Steve

My Goals For 2023

I set goals that I want to accomplish. Everyone makes New Year’s resolutions, I don’t believe in them.

I think resolutions are dumb and if you have a mindset for them then they are going to fail right out of the gate.

Just the word resolution to me means. I know I want to fix this in me but I will not waste my time with it.

Now setting goals that I want to do to get done is a totally different story. Goals you can get excited about.

The thing is you have set goals that you can accomplish don’t make it too easy. But. don’t make them highly impossible to accomplish either.

What goals do I have for 2023?

Nutrition Goal

Right now my nutrition is terrible. My nutrition goal is to get 2oo grams of protein in a day.

I bought a 5-pound container of ON Standard Gold Why Protein to help me get the protein grams up.

If I take 2 drinks a day that will give me an extra 48 grams of protein a day.

Cardio Goal

My goal for cardio is to walk more often. I have never been a long-distance runner ever. I have done better in sprints than in marathon running.

at the age I am at and have been diagnosed with asthma recently I think I am going to stay with walking.

living here in the Boston area I’ll do the treadmill during the winter and when it gets warmer I’ll go out for walks.

I don’t really like the cold weather much.

Sleep Goal

I have had sleep insomnia all my life so this one will be the toughest for me to do.

Right now I am getting around 5 hours of sleep during the weekdays. Arnold Swaest said that to gain muscle you need 8 hours of sleep a day.

My goal is to go to bed at 11 pm than 1 am every night. I stay up that let because I am just not tired enough to go to bed.

This way my body can heal and grow muscles better.

What are your goals for 2023? Leave them in the comments below.

What Supplements Do I Like To Use

My Thoughts

I have always stayed with the natural way when it comes to working out.

I have only used over-the-counter supplements. Yes, back in the day the closest I got to steroids was Andro when Mark McGuire was on it.

Supplements I have used before and would continue to use.

Whey Protein

Whey Protein is one of the best supplements to use. It helps you boost the Protein in your diet. I love to use the ON Standard Gold Whey Protein. It gives you 24 grams of protein for each scope. I usually do 2 scoops in my drink at a time. Don’t use it as a substitute for a meal. It isn’t a meal, it should be used as a protein snack instead.

If you are on the go you can also use the premade Protein Shake from ON also. Just cool it down and have it to drink on the go.

Creatine

Creatine helps with muscle growth.

Nitric Oxide

Nitric Oxide helps with thinking the blood a little bit to make it easier for the blood to. It also has a benefit for men. It helps men with getting a bit harder in the bedroom also.

ZMA

The ZMA is always a go-to right before bedtime.

The Z stands for Zinc which helps with immune support. The M stands for Magnesium which helps calm the body down to fall asleep. The A stands for Aspartate which is the vitamin B6.

These are the only supplements I use when I am training. If you use these I swear you won’t be sorry.

I like to get most of my nutrients from real foods. It doesn’t hurt to get a little more help with some stuff. Just don’t overdo the supplements.

I just want you to know I am not a doctor or nutritionist. I am just a regular guy placing my opinion on this stuff.

You can take it with a grain of salt if you want. It’s totally up to you if you take my opinion or not.

Working Out By Yourself Or With A Partner

My Thoughts

Today we are going to talk about working out by yourself or with a partner.

There are pros and cons to this just like everything else. I am going to break down the benefits and disadvantages that I see with both.

Working out By Yourself

Working out by yourself has great advantages. You can go to the gym when it fits into your schedule.

You can go at your pace through the workout, you don’t have to rush because someone else has to be somewhere at a certain time.

You can change up your workout program at any time you like too.

If you need to take a day off because something came up then that’s ok.

Now on the other side, you don’t have another person with you to spot you or help you push through the set of the set.

Making gains can be a bit slower because you don’t have the person there to push you to get there.

Working out by yourself I would suggest getting to know some of the people that work out at the same time as you. I am not talking about becoming best friends at all or going to hang out with them.

It is easier to go to a friend at the gym to ask for a spotter than to go to a stranger and ask them to spot you.

I have done both I just feel more comfortable with a person that I know spotting me than someone that I haven’t seen before. It is a trust thing for me.

Working out with a Partner

Working out with a partner is great to make gains in the gym to go faster.

There is a trust factor when you have a partner working out. You know that if you are struggling to get the rep done they will push you through it or will grab the bar so you don’t get hurt.

It makes it a little more fun to have someone there with you.

The other side is you need to find someone that has the same goals as you.

You need to agree on a certain workout program.

You have to agree to work out on the same days at the time. This gets tricky when you both are older and both have families.

It’s great to have a partner to work out with but it is not necessary to have one. You just have to figure out what is best for you.

I have been working out by myself for a while even before the back issue and I like it. I have found workout friends in the gym that I can trust to spot me when I need it.

I can still get a great workout with no one there with me.

When you’re in the gym do you have a partner or do you work out by yourself? If I am missing a pro or con make sure you let me know.

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What Does My Workout Look Like

My Thoughts

When I started bodybuilding I tried all different kinds of programs. At first, I tried different programs in articles that I saw in Muscle & Fitness and Flex Magazines.

They really didn’t work that well. I kept on switching programs every 6-8 months.

Then I found an advertisement at the back of the Muscle & Fitness Mag for a workout program that said that this is the only program you will need.

That Program was called Big Beyond Belief it is a workout that pushes compound movements. If you can commit to the program then I swear by this program.

I just can’t fully commit to the program 100% so I can’t do it right now. When I can I definitely will be going back on to this program.

This program really works I gained a shit load of strength and size on it. I was on it for close to 3 years then I started to work full-time and lost time to go to the gym.

What does my workout look like now?

I can’t dedicate the 6 days a week right now to hitting the gym religiously all 6 days right now.

I need a little bit of flexibility in the workout schedule. I can do 5 days right now and use Saturdays as a substitute day if I miss a day during the week.

This way I still get 5 workout days in the week.

I am doing a full-body workout 5 days a week using compound movements to get the best out of the workout.

How do I do a full-body workout 5 days a week? I only do 3 sets per exercise and I do 8-12 reps per exercise.

What does one workout look like?

Legs
Back
Shoulders
Chest
Biceps
Triceps
Abs/Calfs

With this type of program, you really have to concentrate on your diet and make sure you a getting enough calories and protein in to handle this workout.

We will get into diets in another blog post soon.

Leave a comment below and share what your workout looks like.

I Have A Big Problem With Eggs

My Thoughts

My biggest problem with getting back into shape is the diet part. At age 46 I found out that I am now allergic to eggs.

When I eat eggs and get stomach cramps they come out both ends within 10 mins of eating them.

I went to an allergist in December of 2022 to get tested for eggs and he didn’t believe me at first. He told me he would give me a skin test and believed it would be negative.

When I came out positive for egg white and egg yolks. He told me that no one my age becomes allergic to anything.

He also said next year that if the skin test doesn’t get worse I can do the allergy challenge shots to not be allergic still.

I am hoping to be able to take the shots later

I can have baked eggs just no omelets, over easy, hard boil, and so on.

This has thrown a wrench into my whole diet. I am trying to figure out what I can have for breakfast.

I usually eat oatmeal in the morning before my workout and have eggs when I get home before taking a shower.

It’s easy to eat a few hard-boiled eggs on the go, or for a snack in between meals.

What Is your suggestion for protein for breakfast other than eggs? Leave a comment and join the Steve’s Take community below.