Most people have probably thought about how to do things differently if they were to go back in time or give advice to their younger selves. February 26, 2023, Men’s Bodybuilder Physique Ryan Terry shares the eight mistakes he wished he had avoided when he was younger in a video on his YouTube channel.
Terry has been training in the gym for two decades and feels he could have put some of that time to better use if he hadn’t fallen into the mistakes he now knows to avoid. While experience (and injuries) are part of learning, heeding the advice of those who have gone through trials and tribulations can simplify training and achieve goals.
Check out the full video below:
[Related: Check Out the Arm Workout Samson Dauda Used Before His 2023 Arnold Classic Win]
Ryan Terry’s eight mistakes to avoid
Below are the eight mistakes that Terry wishes his younger self would have avoided:
1. Ego Lifting
Ego lifting is lifting weights that are too heavy for what a lifter can do or taking otherwise unnecessary risks in the gym.
Leave your ego at the door. Train for you.
Terry admitted to suffering many injuries in the course of his career that resulted from training with athletes who were stronger or bigger than he was and tried to lift the same weights as they were.
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2. Phones / Social Media / Other Gym Distractions
When working out in the gym, Terry suggests putting full focus on that effort. While social media came into being as Terry flourished in his bodybuilding career, he feels that athletes who take pictures of themselves in the gym or record themselves training for social media are doing themselves a disservice.
Training comes first.
Terry does not say to eliminate the cameras and so on if it is part of his brand or a way to build his following, but he suggests outsourcing, if possible, so that the athlete can focus mainly on the training. Anyone trying to be an elite bodybuilder like Terry should train every workout without the distractions that could hinder training.
3. Prioritize Cardio Over Resistance Training
Terry competes in Men’s Physique, which prizes chiseled abs, tight midsections and sloping V-tapers. However, when he was younger, Terry feels he spent too much time doing cardio to stay lean when he should have prioritized resistance training.
Focus on resistance training first.
Cardio is still a valuable tool, but it is only a means of energy expenditure to maintain a caloric deficit when the goal is to cut weight. Resistance training provides the building blocks of a muscular physique that can be improved over time.
[Related: 1983 Mr. Olympia Samir Bannout Says He “Wasn’t Really Impressed” With Samson Dauda’s Muscle Quality at the 2023 Arnold Classic]
4. Do not neglect Nutrition
While it is simple, it is a difficult mistake to avoid. Proper nutrition is key to building an aesthetic physique. Not only adequate nutrition to provide adequate energy levels and sustenance for the body to build muscles, but it provides the necessary fuel to perform the necessary training for its goals.
The right nutrition combined with the right training will get the best out of you.
Trying to quit a bad diet is probably a fool’s errand. In Terry’s youth, he would starve himself during the day only to have a “pig-out meal” at the end of the day. Blood sugar spikes and irregular fasting did him no favors.
5. Don’t forget your Training Plan
Terry explained that entering the gym without a plan or a goal for that workout will lead to a less effective workout than if you knew in advance what you were going to do. For a competitive bodybuilder like Terry, it is important to have a weekly training division that allows him to train with as much frequency and intensity as his recovery will allow.
For more regular gym goers, having a plan of attack that involves exercises they enjoy and are able to do with a goal of pushing themselves more likely will keep them coming back to the gym. This consistency over time will be more effective than sporadic training whenever you spontaneously feel like going to the gym.
6. Neglecting the Mind-Muscle Connection
The mind-muscle connection is the means of lifting for maximum stimulation of a target muscle group. Unlike other strength sports such as strongman or CrossFit, where the objective is often just to move a weight with the most effective means necessary, bodybuilding is to stimulate the muscle for growth and, therefore, improve its aesthetics.
If form goes out the door because the weight is too heavy and the mind-muscle connection can’t be established, then lower the weight until the mind-muscle connection comes back into play. Imagine the anatomy of your body and how the muscle fibers connect via their insertion points. When performing a rep, the goal should be to shorten the target muscle to its peak contraction and then move it through its full range of motion on the eccentric.
7. Don’t skip the search
When you structure your goals as a competitive bodybuilder, knowing what physique to build is important. Researching the division you want to compete in and how the judges reward that physique (that is, how much conditioning, what structure is rewarded, how the aspect of posing influence, etc.) can help inform the choice made in the gym
It is perfectly acceptable to only compete against yourself and improve to be a better version of yourself from competition to competition, but for athletes like Terry who want to win bodybuilding competitions, do the work for what will be rewarded in that contest can be invaluable when. plan how to train in the gym.
8. Don’t compare out of context
Terry recommends navigating the fitness industry in a way that’s right for you. Sacrificing what you believe in or what you want to bring to the community at large for what you think others want or what others reward you for is probably unsustainable.
Be yourself. Build a following that is right for you.
Playing the long game with a message you believe in and are willing to continually strive for will be more fulfilling than the short-term focus that results from abandoning your principles. Do what you believe in and strive to bring value to others.
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Featured Image: @ryanjterry on Instagram