Progressing way too slowly - what am I doing wrong?

I've written in about this similar topic before but I'm still having the same issue.  I am following the Foundation 1 program and continue to be stuck on the same progressions for months now.  For example, I've been fighting with Hollow Back Press PE2 4x15 which are push ups and although I can make it through the workout, I'm destroyed by the end.  It's like my body won't adapt.  So I give it a "fine" smiley face thinking I'll move on the following week and then the same thing happens. This is a similar case in many of the other movements as well.

I feel 1 time a week is not enough but at the same time I don't want to over train.  I've tried added extra training sessions working calisthenic movements like dips, pull-ups, etc as accessory work thinking it will help over this plateau but still doesn't help. 

Should I be doing extra work?  Say in this case, more push ups during the week in order to build strength and stamina to get to the next level? With so many steps and levels to go, I'll be 75 years old before I finish Foundations 1 (I'm 40 now - it's a joke - or is it...)

Just getting frustrated after 6 or so months of work is all and kind of bored having the same video play over and over each week.

Anyone else have this problem and over come it?

Thanks!

Rich 

Hi Richard,

Hitting plateaus in your training can definitely be frustrating and at times you can seem as if you are going nowhere fast. There are some training variables that can be manipulated which may assist you in reaching the next level. 

The basic principles of training are to apply a level of stimulation that disrupts homeostasis and then get adequate rest and recovery to allow your body to make the necessary adaptations. Within these principles and parameters are certain variables that can be manipulated. There is a general interplay between all of the training variables. They are very much inter-related and inter-dependent.

Frequency - An increase in training frequency is one way to add volume to a training protocol and increase the metabolic and local muscular demand and illicit more adaptation. Whilst Coach Sommer advises most people to train each workout once per week every trainee is different and adding an additional workout may be a way to break through a plateau. As I have stated before this is a double edged sword adding more frequency if you are not fully recovering between workouts is a sure fire way to not only halt progress but to move backwards. In your post you mentioned that you are destroyed by the end of the workout and also that you have tried adding extra workouts all to no avail. 

Intensity - Intensity is key variable that is significantly under recognized by most trainees. In order to get the most out of a training protocol you need to train with the right level of intensity. Every inch of every rep of every set matters. Mastery of performance in the execution of sets and reps is the single most important factor determining how much you will get out of your training. A great way of manipulating intensity is with the use of rest - pause reps. If you are struggling to complete your set of 15 push ups and can only get to 11 rather than letting the set end at 11 lock out your arms take a few deep breaths and then try and get a couple more reps. To really increase the intensity you may even keep going until you get 20 reps ( The key is only counting the reps with good form). Another method you could try to increase the intensity is some holds at the top or bottom at the end of each set.

Give some of these methods a try and see how you go. If you have read any of my previous posts you will also be aware that I believe that it can take time to see true physiological adaptations. The body will work at it's own pace no matter how fast you want it to go. If all that needs to occur to have you progress is an increase in neural efficiency this can happen quite quickly. If you need to remodel muscular and connective tissue and their neural pathways then this will be measured in months not days and weeks. Generally the trainees that will make the most porgress are the ones that can handle the plateaus and the seeming lack of progress and just stick with the process.

Sir Alex Ferguson the former long term head coach of perennial contenders Manchester United wrote in his autobiography " good coaching relies on repetition.  The argument that players must be stimulated by constant variety may come across as progressive or enlightened, but it is a dangerous evasion of priorities. In any physical activity, effective practice requires repeated execution of the skills involved.Why do you think the greatest golfers that have ever lived have devoted endless hours striking the same shots over and over again."

It is the constant changing of programs and not sticking with a proven effective method that will most often lead to real frustration and a lack of progress.

I look forward to hearing how you go by trying some of the recommendatiosn and I am sure that other people will pitch in with methods they have used when facing similar situations.

Hey Richard, I've been having the same troubles so I'll tell you what worked for me.

First, I stopped trying to be perfect on form and allowed myself some rest when needed, switching the objective to progressing rather than "being perfect".
Second, and that really hit the spot for me as to volume 'cause as you said I felt like there was just not enough volume to progress, I went like this :
On upper body day for example, I would do the strength elements with best possible form (not perfect is fine but don't allow it to deteriorate too much either, it's normal to get fatigued on your 5th set but that shouldn't mean you look like scrambled eggs), then a bit of rest, then amping volume with the previous variation for as much reps as possible with good form for 1 or 2 set, sometimes playing with "slow" reps as well.

