Bodybuilders worldwide tend to make very similar mistakes. I've done my share of both American and European gyms, and for some reason people seem to be falling into the same traps regardless of geographical position.
Bodybuilders worldwide tend to make very similar mistakes. I've done my share of both American and European gyms, and for some reason people seem to be falling into the same traps regardless of geographical position. Why? One reason is EGO. Ego can be a good thing, if used to spur yourself beyond previous achievements, but it should never be allowed to set common sense aside. Joint pain while warming up? You know you should back off, but your ego urges you not to "lose face" in front of your buddies. Result: You go heavy anyway, and get a torn pectoral muscle that'll take months to heal.

Another reason is plain misinformation. Anyone reading the mags knows that the "experts" all say different things. "Avoid upright rows!" "Upright rows are great!" "Never squat below 90 degrees!" "Go all the way down when squatting!" "Keep upper arms fixed while doing french presses" "Bring'em all the way down over your head to get maximum stretch" ...And so on. The confusion is total, and somewhere in the mess a lot of people injure themselves.

Yet another culprit is believing the myths, such as that cardio is superior to weight training when it comes to getting in shape, the pros are clean and that fat is the root of all evil. Right - and I spotted Elvis during his squat-routine today at the gym. The big and the small myths are always circulating, and of course some have a core of truth hidden deep inside while others don't, like it usually is with myths. However, I thought I'd point out a few common mistakes I've noticed during my active years.

Judging By The Scale

The guy with love handles hanging out over his pants, happily proclaiming: "Hey guys, I've gained another three pounds since last week!" is easy to spot. He's made the classic diet mistake of judging himself by the scale instead of the mirror. People on a diet usually get horrified when discovering how much they're losing, but as long it's fat and not muscle, it's all right. And of course, the opposite holds true with the weight gainer. Gaining three pounds of muscle is great, while gaining 2.8 pounds of fat and 0.2 pounds of muscle is not. Remember: A caliper and the mirror is your judge, not the scale!

Focusing On Weight Only

On a good day, a person might bench press, say, 300 pounds for 8 strict reps. He feels great, rightfully so, but the next time he goes into the gym to do the same he hasn't had enough sleep and haven't been eating properly, and in addition his boss kicked his ass at the office earlier, so he's quite far from focused on the job at hand.

This time, he panics as he realize that he's not going to make eight, but will hit the wall at four or five! So, he arches his back, bounces the bar off his chest and uses momentum to get the load up. OK - he made it to eight by cheating badly, but the next time he trains he cheats again and gets a nice 10 reps instead! Great - he's made terrific gains! Or has he?

Now that he starts loading on even more plates he's left the slim path of strict form, but the question remains: Do his MUSCLES work any harder? It's muscle stimulation that causes growth, not the weight itself. The weight is only a means to an end - which is stimulating growth. Your MUSCLES couldn't care less about how much weight is moving around you, all it cares about is how much of that weight it has to lift. Else you'd make terrific gains by sticking around construction sites where several tonnes are lifted all around you all day long.

Not Resting Enough

I discussed this in another article, so I won't go too deeply into it. You grow while you rest, not while working out. If you train before fully recuperated, you've never given the body any chance for growth. Ergo: training a lagging body part twice as often is only making sure it lags even MORE behind!

Never Changing The Program

The muscles grow because they accustom themselves to the demand being put onto them. If you never change the way they're trained - the DEMAND - they won't have a reason to keep improving - growth. Make it your goal to shock your muscles at least every other workout, by altering the number of reps, sets, exercises, rep speed and such.

Skipping Meals Before Training

When you're going to train your weights, your main source of fuel is carbs. Simple logic suggests that eating lots of carbs during the day before the workout is a good idea. And that's exactly what you should do, Sherlock! Make sure it's complex carbs, such as pasta, rice or potatoes, and you're peaked when entering the gym. Save the simple carbs for immediately after the workout, when your body needs it for quick energy (raisins, rice cakes, bananas etc).