Are You a Gym Bro? (Common Signs)
Full disclaimer: if we suspect you’re an undercover “bro”, we're required to report you to Google!
That may result in you being banned from using the Internet. Prolonged exposure to online knowledge has been proven to be detrimental to bros' well-being.
However, if you’re yet undecided, please read the following post.
It will help make up your mind. Just be sure to speak with our friendly admins if it turns out we should inform the Internet authorities.
Before we discuss what it means to be a bro, let’s talk about the…
The Hidden Dangers of Being a Gym Bro
A lot of people don’t realize being a bro comes with serious risks to your ego and emotional health.
Here are the 100 most common “bro-blems”:
- #1 Chicken, rice, and broccoli get quite boring after a while.
- #2 It’s draining to keep coming up with new exercises every week.
- #3 Every session you have to hit all muscles from every possible angle.
- #4 It’s hard to fit 7 bicep curl variations in one day.
- #5 You lose ALL gains if you don’t go to failure.
- #8 The squat rack is often too busy to do bicep curls.
- #10 You have to fight off other bros from the bench press on Monday.
- #11 No pain no gain! Injuries don’t matter, you still show up and train.
- #13 A typical Instagram session at the gym can last ~2 hrs.
- #12 You can’t count past 12, that’s the hypertrophy limit
- #23 You don’t even know how to count, you only care about the pump!
- #99 You ain’t got time for this list! Gotta check them abs in the mirror…
If you made it this far, congratulations! You’re not a bro! Your biceps may be small, but you have patience and thirst for knowledge.
What’s The Difference Between You and a Typical Gym Rat?
It’s easy to spot a bro. But some of the newer guys in the gym also make the same bro mistakes.
A few of the most common bro-ginner mistakes are related to:
- program design
- progress tracking
- nutrition
- open-mindedness
Let’s discuss each one in detail:
Program Design and Bro Workouts:
At one extreme, you see people who do the same stuff for months on end. At the other extreme, you some bros switch exercises every week.
Neither one of those approaches will get you far. The reason is you don’t have a clear goal. If there’s no logic or structure behind your actions, you’re likely wasting your time.
It’s like going to school and taking a bunch of random and unrelated classes. Or repeating the same classes every semester. In either case, you won’t get any smarter.
A smart lifter is one who took the time to come up with a solid plan. Then followed it until goals were met (or changes needed).
Progress Tracking and Going By Feel
Tracking is highly underrated. It ties up to the previous concept of planning. Your workouts need to get more challenging over time.
Similar to a corporate job. To get a raise and move up the corporate ladder, you have to take on more tasks or responsibility. Your boss won’t promote you if you keep doing the same thing.
How do you know you’re doing better than before? You track. Use a notepad or an app to fill in weights, reps, and sets managed. Going by feel won't get you far.
Human memory is far from reliable. Heck, I don’t even remember the beginning of this post. It’s highly unlikely you remember how many reps you did on the squat 3 weeks ago.
Progress tracking is important for progress to happen in the first place.
Nutrition and Dieting:
Alright, let’s say you’re training is going great. But what about nutrition?
You’ve all seen those “big” guys in the gym who look like they know what they are doing. But they still carry too much fluff.
If your training and nutrition goals are not aligned you won’t get far. Doing 30 sets of abs, then destroying 2 large pizzas at home is not how you get lean.
A good fitness program takes care of both the training and diet components.
Just like your workouts, you need to plan and organize your diet. What you eat determines the outcome of your training.
Open-Mindedness and Common Bro Knowledge:
I’ll assume you weren’t born under a lucky star. If that’s the case, you can spin your wheels for years. I’m not even exaggerating!
There are 3 types of “successful” guys in the gym:
- Those lucky motherf…. who seem to make crazy gains no matter what they do
- Those who had to go through a few years of trial and error
- Those who decided to seek help, learn and improve fast
If you’re not the 1st type of guy, you definitely don’t want to be the 2nd type. I haven’t met anyone who wants to take it slow and steady with his gains.
I’m not saying you have to become a PT yourself. No need to be stubborn and discover on your own what’s has been known for years.
Be open-minded and educate yourself. Save your self some of the grueling trial and error period.
There’s another way: you can work with a good coach. You’re essentially trading money for the time you save.
Though a decent coach can even save you money. There’s a ton of overpriced supplements and programs you really don’t need. Not to mention relying on “bro wisdom” might get you hurt. Some healthcare expenses don't come cheap either.
In any case, there’s always a better and faster way to your dream physique. You just need to be open to learning and accepting help.
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I hope you learned something useful from this post.
If you didn’t, well, you’re obviously a bro ? I’m sorry, you had to learn it this way…
Until next time!
~Niki, Fitness Momentum Coach