Am I a total idiot?

I have lifted for about 15 years...basically going through the motions with no real results...so this year I said, this is bullshit. I am prioritizing my body above all the other shit I spend money on....
I am dropping a bunch of money on a trainer. He is a great guy, seems to know his stuff...my work outs are better, but a couple of months later, I am reading this board, looking at all your pictures and wondering if I have more dollars than sense. Seems a lot of you are making incredible gains -- fast.

I am not ready for my first cycle(knowledge)...but am really impatient, the trainer can't put the gains on me, but I am not even sure what I am expecting now.

I have very specific goals for weight, measurements, and strength tests.....and the progress seems slow, even with a professionals help. I learn stuff every time I work out with my trainer, but I don't really need the instruction. I am highly motivated, and am going to be at the gym busting my ass even if I am alone....

You think the trainer is a crutch? It's almost like I am desperate to have the body I want and will spend or do whatever it takes....no I am not abandoning my family or job, but my lifestyle is evolving around my diet and workout routine and little else interests me.

I want to get some momentum going, but it all seems up hill.

I am a hard gainer, "tall & skinny", but still double digit BF. Shooting for 3 inches on the arms, 4 around the chest, and maintainig the waist in 2002. In the first 2 months I have put a half inch on arms and chest and took a half inch off the waist. Body fat went down a point. So things are happening....but really slow.

Am I expecting too much from my body? Is the trainer thing overkill? Am I not working hard enough? Will it all get better and life become perfect with my first cycle? Any thoughts? I know the foundation is working my ass off...and I am working harder than I have in my life. If I can worker harder on it tomorrow morning, I will. I know the answer's not in a dart or in my wallet. If you have any advice I would love to hear it, and I am really not a whiner or looking for therapy...but I may be a little naive about fitness and have a lot to learn about getting the results I want .

Thanks for reading this and any feedback.

Take care!

You seem very sincere in your mission. It's hard for anyone to tell you if the trainer is guiding you correctly without information regarding what he has set forth for your regimen. The problem I see with personal trainers is that they simply work accordingly to a clock, therefore they are just trying to fit every possible bit of exercise into a limited time frame, which isn't really ideal in most cases. From what I have noticed personally is that most people use trainers as a means of motivation/staying on track -- but you apparently have all the desire you need to meet your goals without anyone elses assistance. The only way to adequetly evaluate your trainer and whether it is worthwhile is to research proper training methods. You said you are periodizing, which is a good start, but there are so many factors regarding periodization and so many training variables that can be manipulated that you may not have discovered yet. You must also realize that you will be the greatest indicator of progress; you should know before any trainer what sort of training volume, rep-range, etc work on your behalf.

It's all about how much you know. Read tons of books on bodybuilding and fitness, and the more you know, the more you will apply knowledge to your training rather than simple lifting. Better results will come!

I don't know about fitness trainers...

i agree with jbrand on trainer part

i think after 15 years of training your body is used to weights and you may be expecting alot too quickly espically without juice. the gains you have made since becoming serious are pretty good ones espically clean.

my secret to getting big(i started at 151 and after 10 years got to 220 area ,stayed in that area for about 2 years till about 1 and 1/2 years ago-now 242)was to quit stressing. i dropped to 3 days per week of super heavy and high intense training. if i miss a day ,then i would freak,now so what. i got strict on my diet and protein and my training became as an enjoyment(cause only doing 3 days would miss it instead of regreting having to train)and if i do miss a day then i dont worry about catching up that muscle it just gets a week off---i put on alot of size this way. it may not work for everyone but it darn sure did for me

Concious: give us more details on The Big Three:

1) What's your diet like? Give some details.
2) Spell out your workout routine. How often do you hit the gym? How many times per week do you work each body part? How many sets/reps per body part? How long are your workouts?
3) How much sleep are you getting every night?

Other factors to fill us in on: how much cardio do you do? Any other life-factors that might affect your ability to gain (stress, work etc.)

dude man results take time. thats all. The trainer, what i suggest you do is. Learn what you can from them. I never see why [ppoeple take a trainer day in and day out. See what excerscises he teaches you foor diff body parts. Remeber them and then use them urself. Make some friends at the gym, talk to them. read this board alot. And like Ajax was asking you. The simple reason your not gaining is that your deit might not be getting what it needs or maybe not enough sleep. You'll get your gaols man in time. And if you are htinking about going on AS. make sure you read up on everything. put together somehting, then comntact a mod. dopn't go into shit blindly.

