted to the gym. But took a year off to have a baby. It took longer than we wanted and so it has been frustrating mentally to handle this year with out having the drive of a goal. I started shifting my sights to strongman and was looking forward to that and then 2020/covid hit and not long after that I learned that I was pregnant. Yay!! Learning to maneuver through the gym pregnant has been a lot of fun. I've learned a ton more about my body and when the timing is right look forward to pursing some strongman stuff. Thanks again, keep up the encouraging posts. As I can't lift uber heavy right now. You're videos help keep me mentally pumped to continue training.
That voice that tells you that "you've peaked and you'll never become stronger no matter what you do" is the same voice that was telling you to "give up, you'll never make it" when you just started
That voice is often right, though. Better to give up early than waste a whole lot of time and energy, Now with physical activity, there is little risk, because it will almost always improve your health a little bit.
I'm going to the gym to be the best version of myself. I don't know when I'll achieve it and how it will look like. I'm still a beginner and I'm excited to see what can be possible if you work out. Results take they're time to show. Not within a week. But when I look back to myself 1 year ago, I'm proud of what I achieved. So don't struggle if you think nothing happens. Just continue and you'll see the difference in your strength and physique. No need to quit
@@elaminmochichi7767 I just don't like it. I love to train my upper body (and it shows) but legs feels like hell and I have to force myself to do it. I don't enjoy even a second of leg day. Right now I'm thinking of doing legs after my upper body workouts instead of giving them their own day. Maybe then it will be easier if I'm already in workout mood. Maybe someone has any tips for me? I'm desperate. I don't want to have twigs as legs. Doesn't look good 😅
@@drewmiller5942 I like to incorporate my leg day in my cardio workouts, I dont even call it leg day. I walk on the stair master, walk/run uphill, do the epileptic machine they do some difference
The funny thing that I've noticed is that the more often I lift legs, the less of a hassle it becomes to convince myself to do it. If I'm putting off leg day constantly, I never want to go do it, but if I just do it as it comes up in my program, it gets easier and more fun as the weeks go by
You nailed it! Great talk. As an older lifter, 54, the ego is hard to let go. Everyone peaks, it’s how committed you are to being the best YOU. You can fall off a cliff or have a nice slow descent. I still train because I love it. whatever the discipline, weight bearing exercises is proven to stave off bone and muscle loss. Be proud of any PRs or competitions you won or will win. BTW, lots of events have classes for older lifters. Your numbers will fade and people won’t remember them; they WILL remember the spirit and resolve you show as life changes... Sally Forth ladies and gentlemen!
You missed 5) Some people just move from one obsession to another. They're into music, then partying, then religion, then weightlifting, then running, then veganism, then environmentalism, then politics...
It's interesting to see here a lot of people stopped working out because they became depressed. I started working out because I was suffering from depression and anxiety already. Working out made me feel good about myself. It made me feel productive, it gave me the opportunity to make friends and eventually coach and compete in powerlifting and strongman. It made me bigger (fatter and more muscly) and while I didn't like getting fatter, that's my choice to not diet down. It gives me something to look forward to and move to and allows me to set goals that I can reach. I don't have to set a time limit on my own goals because I'm not working on anyone else's clock but mine, and I'm not trying to be competitive. It gives me something to talk about with other people and sometimes people I haven't seen for years will approach me and say, "oh yeah, you're doing all that lifting stuff right? That's awesome man, good on you" and that one comment will make my entire week. I noticed people being proud of my accomplishments even though they don't understand what I achieved or how much work it took to do it. I feel so much better about myself and have so much more confidence because of the gym. I have managed to pull myself out of over 12 years of depression and anxiety with no help from medication or counselling (very bad experiences with both of those things) thanks in no small part to the gym. I owe it to the iron.
This is one of the main reasons i've never decided to go for meets. I want to focus on myself and my own personal goals. One other thing, i have a friend on facebook who, for lack of better words loves to ego lift and pretends like he knows everything about powerlifting. I like to set it to perform better by doing it safely and progressing naturally. Instead of giving into peer pressure and do a 30kg jump because they can.
Once upon a time I went from weighing 112 pounds (19 years old) did the bro gym thing, then found purpose in strength training. At the age of 26, at around 158 pounds I squatted 400 pounds. That was such an awesome moment in my life. A few months later I injured my spine and recovery took a long time. So naturally I quit going to the gym. I was on and off again to the gym and I would eventually get bummed out for not being where I used to be. Took about 3 years before I realized that I needed to train anyway, regardless of my previous numbers. So I did, and amazingly enough I found the purpose again. I had to learn that 3 years and a back injury later, my body had changed and I needed to listen. Not quite back to 400 pound squats yet, but I'm not racing to get to that number. Taking my time and enjoying the ride! Love your videos Alan!
For everyone who typically trains in the gym and can no longer because of the pandemic, training at home or finding other outlets for maintaining strength or general fitness only matter for those who were in the gym for those reasons in the first place. If you can't find yourself able to continue your fitness journey because you can't be in the gym, you need to question why you;re in the gym in the first place.
Damn dude, the words some of us need to hear once in a while. Personally I see working out in any form as a life/health choice. My goal is to fight the birthdays. It's not always easy or fun but it is most of the time. That makes for a good balance in my world. I'm 55 years old and I cycle, run, lift, crossfit, inline skate, hike, golf, the list goes on and on. A lot of people my age aren't willing to even try. Heartbreaking. Good words man, thank you!
#5 fatigue .. I am going through this, the older you get the harder it hits you. I did some heavy deadlifts mid last week and I have not recovered yet.. just feeling fatigued and unmotivated. Any thoughts ?
There's many things that can cause fatigue, the gym and exercise is only one reason. It COULD be there is additional stress elsewhere in your life. But.... I don't know you. Just a thought
I'm 57 and I solved the fatigue by going on a 2 day lift 1 day off schedule. Also I limit max weights to once per month. I'm 230 lbs 6 foot bench 405 lbs squat 405 lbs and dead 405lbs. As I age it just takes longer to recoup.
