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ADDICTED TO WORKING OUT?
by Ron Harris ronharrisMUSCLE.com :: The Daily PUMP
How many of you have been accused of being 'obsessed' with working out, or 'addicted' to training? I would bet it's an accusation that's been leveled at many of you, usually from family, friends, or co-workers who don't exercise.
And of course, our natural reaction is to feel defensive and immediately think, "they're just saying that because they are jealous or lazy. They wish they had my dedication and discipline so they too could have an exceptional body." That's usually a pretty accurate assessment of the motivations behind these comments and snide remarks we all get. I'm sure a lot of you are familiar with this quote:
"Obsessed is a word the lazy use to describe the dedicated."
I mention that a few times in my book, because there is a lot of truth in it. But if we are to truly step back a little from ourselves and attempt to look at the situation with complete objectivity, I would venture to say that a lot of us are indeed obsessed. Or, to be fair, many of us are addicted to varying degrees to working out. It's a tough thing to own up to, take it from me. But ask yourself a few questions:
-Do you plan, to the best of your ability, your work and family commitments around your workouts and meals?
-Do you run over previous workouts in your mind, and mentally plan your next workout in advance?
-Do you train even when you're sick, or starting to feel sick?
-Do you have anxiety if you take 'off days' of no weight or cardio at all?
-
When you're going anywhere, even somewhere like an amusement park, do you stress over how you will get all your scheduled meals in?
-Do you get upset if an unexpected work or family commitment delays a workout, or worse, causes you to miss your workout entirely?
-Do you go train even when you're exhausted, or you're supposed to be getting something important done at home, with your studies, or at work?
This is just a small list I came up with off the top of my head, and you can probably guess that I answered yes to most of those questions. Here's where we come to the quandary. Planning and putting a lot of thought into your training and nutrition is really one of the major factors that separates the average gym member with an average body from those whose physiques clearly demonstrate their devotion. But when does that devotion become unhealthy?
Obviously I am not a psychologist, though I do read up on the subject quite a bit. I would submit that the bodybuilding and fitness lifestyle crosses the line when it starts to negatively affect your personal relationships, your health, or your livelihood.
Macro's note: this is typically one of the criteria used in determining disorders
If you skip family get-togethers to train when you could easily train some other time, that's not good. If you take large amounts of dangerous drugs and ignore the risks you are taking because looking good is more important to you, you've gone too far. And if you quit your job because it interferes with your workouts and meals, you have stepped over the line.
I have a cold right now, and last night I was coughing. Not a big deal. But I slept terribly and woke up exhausted. I didn't have to train with weights today because I did chest and triceps a day early yesterday, but today would have normally been a cardio day. The Arnold Classic is coming up in five weeks, and I do want to lose some bodyfat by then. But I fought the urge to go to the gym today, because I knew this minor ailment I have now could get worse, or at least take longer to pass, if I didn't let my body rest and allow my immune system to do its job without taxing it further. I really, really wanted to go do cardio this morning - but I knew it was a bad idea. In the past, I would have gone. I would have done whatever I was supposed to do, even something so physically demanding as training legs. And I usually got sicker, sometimes to the point where I was forced to take a few days off from the gym because I was so weak and tired.
The point I'm getting at is that as bodybuilders, we have to walk a very fine line between doing as much as we must to reach our physique goals, and doing too much. Our dedication to a healthy lifestyle can become unhealthy if we're not careful. So please, take a good, honest look at how you manage your own workouts and meals. You should make them a priority, but not if doing so compromises the quality of your life. And yes, there is a whole big part of your life, ALL of our lives, outside of bodybuilding!
by Ron Harris ronharrisMUSCLE.com :: The Daily PUMP
How many of you have been accused of being 'obsessed' with working out, or 'addicted' to training? I would bet it's an accusation that's been leveled at many of you, usually from family, friends, or co-workers who don't exercise.
And of course, our natural reaction is to feel defensive and immediately think, "they're just saying that because they are jealous or lazy. They wish they had my dedication and discipline so they too could have an exceptional body." That's usually a pretty accurate assessment of the motivations behind these comments and snide remarks we all get. I'm sure a lot of you are familiar with this quote:
"Obsessed is a word the lazy use to describe the dedicated."
I mention that a few times in my book, because there is a lot of truth in it. But if we are to truly step back a little from ourselves and attempt to look at the situation with complete objectivity, I would venture to say that a lot of us are indeed obsessed. Or, to be fair, many of us are addicted to varying degrees to working out. It's a tough thing to own up to, take it from me. But ask yourself a few questions:
-Do you plan, to the best of your ability, your work and family commitments around your workouts and meals?
-Do you run over previous workouts in your mind, and mentally plan your next workout in advance?
-Do you train even when you're sick, or starting to feel sick?
-Do you have anxiety if you take 'off days' of no weight or cardio at all?
-
When you're going anywhere, even somewhere like an amusement park, do you stress over how you will get all your scheduled meals in?
-Do you get upset if an unexpected work or family commitment delays a workout, or worse, causes you to miss your workout entirely?
-Do you go train even when you're exhausted, or you're supposed to be getting something important done at home, with your studies, or at work?
This is just a small list I came up with off the top of my head, and you can probably guess that I answered yes to most of those questions. Here's where we come to the quandary. Planning and putting a lot of thought into your training and nutrition is really one of the major factors that separates the average gym member with an average body from those whose physiques clearly demonstrate their devotion. But when does that devotion become unhealthy?
Obviously I am not a psychologist, though I do read up on the subject quite a bit. I would submit that the bodybuilding and fitness lifestyle crosses the line when it starts to negatively affect your personal relationships, your health, or your livelihood.
Macro's note: this is typically one of the criteria used in determining disorders
If you skip family get-togethers to train when you could easily train some other time, that's not good. If you take large amounts of dangerous drugs and ignore the risks you are taking because looking good is more important to you, you've gone too far. And if you quit your job because it interferes with your workouts and meals, you have stepped over the line.
I have a cold right now, and last night I was coughing. Not a big deal. But I slept terribly and woke up exhausted. I didn't have to train with weights today because I did chest and triceps a day early yesterday, but today would have normally been a cardio day. The Arnold Classic is coming up in five weeks, and I do want to lose some bodyfat by then. But I fought the urge to go to the gym today, because I knew this minor ailment I have now could get worse, or at least take longer to pass, if I didn't let my body rest and allow my immune system to do its job without taxing it further. I really, really wanted to go do cardio this morning - but I knew it was a bad idea. In the past, I would have gone. I would have done whatever I was supposed to do, even something so physically demanding as training legs. And I usually got sicker, sometimes to the point where I was forced to take a few days off from the gym because I was so weak and tired.
The point I'm getting at is that as bodybuilders, we have to walk a very fine line between doing as much as we must to reach our physique goals, and doing too much. Our dedication to a healthy lifestyle can become unhealthy if we're not careful. So please, take a good, honest look at how you manage your own workouts and meals. You should make them a priority, but not if doing so compromises the quality of your life. And yes, there is a whole big part of your life, ALL of our lives, outside of bodybuilding!
