I wanted to be big, strong, and ripped, but I had no idea what I needed to do to get there.
I felt like I wasn’t “fit enough” to go to the gym.
I told myself that it was too much work to get crazy ripped. I didn’t want to eat nothing but broccoli and chicken breast. I didn’t want to sacrifice my life (I didn’t realize I wouldn’t have to).
The first time I set foot in the gym, I was greeted by a cloud of chalk dust and a chorus of grunts. Inconceivably huge men lifted inconceivably huge weights, slamming them down after each set. I know now that is was only a 315 pound deadlift, but back then I was intimidated. It didn’t help that I nearly dropped a barbell on my face 20 minutes later.
I was a small kid with too-tall socks, too-short shorts, and long hair. Everything about me was small. I was light. I was short. I was skinny. I was shy.
When I grew up, that didn’t really change. I struggled to talk to new people. I struggled to get my ideas heard. I definitely had zero idea how to talk to women. I was still small and skinny and weak, and I had problems with my body image.
Fortunately, that all changed.
I was camera shy thanks to shame of my appearance, so there aren’t many before pictures out there. But this is a pretty accurate example of the change.
I tried, over and over, to get fit. But I still didn’t know what to do, was still scared of the gym, and still kept skipping workouts.
I tried what I thought was everything.
The 100 push-ups program, fitness apps, high-intensity interval training, buying a pull-up bar, doing martial arts, and joining the track team.
The truth is, I could have made progress with any of those, but I didn’t. Instead I repeated the pattern of joining a new program for a couple of weeks, getting discouraged when I didn’t see results, quitting, and feeling bad about myself.
Eventually, I realized that I could use the psychology I was learning in my classes to get myself into the gym. I started learning more outside of my classes and applying it. With that information I was able to gain over 40 pounds of lean muscle.
You can do it too. I’d like to help.
Why Routine Excellence?
It turns out, the key to success is as simple as it is difficult to do: be consistent. What you do in the gym doesn’t matter if you only do it once.
The key to consistency is habits. You can rely on willpower, but what happens when willpower gives out? Motivation helps when you have it, but leaves you stranded when you need it most.
With habits, willpower is barely necessary. A well-practiced routine gets you in the gym without worrying or stressing – get in, get out, get excellent.
I’m here to take the stress out of fitness and get you the body you want, one routine step at a time. That’s what it means to be routinely excellent.
Let’s be excellent together.
Benyamin Elias
P.S. If you’re wondering where to start, check out the Roadmap to a Fitter You to get an exact, step-by-step planning system (the one I used) so that you never miss another workout.
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