I have been struggling on getting back to the gym due to substance abuse and injury. Thank you so much for motivating people to train back and go clean again. You have no idea how much this lifted me up.
i like big barbell and strongman movements. so that’s what i do. i hate small accessory work so i don’t do it unless it’s necessary. thanks for this great vid alan great reminder to do what you love in the gym
I totally agree Alan - I loved lifting weights and thought of myself as a powerlifter, tracking my numbers towards the elusive 1000 club. When Corona came around, I stopped doing anything for 3 months and reassessed almost everything. I'm in my mid-40's and wanted to improve my heart health and drop some weight from my last bulk, so have become a jogger and bodyweight exerciser in my local outdoors gym. I miss deadlifting but enjoy the freedom and flexibility I get from being outside a lot more. Let's see how this works in winter :) Keep up the good work amigo!
Great video. This is the type of content that is so much more meaningful and important to more people, as opposed to some of the more technical stuff that is out there.
I truly am lucky to of come across your channel about 4 years back. Never has someone changed my way of thinking and cleared up so many life goals and idea for me than you Alan. Truly thank you, you’ve made me into such a better man and given me tools to continue to grow.
Great video and great message - at the end of the day, doing something to maintain your overall health is always going to be better than doing nothing. I spent many, many years sitting on my ass and saying "I'll start something next week, next month, by x birthday". Those days never came because I kept putting them off. I gained weight, I felt like crap - and then one day I decided that instead of saying I'll do this tomorrow - I got up and started doing it right then and there. At first it was tough - I was out of shape, overweight, and had to force myself to workout. I started with things that were probably a little too tough for me at that point in time - but pushed through anyway. I always tried to finish the workout no matter how much I didn't want to. Over the next 3-4 months, I started to feel a little better. Not really losing weight, but feeling less like I was forcing myself into exercising and more like I was looking forward to it. This was goal 1 achieved - for getting my lazy ass off the couch and working out to be a habit and something I looked forward to. On to phase to - nutrition. I evaluated everything I was putting down my throat and picked simple changes. No soda. No candy. No heavily sugared items. I replaced them with foods I enjoyed that didn't carry the sugar load, which was my weakness. Given that exercise had already become a routine for me, the dietary changes were pretty easy to stick to. I allowed treats each week, but have stuck to my dietary changes for over a year now. My workout routines have changed. Early on it was about regaining flexibility and knocking out some aches and pains (look up DDP Yoga, it's game-changing). That is still part of it, but more of a recovery workout than a necessity workout. I tried and tested a few things early on and found that strict weight lifting bored me to tears, so I avoided it. I found kettlebells, clubbells and macebells enjoyable - something about swinging heavy pieces of metal around entertained me more than lifting. My performance gradually improved, my strength gradually improved and my ability to workout longer increased. Over the last 6 months or so I've hit a point where I'm doing some kind of workout every single day. I try to be smart about not overloading certain body parts and about using my DDP Yoga for recovery and stretching - and I feel great. All my working out has been done at home - so obviously my ability to keep progressing to heavier and heavier items is much more limited than if I was in a gym environment - but I'm cool with that as it's the routine of working out every day that gives me satisfaction rather than pushing to get stronger or striving for the perfect body. I like keeping variety in what I do and set myself mini-targets that will typically take 2-3 months to achieve then move onto another target.
really awesome points you make. Been lifting since I was 15 and now am 51. You are right on! I took one 2 month break at 18 for family reasons, and have been consistent the whole rest of the time. Love lifting.
Honest gym motivation there... I like your style here; promoting good strength training no matter the desired end result (Power lifting, Strongman, etc..). Always good to hear a strength coach not trash running, but actually encourage people (like myself) who first discovered and developed good fitness habbits from running (thank you Uncle Sam for that one).
From my experience, it's overtraining and burnout. After over 30 years of fairly steady weight lifting, I got a taste of things like sailing, kayaking, and biking. It was then that I realized I hadn't been living since my days were spent being at a gym, weight lifting and following special eating habits. Of course I enjoyed weight lifting but as I got older i just wanted to start living more and doing new things I have always dreamed about.
As a beginner(started in January 2020) I feel this everyday and this vid has definitely helped out. Thanks Alan, your channel has been a great help to me as beginner. Not just with the deadlift video(which was amazing by the way), but with all the jokes and tips you gave. I hope your channel continues to grow dude
For me personally, it was a combination of 3 things: injured my back last year deadlifting and since then haven't been able to back squat or deadlift like I used to, and it honestly left me feeling lost at the gym. Then the pandemic happened and I was stuck at home. And over the last few months, I've actual grown to love just doing bodyweight exercises at home that I dont feel the need right now to go back. I'm not gonna say I'll never return or try to get back into squats and deadlifts again, but for right now I feel in a contented place with exercising.
I really needed this today. Thank you Alan for making me realize why I started lifting in the first place. As years went by lifting just felt like a chore and a obsession. Watching this video made me think about the good old days of just lifting and not worrying so much about little things.
What a great message. I’m a follower of the Starting Strength method. I’m also a 46 year old obese guy. I don’t follow the program to the letter, I use it as a guideline. After a year of my half ass attempt to follow the program, I haven’t seen anywhere near the gains the program promises, but I’m much stronger than I was before I started, I haven’t had any major injuries (and I was in really rough shape before I started) and I feel at least a decade younger. I’m not competing for a powerlifting meet, I’ll never play for the Green Bay Packers, but I can squat down to pick something up without worrying about if I can get back up.
Usually watch your content with an air of "Meh here comes this guy again"....but this seemed really personable and well thought out. Thanks so much for it, hit a weird slump myself this year, not so much not training but losing that vigour and excitement of going to the gym. This video helped a lot
I ended up taking a 2 year break from the gym when I changed jobs. My new job didn’t allow me to get the meal in, I could only eat on my lunch break and that was it. I started telling myself “there’s no point training it I can’t eat properly.” I was so obsessed with having my nutrition on point, that if I couldn’t do that I stopped lifting. It’s such a strange and flawed thought process when I look back on it. My options were: train and not have optimal nutrition; or do nothing. Why did I pick do nothing?! Anyway, I’m back at the gym now and slowly getting my numbers back up :-)
God dude I really needed to watch a video like this. Just bailed my on my workout after having a shitty warmup and some stomach problems. I just know however that my life is substantially better when I have a workout routine going, regardless of what I'm doing or whether or not I'm progressing in some way.
People quit going to the gym because they look for motivation as a reason to go, instead of building a habit, which is much more reliable.
Agreed
Facts
Motivation is for changing, its fleeting and only comes along occasionally. you need something else to remain on course.