Concious,
I started lifting and serious about bodybuilding a little late, at 26. I was 5'6 160 and had just moved to Miami, Florida. I went to the beach for the first time and I physically felt like the smallest pebble in the sand, compared to the size of the guys down there. The second day, I was at the counter signing up for my gym membership. I plunged head first into books, websights, magazines, basically anything related to bodybuilding. First thing I realized was that every person's body is different. I may have genetically bigger shoulders then the next guy, or he might have genetically a bigger back. Second, the three basic body types. Some can eat and eat and never get fat, while others look at a menu and the belt instantly gets tighter. I thought that was helpful because I didn't want to compare myself to anyone and it gave me knowledge about my own body. Long story short, in the 4 years that I've been at this, I'm now 5'6 194 12% Bodyfat. Haven't competed yet because of my professional career, but that will come on its own. I have never done the same workout for more that 2 months, I always go 4 days a week one month, then 3 days a week, then 5 days a week, just to keep the body guessing. I eat clean although on weekends I have one cheat meal. Never had a trainer, I figured the best way was to look and learn! Ask around! Hang out with some big boys! I have done steroids but I don't think the steroids have been the "whole" picture! It's my knowledge, ability to change and listen to my body, and this message board has been the "trainer" I've never had! I hope I have given you a little "boost"! Sorry, I wrote a book. Good luck!

Good advice. Makes a hell of a lot of sense. Thanks again for the encouragement. I know I'm gonna make it happen -- probably learn some damn patience too. Take care.

Thanks all who have taken an interest...Great Advice and Encouragement from everyone. Very cool community!

Ajax, here are the big 3.

Diet: I am up to 3000 calories a day...I am going to take that higher, but I was below 2000 a day so it has been a big increase for me to adjust too. I have cut back on Carbs to about 40%...trying to go lower, but having a hard time eating all that protein...have gone through big diet changes. about 35% Protein now. Used to be about 70% Carbs, 15% -20% protein and 10-15% fat. I eat 5 - 6 times a day, no Carbs after 5p. Usually have one or two shakes a day as a snack and or a meal replacement bar.

I just started taking creatine and glutnamine(sp), and I typically use an ECA stack on strength training days.

Gym: Strength - 4 days/Week Cardio: 2 day/s week (This week I am doing Cardio on the same day I do legs so I start taking 2 days off a week)
Abs - 6 days/week

Monday: Biceps/Back -- different 12-15 sets every week for each muscle group(DB, BB, Cable).

Wednesday: Triceps/Shoulders/Pecs -- 12-15 sets every week for each muscle group(DB,BB, Cable and Body Weight Exercises)

Thursday - Legs 6-10 sets for each: Quads, Glutes, Calves, Thighs

Friday: Biceps/Back -- Have been working twice on Biceps and Back because they seem to need most work and show least response.

Saturday: Cardio

Strenght Workouts:

Either 3 straight sets of 4 different exercises, or variations of drop sets and/or super sets. Mostly different combinations of exercioses in each work out. A minute rest between sets

Doing straight sets, I shoot for 12 reps on the first set. Usually by the end of working the muscle group, I can't even lift my arms.

Drop Sets, usually shoot for 5 on first weight and go down 2 or 3 times to failure.

Supersets -- First movement, shoot for 12, usually 8 - 10 on second movement.

Cardio - 25 Minutes at 85% of my maximum - Eliptical Trainer, Treadmill, or Fusion



Sleep: Need to do some work in this area...usually 6 hours max. Trying to get 8+. On Weekends I get 8 or 9.

I think I have as much stress as the next guy -- and that is pretty high lately with Job security, family issues popping up at the same time.

A couple of the other bros also put their finger on the fact that I am stressed as much about getting a big body as I am other life issues.


Having read what I have just written, it seems I could be overtraining: could be doing to many reps for someone trying to put on size. I asked my trainer about both of those,and he thought it was a possibility but felt I needed to increase strength before I could increase size as I was not increasing weights when we tried "heavier" weights with lower reps.

I think getting to bed at a decent hour would be good, and continuing to work on getting more calories.

Having read some of the other responses I am thinking that the trainer was good to learn from and to kick start my program, but could be holding me back from learning from other big guys at the gym.

What else do you think?