So concrete example, I would pseudo planche push ups for reps with best possible form as my strength element, then rows in the same fashion, rest maybe 3 min and proceed to AMRAP on normal push ups, then AMRAP on easier row variation, rest again for 2/3 min and go for slow push ups reps, then slow row reps and call it a day.

This allowed me to "grease the groove" while still conditionning connective tissue and stuff and working on endurance, without too big a risk for injury or overtraining, at first I even separated the days where I would work the strength part and the endurance part (for example my PPP on Mondays and my normal PU variation 2 days later).
This worked well for me, hope it helps somehow 'cause I can totally relate to the frustration part of not progressing (I stayed stuck on hinge rows for months when it was the first variation, never could do 5*15 with my form standards, refusing to accept the fact form would obviously deteriorate with fatigue).

I think the most important thing to remember is, focus on progressing at first and you can comeback later when you're already stronger to work those basics with an emphasize on perfection. IMO it's all about progressing, then coming back to perfect your basics to progress more when you have it a plateau, and so forth. Good luck!

On 8/2/2017 at 0:08 AM, Darin Phoenix said:

Hi Richard,

Hitting plateaus in your training can definitely be frustrating and at times you can seem as if you are going nowhere fast. There are some training variables that can be manipulated which may assist you in reaching the next level. 

The basic principles of training are to apply a level of stimulation that disrupts homeostasis and then get adequate rest and recovery to allow your body to make the necessary adaptations. Within these principles and parameters are certain variables that can be manipulated. There is a general interplay between all of the training variables. They are very much inter-related and inter-dependent.

Frequency - An increase in training frequency is one way to add volume to a training protocol and increase the metabolic and local muscular demand and illicit more adaptation. Whilst Coach Sommer advises most people to train each workout once per week every trainee is different and adding an additional workout may be a way to break through a plateau. As I have stated before this is a double edged sword adding more frequency if you are not fully recovering between workouts is a sure fire way to not only halt progress but to move backwards. In your post you mentioned that you are destroyed by the end of the workout and also that you have tried adding extra workouts all to no avail. 

Intensity - Intensity is key variable that is significantly under recognized by most trainees. In order to get the most out of a training protocol you need to train with the right level of intensity. Every inch of every rep of every set matters. Mastery of performance in the execution of sets and reps is the single most important factor determining how much you will get out of your training. A great way of manipulating intensity is with the use of rest - pause reps. If you are struggling to complete your set of 15 push ups and can only get to 11 rather than letting the set end at 11 lock out your arms take a few deep breaths and then try and get a couple more reps. To really increase the intensity you may even keep going until you get 20 reps ( The key is only counting the reps with good form). Another method you could try to increase the intensity is some holds at the top or bottom at the end of each set.

Give some of these methods a try and see how you go. If you have read any of my previous posts you will also be aware that I believe that it can take time to see true physiological adaptations. The body will work at it's own pace no matter how fast you want it to go. If all that needs to occur to have you progress is an increase in neural efficiency this can happen quite quickly. If you need to remodel muscular and connective tissue and their neural pathways then this will be measured in months not days and weeks. Generally the trainees that will make the most porgress are the ones that can handle the plateaus and the seeming lack of progress and just stick with the process.

Sir Alex Ferguson the former long term head coach of perennial contenders Manchester United wrote in his autobiography " good coaching relies on repetition.  The argument that players must be stimulated by constant variety may come across as progressive or enlightened, but it is a dangerous evasion of priorities. In any physical activity, effective practice requires repeated execution of the skills involved.Why do you think the greatest golfers that have ever lived have devoted endless hours striking the same shots over and over again."

It is the constant changing of programs and not sticking with a proven effective method that will most often lead to real frustration and a lack of progress.

I look forward to hearing how you go by trying some of the recommendatiosn and I am sure that other people will pitch in with methods they have used when facing similar situations.

Beautifully stated, Darin.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

@Richard Robichaud I'm going to chime in here to give some additional perspective. I've been practicing GST since fall of 2013 although if there were an award for the "greatest slacker" category, I'd vie strongly to win it.

