TO SUCCEED IN LIFE,YOU FIRST HAVE TO SEARCH WITHIN YOURSELF TO FIND REASON...

I was watching Kai Greene’s new documentary recently, and at the start of it he says that people who have a reason in life are the ones which succeed in life. But it is not enough for somebody else to give you a reason, you have to find it within; and that’s not easy.

So I did a little experiment, and applied it to myself. And I realised that when I have something to do for the next day, normally I will go to bed early and wake up early with that target in mind – that’s my reason. Usually that way, half of the battle was won because I knew what I was doing, and why and was not confused about anything. If you don’t have a reason in your life or goals, there is no real point in anything you do… you are probably just walking around like a headless chicken and are just burning time and living for the sake of it.

I guess to really put it out there, we are still animals… no matter of our appearance. And we need some sort of lines to follow in life because without those, we would get lost. But this doesn’t mean I am saying don’t enjoy life to the fullest… Im just saying you need those guide lines to give some sort of meaning to life.

Try it, get out there and find your reason if you haven’t already. You will see the difference.

Love, peace and big muscles.

SOMETIMES YOU NEED TO GO THROUGH 'THE DOWNS' IN ORDER TO APPRECIATE THE 'UPS' IN LIFE.

Once again I don’t know why the hell I am posting this, which is not really directly related to training or sports in general, but I do believe it might help some of you ... or at least give you something to think about.

So a couple of nights ago I was sitting at a friends house just chilling, and as always, there was a girl there nagging for a good hour about how her relationship, and how it’s not going anywhere and the guy is not showing any interest in her anymore. And basically I got inspired and turned around and told her: life is like a rollercoaster. When you are going up, it is the best feeling ever. But going down, it’s a different story :) Yet you need to go down to realise how good the going up was... it is just like a wake up call saying ‘hey, did you see how good that was?’ Almost like when you lose something special... and you realise it was special only when its actually gone.

It is just human nature that we think the grass is always greener on the other side, and we forget how green our own grass is. So what I am saying is, sometimes you should take time out to appreciate what you have before you lose it!

Love, peace and big muscles.

LIKE IT OR NOT THE BODY NEEDS REST AT TIMES

As time goes by, I learn more and more about my body. One of the most important things I have learnt so far is that sometimes resting is a must to achieve better goals. At times we might think we are a Ferrari, and that we can race ahead until our hearts are content, but even those cars need a servicing now and again.

I am writing this, because in these past, I had been getting injured more and more often. First there was my outer calf muscle, where I had fibers toughen during a heavy set of leg press exercises…. This set me back nearly a month of training legs, and I could walk without crutches for over 2 weeks – it made going to the toilet fucking hard! Lol. Next thing to happen was an injury to my front left delt during a heavy set of front presses on the smith. This time I had felt something after the set but didn’t accept that it could be an injury and that I might need some time off… and yes, I know that I am a stubborn when it comes to these things but I did pay the price.

I’ve been going to get laser treatments on my shoulder every day for weeks and I am still i was not quite 100%. Guess it seems that the only way for me to accept some good rest was to get injured… and if you burn the candle from both ends you will always end up paying the price whether you like it or not.

Its just like back in the day, when we were all in school and our teachers would tell us (or at least mine would) not to revise all night until early morning as nothing would stay in your head – just study a couple of hours a day because the brain needs some rest in order to remember and process all the stuff you have been reading.

So as I have said previously regarding training…. Too much of a good thing can actually be bad, and often we don’t realize what we have until something bad happens to make us step back and think. Just like with everything else in this world, we need to have some balance…

Love, peace and big muscles.

CRAZY WORLD

We meet many different people throughout our lives for various reasons. Sometimes we help them, and sometimes they help us, but the funny thing is that we often meet them in the strangest, most unethical ways, which is kind of crazy... but hey, we live in a crazy world.

Out of all those people, there will always be some that will be there for you – at some point you both share parts of yourselves which very few know, even though at times you where both frustrated with each other. This bond will hold for years to come. You may not be near each other, maybe you won’t see each other for some time, but as soon as you do, all that lost time will disappear in a second. It is what I call unconditional love... at any moment, in any place you will be there for each other.

As I said, we live in one crazy world... and most of us will lose the plot at one point or another, even though we don’t like to admit it. As for why I am writing this post today? There is not one straight answer to tell you the truth... so I will just leave it at that :)

Life is short and sweet, even though at times it may seem to be the biggest BS. We are all here for some reason, big or small, and there is always a reason we meet certain people. There is no point in holding onto anger of any kind, there is so much going on around you if you take the time to look, that to tell you the truth you really don’t need anything more than that. The real deal at the end of the day is to find yourself and be happy. Enjoy your life!

