There are specific principles that natural bodybuilders, athletes, and lifters must live by in order to build a great physique and be successful in the iron game.
The lifters and athletes who adhere to these principles will ultimately build their best physiques, increase their performances, and forge mental toughness.
The folks who do not follow these rules will always be spinning their wheels when it comes to getting real results. They will not come anywhere close to unleashing their inner greatness.
How many years do you want to go to the gym just to look the exact same or worse with each passing year? Who wants to spend time training and going to the gym just to look like they do not even workout at all?
The Name Of The Game Is Progress
The primary goal of training is to make progress.
The majority of the people who workout in the gym do not want to train to be an athlete or a bodybuilder. That is completely fine.
But at some point you have to take some pride in your health, physique, and performance.
Not caring about your body, the only body that you get, is flagrantly disrespectful to yourself.
Many people are living in varying degrees of pain every day. The two main forms of pain I have observed in my 11 years as a fitness professional are:
1) A complete lack of self-confidence and feelings of disappointment. This is almost always based on what a person observes when they look at their body in the mirror or in photos.
2) Various health ailments that cause physical pain and mental distress due to a lack of consistent training, good nutrition, quality sleep, and stress relief.
The cure to these preventable mental and physical ailments is living the Fit Life.
Living the Fit Life is not about just having a flat stomach or a fast 40-yard dash. Those things are great, but living the Fit Life is about being in phenomenal shape, both mentally and physically.
Being strong in the mind and body is the pinnacle of how you can feel. But how much progress you make is ultimately up to you.
Fitman’s 15 Principles For Building A Great Physique
I’m often asked what makes my training program so effective and successful.
The answer is simple: the program is grounded in principles.
Almost every lifter has the ability to do squats, deadlifts, sprints, pull-ups, and dips. But if there are no principles attached to the work, you will not get to the mountaintop of success.
1) Consistency
This is the key that opens all the doors.
If you do not have consistency with your training, nutrition, and recovery, you will never progress in your quest to improve your performance and physique.
2) Dedication
It is impossible to get to a goal without a high level of dedication.
You have to stay focused on developing your body, improving your performance, and building mental toughness even when you don’t want to.
3) Understanding
It is important to understand that goals are not reached overnight. The human body requires time to adapt and make changes.
4) Willpower
Getting to the next level is not a smooth journey. At certain times during your journey, you will need extraordinary willpower to make it through.
Successes and failures will occur, but do not let your wins go to your head and your losses go to your heart.
5) Preparation
Walking into a mission with no plan will result in a total disaster. Map out your journey and follow it.
6) Desire
In order to reach a goal, you have to really want to get to that goal. Your desire to get into top, physical condition has to burn wildly.
7) Patience
Have you ever met someone who never touched the iron go from an out of shape journeyman to a fit superstar in mere months?
Me neither. Real results require patience and time.
8) Faith
Believe in yourself and do not let negative people and influences get your spirit down.
9) Heart
Circumstances will reveal your heart. Having the heart of a lion will make any obstacle seem obtainable.
10) Variation
3 sets of 10 reps all year in every exercise will not create a phenomenal physique.
Make minor changes every few weeks with your movements/sets/reps/rest to keep your training from getting stagnant. That is how you build the body you want.
11) Reality
Being out of shape for a long time does not mean you should expect to get into great shape in mere weeks or months.
The best supplement that will give you the greatest results over time is called CQE aka “a consistent, quality effort.”
12) Hard Work
Hard work cannot be replaced. In other words, without putting in that real work, you can never challenge your body to reach its full potential.
13) Education
Read and explore the world of not only strength training but also nutrition and recovery. The iron game is so much deeper than just “working out.”
14) Discipline
Approach your nutrition, training, and recovery schedule with great discipline. Do not let the temptation to consistently eat bad, skip training days, and get poor sleep ruin your progress.
15) Accountability
There is no path to the top without accountability.
Take ownership of what you do, whether it’s good or bad. Don’t blame everything else for why you are missing workouts, eating bad, getting lousy sleep, and not managing your stress levels.
Nobody is close to perfect. But everybody has the ability to take responsibility for what they choose to do and make changes that put them on the right path.
Conclusion
Principles are timeless.
If you adhere to them, you will unleash your inner greatness.
I’ll holla at you next time.
The People’s Trainer,
Fitman