Great point. Motivation is temporary, discipline is key
Nah main reason is no one can be fucked to eat chicken and rice all the time. The training is the easy part.
In my experience all-or-nothing most often amounts to nothing.
This is so fucking true
well said
blunt, poignant.. but needs to be said. well put my friend
we all learn this the hard way
Coming from martial arts, some of the guys who were best in their discipline nearly did not train at all since there are no tournaments. So I ask myself, are they really passionate about their sport or do they just want to be the best in something...
"Strive for progress, not perfection."
They have it on the wall of my gym. It's corny but true.
Its the journey
Yeah everything Alan said is a pitfall in the gym and alot of other pursuits. Though the minutiae about training optimally actually gets me more interested. But I'm just nerdy that way.
Not corny it’s true
people do what they enjoy doing and this changes over time.
For me it's been depression. Though I've been training at home and that helps me lose focus.
The depression makes life difficult. Shit, I lay in bed and put off going pee in the morning because I'm just not motivated in getting up. My workouts take twice as long and I've had to take a nap mid session a few times. Total opposite from a year ago when I was motivated and at the Seattle seminar with you and Jordan. I've never once felt “tired” during the day, outside of sleep deficiency, until recently. At times, it's almost paralyzing. Even eating is a chore.
And yeah, somewhere recently I became disillusioned. I work very hard, and all that is easily dismissed by people saying “I'm fat” at 5'7, 88kg, after like 5 years of consistent training. Because I don't look like a body builder, people don't understand. And be honest, I feel like I still have at least a couple of years until I look like I lift at any bodyweight past 80kg. My tummy gets fluffy right around 83.
The fat comments, it's like I wanna say I don't care, but I do. And I don't want to hear it. I hate having random people, literally random people, tell me I'm fat. Sometimes its kids. Some it's a relative of a client that I don't know, but they know me. So I can never freely just tell them to fuck off.
Thinking about it, today was the first time in a while I had... two people actually comment on having muscles. Haha.
What's your SBD?
Everyone on earth has depression to a degree. You should focus on improving that. And you will succeed
Next time you get overwhelmingly depressed/anxious try this:
Get angry at your brain for making you feel this way, get in your car, and drive to the gym out of spite for your brain pumping these oppressive feelings into your mind. Get on a treadmill/stairmaster and walk/run with anger until that anger turns into exhaustion.
I promise you if you do this you'll feel worn-out and relaxed for the rest of the day. Its therapeutic.
Also you should find a therapist to talk to once a month. Having an unbiased source to pour your thoughts into is relieving.
I just did a video on Depression and people with weight loss/gain issues. I think it's very powerful and can definitely become a problem for many. The thing with exercise is that we love to take care of ourselves and we always feel better after exercise. Whether the feel good neurotransmitters or just accomplishing something we set out to do and actually doing it. Many will choose sugary/salty foods that are high in calories because it's an instant reward, and we want that reward right now. It's not an easy battle but there are many ways we can get those "rewards" that we are looking for, just need to find which one works best for you. Goodluck on your journey!
Read what i wrote on my playlist bruh...
-bodybuilding 101
-bodybuilding funny💩
I'm 66. I love working out and mostly use dumbbells, kettlebells and my barbell for deadlifts. I do this to stay healthy. Started just a couple of years ago, but what a difference! Your videos are very motivating. Train untamed!
I can't wait to still be deadlifting at 66, great work man
Gotta do it for your family too
Grandkids!
yeah ,same to me , really help me to stay healthy and strong.
Was having a hella hard time getting my mind right for the gym today. This video greatly helped. Thanks for saving my workout today mate
Your gym is open? I miss it 😞
I quit for a few reasons. The main one being Bailey's being overly crowded after 1700 hours and a bunch of kids glued to their phones or doing arm curls in one of only two squat racks killed it for me. Thankfully I was able to save. Invested in a free weight / smith machine for my garage and I have been good ever since. I have zero excuses for missing a workout. It's in the garage. No fees. No waiting. Cant beat convenience.
My housemates at uni had the "kitchen tax". There was a pull up bar in the kitchen doorway and you couldn't pass it without doing 5 pull ups.
For a little while my work had a gym and whenever I had 5 minutes to wait for a timer or something, I'd just wander in and do a set of curls or something. (I find arm work to be a real chore but it feels good in the middle of a workday).
It's easier for me to stay motivated when it's a constant part of my life, not partitioned away into a different room or building. My gym now is in my office at home.
Hell yeah man I prefer my homegym over a crowded public gym any day too (unless it is empty).
Exactly, home gyms are king. Good for you.
I would rather train in a gym but only a good gym
@@6236003 Cali?
I quit for 2 years. I got super depressed. I never thought I could live without lifting. I was getting really strong. Numbers were going up, strongest guy in my town. I stopped training and after 2 years, I lost all my strength and size. From 245lbs down to 168lb. Emaciated to the bone and a mess mentally.
It took so long to brush the dust away.. I explored meditation, wim hof method, psychedelics (lsd, mushrooms, dmt) reading psychology, philosophy and other consciousness expanding subjects, I also quit pornography.
Through continued use and some combination of these methods and tools, I am starting to become a mind that observes, instead of a mind that reacts.
I'm back in the gym and eating good consistently. I'm looking good and have got back to 195lb bw. I hope others are able to rise up again as well.
The gospel is 1 corinthians 15: 1-4 simply believe and you will be saved.
its all about getting back up man. well done.
I can somewhat related to that story. You should def check out the book Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle if you want to become better at observing your thoughts and emotions, it helped me alot with my depression and anxiety when I could step out of those depressive thought patterns and just observe those thoughts pass by without believing in the negative story they were creating. Best of luck man! depression fucking sucks so hard
Can I ask why you quit?
Research Orthodox Christianity
5. They quit because their beard gets stuck in the equipment
Lol its a real problem. Doing lat pull Downs the beard always gets a ruff Beating. The stupid Joint between the bar an the cable is like a vacuum for beardhair... Cheers
I would think this is rather a reason for "people who never leave the gym" 🤣
If one can not train untamed are they even really training?
They are training, but tamed
Go back to your basement 😆
Nope, its gotta be untamed thats how you get results.
Collab please!
I think if they are trying for "optimal" they are not training untamed!