Love, peace and big muscles,

OVER-TRAINING: COULD TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING END UP BEING BAD?

Even the best of us will at one point or another be the victims of over-training. I guess it’s a bump on the road that we all have to go through, so that we can understand what it really means. The most common reason of over-training is letting ourselves get motivated by our feelings; then we stop thinking with our brain and we let our heart take over. The outcome is pushing yourself for that extra mile even though you have the gut feeling that you really should stop. It is just like the double bladed knife I mentioned in the earlier post.... leaning too much on either side and you could end up hurting yourself.

Another reason why people over-train is because they see advanced athletes and pro training like crazy; lifting heavy weights and doing long sessions of cardio with little difficulties. So they think they can do the same. But we forget that most of them have support which helps them recover faster than the average Joe, or that some of them are genetically gifted in such a way that over-training doesn’t really mean anything to them.

So what do you really have to do? You have to learn to start reading your body, and spotting the signs of over-training. There is no point in panicking, just take a step back, take that extra breath of air and think about:

1. How is your body reacting to the workout? Are there improvements or is it all going downhill?
2. Your strength; are you getting stronger or weaker?
3. How much recovery time do you take after workouts? Do you maybe need more?
4. Are you doing too much cardio?
5. How is your diet? Do you maybe need more calories or a more frequent re-feed?
6. What is your mental state like, are you feeling down?

7. Washed-put feeling, tired, drained, lack of energy?

8. Are you stressed?

9. Have you been sleeping well or are you walking around like a zombie?

10. How is your appetite? Has it decreased?
11. Are you bored of the same gym routine or diet?
12. When was the last time you really got away from the gym?

And yes, over-training has happened to me a number of times too. And I had to pay the price, as we all have to. Sometime this is a small price, but sometimes it can be a lot bigger. But hopefully this post will help some of you avoid over-training or at least be able to spot the signs of it before it happens!

Love, peace and big muscles.

SOME OBSTACLES ARE JUST STEPPING STONES FOR GREATER ACHIEVEMENTS...

I would say that over this past year or so, I really realized that nothing comes as easy as we are told it does when we are little. I guess it is a way of not scaring us away from our dreams. But now it seems that the closer we get to the targets we want to achieve, the more personal, physical and psychological obstacles seem to pop up, as if out of nowhere. Now I know that this might also be a good thing, because this certain pain lets you know that you are on track and doing well. Little obstacles cannot do anything to stop you, even though at the time it might seem like the end of the world and you may think that there is no way that you can really continue....It is all just a test of life to see how much hunger you have inside.

It is like when a hiker sets out on a hike up a mountain. He has everything figured on that map he is carrying and he is happy as a fat kid with cake. The start of the hike is quite easy, he has energy, his food and supplies. Towards the middle however, as the mountain steepens, he becomes increasingly tired. His energy supplies start running low and as the air becomes lighter it becomes harder for him to breath. This is the point where the hiker faces his first test: he can easily turn around and go back, and say it was too much for him. But what about that feeling of personal failure that he would carry inside? Or he could push himself, knowing that he just needs to press on that little bit more and if he does, he will feel like the first person to have reached the top of the mountain.

Just want to say, don't be scared of these 'obstacles' or pain. It is a way of building up your character, and testing to see how much you really want those goals or achievements... be they professional or personal, big or small...

“If there is a will there is always a way”
“The sky is the limit”

Love, peace and big muscles.

THE RUSH OF BODYBUILDING

The other day I was asked which part of bodybuilding gives you that certain rush, that makes you want to go further and further, achieving more and more. Is it the buzz you get from going on stage in front of all those people, is it simply feeling that certain energy... or is it altogether something else?

I told them that I really hate going on the stage. It is the worst part for me, maybe because I am kind of a shy guy, and I never really enjoyed it. The thing that actually keeps me going is the challenge of competing against myself; trying to lift that heavier weight, trying to push to that certain rep, trying to achieve that certain sense of self-accomplishment. It is all about seeing how dedicated you are on the diet, seeing how far you are going for the target you set and trying to be the best for yourself and no-one else. When you finally see yourself improving and notice the areas that you still lack in, you can just try to tie them all together so you can achieve that perfect image that you had in mind when you just started.

Basically, it comes down to the rush of seeing yourself evolve in the gym – all the way from day one until that certain set date. It is like your body is a lump of clay and you are the artist; slowly day by day you mould the clay into a certain shape adding your own details. Then, after a certain amount of weeks of putting your heart and soul into it, you end up with something that can be called your best.

I thought that I would post this blog to let you all know why I love this sport so much. It is truly all about challenging myself – I do it for myself and no-one else.

Love, peace and big muscles.