I was over-dieted. Hungry, cold, tired.
I had been chasing a sixpack for months. But in contrast to today, I had no idea what I was doing.
At that point, my food intake had been so low for so long, that every extra step, every rep, every conversation was a challenge. My energy levels were nearing rock bottom.
I had arrived at my lowest point. Physically and mentally. I had nothing more to give. And I was anything but ready for another round of training.
The good ol’ days.
I like to remind myself of my missteps occasionally. Not to dwell on them, but to gain every little bit of knowledge I can from those painful lessons. I’ve made many mistakes on my way to physical supremacy.
And if there’s one thing I learned, it’s that you can never allow yourself to stray from the way. You can never afford to take it easy. Not in this game.
Look at retired pro athletes. Most of them look like dog shit (no offense, Ricky Hatton).
Instead of fighting for championship titles, these once great men are now fighting diabetes and high blood pressure. They allowed themselves to stray from the way. After years of hardship, they chose the easy road. A fatal error.
Getting stronger, leaner and healthier was never meant to be a short-term ordeal. There is no finish line. This is a life-long journey. Till death do us part.
Always on
You must always be ready to go hard, win the game and take home the trophy. All day every day.
You must always be just one step away from hitting a new personal record in the gym, one step away from achieving your best physique ever. You must always be on. That’s the mark of a true champion.
Always hungry. Always ready to kill.
Keep your diet in check. Get sufficient protein. Eat your fruits and veggies and don’t fall prey to the silly scams (keto, vegan, etc.) that have no connection to reality.
You know what to eat and what to avoid. You know which foods build you up and which foods break you down. It’s not rocket science. Deep down you know exactly what you must do. Do it.
Train your body without killing yourself in the gym day in day out. Learn to build energy during your workouts, not waste it. Always leave a little gas in the tank and stay ready by allowing your body to recover between sessions and not taking every workout, exercise and every set to complete failure.
An overworked body will never be able to tap into its full potential. Remember, gym strength is meaningless. It’s what you can do outside the gym walls that matters. If you’re always beat-up and tired from your workouts you’ll never be at 100%.
Work hard, but work smart.
Till death do us part
It really ticks me off when someone tells me to “wait till you’re 50” or “you’re lean now but once you’re my age bla bla bullshit.”
No.
I look and perform the way I do because I made a choice. So did you. And guess what? When I’m 50 I’ll be in better shape than I am today. I’ll still be jacked into my 60’s and 70’s.
How?
I made a choice. And I chose to kick-ass till the day I pass. I chose to raise the bar for myself and hold myself accountable every day.
If you’re not in peak physical condition, it’s because you chose not to be. You chose the easy way out. You chose to be lazy and eat cakes and candy while wasting away in front of your TV.
But deep down you know what you want and what you expect from yourself. Don’t allow yourself to slip up. And if you do happen to fall off the horse (it happens, trust me), dust yourself off and jump right back on.
To get the results others don’t, you have to do the things others won’t. And you’ll have to do so for however long it takes. There is no finish line. This is a life-long journey. Till death do us part.
Thank you for reading
Victor
