Why I train
In this day of social media pressure, Abercrombie and Fitch billboards and generally exaggerated expectations it can be stressful to find time to train and the motivation to stick with it .
Every other day, there is another new hot guy/girl , a new program, supplement etc. It gets tiresome after a while….
Remember the days when you were a kid and just went to the weight room because it was awesome? Chasing the pump with your buddies, not caring about anything else? At least that’s how it was for me. ( If you have not guessed it yet, I am from a small town)
Before bodybuilding was about money, supplement contracts ,trophies, attention from others ( ok that one was always there, I guess)?
The only way to withstand the onslaught of life is to find and keep the inner child in you, train because you like it not because you think you should look certain way.
If you let your physical ideal to be dictated by others, you’ll always be a follower and you’ll never arrive.
I for one know that I will never be a great bodybuilder but so be it. I simply love training, love talking and writing about it and maybe even influencing others in a s semi-meaningful way.
For me, weights were truly a life changer in more ways than one. Weight training helped building my confidence, it allowed me to perform better at my sport at the time and it taught me discipline and structure, something that comes in handy during the teenage years.
Later on in life, it enabled to me to obtain scholarship, come to America and eventually build a career and my personal training business in NYC around something that is still truly my hobby. I even get to talk about gains in a university setting! Only in America.
I understand that not everyone is able to monetize the sport and I am very grateful and humbled by the fact that I lucked out.
However, the only reason to train and put up with the rigors of lifting and dieting is you. It is not the money, the internet fame, the adulation, it is about being the best you that you can be
Only if you find the motivation from within, will you be content ( but not complacent), with what you built.
To this day, when I enter the gym, my first thought is: This is soooo freaking awesome, I can not believe I get to be here.
Training is a privilege!
I for one know that I will never be a great bodybuilder but so be it. I simply love training, love talking and writing about it and maybe even influencing others in a s semi-meaningful way.
For me, weights were truly a life changer in more ways than one. Weight training helped building my confidence, it allowed me to perform better at my sport at the time and it taught me discipline and structure, something that comes in handy during the teenage years.
Later on in life, it enabled to me to obtain scholarship, come to America and eventually build a career and my personal training business in NYC around something that is still truly my hobby. I even get to talk about gains in a university setting! Only in America.
I understand that not everyone is able to monetize the sport and I am very grateful and humbled by the fact that I lucked out.
However, the only reason to train and put up with the rigors of lifting and dieting is you. It is not the money, the internet fame, the adulation, it is about being the best you that you can be
Only if you find the motivation from within, will you be content ( but not complacent), with what you built.
To this day, when I enter the gym, my first thought is: This is soooo freaking awesome, I can not believe I get to be here.
Training is a privilege!
Maik