One thing I've observed during this period is mobility and strength progress at much different intervals. (Stating the obvious here.) Nevertheless, your core should progress at a pretty steady clip regardless of how strong it was before you began GST. By core I mean, FL, SL, and manna work. With respect to manna I believe it's necessary for most adults to add some supplemental pulses for the hip flexors because most of us have really tight hip flexors to begin with and yet the beginning IMs for manna tend to address the posterior chain.

Anyway, by the time I had eventually mastered HBP PE2 (the dreaded pushups) and the iMs, my torso had bulked up to such an extent that anybody that I hadn't seen in a while could recognize I "looked different." That's because to get to 5x15 pushups requires adaptations of the delts, the traps, the pecs, biceps, etc., and that's simply not going to happen in 12 weeks unless you were a beast to begin with.

But with patience and consistency you'll get there, probably sooner in some PEs than others, and even the mobility gains will eventually come, albeit slower in some areas than others as @Darin Phoenix has articulated.

You know. I was also worried about being so long working on push ups... but then I look at myself in the mirror and realized how my delts and triceps were growing by doing just 4x9!! Than I thought: omg when I reach 5x15!! I couldn t have imagined packing so much muscle with "just" push ups, but it turns out than "perfect form gymnastic push ups" are not " just push ups"!

20 hours ago, Paul SONNEVILLE said:

 

I think the most important thing to remember is, focus on progressing at first and you can comeback later when you're already stronger to work those basics with an emphasize on perfection. IMO it's all about progressing, then coming back to perfect your basics to progress more when you have it a plateau, and so forth. Good luck!

I m sorry but this is like saying: "hey, there s a right and safe way to run, but you shouldn t run properly from the begining. It s better if you run more with bad form and with greater risk of injury. And in case you face a plateau then start again but running properly, running the way you didn t learn from the beginning. In the end will take you even more time but at least you feel you progress at the beginning"

There s a scientific way to train gymnastics. And also if one knows how to do something right, how can one do it worse on purpose. Gymnastics for me is about seeking perfection in the movement. Form always first. Improving my form over the last year made me regress many times in steps. And regressing in steps was actually a progress, a progress in form. I m sorry man but i m a FORM LOVER! If not I d probably be traning Crossfit instead of Gymnastics! Hahaha!

15 minutes ago, Antonio Alías Montoya said:

I m sorry but this is like saying: "hey, there s a right and safe way to run, but you shouldn t run properly from the begining. It s better if you run more with bad form and with greater risk of injury. And in case you face a plateau then start again but running properly, running the way you didn t learn from the beginning. In the end will take you even more time but at least you feel you progress at the beginning"

There s a scientific way to train gymnastics. And also if one knows how to do something right, how can one do it worse on purpose. Gymnastics for me is about seeking perfection in the movement. Form always first. Improving my form over the last year made me regress many times in steps. And regressing in steps was actually a progress, a progress in form. I m sorry man but i m a FORM LOVER! If not I d probably be traning Crossfit instead of Gymnastics! Hahaha!

I completely agree with this. It's not a good idea to add volume until you have the form nailed down. 

The approach I'm taking is to work my way up through the early steps, and then stopping the first time I get to 5 sets. That might be 5x3 or 5x6, whatever. Then I'll stay there until I pass a video form check with the coaches. 

That gives me 5 chances to practice my form each workout without excessive fatigue from high volume. 

It's very unlikely that doing more volume will help you improve on bad form. You'll just have to regress to earlier steps when you do finally fix your form. 

15 hours ago, Antonio Alías Montoya said:

I m sorry but this is like saying: "hey, there s a right and safe way to run, but you shouldn t run properly from the begining. It s better if you run more with bad form and with greater risk of injury. And in case you face a plateau then start again but running properly, running the way you didn t learn from the beginning. In the end will take you even more time but at least you feel you progress at the beginning"

There s a scientific way to train gymnastics. And also if one knows how to do something right, how can one do it worse on purpose. Gymnastics for me is about seeking perfection in the movement. Form always first. Improving my form over the last year made me regress many times in steps. And regressing in steps was actually a progress, a progress in form. I m sorry man but i m a FORM LOVER! If not I d probably be traning Crossfit instead of Gymnastics! Hahaha!