The mental effects of even minor injury is way underrated
Injuries are the worst enemy of motivation. Make sure you do general total body prehab exercises before you injure yourself aka compensatory exercises: for the knee (hamstring curls, monster walks) for the low back (decompressing in pull up bar or with gravity boots, reverse hypers and suitcase deadlifts for lateral stability) and for the shoulders (rear delt work, facepulls, serratus anterior work and general back exercises, also doing enough reps of light pec flies in warm up might avoid you a pec tear). I have had problems in these three main areas. Do these exercises before you get injured instead of after. Cheers everybody.
Yeah, injuries are what have knocked me out of the gym at times over the years. Have way less now that I do more prevention work (like band dislocations for shoulder health)
I started out just trying to deal with thinning bones and weakness and got hooked chasing five pounds. I really don't care about competing, I just think of my bones and muscles getting stronger instead of weaker and keep going. I am just grateful I can do something like this for myself and really training three times a week isn't that difficult to do, for the results I get. I do get a lot of comments mostly positive, being the older fat woman that lifts in my gym. I am usually surprised when they notice me going for a new PR. A few comments are not so kind, but I just focus on my lifts.
I find if I don't set outrageous goals and stay sensible it keeps me motivated. Training with friends helps too.
But mainly I lift because, lets face it, the weights aren't going to lift themselves are they?
That closing line 😂👌
WHO'S GONNA CARRY THE BOATS?!
Best quote to live by honestly 💖
I'm starting to come to grips with that mentality; thank you for bringing it up in a clear and concise manner.
Training, to me, is a lifestyle, and will exist in my life in many different forms.
Love this.
Countless Injuries, family problems, relationship problems, school, full time work, and the list goes on. I have had something in the way for the last three years but I keep chugging on.
Don't quit. Just change things up for a while and reasses your goals
Hey Alan! for me it was injury! had zero plan on stopping training, competed in power lifting and bodybuilding successfully! but a knee injury has really had me stuck for motivation and stuck in the mud for like 2 years now! gets you down mentally over time!
Exactly. Trained off and on for 20 yrs, but no matter anything and everything the nagging injuries come and do not subside unless I completely stop lifting. I'm naturally stronger than the average person my size, but apparently I have more inflammation and less connective tissue regeneration too.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, UNTAMED STRENGTH!!
My reasons:
-I need surgery on my ankle, I have a bone spur that doesn't allow me to get my knees forward, can't squat properly nor reach the barbell when deadlifting without pain. (even with squatting shoes)
-Injuries: tied to the ankle bit, a back injury puts me behind for a couple of weeks and knowing it's not technique means that I'm almost guaranteed to get injured again until I fix that ankle
-College
-Coronavirus
However, I have a pull up bar at home and have been relatively consistent at it, went from not being able to do 1 to being able to do 10 with decent form. Even if I haven't been going to the gym I still don't consider the years as wasted time, I've been learning about my body and the things I need to do, I also realized the reason I hurt my back and have general tightness on the left side of my body is because of that dang ankle, so there you go.
Another thing about all of these problems is I have let go of the idea that I need to be lifting a certain number or that I need to be "a powerlifter" I've taken advice from everyone who's healthy without necessarily being "big" or lifting a lot of weight on a barbell, I think that's the best approach to fitness for me, at this point I value being pain free and flexible more than a number on a specific lift.
You could substitute squatting with an identical volume of leg extensions plus 15 back extensions.
baboon it’s rough, I had a right heel fracture and ankle, plus right shoulder replaced all at the same time. I still intend to return to training , but I have to do it carefully
well done man
"oh, you should have more discipline" "you should not do that" "you should not look like that because no one will respect you" "oh, good luck trying to work like that because you will have no money" and then "you should do that training, bc that training is the best out there"
Guys, school, work and most people teach us to be a slave. They teach us how to be resilient against our own nature to serve their interests. But is not their fault because they learned that way. And for a happy life we NEED TO LEARN TO DO WHAT WE REALLY FEEL CONFORTABLE DOING. No matter what it is, we were gifted with a incredible imagination and creativity and if there is no place for us in society, we can always build a new one.
My country is one of the most affected by the vírus and I need to stay a long time in quarantine. But for me it was incredible, I had nobody saying things to me to do. So, I did everything that I wanted. I start studying graphic design for my own, I let my hair grow and start doing weighted calisthenics in home. The results? I got a new and better job, I am talking with a few girls that everyone of them says that love my new hair (?) and two of my friends that saw me going into the grocery store asked me if was taking hormones haha. Guys, idk anything about the future, but I will do alot more the things that my hearth asks for because it brings great results.
Exactly, it's the process, not the end result. Just lift a little or a lot, wherever your mood. Many times, less is more.
Untamed Wisdom
It's been a tough week, and I almost felt like giving up a few times (gym-wise). Needed the reinforcement. Thanks.
its funny how often that ive noticed that the days i feel the shittiest going into the workout are often the days i have many of my best, strongest workouts with an incredible post-workout euphoria....
it took me 2 years to realize at the end of each alan says train untamed not “train on time”
Love this. It's train on time now.
I thought it was "tread on time" I was like just go with it even though it makes no sense.
1. I hate everyone else in the gym
2. I hate everyone else in the gym
3. I hate everyone else in the gym
4. I hate everyone else in the gym
One year later I've bought my own equipment and lift at home.
Do you hate people *that* much lol
I just love the feeling of leaving it all behind. I’ve been an endurance athlete and loved it when I couldn’t stand in the shower after a workout. But the hours needed were to many to balance work and family life. As a lifter, I spend less time working out. I love the soreness that follows a brutal workout. I love how it feels when I’ve got a pump. I love how I look in the mirror (even that extra bit of “muscle” around my stomach). I love learning new exercises. Thanks to COVID I learned to power clean (no rack for 5 months). After I put in the effort to get the flexibility for the front rack, I find that I really enjoy front squats. I target PRs over long periods of time. I learned periodicity and patience in endurance sport. Hitting a PR be it higher weight or more reps always always gets me jazzed. Will I lift forever? I don’t know. But for now I love it. If I leave it, it’ll still be for some other activity. Not the couch.
keep it up man!
"imagine where you'd be now, if you'd been doing nothing for the past 5 years" - - - this has been an underlying motivation for me 'showing up' at the gym and getting work done. Not a primary motivator, but I know i'd be a less-happy, less-healthy, likely heavier(for the wrong reasons) and generally darker place than where i am now if i chose to not keep with some form of exercise/lifting in my life.
