Memory Lane...

[5kgLifter]

As the title suggests, Memory Lane will be for anyone that wants to record their initial thoughts about when they first began weight training, training for competions etc.

It's a "motivational" thread for newcomers, in order for them to see how once scrawny, weak, or overweight, people viewed the road they were about to travel...whether they looked upon the heavy weightloads as unobtainable, when they set out on that long journey, only to realise they are now lifting those seemingly elusive loads...and so forth.

[BendtheBar]

My biggest memory is an embarrassing moment. I have shared this before.

The first time I hit my college gym I put 25's on the bench press, for a total of 95 pounds. I thought this was a safe weight. On rep 3 or 4 I hit failure, as in can't get the bar off my chest I am going to die please God help!

I don't know why I decided to return after that day. But I did.

There isn't a day that doesn't go by where I don't recall that pathetic effort. Every time I tell a young trainee that they can exceed their wildest expectations, I mean it. 10 years after that 95 pound fiasco I hit a raw 430 pound bench.

Small boned, skinny fat, naturally thin and weak. I had it all again me. I am glad I kept trying. The "trying" is the part of the journey I still enjoy most of all.

Don't fear failure. Fear the day when you have no will to try.

[Carl1174]

Great Idea 5kg...

I remember looking at the 'big' dumbbells in awe... Everything over 20kg's were on a different rack and i used to look longingly at them, wondering how i would ever manage to use them for Bench Press (I didn't even imagine using them for shoulder presses). At the time I was shoulder pressing the 12's and Bench pressing the 18's. There was anothe rrack with the 40's on it that I didnt even look at lol

I used 30kg's for my top set of Shoulder presses last workout, the 40's for bench and the 50's for Rows (my old gym didnt even have 50's) after 4 years, although only the last 2 years with any kind of consistency.

I now look at the 40's longingly for Shoulder presses and the 50's longingly for Bench and those 75's are gonna be mine one day for the rows

**But remember when starting, its how you lift the weight, not the weight you lift that is the most important**

Carl.

[J_Byrd]

Freshman year of High School, November 4th, 1997. I weighed 250lbs, and hearly died under 150lbs on the benchpress. Before I graduated I had benched (with an ugly bounce!) 400lbs. I tell high school kids all the time, I was a fat week kid when I started, now I am just fat and strong haha!

[LtL]

Don't know about specific times in the gym but hopefully this is something like what you mean. In 4 years (almost to the month) I have gone from the following (not so impressive) feats @70kg's BW, approximately 13% BF:

- Pull ups x 0
- Bench Press 45kg's x 5, 60kg's x 0 to almost killing myself and having to be rescued by a passer by
- High squat 1/4 80kg's x 5
- Round backed, stiff legged, disc rupturing 70kg's x 10 DL's with straps

To the following @ 97.5kg's BW and around 18-20% BF:

- BW + 10kg's pull ups for 4 sets of 5
- Flat bench 132.5kg's (in competition), touch and go CGBP of 130kg's, floor press 140kg's (all gym)
- Squats: 170kg's x 4 (gym) and 182.5kg's x 1 (in competition)
- Deadlifts - 215kg's sumo (in competition), 210kg's regular (gym)

I have done nothing spectactular. I am completely natural. I consider myself to have average muscular genetics and am certainly not naturally strong. The above can be achieved and exceeded by anyone willing to eat and train in a dedicated and educated manner.

Al

[BendtheBar]

Originally Posted by LtL

I have done nothing spectactular.

^ Which reveals the power of simple progression, compound lifts and persistence.

I did nothing spectacular as well.

[Carl1174]

Originally Posted by BendtheBar

^ Which reveals the power of simple progression, compound lifts and persistence.

I did nothing spectacular as well.

If anyone is just starting and reading this, then this really needs to be hammerd home.

I have done spectacular or flashy (i have tried flashy and it got me nowhere !!)

Just Stay consistant, persistant and keep it simple with progressive weights on compound exercises and EAT !!!

That really is the only 'magic formula' you will ever need

Carl.

[5kgLifter]

When I first got a barbell (Xmas 2009), I did my very first deadlift at 50kg and a month or so later I hit 60kg which I found a struggle to maintain grip on. A few months after that and I was repping 60kg and have since increased the deadlift to 75kg which I never thought I would be able to do considering I could barely hold the 60kg for the entire lift; in the face of TOS which affects bloodflow to the arms which in addition then affects the grip, the increase in weightload lifted is amazing.

Around Xmas 2010, I decided to get some KBs and to get a 20kg KB purely for future use, for swings only due to the weight of it. In addition to swinging the KB, I’ve since been jerking the 20kg KB and have increased that jerk to 24kg, having to use 2 KBs at the same time.

What seemed like very unobtainable weightloads are now becoming the norm but only because I lift them and I lift because I enjoy it which keeps it fresh for me. I will progress even further in the loads lifted because I look forward to lifting and enjoy every session whether it’s KB based or barbell based.

But, looking back, I never would have thought that I would be lifting the loads I’m lifting today.

[J_Byrd]

Originally Posted by LtL

I have done nothing spectactular. I am completely natural. I consider myself to have average muscular genetics and am certainly not naturally strong. The above can be achieved and exceeded by anyone willing to eat and train in a dedicated and educated manner.

Al

Originally Posted by Carl1174

If anyone is just starting and reading this, then this really needs to be hammerd home.

I have done spectacular or flashy (i have tried flashy and it got me nowhere !!)

Just Stay consistant, persistant and keep it simple with progressive weights on compound exercises and EAT !!!

That really is the only 'magic formula' you will ever need

Carl.

You have no idea how right that is. Hard work is the key to everything, not just lifting.

[J_Byrd]

One more story and I will stop with all this haha.

In high school I was 5ft 11 275lbs when I graduated. I had no full scholorship offers, only the option to play at a d3 school Methodist University. I went on to be the best that I could be. Eventually earning a work out with an Arena League team. At this point I weighed about 290lbs. Still extreamly undersized, from a small school nobody heard of, with all the odds stacked against me. I went on to earn the starting job. The first game I remember looking at the jumbo screen and pointing in amazment. I went on to be named lineman of the year, and make a decent living. Dont let people tell you that you are too small, too weak, too slow, too anything! Just work your butt off and make it happen. Then if it doesnt work, you can sleep good at night knowing you give it your best!