Here’s a guide that will help you cut through the disinformation and false claims when choosing a bodybuilding plan.
1.Who’s the source?
The author of the program is very important because everyone has an agenda. For example, if you follow a routine written by T-Nation‘s employees, you will be advised to buy a lot of useless supplements.
On the other hand, a guy like Mark Rippetoe will load a program with belted low bar squats and advise you eat until sumo is your second sport.
If you go to Pavel Tsatsouline, he will order you to train with kettlebells while using “secret” Soviet tactics.
Ultimately, your goal should be to see through the marketing hype and take what’s useful to you.
2.Exercise selection
When choosing a bodybuilding routine, you have to select exercises that correspond well to your body structure, physical state, and experience. One of the better approaches is to stick to the basics while adding modifications as you progress forward.
3.Make sure that your routine is dynamic
A good program comes with a progression mechanism – the heart of any program. I personally like to follow basic training cycles.
6. Be realistic
We’ve all been conditioned to expect miracles. After all, even guys like Kali Muscle claim to be natural bodybuilders. As a result, the natural reality could come as a shock to many.
7. Stay away from shortcut routines
There are many sites selling shortcut routines. They are easy to recognize as they consist of one very long squeeze page and a price ending at “.99”. Naturally, there’s an alleged discount too.
In general, avoid routines that sound too good to be true.
8.Most testimonials are fake
Bodybuilding routines often come with fake testimonials. Many of the before and after photos are taken the same day. It’s amazing what you can achieve with makeup, oil and Photoshop.
9.Stay away from routines that come with magic pills
Unfortunately, there are many bodybuilding routines that come with a shady supplementation plan. Overweight people are often advised to drink some sort of ancient teas and herbs to lose weight. Every day there’s a new “revolutionary” ingredient is discovered. Steer away from shady websites promoting similar products. If a routine is not built around hard work and intelligence, it’s not worth the paper it’s written on.
10. Never forget that the Internet is full of deception
Truth be told, the Internet realm is infested with trolling, deception, lies, and contradiction. On the Internet, everyone squats 4 plates and benches 2 likes it’s a walk in the park. The reality is very different as you can see for yourself by going to any commercial gym. Where are those people that claim super strength online? Exactly. They most don’t exist except in a digital format. Everyone’s e-stats are boosted. Basing your progress and self-worth on online data could be the source of undeserved and unneeded self-hatred.
11.Set a goal
You will make more progress if you build a routine around a specific goal. The more specific the goal, the better. An example of a specific goal would be 20 consecutive pull-ups.
12.Focus on routines that take less time
Spending too much time in the gym is essentially a waste. Past the 1h mark, you are losing concentration, strength and precious energy. In addition, when your workouts are too long, it’s easier to lose your desire to train. Knowing that you have a 3h workout in front of you, fatigues the central nervous system.