Love the content Alan - keep it up!
I found that reading and applying Greek philosophy helped me to understand to focus on the process and not the end goal. Epictetus says "What ought one to say then as each hardship comes? I was practicing for this, I was training for this." and "No great thing is created suddenly any more than a bunch of grape or a fig. If you tell me that you desire a fig, I will answer that there must first be time. Let it first blossom, then bear fruit, then ripen."
I'm working to get back into training after a couple years off, and for me the reason was "Life got in the way."
I went from my wife having a baby to 3 months later her father was dying from cancer, after he passed the workload at my job skyrocketed, and once that settled down covid-19 shut down all the gyms. I probably could have re-started earlier but it is so demotivating to start from scratch all over again, and it was pretty easy to push it off with "I'll start next week" for a few months.
With that said, I'm re-starting with a new focus which has changed the motivation. The loss in strength really started to show up in day to day life and it was frustrating to struggle to pick up objects that didn't used to be that difficult; and, on top of that, I don't want to be the out of shape dad who struggles to do the most basic of things with his children. This new focus means that it doesn't feel like starting over in the same way.
regaining muscle is way way easier than building it, you won't start from scratch
Godspeed brother. Cliche but the journey of 100 miles starts with a single step. Good luck and you got this, if you have the resilience to get through all that that getting back into old gym routines is definitly achievable. Go hard
I had to reestart several time (mostly due to injuries) and I really like the "come backs" because it's a period where you gain strenght really fast. Then I get closer to my old RP and start to get stuck again lel. That's why I enjoy comebacks.
I’ve been lifting for over 20yrs now. Seen good gym buddies come and go BUT they show back up sometimes. Life happens
Great video Alan! As someone who originally started lifting for strictly hypertrophy, having this channel to show me that you can try different things and still look aesthetic has added much more joy to my training because growth is so slow but I can focus on getting stronger
Pro-tip: Buy a home gym. You'll have invested so much money and time into it that the very thought of quitting training will not even enter your mind
I wish I had the money and space for that, it's something I'll try and work towards.
Something I'm looking towards... I may not have the largest garage, but I know a rack, a barbell, some benches, and a platform will fit!
That was my reasoning, it's worked so far.
I wish we had basement man.. no space esp with a toddler
The amount of equipment I have bought from people ar stupid discounts says you are wrong, this is pre covid obviously. When I saw what the prices for even BS equipment was a while ago I dug through some of my less good stuff and listed it for a stupid price and still undercut most of the other price gouging listing.
Had a 10lb rubber DB collecting dust, it had been chewed on by a dog and the matching bell was long gone. Couldn't give it away in the past but someone drove from the next town over to pay me $20 and was effusive with his gratitude! A single mismatched 45lb plate I picked up for free on the curb a year or more ago, sold it for $60!
When things go back to normal theres going to be a lot of cheao equipment for sale lol.
This is actually great and has so many true aspects to it. Training in some capacity is better than not training at all. It's something I've been working on myself to adapt. Especially when I've been inactive for a while and I try to get back in shape or lose weight, it used to be that it had to be hardcore all in, then I would burn out after a few months. But now I'm just going slowly with it and just saying "it's okay", and "just do more than you did last week". Any work is better than none, like Alan says. I'm planning to get back in shape quite soon I'm building a home gym, but this is also wrong mentality I should still be doing regular easy exercises as im preparing the home gym, instead of waiting.
This applies to everything in life. Amazing.
"imagine where you'd be now if you've been doing nothing for the past 5 years"
EXACTLY!!
over the past 4 years I haven't become the beast I expected to be. I haven't progressed aesthetically as fast as I wanted.
but health-wise my progress has been worth all of it.
I started overweight and with high cholesterol. I changed my diet and started lifting, and now every time I get a medical exam for my job the doctors tell me I have the resting heart rate of an athlete.
even if you don't want to get swole, even if you're not after breaking records, even if you *hate* the macho, toxic part of the weightlifting community,
_everyone_ should be lifting just for the health benefits alone. big, skinny, young, old, single, married, handicapped, depressed,... our lives have become so sedentary but out bodies still need daily stimuli just like our brains do.
if I had not changed my lifestyle back in 2016 I'd now probably be obese, with high cholesterol and likely have health issues that come with those things.
at the very least I'm no longer ashamed of taking off my shirt. the first time I saw my abs in the reflection of a glass door where I used to see a fat slob with mantiddies I was like "holy shit".
lifting weights is better than not lifting weights
wise comment
hey, glas to hear that! anw, do u do any cardio? i never knew that lifting has an impact on cardiovascular health.
@@ilyassy there isn't a doubt in my mind that just lifting has a positive effect on cardiovascular health. I tend to do more cardio during spring and summer and neglect it during autumn and winter, sometimes even drop it entirely for a few months.
the only exercise I have consistently done since 2016 is weightlifting.
so the fact that I had such a good results during my last examination, which was in february, tells me the weightlifting had to have done something.
with progressive overload, squats and deadlifts and bench presses never _feel_ like they get easier. however, the body is becoming more efficient at executing those lifts and adapting to them. the increased demand for blood flow to the worked muscles has to have some effect on the cardiovascular system.
well done man, hope you're keeping it up a year later!
3:23 That mentality boggles my mind a bit. You'd have to tie me to a chair with steel chains to prevent me from training, competition or no competition. I always assumed that every serious lifter shared the same addiction towards the iron; personally, regardless of results, this is what keeps me going. Nothing beats the feeling of training.
For real, I only go to the gym because I enjoy lifting, I couldn't care less about being jacked or shredded or whatever
Yeah same, I wanna compete but if someone said "would you rather never compete and train when you want" or "compete as much as you want but you have 10 years left to train", I know which I'd choose. So many short term mindsets who are "in it for the short run and need to be the best" would choose the latter
I'm with you. I think some people have an "all or nothing" mentality, that you and I just don't have.
Faxxx, not even a thunderstorm would stop my ass from going to the gym 🤣
Same bro. I'm by no means a serious lifter as I haven't been lifting for ages because I'm fairly young but I've always loved exercise (whether it be sports or gym). Workouts are my favorite part of each day.
Number 5, f***ing injuries
I broke my wrist and decided that I could still do body squats and calf raises.
Best legs I've ever had now.
