Since we’ve just come into the new year, I’m asking this question.
If you were to start training again what would you do differently.
I’ve only been training for 2 years (since I was 15)
But I would never have become a vegan or a vegetarian (more an idealism based decision than a training one).
I would have bought an olympic bar instead of spending money on alcohol.
I would have started playing rugby as a 8 year old instead of a 17 year old.
However perhaps most importantly I would have started reading forums and websites like this, (crossfit, dan john, T-Nation, etc) than those crappy mags.
I also would have started squatting earlier, and not listen to advice about it being bad for your knees
Every mistake I’ve made in the last 9 or so years of lifting has taught me something very valuable. I don’t regret anything. If I had the power to go back and make any changes, I’d be in England, and my last name would be Yates.
[quote]samdiesel wrote:
Every mistake I’ve made in the last 9 or so years of lifting has taught me something very valuable. I don’t regret anything.[/quote]
I agree with this. I think that overall, my mistakes made helped me more than anything. What I don’t understand are those who spend years doing the same things that don’t work before they finally put the pieces together and change something. Maybe they don’t realize that they aren’t making progress. If anything, I would have started training legs sooner. My lack of nutrition when I started had more to do with what was available than me avoiding food that I needed. That was one reason I made little progress until I got to college…and then I gained weight and strength pretty fast.
Not knowing how to put together a program is why I read books on the subject…which helped me out in all aspects. Asking questions directed at people who were bigger, older, and stronger than me helped. If you are making progress, I wouldn’t think of small mistakes as needing feelings of regret. However, I never would have been a vegan in the first place because it makes little sense in the way of my goals and chickens and cows taste good. There are very few vegan BIG bodybuilders in the world. Most vegans look a little sickly in my opinion.
I agree with the consensus on mistakes. They happen and you learn from them. That said, I would change two things:
-
I wish I would have started lifting earlier… lightly for conditioning around 12 or 13, and heavy around 15.
-
I wish I had been more consistent in my earlier lifting days.
One of the worst things I’ve ever done was living with regret.Some of the best advice I’ve ever been given was “Get over it,and get on with it.” You’re young and off to a great start.
Have fun with this new year! Hope you set some new personal bests!
I would have never quit gymnastics,
I would have wrestled from 8th grade and played football in high school.
I would have somehow, someway convinced my parents to get me an O-lifting instructor at the age of 5.
When I first discovered this site years ago, I would have never shrugged it off as just a bunch of steriod users with a funny guy named TC.
Only thing I would changed about my diet growing up is that I would have more protien based meals.
For this year:
1- Will stickfight in may’s “Gathering”
2- Continue Parallette training
3A- Increase strength and size in order to play football at a DII school with intention of moving up and transfering to a DI.
3B-If football doesn’t work out, continue with MMA, and become a sponsored fighter.
----Non training related----
4- Keep my grades higher than snoop dogg on a trip to deustchland.
5- Read an enormous amount outside of class, using audiobooks if neccessary. School tends to destroy the ‘joy’ of reading by giving you assigned reading. I intend to fend that off.
6- Get off the net no watching TV. Read. Train. Bang some girls or something.
I actually don’t watch much tv, but I’ll stay on the net for hours… pointless and it’s still a one-eyed devil. It’s about time, I put my mind to some good use.
Some very good responses.
I’ll put my personal goals up for 2005
- Get Better at rugby so I can play it for a university team
- Clean and Jerk My Bodyweight
- Participate in either an olympic or powerlifting meet
Anyone else care to put up their personal goals
Things I should have done when I first started training about 7 years ago:
Eat more Saturated Fat
Eat more Cholesterol
Supplemented w/high vitamin A Cod Liver Oil.
I would have got my nutrition in order, especially in regards to protein, when I had plenty of time to train compared to now, usually 4-5 times/week as a teenager (I started at a gym at 16) and then a uni student. I would have made significantly greater gains then.
I wouldn’t have played rugby for the first time at age 20 when a knee injury from 4 years before meant that I shouldn’t be playing at all. I stuffed it up again at the end of the season and as a result had the doctor tell me I’ll never run fast or do leg weights again. I obeyed until 6 years later when I started running and found it was OK if I didn’t go too fast and then last year I started doing squats again. I have to be careful and I am nowhere near my previous best lifts but at least it is a start and the gym is a lot more fun as a result. The one season of rugby wasn’t worth it, as much as it pains me to say that!
I would have deadlifted when i started doing weights.
Ben
i wish i would have trained more in highschool and college and had better nutrition control. laters pk
Wish I wouldn’t have injured my shoulder 5 years ago or at the very least actually taken care of it rather than hurting my gains.