30 Year Old Seeks Guidence

[ttega]

Quick Bio: I'm 30 years old and have been lifting seriously for 5 years. I'm 6'1", 200. Chest 45", Waist 34". I lift 4 times a week and do cardio 2 to 3 times a week. I watch my diet, but have about 2 to 3 'bad' meals a week. I guess I'm more or less the typical guy you find in the gym most days of the week. Through the last 5 years of working out I've gotten in good shape. My workouts have not been the type that push me beyond my physical limits, but they have been intense. I guess I've used the philosophy of time and pressure, which over the years has taken me pretty far.

My problem is that I can't seem to get to the next level. I'm 30 and still don't have abs, still carry the extra fat in my waist, and still like the pizza and beer, lol. I know what needs to be done, but I'm having difficulty clearing the last hurdle to getting in great shape. I think it is more psychological than anything. I assume there are a lot of people that have come up against this road block before and I welcome any advice or suggestions.

[Mahdimael]

I find that I can wean myself off of something if it's too hard to go cold turkey. Have pizza and beer once a week, then once every two weeks, and so on. It also helps to find healthy alternatives to stuff you like- I would sit at the computer and eat tortilla chips, for example, and now I just cut up a plate of celery and chew on that.

You can also wean yourself onto things, like drinking water, doing extra exercises, and so forth.

[xray]

Originally Posted by Mahdimael

I find that I can wean myself off of something if it's too hard to go cold turkey. Have pizza and beer once a week, then once every two weeks, and so on. It also helps to find healthy alternatives to stuff you like- I would sit at the computer and eat tortilla chips, for example, and now I just cut up a plate of celery and chew on that.

You can also wean yourself onto things, like drinking water, doing extra exercises, and so forth.

Thank you Mahdimael! You opened my eyes to something I actually knew, it's just the getting to do it, not closing my eyes for the facts!!
Xray

[ttega]

Thanks for the advice Mahdimael, I hadn't thought of weaning and hopefully the healthy alternatives will fill the void. I have also thought about posting some pics on here for extra motivation ala John Stone. I think seeing my pic on here, with all the feedback would serve as a daily reminder to work on my goals and to stay focused.

[Ranger17]

When I have hit plateaus in the past, I have had a cheat day...not going overboard, and then relooked my whole diet/exercise plan and shuffled things around. Sometimes the routine change can help you find a little extra motivation.
But then again that was when I was in the Army, and motivation wasn't hard to come by...we were all in competition w/ each other.
J