@@Thedudeman8282 that's great! But not everybody has the psychological strength to do it...
@@catetodepi lol that's no joke. I've allowed biceps tendinitis to derail my entire life a time or 2....not gonna lie
@@HooDRidEWhiteY uff, I'm suffering tendinitis in my forearm for the last two years and is a constant pain in the ass...
@@catetodepi lmao yeah...I've had the ole 2 year tendinitis as well. I honestly feel for you. I can usually avoid it if I ONLY do pulls with a neutral grip, only do hammer curls, and try to not stress my biceps when benching and squatting. Never thought my ugly ass arms would cause so much strife while training for pl and sm. 🍻
I really needed this right now. I feel like I’m at my weakest, especially mentally. Glad this showed up on my phone today.
One gym rule: Do what you can
100%.
This is exactly the video I needed to see.
I injured myself doing rack pulls late last year and stayed away from deadlits and rack pulls for a while. After I got better I started doing trap bar deadlifts and rack pulls for reps. Still stayed away from straight bar deads. Trap bar deads and rack pulls started coming up nicely so I figured I'd start straight bar deads again. I had my first straight bar deadlift session on Tuesday in almost a year and when I got to 405lbs it felt SUPER heavy. 405 is usually a weight I can do for sets of 10 and I could barely get through 2 sets of 5 before I started worrying about injuring myself again.
I've been in my head about it since and started asking myself those usual questions of "why am I even doing this? what's the point?". I'm usually able to get out of that head space in a few hours. Really needed this video.
This is what makes Alan a true master. You have to love the plateau, that’s where you’re going to spend the most time.
"embrace the suck" yep
Good video man.. I'm 37 and Ive been one of those off and on gym goers in the past (go for 1-2 years straight, stop for 1-2 years straight, etc) but for me... not this time. I bought a squat rack due to COVID and started lifting again beginning of March. The motivation was strong up until about 1-1.5 months ago.
Im not watching what I eat anymore. Sleep isnt so great anymore. And on my days of training.. Im always feeling like "uuggh. I dont feel like lifting today". But I end up saying to myself, "F**k it... just f**kin do it!" And I end up doing it. My personal goal is to not stop anymore.
That should be everyones inner dialogue... "Just shut up and f**kin do it". Unfortunately, easier said than done obviously.
Thanks to your videos, Ive learned the proper techniques and cues that I certainly did not know back when I was lifting on and off. And I think that plays a part in helping me to stay on track now that I know I'm doing these things right and seeing/feeling the results. TRAIN UNTAAAAMMMMED!!
I stopped going to the gym because I got a squat rack as well as other equipment earlier in quarantine for my own personal gym, I just like not having to rely on a gym anymore, it was expensive but 100% worth it
The Rational Saiyan especially when you factor in the cost of a membership it’s really more cost efficient to buy your own equipment
Far and away my favorite gym related UA-camr on the entire platform. These videos are amazing and your perspective is really valuable.
I'm in the gym because It makes me look good and feel healthy, first and foremost
Articulate, eloquent, honest, and spot on. Superb video and topic.
Great video Alan. I love the shift in your content over the last few years. As a physical therapy student, it's refreshing to see someone in the strength and conditioning world more focused on just getting (and keeping) people active and less focused on powerlifting totals and competition. Keep it up!
The message of not putting emphasis or importance on one thing really spoke to me Alan. Thanks you for sharing your insight!
The bros who still sit on equipment on their phones or yakking with someone..
I often have 4-5 mins between heavy sets so I'm going to go on my phone
Thank you, Alan, that post was so encouraging. I have been a competitive powerlifter and that is what got me addicted to the gym. But took a year off to have a baby. It took longer than we wanted and so it has been frustrating mentally to handle this year with out having the drive of a goal. I started shifting my sights to strongman and was looking forward to that and then 2020/covid hit and not long after that I learned that I was pregnant. Yay!! Learning to maneuver through the gym pregnant has been a lot of fun. I've learned a ton more about my body and when the timing is right look forward to pursing some strongman stuff. Thanks again, keep up the encouraging posts. As I can't lift uber heavy right now. You're videos help keep me mentally pumped to continue training.
That voice that tells you that "you've peaked and you'll never become stronger no matter what you do" is the same voice that was telling you to "give up, you'll never make it" when you just started
That voice is often right, though.
Better to give up early than waste a whole lot of time and energy,
Now with physical activity, there is little risk, because it will almost always improve your health a little bit.
we're all gonna fucking make it brah
I'm going to the gym to be the best version of myself. I don't know when I'll achieve it and how it will look like. I'm still a beginner and I'm excited to see what can be possible if you work out. Results take they're time to show. Not within a week. But when I look back to myself 1 year ago, I'm proud of what I achieved. So don't struggle if you think nothing happens. Just continue and you'll see the difference in your strength and physique. No need to quit
The only reason why I almost quit for the second time: Leg day.
Why is leg day reason for you to quit?
@@elaminmochichi7767 I just don't like it. I love to train my upper body (and it shows) but legs feels like hell and I have to force myself to do it. I don't enjoy even a second of leg day. Right now I'm thinking of doing legs after my upper body workouts instead of giving them their own day. Maybe then it will be easier if I'm already in workout mood. Maybe someone has any tips for me? I'm desperate. I don't want to have twigs as legs. Doesn't look good 😅
@@drewmiller5942 I like to incorporate my leg day in my cardio workouts, I dont even call it leg day. I walk on the stair master, walk/run uphill, do the epileptic machine they do some difference
The funny thing that I've noticed is that the more often I lift legs, the less of a hassle it becomes to convince myself to do it. If I'm putting off leg day constantly, I never want to go do it, but if I just do it as it comes up in my program, it gets easier and more fun as the weeks go by
Lol, I like leg day but the delayed muscle onset I face is a lot.
You nailed it! Great talk. As an older lifter, 54, the ego is hard to let go. Everyone peaks, it’s how committed you are to being the best YOU. You can fall off a cliff or have a nice slow descent. I still train because I love it. whatever the discipline, weight bearing exercises is proven to stave off bone and muscle loss. Be proud of any PRs or competitions you won or will win. BTW, lots of events have classes for older lifters. Your numbers will fade and people won’t remember them; they WILL remember the spirit and resolve you show as life changes... Sally Forth ladies and gentlemen!