Well stated, @Antonio Alías Montoya!!!!! And a huge ha ha ha for the last sentence  :-D 

Thank you @Darin Phoenix and everyone else for your input.  Your suggestions make a lot of sense.  I think one of the problems I'm facing when doing these workouts is keeping up with the instructor in the videos which is tough as there is hardly any rest time between the exercise and the mobility portion and that's what "kills me".  I know if I had a bit more rest between sets I could do way more push ups or at least the prescribed no problem.  Would it be in my best interest to rest a little longer before approaching each set while keeping form as perfect as possible and then after time try to keep up with the instructor?  Is the tempo important?

After each workout is over I feel I still have energy left over and that's where I typically add in some additional sets and reps.  For example, it's like I feel I need to add some vertical pulling to supplement the horizontal plane pulling to hit all the areas of my back or inverted push ups to hit the "upper pecs" after doing regular push ups.  It all stems from my old ways of thinking in the gym where I guess I'm thinking of physique rather than these functional movements that I need to progress through first.

So is it suggested that I should just stick to the workouts prescribed and leave it at that for the day and maybe try it out twice a week and see how recovery goes?

One last question about volume.  It seems the thought about being able to break plateaus and getting your body to respond and adapt is to "go to failure" so that you're taxing the muscle fully, it recovers, and you grow or get stronger.  Another thought is to stop 1 or 2 reps short of "maxing out" and add a couple more sets to that exercise so that your capable of doing more work/volume overall without completely fatiguing the muscle.  I'm just curious on your thoughts about this.

 Thanks again for your guidance

Rich 

On 06/08/2017 at 11:54 AM, Antonio Alías Montoya said:

I m sorry but this is like saying: "hey, there s a right and safe way to run, but you shouldn t run properly from the begining. It s better if you run more with bad form and with greater risk of injury. And in case you face a plateau then start again but running properly, running the way you didn t learn from the beginning. In the end will take you even more time but at least you feel you progress at the beginning"

There s a scientific way to train gymnastics. And also if one knows how to do something right, how can one do it worse on purpose. Gymnastics for me is about seeking perfection in the movement. Form always first. Improving my form over the last year made me regress many times in steps. And regressing in steps was actually a progress, a progress in form. I m sorry man but i m a FORM LOVER! If not I d probably be traning Crossfit instead of Gymnastics! Hahaha!

Well first don't be sorry, second don't put words in my mouth. I clearly stated that it was important to have good form so as to not injure yourself, while trying to emphasize it was also important not to try and be perfect from the get go because you would not progress that way, since you also need volume to progress, and I'll allow myself to quote Ido Portal here "it IS indeed a matter of volume, you need to move often". I am currently working on my PPPs on my pushing strength day while greasing my normal PUs groove two days later on an endurance kinda day and it works like a charm. Can already knock a whole lot of dips with full ROM as well and still working on my PPPs nonetheless, same for pull ups and I stick to rows (clearly a connective tissue problem for me here as I injured a shoulder and never did rehabilitationduring rock climbing days).

I think the recent interview with Leo Trinidad is a good example of what I have written as well, as he stated he always come back to basics to perfect them (but if you stick to being perfect then there's no progress, because there's no such thing as perfection in the first place). 

So I'm not sorry and I'll appreciate that you read carefully and don't twist my words, although I am not speaking English perfectly I do try to convey things as I see them in the best possible fashion (and if I had to be excellent before speaking it, I would never speak it, thus not making progress with it either). That was my attempt at giving a more concrete examples of the principles well explained on the post just before mine by mr. Pheonix (on neural efficiency and connective tissue).

Now as a matter of fact I aimed for perfection on  hinge rows for 5*15 with no rest, the most literal interpretation of the program you could get, and literaly stayed stuck on hinge rows for 11 months straight during 2014 (and asked all my rock climbing and working out friends and literaly no one could do it, never seen anyone that could do it with perfect form in here or youtube either), as another matter of fact, hinge rows are now a 5*5 exercise (which make it an effective waste of 11 months worth of my time).

So you keep doing perfection if this is ok with you, for me (and maybe the author of this post as well) it's not about being perfect, it's about progressing (and progression entails NOT hurting yourself in the first place as have been extensively explained by coach, which entails having "decent" form (but not "perfect" form, that is something to be achieved by continuously thriving for it, always coming back to the basics as said by mr. Trinidad IMHO)). Good training to everyone Ob

I don't know about the "decent"… I think I am more like Coach Sommer and really into paying attention to details. Striving for perfection will achieve excellence… going decent, not sure about that—I guess then we have to revisit things and strive for that perfection to achieve excellence. So why not do it from the start? 

