How do YOU stay motivated in bodybuilding?

[p-lethal]

That's way too big for physique anyways dude.
you have to come in about 185 to 195 tops depending on the show.

yeah those were my old goals. Now 190lbs on stage would rock! :headbang:

 

[TrinityD]

Yeah at your height that would be larger than both buendia and anthony. You probably will only want to do that for some NPC and IFBB shows.

 

[TooPowerful4u]

Yeah way to make a hypothetical scenario up. No one mentioned anything about his poor neglected family.

Maybe he's a cancer researcher and before he started bodybuilding he was just on the brink of a cure, now that he's a bodybuilder people are dying every day because he wants to get swole.

Or maybe he is actually captain america, and the US military wanted him to stop taking tren because then he killed everyone on the battlefield and not just the bad guys. But he refused because he loves the hard dense look and aggression in the gym. Now our troops are getting killed because they don't have captain america to help them.

That would be a real tragedy, if only he could put on his big boy pants...

Damn my secret is out....


For real though this made me laugh.

I will admit i dont have much to do other than bodybuilding and work. Not close w any family except my brother (who graduates college this year so il be seeing him more) and the 3 friends i have who are like family are all in serious relationships and spend a lot of their time w their gf. My problem may be that this is ALL i do.... even when i hang out with my good friends we lift or go eat.....

 

[TooPowerful4u]

TP4U, you answered your own question earlier in the thread when you said walking away is not an option. And i fully understand your reasoning behind not being able to walk away... I dont compete this is my hobby but if i was in your shoes and walked away the regret and what if would kill me also.

So you need to push forward. Im not blowing smoke up your ass, im just telling you what i think. I have seen your pictures and i feel like you have what it takes to get a pro card, so you better keep at it or you will regret it.

Maybe just skip a few shows, and just focus on training but not competing. Maybe all the diet and contest prep is taking a toll. Whats the worst that could happen if you skip a few shows and just train and eat? Maybe you will put on some nice mass and come in even bigger when you return to the stage?

I dont know i dont even compete so maybe im clueless. But you arent gonna quit, so i dont see how missing a few shows could hurt as long as you train.

I am glad one person gets it. Regret is a huge personal issue of mine. I dont need one more HUGE one....

 

[TooPowerful4u]

Lol way to avoid my comment. How do we know he isn't hurting someone else if he leaves this planet too early. I can see it now on his tombstone. .."died young but man was he vascular"

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for the most part i am as healthy as the sport permits. Most who know me know i dont and cant take a lot. I drink or "party" 3-4x a yr tops. Iv had numerous long (6+mo) breaks since i started. And lastly as soon as im done competing im done being huge. I will get below 200 and stay there. Health isnt an issue.

 

[mcswag]

Im only 26 and go through this all the time. One week I'm all motivated and loving the lifestyle.. Next I could be like screw this shit I just wanna enjoy my self and live life.

In the same sense as you I'm extremely competitive and thats what drives me. Walking a way is not an option.. Try to find a balance. You don't NEED to compete. You can still be a bodybuilder and not let it consume your life. Or hell, take a year off and figure your self out.. you will find your way.

If your anything like me you will always make it back into the gym and continue to do this, because for me its all about PROGRESS. I refuse to take any steps backwards unless I am forced to by things out of my control.

 

[Kaladryn]

This is the secret to staying motivated IMO:

You must manage your motivation carefully, most people squander their motivation when they have it. They feel "unlimited motivation" when they are motivated, and easily use up their motivation unnecessarily. This means thinking TOO much about diet, spending TOO much time on food prep, going TOO hard in the gym. Basically just being obsessive about their hobby, this is the quickest way to become burnt out.

When you are motivated, it FEELS like unlimited motivation, but it is not, you must use it carefully and only on the things that most important.

 

[concreteguy]

I would reduce your lifts to just primary moves but still walk out of that gym pounded to shit. Look hard at you anti--es and any reason for the loss of drive. Your knocking at the door Phil. Just man up and get the job done! Remember, every one of the guys that beat you last year go through the same thing man. You can beat them in the gym before you get on stage.

CG

 

[NY Muscle]

for the most part i am as healthy as the sport permits. Most who know me know i dont and cant take a lot. I drink or "party" 3-4x a yr tops. Iv had numerous long (6+mo) breaks since i started. And lastly as soon as im done competing im done being huge. I will get below 200 and stay there. Health isnt an issue.

Not you brother. Someone else commented about a guy who goes a little over board. This wasn't directed about you.

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[biglizard225]

Your good at it. I don't know TP4U personally but you have awesome genetics and your smart.

Sometimes I hate bodybuilding but I never give up on lifting weights because it's what I love to do. I find little things to keep me on my task whether it be new songs/genres to listen while I lift or maybe get stronger on certain exercises just little bull shit things.

When I'm getting a little burnt on bodybuilding I'll focus on ther stuff like building on my car or other normal human things. I like toys aka materialistic things to blow my time and money on. For me it's kind of like working 60 hours a week. You don't think about it you just do it.

Suck it up don't get down on yourself and do what your good at. You make a choice and live with it. Think about it long and hard before you make that choice but no one can tell you what you personally need to do. As a man that's your decision and choice.