The pandemic is killing me with the gyms closed. Lifting clears my head
This is why its good to have an off season when powerlifting, part of the beauty of the sport is you can compete whenever you want.
You missed
5) Some people just move from one obsession to another. They're into music, then partying, then religion, then weightlifting, then running, then veganism, then environmentalism, then politics...
It's interesting to see here a lot of people stopped working out because they became depressed. I started working out because I was suffering from depression and anxiety already. Working out made me feel good about myself. It made me feel productive, it gave me the opportunity to make friends and eventually coach and compete in powerlifting and strongman. It made me bigger (fatter and more muscly) and while I didn't like getting fatter, that's my choice to not diet down. It gives me something to look forward to and move to and allows me to set goals that I can reach. I don't have to set a time limit on my own goals because I'm not working on anyone else's clock but mine, and I'm not trying to be competitive. It gives me something to talk about with other people and sometimes people I haven't seen for years will approach me and say, "oh yeah, you're doing all that lifting stuff right? That's awesome man, good on you" and that one comment will make my entire week. I noticed people being proud of my accomplishments even though they don't understand what I achieved or how much work it took to do it. I feel so much better about myself and have so much more confidence because of the gym.
I have managed to pull myself out of over 12 years of depression and anxiety with no help from medication or counselling (very bad experiences with both of those things) thanks in no small part to the gym.
I owe it to the iron.
This is one of the main reasons i've never decided to go for meets. I want to focus on myself and my own personal goals. One other thing, i have a friend on facebook who, for lack of better words loves to ego lift and pretends like he knows everything about powerlifting. I like to set it to perform better by doing it safely and progressing naturally. Instead of giving into peer pressure and do a 30kg jump because they can.
Once upon a time I went from weighing 112 pounds (19 years old) did the bro gym thing, then found purpose in strength training. At the age of 26, at around 158 pounds I squatted 400 pounds. That was such an awesome moment in my life. A few months later I injured my spine and recovery took a long time. So naturally I quit going to the gym. I was on and off again to the gym and I would eventually get bummed out for not being where I used to be. Took about 3 years before I realized that I needed to train anyway, regardless of my previous numbers. So I did, and amazingly enough I found the purpose again. I had to learn that 3 years and a back injury later, my body had changed and I needed to listen. Not quite back to 400 pound squats yet, but I'm not racing to get to that number. Taking my time and enjoying the ride!
Love your videos Alan!
For most people I know it was injuries
Dude I feel this, I'm still training but my motivation has bombed as I love to squat. Sometimes it's hard to just turn up
Man, Allan. I have been a fan for years. I have learned a crazy amount from you and I really appreciate the work that you do. Thank you!
You know who else quit the gym? MY MOM!!!!
PS this is an inside joke from Muscle Man of Regular Show
:D the best cartoon ever!!!
🤣
One of the best videos ever. Every lifter should view this and take everything discussed on board. Thanks Alan.
For everyone who typically trains in the gym and can no longer because of the pandemic, training at home or finding other outlets for maintaining strength or general fitness only matter for those who were in the gym for those reasons in the first place. If you can't find yourself able to continue your fitness journey because you can't be in the gym, you need to question why you;re in the gym in the first place.
Damn dude, the words some of us need to hear once in a while. Personally I see working out in any form as a life/health choice. My goal is to fight the birthdays. It's not always easy or fun but it is most of the time. That makes for a good balance in my world. I'm 55 years old and I cycle, run, lift, crossfit, inline skate, hike, golf, the list goes on and on. A lot of people my age aren't willing to even try. Heartbreaking. Good words man, thank you!
#5 fatigue .. I am going through this, the older you get the harder it hits you. I did some heavy deadlifts mid last week and I have not recovered yet.. just feeling fatigued and unmotivated. Any thoughts ?
There's many things that can cause fatigue, the gym and exercise is only one reason. It COULD be there is additional stress elsewhere in your life.
But.... I don't know you. Just a thought
Short-term, it sounds like you need a de-load. Long-term, maybe see if you're under-recovering.
I know this problem...for me a game changer was that I started with the 10 min walks at least once a day, this fastens my recovery a lot...
Have you tried trap bar. Greg Nuckols talked about how fatigued spinal erectors can lead to more CNS fatigue.
I'm 57 and I solved the fatigue by going on a 2 day lift 1 day off schedule. Also I limit max weights to once per month. I'm 230 lbs 6 foot bench 405 lbs squat 405 lbs and dead 405lbs. As I age it just takes longer to recoup.
I have been struggling on getting back to the gym due to substance abuse and injury. Thank you so much for motivating people to train back and go clean again.
You have no idea how much this lifted me up.
5:39 didn’t realise you had telekinesis for weights Alan, is that how you lift so much in the gym?
Simp.
i think he also uses fake weights. This was a weight plate made of rubber filled with helium.
@@Kurikost_ Hey man, that rubber and helium is 100% real, don't go talking shit
I agree with #1 a lot. Sometimes it's fun to just mess around in the gym for a bit without a set program. It really helps to stay motivated.
Only thing that makes me quit is lockdown.
Alan your passion for weight training is obvious in your voice! Really healpful advices in just 10 min.
Damn, this was a real essay. Love it when athletic people turn out to be the ones with clarity and intelligence.
i like big barbell and strongman movements. so that’s what i do. i hate small accessory work so i don’t do it unless it’s necessary. thanks for this great vid alan great reminder to do what you love in the gym
I actually beat the notification here 🔥✌️
I totally agree Alan - I loved lifting weights and thought of myself as a powerlifter, tracking my numbers towards the elusive 1000 club. When Corona came around, I stopped doing anything for 3 months and reassessed almost everything. I'm in my mid-40's and wanted to improve my heart health and drop some weight from my last bulk, so have become a jogger and bodyweight exerciser in my local outdoors gym. I miss deadlifting but enjoy the freedom and flexibility I get from being outside a lot more. Let's see how this works in winter :) Keep up the good work amigo!
Or you become a garage gym sweller dweller and transcend the gym experience for a cave of lifting solitude....
Great video. This is the type of content that is so much more meaningful and important to more people, as opposed to some of the more technical stuff that is out there.
Dude... You should start a podcast. Perfect for stuff like this.
I truly am lucky to of come across your channel about 4 years back. Never has someone changed my way of thinking and cleared up so many life goals and idea for me than you Alan. Truly thank you, you’ve made me into such a better man and given me tools to continue to grow.
