Does Staying in Shape Ever Get Easier?

Starting a new workout program is a lot like getting married, and writing your training schedule is something like saying your vows. This is a life-long commitment and not one to be taken lightly. If you really want your training to be successful then it’s not enough to commit for a few weeks and then give up – you need to do this day-in, day-out… forever…

‘I promise to always tear you and feed you protein… ’till death do us part.’

Of course this is somewhat daunting for newcomers to the art of getting strong, which may lead many of you to wish and to dream that the process might get easier with time. So does it? Or will you always have to put in the same absurd amount of effort for the rest of your mortal life?

The Good News

The good news is this: working out and staying in shape does in fact get easier. The reason for this is simple: once you’ve built the muscle you want and cut away the fat, it’s easier to maintain that shape, than it will have been to get to that point in the first place.

If you stop working out, then your body will break down your muscle over time as it does with any tissue and the combination of microtears and protein won’t be there to build it back at the same rate. If you use more energy than you consume, then this process will occur even more rapidly as your body cannibalises your muscle for energy.

However what you don’t need to do is to tear your muscle and build it back much thicker as you did when you were growing. Now to maintain that muscle, you only need to build muscle at the same speed that you are losing it. This of course is much easier – so once you’re happy with your body shape, you can use a muted version of the same workout to maintain your current shape as long as you keep eating carbs and protein and as long as you keep lifting the same weight. No longer will your workouts need to be as intense or as long. You can work out less once you’ve been doing it for longer.

I am a prime example of this. I started working out when I was 10. I have never seen my body look anything other than muscular and ripped. Thus I can get away with doing four workouts a week for forty minutes each and I’m still bigger than many of my friends putting in twice the time and effort.

The Other Ways That Working Out Gets Easier

There are other ways that working out gets easier with time too. For instance, one of the more important reasons that I can maintain a better body in less time than my friends is that over the 26 years I have learned to really listen to my body and work out in a way that gets maximum results in the minimum time. I can build muscle in very little time because I know how to make my training intense and powerful. I also know the best supplements to use and generally know all the tricks of the trade.

Likewise I also enjoy working out more. Because I know more about it, have grown up with it, and have written about it for years, I now relish going to the gym for its own sake rather than to impress women or get great abs. This makes staying dedicated much easier – it’s a part of my life now.

The Catch

But there is one catch, and that’s the simple fact that it’s never enough. I am happy with my body now yes, and I told you that I only train four times a week, but that’s because I’m waiting until I get back from holiday. When I get back I want to push myself further than ever before and have a training program in mind that is anything but easy. Working out doesn’t really get easier because you don’t let it. When you live training, you want to push yourself further all the time. It doesn’t get easier in that sense then, but when you reach that stage you won’t want it to.

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