Good luck,

 

[Vanilla Mandingo]

working out, competiting, the eating, its all a hobby for me, i enjoy my hobby, it brings me joy and pleasure, so that in itself is motivation... happyness!!

This makes perfect sense. It is something that brings YOU joy. If it has stopped doing that then maybe you are ready for a new hobby. There is no rule that you must retain the same interests throughout your life.

Schwarzenegger did it for a while. Then he wanted to try acting. After a while he wanted to shift his attention to politics.

Also, there is nothing wrong with just taking a break and finding something else to pursure, a new chllenge, and then resuming at a later time. It would be like taking a vacation. It could be a good time for reflection. You may find that you have found a new challenge that means more to you or that the break has reignited your fire.

 

[dumbphone]

I think that you sound like a guy who needs a break. OBJECTIVELY you know that if you took 3-4 months OFF from the gym, didn't touch a weight....it would in no way hurt your long term potential. Giving yourself that time to miss it will only fire your workouts to a new level.

 

[NY Muscle]

I think that you sound like a guy who needs a break. OBJECTIVELY you know that if you took 3-4 months OFF from the gym, didn't touch a weight....it would in no way hurt your long term potential. Giving yourself that time to miss it will only fire your workouts to a new level.

Makes sense but I can't imagine him not working out. I think that's a recipe for depression. The worst times are when I can't lift because of a shoulder surgery or something. I'm thinking someone at Phils level and mindset not working out would fuck with his head.

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[TooPowerful4u]

I would reduce your lifts to just primary moves but still walk out of that gym pounded to shit. Look hard at you anti--es and any reason for the loss of drive. Your knocking at the door Phil. Just man up and get the job done! Remember, every one of the guys that beat you last year go through the same thing man. You can beat them in the gym before you get on stage.

CG

Well that always works to motivate me. Good fuckin point!

 

[DIEZEL666]

I totally understand. I got burned out on it bigtime and transitioned into other sports. That let me continue training but I didn't feel trapped anymore.

 

[sma]

Having a physique that majority of people appreciate and look up too is not one that will ever be competitive in bbing show. Their are much better avenues to be in the public eye. But you have to see that a hobby is just that once it becomes your Career you won't get that same release it will be more like work. I'm speaking from past experience.

 

[tattoo449]

It's called freedom bud. He's not hurting anyone other than himself, and it makes him happy. How is it sad that he's going to die doing what he loves?

Without knowing this guy, it sounds more like addiction than freedom to me. Denial is to keep telling myself its because I love it, rather than facing the truth that it might be harming me because I'm afraid to stop for one reason or another. And a heart attack to me is a good reason to stop, or at least slow down. Somewhere I've heard, to thy own self be true.

 

[UseButDontAbuse]

How do i stay motivated... Good Question.

GOALS, i always have very defined and specific goals in bodybuilding.


For example, right now i am working to get in the best shape of my life, not to compete ( i already did 2 times) but to do a fitness photoshoot.

That's because i know my life doesn't permit, at the moment, to compete, however its still a good motivation because you need to work to target a SPECIFIC GOAL.

You don't need to compete to get motivated. You need to have goals in this sport.

I think however i dont' have the same goals as most of you guys.. I don't get the URGE TO BE THE BIGGEST ON MY GYM, my goals are to be the most aesthetic and pleasing physique on the gym.. Does it make sense? I think it's easier for me because with my goals i feel good all the time.

When im cruising or off steroids, i focus on others things like to improve my diet, mantain all my size, push my body to other limits or even improve my tan lol. I fukin love this sport.

Chhers

 

[BigNJ]

People in their 20s and early 30s will have a totally different opinion than guys approaching 40s o older.

Do what you gotta do, but one day you will have to let that shit go eventually.

If you don't have any other aspirations in life beyond working out and injecting hormones, then I guess it is what it is.

It's your choice to make, do what makes you happy.

I have a feeling your heart is not completely into it anymore.

People fear change, but change can be very rewarding.

 

[NY Muscle]

Damn my secret is out....


For real though this made me laugh.

I will admit i dont have much to do other than bodybuilding and work. Not close w any family except my brother (who graduates college this year so il be seeing him more) and the 3 friends i have who are like family are all in serious relationships and spend a lot of their time w their gf. My problem may be that this is ALL i do.... even when i hang out with my good friends we lift or go eat.....

I'm thinking this is the issue. I was just like you before I met my wife and everything I did and all my friends revolved around the gym and the lifestyle.

It sucked when my friends started dropping off like flies when they got married and I was the last one left.

The ones that remained were my gym friends that I really didn't spend too much time with outside the gym. They lacked any sort of motivation to do anything else but get jacked.

I think you need something else that becomes your priority or main focus. Mine was focusing on my business and then getting married and having kids.

Working out becomes the escape away from the other things where nothing else matters for those 1.5-2hrs at the gym. Even though I'm forced to work while at the gym responding to emails and texts and what not. But it's ok I deal with it.

Right now the gym is your main priority and you have nothing to stop you from going. Nothing will get in the way so subconsciously you take it for granted and its slowly making you lose motivation.

At my age and my business and my family getting to the gym is hard as hell and when I do its a fucking privilege and something I get excited about.

I'm not saying you need to start a business and get married. It will happen. When it does then you won't have any problem getting motivated in the gym.


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