Mr. James Dean himself getting after a workout!

*Reminder of Schedule for the following of Speciality Classes:*
Olympic Lifting Class on Tuesday’s @ 6:35 pm
Gymnastics Class on Wednesday’s @ 5:35 pm

*Sunday, September 25th Schedule Class Time: 10:00 am Class Time*

I. Goal Orientation by Lonnie Ducotte of T-Nation Website:
By the time someone reaches any level of exposure in the sport or physique world, you can be sure that they’ve achieved an extreme level of development and invested years mastering their craft.
Unfortunately, those are the only people that we see, and many young lifters and athletes are never exposed to the people on their way to the top who are good at what they do, but not yet ready to be on the cover of a magazine or represent their country in the Olympics.
These athletes and champions can be a great source of inspiration, but unfortunately many people who are just starting out feel they should be at that same level in a year’s time, or less! They wonder why they don’t look like Arnold after following his routine for 6 months, or why Usain Bolt is still blurring past them after doing a few sprints at the track.
Take Michael Phelps for example. At a mere 23 years of age, Phelps captured the imagination of the nation by winning 8 Gold Medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Looking at his training program and history is revealing – Phelps began swimming with a coach at age 11, and his training gradually built up to swimming upwards of 8 hours a day, 6 days a week. The same kind of story can be found behind almost any top tier athlete.
It’s tough for a 23-year-old guy who’s been training for one year to internalize this idea because the idea of doing ANYTHING for 11 years is almost unfathomable. We see pictures of guys like Arnold at our age and think that we should be at that level already, not realizing the years (and other factors) that went into creating that physique BEFORE he was 23.
You should most certainly set lofty goals for yourself both in the gym and out, and you can definitely achieve great things in your sport, but temper that with the reality that it will often take years of hard work.
Most importantly, don’t get discouraged when you’re not are the top of your game in only a few months’ time. Keep chugging away and you most certainly will attain your goals.

Close-Up of Brett!