Why I've trained for 17 consecutive years

I had a moment this weekend at the supermarket, when I was asked by the fishmonger (btw the roasted whole sea bass I made was exquisite) how long I had been training. I was taken aback by my own words, 'almost 17yrs my friend,' I replied, then I stopped and thought wow, that's a long time! 'Chan can you believe I've been training for 17yrs!'

'Yes Sim, it's a long time' she replied apathetically, understandably as it wasn't exactly 'news,' however it certainly got me thinking, 17 is the age a good number of my followers have been alive.

The fishmongers follow up question was, had I been consistent the whole time, which I have; in fact to this date, if my memory serves me correct, I've had no more than 4 consecutive days off training since I started back in 2001.

A post shared by Simeon Panda® (@simeonpanda) on Dec 31, 2016 at 9:45am PST

With all this being said, I'm sure many of you are thinking 'why?' What motivates you to train 17yrs straight, what did you hope to achieve.
Shocking to many, it wasn't to achieve the highest accolade in bodybuilding, with one of the most respected federations in the world.

To give a straight answer would be disingenuous, as my reasons for continuing to train changed, or to be more precise, matured as the years passed.
It started simply with a notion that muscles and strength are masculine, and as a 15yr old teenager, the desire not just to be a man, but 'a man's man' is organic. So just like millions of other teens, that got me started, but I quickly fell in love with weightlifting, it gave me a feeling and an experience I never had, completely unrivalled by anything else at the time.
It helped me when I was down, it taught me discipline, it taught me that sometimes you have to go through some hard times to strengthen, to come out the other side better.

Half way through the many years, I took control of my diet, I wanted to be healthy in every sense of the word.

My reasons for training now are for all the many positive aspects I have observed over the years, amplified by the fulfilment I feel everyday when I train.

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A whopping 80 page guide ebook to train exactly how I do and to follow the diet that keeps me lean all year while still building mass!

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✔ Written and designed by Simeon Panda with over 15 yrs experience

✔ 80 pages packed with info

✔ Key exercises, Rep ranges, number of sets, rest period

✔ Annotated diagrams of the exact muscles used with key exercises

✔ Training tips and golden rules

✔ Daily meals (incl portion size)

✔ Essential nutrition guidelines

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 It is time to take your physique to the next level!