2 hours ago, Suzanna McGee said:

I don't know about the "decent"… I think I am more like Coach Sommer and really into paying attention to details. Striving for perfection will achieve excellence… going decent, not sure about that—I guess then we have to revisit things and strive for that perfection to achieve excellence. So why not do it from the start? 

Thanks Suzanna. You gave the answer already.

I'd stay away from both decent and perfection, and aim for what is good enough. Perfection is by definition unattainable. Substituting really really really really good still has a problem: From my experience (admittedly mostly in other fields), it is nearly impossible to have the maturity to perfectly understand a new complex concept the first time. Very often, proper understanding comes not only after repeated practice, but also after having faced something of a higher level of difficulty. To really master something you have to revisit in light of further experience, and that's why it always pay to revisit the basics: you cannot pretend to fully learn them the first time.

I'm not sure why is that. Perhaps, you need to train/study at a higher level to have enough "gap" to allow for a complete understanding of something at a lower level. Perhaps applying the easier element in the more challenging conditions of more difficult elements is what allows your understanding of the easier element to improve.

Now, what is good enough is a different question, and may very well be what Suzanna calls perfection or Paul calls decent. For me, the best way to understand when I've got to good enough is currently by submitting form checks. Moving to soon causes all kind of problems, but never moving aiming for some ideal perfection is also not the best strategy.

10 hours ago, Guido Franchetti said:

Now, what is good enough is a different question, and may very well be what Suzanna calls perfection or Paul calls decent.

Very well said and I'm together with Paul and Guido in this topic. Heck, even the GB technique and follow-along videos look slightly different, you can't go crazy over this. Don't get me wrong, technique is important and you should always aim to move towards perfecting it, but somewhere there is the point of diminishing returns, where you can continue going crazy with it, but unless you are competitive gymnast, you don't get much additional benefit out of that. If your progress has stopped for extended period (which was the initial topic of this thread), then do something about it, play littlebit with this, sometimes even just changing the sequence of exercises can help. Our body proportions, musculatures, sports backgrounds are different, there is no 'one size fits all' solutions. The key here is not to change too much, just as much as necessary to break the plateau and as little as possible, because GB is still your best practice training framework here. I've been using this approach already long time and works well for me. Most recently doing extra 2-3x5 ground rows in my RC sessions helped me to finally nail the last stubborn reps for 5x15 incline rows.

If you submit a form check and coaches say you can move on then you can move on, as Guido pointed, if they tell you to keep working on your form then you should keep working on your form. It s his duty, not ours (unexperienced folks) to decide wether or not form is good enough to move on. I doubt very much that everyone is submitting form checks and I guess many of them who are not, are progressing with terrible form. But I hope to be wrong.

Antonio, I think we are solving different problems here. If you read carefully the first post, then Richard asked for advice on how to break through plateau (as many other people before him). We might argue here whether 2-6 month period is long or short for calling it a plateau (didn’t quite understand the exact period in the first post), but suggestion to submit form checks is not the solution here. If progress is not happening for long time, then some variable should be changed. I’m sure Paul didn’t mean progressing to harder exercises with crappy technique. In F1 earlier phases it’s often the endurance, not strength that is holding you back from progressing, therefore doing a few sets of more difficult progression doesn’t automatically mean crappy technique. I mentioned my own example recently from progressing from incline rows to ground rows. I’m sure my 5reps of ground rows is technically equal to 15reps of incline rows and I can definitely crank couple of technically acceptable elevated rows as well.

5 hours ago, Janno Rillo said:

Antonio, I think we are solving different problems here. If you read carefully the first post, then Richard asked for advice on how to break through plateau (as many other people before him). We might argue here whether 2-6 month period is long or short for calling it a plateau (didn’t quite understand the exact period in the first post), but suggestion to submit form checks is not the solution here. If progress is not happening for long time, then some variable should be changed. I’m sure Paul didn’t mean progressing to harder exercises with crappy technique. In F1 earlier phases it’s often the endurance, not strength that is holding you back from progressing, therefore doing a few sets of more difficult progression doesn’t automatically mean crappy technique. I mentioned my own example recently from progressing from incline rows to ground rows. I’m sure my 5reps of ground rows is technically equal to 15reps of incline rows and I can definitely crank couple of technically acceptable elevated rows as well.

