I have been a member of the same gym for over a year and a half now. I've gone on a very regular basis (About 4 to 5 times per week) and rarely miss a workout. Over this time period, I have seen some pretty good gains. These gains came from a lot of hard work and a good amount of discipline considering where I work (A fast food restaurant). I have found that the key is good nutrition and a demanding workout routine that is always challenging your body.
What I don't understand are all the people that go to the gym on the same consistent basis that I do and for the same amount of time, yet fail to lose any weight, gain any muscle, get cut, or whatever their goals maybe. Day in and day out I see these husky people run miles on the treadmill, dripping enough sweat to fill up a small container, yet for some reason, they can never seem to get rid of their spare tire.
Take Rich, for example. Rich goes to the gym religiously at around 8PM every night. He almost wears the same thing every night, and tends to do the same exercises every time. Here's a run down of Rich's normal workout routine that he follows:
1. Warm up on the treadmill for about 10 to 15 minutes
2. Take about a 20 minute break by talking to some poor sucker in the gym who accidentally made eye contact with him
3. Start to workout by doing an exercise totally wrong.
4. Stop working out, and start talking to the same person from step 2 again.
5. Get back on the treadmill and run like an absolute pansy for 45 minutes while taking breaks here and there to watch whatever gay sitcom is on at the time.
6. Talk some more.
This ritual usually ends by 10 or so, and when all is said and done, Rich probably did about 6 sets, and ran for a total of 25 minutes. Yet he managed to stay at the gym for almost two hours.
Are people like this common at all gyms, or is it just because I am in an area where people are generally lazy? Do any of you have any examples similar to this?