• Keep up to date with Ausbb via Twitter and Facebook. Please add us!
  • Join the Ausbb - Australian BodyBuilding forum

    If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact contact us.

    The Ausbb - Australian BodyBuilding forum is dedicated to no nonsense muscle and strength building. If you need advice that works, you have come to the right place. This forum focuses on building strength and muscle using the basics. You will also find that the Ausbb- Australian Bodybuilding Forum stresses encouragement and respect. Trolls and name calling are not allowed here. No matter what your personal goals are, you will be given effective advice that produces results.

    Please consider registering. It takes 30 seconds, and will allow you to get the most out of the forum.

Bodybuilding Virgin: If you knew then what you know now...

NeverGiveUp said:
Thanks guys! I'm loving all the advice!

I think the biggest thing I'm starting to accept is that there is no one perfect and "right" way to do just about anything (as much as the highly indecisive perfectionist in me wishes there were).

It's all about the n=1, I think; experimenting on yourself using well-researched and validated information, and seeing what works best for you. That said, if you can learn from others' experiences it can only make your journey easier.
Click to expand...

It sounds like you are pretty switched on, have a look at the various beginner lifting programs out there and pick the one which looks right for you. In my opinion, your best bet is to spend 6-12 months getting stronger, then reassess if you want to go for the ripped/bodybuilding look once you have the strength base to work towards it.
 
In the beginning, it's always good to try new things with diet and exercise. But I would never persist with something that you genuinely don't believe you can sustain for a long period of time. This gig is for life and you have to enjoy what you do.

Having an understanding of the caloric makeup of food gives an excellent understanding of the foods you should and shouldn't be eating, but that doesn't mean a lifetime of counting and weighing food - far from it. Same with exercise, be it cardio or weight, try them all and see what you enjoy. I believe a well respected member here, by the name of Fadi, once said something along the lines of; 'Everything works for everyone for a little while'.

As mentioned earlier, any form of extreme advice should be carefully considered. Unless you have a specific goal in mind, like a body building comp, gaining muscle and losing fat is all about balance - it has to balance in with what you like and your lifestyle. Anything less and it won't last long.

There is heaps of good info here about sensible diet and exercise. There are also some awesome recipes that taste great and super healthy. Another thing, be sure to check out the member diaries - while I think everyone of them tells a special story, there are some that are truly inspirational and motivational.
 
Last edited:
Love this thread!!!

How fucked is the bull shit that flows around about diet etc!!! Even some nutritionist still talk shit...

Must eat small meals 6 times a day

Must eat protein every 3 hours or your muscles will disappear..

Must have protein shake in the anabolic window

Must have casein at night or go catabolic in the middle of the night

Don't skip breakfast or you'll turn catabolic


Etc etc etc... There is a million and one of these...

Big thank you to the Ausbb team.... I've learned heaps...
 
One thing i will say, When I was full noob, I knew nothing about diet. Learn about diet.

Take the good with the bad, but keep turning up. Enjoy the ride
 
Stretch properly before and after weights.
Make sure your fly is done up when chatting up the hot new yoga teacher.
 
Being mobile enough to do a lift safely. This would probably still be an issue with a lot of lifters out there too. Most people have poor mobility in key areas that can lead them to overuse and acute injuries. Poor shoulder internal rotation can massively restrict your ability to bench press. Poor thoracic extension and scapula movement can lead to shoulder issues while overhead pressing. Limited ankles can limit your ability to squat deep and in balance. Poor hips can ruin a squat and deadlift very easily. Learnt this the hard way.
 
Being olympia, just reading a Phil Heath interview and one question was;

Knowing what you do now, what would you tell yourself if you could go back in time?
That's easy. When you start out lifting, your main concern is, How much can I lift, because when someone asks you, "How much can you bench?" we all want to ramble off a pretty big number.

Anybody who's ever been inside a gym knows that there's no way around this. But I've been there and done that. As you get older and start focusing on why you're doing this in the first place, which is to build a better physique—or chest, in this case—you realize that the heavy weight at all costs isn't the most efficient way to reach your goal.

Instead, you start focusing on the feeling of the pecs as they move the weight, rather than just using them along with your shoulders and arms to help you get the bar up so you don't look like a fool in the gym.

Sometimes you need to do your reps slower and, consequently, lighter and use different angles.
 
bradsky said:
Being olympia, just reading a Phil Heath interview and one question was;

Knowing what you do now, what would you tell yourself if you could go back in time?
That's easy. When you start out lifting, your main concern is, How much can I lift, because when someone asks you, "How much can you bench?" we all want to ramble off a pretty big number.

Anybody who's ever been inside a gym knows that there's no way around this. But I've been there and done that. As you get older and start focusing on why you're doing this in the first place, which is to build a better physique—or chest, in this case—you realize that the heavy weight at all costs isn't the most efficient way to reach your goal.

Instead, you start focusing adding more drugs to your already stupid steroid regime. Wonderful exotic shit like insulin, GH,

Sometimes you need to do heaps of drugs to be a freak
Click to expand...

Fixed that for ya bro, mate take what the pro's say with a grain of salt. Bb would be a better sport if these dudes could just say what their thinking wiithout fucking up the endorsements
 
Thanks for continuing to share the love guys, while I've been in thesis hibernation. Unfortunately, my usual obsession with health has started to take somewhat of a back seat as a result, and I feel rubbish for it.

Almost at thesis freedom and I'm determined to get back to my old self.

Keep the advice coming! :)
 
Follow KISS principle. Keep It Simple Stupid! Apply it to your workouts and nutrition. There are no magic bullets.

Saying that I wish I've discovered starting strength years ago. Once you get a solid base, you can specialise and work on the finer details. I've put few of my nerdy friends on it and they grew like weeds.

Sleep! Sleep a lot and don't waste money on supplements. Eat solid food and get minimum of 8 hours of sleep.

Strict form. Learn how to lift properly, you will avoid injuries and disappointments. In the past I would sacrifice form to make a lift. Now thanks to all the injuries I've acquired, and months away from gym. I will not sacrifice form again.
 
Using 10kg dbs benchpressing on my bed while eating a toasted sandwich here and there and wondering why I wasnt growing.:confused:

Wish I had put 2 and 2 together sooner.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top