If you also read carefully you can see we are talking about both things. Originally not, but then the topic arised. I wasnt giving any solution, i was just pointing out how important is check forms for both progressing and advise, after someone recommended Richard to progress without good form.

I don t know what Paul meant or what you mean or what any other meant. I can t know what is creepy, decent or perfect form for any of you. I don t even know for my own. 

But ok, whatever, i m tired of saying the same thing over and over. Do each of you whatever you want, you feel and you need to progress.

I just want to add that we might be talking about the same, when one says decent and other says perfect it means the same form in the end. In case you misunderstood me, I m with Suzzana here, so in my opinion the mindset should be striving for perfection and this won t mean you ll achieve perfection. But certainly if you try to strive for just good enough you ll certainly achieve less. The sooner we work on the "best form possible" and this mindset the better, in my opinion. Thats not only me, it s been stated many times in this forum. I just tend to believe the coaches. I hope no one is getting pissed because I m not answering the original post, that has already been answered by Darin and supported by Coach Sommer himself. Good luck wit your training Richard!!

On 8/2/2017 at 3:08 AM, Darin Phoenix said:

Hi Richard,

Hitting plateaus in your training can definitely be frustrating and at times you can seem as if you are going nowhere fast. There are some training variables that can be manipulated which may assist you in reaching the next level. 

The basic principles of training are to apply a level of stimulation that disrupts homeostasis and then get adequate rest and recovery to allow your body to make the necessary adaptations. Within these principles and parameters are certain variables that can be manipulated. There is a general interplay between all of the training variables. They are very much inter-related and inter-dependent.

Frequency - An increase in training frequency is one way to add volume to a training protocol and increase the metabolic and local muscular demand and illicit more adaptation. Whilst Coach Sommer advises most people to train each workout once per week every trainee is different and adding an additional workout may be a way to break through a plateau. As I have stated before this is a double edged sword adding more frequency if you are not fully recovering between workouts is a sure fire way to not only halt progress but to move backwards. In your post you mentioned that you are destroyed by the end of the workout and also that you have tried adding extra workouts all to no avail. 

Intensity - Intensity is key variable that is significantly under recognized by most trainees. In order to get the most out of a training protocol you need to train with the right level of intensity. Every inch of every rep of every set matters. Mastery of performance in the execution of sets and reps is the single most important factor determining how much you will get out of your training. A great way of manipulating intensity is with the use of rest - pause reps. If you are struggling to complete your set of 15 push ups and can only get to 11 rather than letting the set end at 11 lock out your arms take a few deep breaths and then try and get a couple more reps. To really increase the intensity you may even keep going until you get 20 reps ( The key is only counting the reps with good form). Another method you could try to increase the intensity is some holds at the top or bottom at the end of each set.

Give some of these methods a try and see how you go. If you have read any of my previous posts you will also be aware that I believe that it can take time to see true physiological adaptations. The body will work at it's own pace no matter how fast you want it to go. If all that needs to occur to have you progress is an increase in neural efficiency this can happen quite quickly. If you need to remodel muscular and connective tissue and their neural pathways then this will be measured in months not days and weeks. Generally the trainees that will make the most porgress are the ones that can handle the plateaus and the seeming lack of progress and just stick with the process.

Sir Alex Ferguson the former long term head coach of perennial contenders Manchester United wrote in his autobiography " good coaching relies on repetition.  The argument that players must be stimulated by constant variety may come across as progressive or enlightened, but it is a dangerous evasion of priorities. In any physical activity, effective practice requires repeated execution of the skills involved.Why do you think the greatest golfers that have ever lived have devoted endless hours striking the same shots over and over again."

It is the constant changing of programs and not sticking with a proven effective method that will most often lead to real frustration and a lack of progress.

I look forward to hearing how you go by trying some of the recommendatiosn and I am sure that other people will pitch in with methods they have used when facing similar situations.

I looked up Pushups in the Forum just now for some advice. This helped tremendously. I was unsure what to think but I will keep going for months then. No use trying to force myself to go faster then my body isn't physically ready. I will achieve mastery when my body adapts. This is the body I was born with. lol. Thanks for the wisdom here.

Happy that this post will be able to assist. If you are patient with your body then it can definitely surprise you. 

If you add time too consistent effort you will generally be amazed at the results you can achieve. Keep us posted with your progress.