I train for 1 main reason: I will be capable of physically protecting my family.
It would be cheaper and more time efficient to invest in a gun
@@thegrinderman1090 what if your kid is hanging form a cliff, what would gun do then?
Nothing beats a gun
@@oriyus Harpoon gun?
@@oriyus I doubt most people would have to weight train to be able to lift a child, especially in a life or death situation
I've watched this video now for the second time and I think I will re watch it again, awesome messages and a great mind clarifier!
I didn’t quit,
24hourfitness got shut down.
Great video and great message - at the end of the day, doing something to maintain your overall health is always going to be better than doing nothing. I spent many, many years sitting on my ass and saying "I'll start something next week, next month, by x birthday". Those days never came because I kept putting them off. I gained weight, I felt like crap - and then one day I decided that instead of saying I'll do this tomorrow - I got up and started doing it right then and there.
At first it was tough - I was out of shape, overweight, and had to force myself to workout. I started with things that were probably a little too tough for me at that point in time - but pushed through anyway. I always tried to finish the workout no matter how much I didn't want to.
Over the next 3-4 months, I started to feel a little better. Not really losing weight, but feeling less like I was forcing myself into exercising and more like I was looking forward to it. This was goal 1 achieved - for getting my lazy ass off the couch and working out to be a habit and something I looked forward to.
On to phase to - nutrition. I evaluated everything I was putting down my throat and picked simple changes. No soda. No candy. No heavily sugared items. I replaced them with foods I enjoyed that didn't carry the sugar load, which was my weakness. Given that exercise had already become a routine for me, the dietary changes were pretty easy to stick to. I allowed treats each week, but have stuck to my dietary changes for over a year now.
My workout routines have changed. Early on it was about regaining flexibility and knocking out some aches and pains (look up DDP Yoga, it's game-changing). That is still part of it, but more of a recovery workout than a necessity workout. I tried and tested a few things early on and found that strict weight lifting bored me to tears, so I avoided it. I found kettlebells, clubbells and macebells enjoyable - something about swinging heavy pieces of metal around entertained me more than lifting. My performance gradually improved, my strength gradually improved and my ability to workout longer increased.
Over the last 6 months or so I've hit a point where I'm doing some kind of workout every single day. I try to be smart about not overloading certain body parts and about using my DDP Yoga for recovery and stretching - and I feel great. All my working out has been done at home - so obviously my ability to keep progressing to heavier and heavier items is much more limited than if I was in a gym environment - but I'm cool with that as it's the routine of working out every day that gives me satisfaction rather than pushing to get stronger or striving for the perfect body.
I like keeping variety in what I do and set myself mini-targets that will typically take 2-3 months to achieve then move onto another target.
BUGENHAGEN COLLAB, ALAN! CMON MAN!
This was very encouraging and full of truth.
Fifth reason people stop going to the gym:
they don't TTTTTRRRRAAAIIIIINNN UUUUUUUNNNTTTTTTAAAAMMMEEEDDDDDAH
really awesome points you make. Been lifting since I was 15 and now am 51. You are right on! I took one 2 month break at 18 for family reasons, and have been consistent the whole rest of the time. Love lifting.
Honest gym motivation there... I like your style here; promoting good strength training no matter the desired end result (Power lifting, Strongman, etc..). Always good to hear a strength coach not trash running, but actually encourage people (like myself) who first discovered and developed good fitness habbits from running (thank you Uncle Sam for that one).
Fantastic authenticity brother! Much appreciated
From my experience, it's overtraining and burnout. After over 30 years of fairly steady weight lifting, I got a taste of things like sailing, kayaking, and biking. It was then that I realized I hadn't been living since my days were spent being at a gym, weight lifting and following special eating habits. Of course I enjoyed weight lifting but as I got older i just wanted to start living more and doing new things I have always dreamed about.
As a beginner(started in January 2020) I feel this everyday and this vid has definitely helped out. Thanks Alan, your channel has been a great help to me as beginner. Not just with the deadlift video(which was amazing by the way), but with all the jokes and tips you gave. I hope your channel continues to grow dude
For me personally, it was a combination of 3 things: injured my back last year deadlifting and since then haven't been able to back squat or deadlift like I used to, and it honestly left me feeling lost at the gym. Then the pandemic happened and I was stuck at home. And over the last few months, I've actual grown to love just doing bodyweight exercises at home that I dont feel the need right now to go back.
I'm not gonna say I'll never return or try to get back into squats and deadlifts again, but for right now I feel in a contented place with exercising.
I really needed this today. Thank you Alan for making me realize why I started lifting in the first place. As years went by lifting just felt like a chore and a obsession. Watching this video made me think about the good old days of just lifting and not worrying so much about little things.
What a great message. I’m a follower of the Starting Strength method. I’m also a 46 year old obese guy. I don’t follow the program to the letter, I use it as a guideline. After a year of my half ass attempt to follow the program, I haven’t seen anywhere near the gains the program promises, but I’m much stronger than I was before I started, I haven’t had any major injuries (and I was in really rough shape before I started) and I feel at least a decade younger.
I’m not competing for a powerlifting meet, I’ll never play for the Green Bay Packers, but I can squat down to pick something up without worrying about if I can get back up.
good words of wisdom. The bar never judges.-Chief
Rarely comment on videos, but I had to put it out this time. Just a great, well thought out and positively affecting video. Great job Alan, much love.
Usually watch your content with an air of "Meh here comes this guy again"....but this seemed really personable and well thought out. Thanks so much for it, hit a weird slump myself this year, not so much not training but losing that vigour and excitement of going to the gym. This video helped a lot
I ended up taking a 2 year break from the gym when I changed jobs. My new job didn’t allow me to get the meal in, I could only eat on my lunch break and that was it. I started telling myself “there’s no point training it I can’t eat properly.” I was so obsessed with having my nutrition on point, that if I couldn’t do that I stopped lifting. It’s such a strange and flawed thought process when I look back on it. My options were: train and not have optimal nutrition; or do nothing. Why did I pick do nothing?!
Anyway, I’m back at the gym now and slowly getting my numbers back up :-)
God dude I really needed to watch a video like this. Just bailed my on my workout after having a shitty warmup and some stomach problems. I just know however that my life is substantially better when I have a workout routine going, regardless of what I'm doing or whether or not I'm progressing in some way.