T-Rex Coach Spotlight – Full Interview

List your top 3 tips on training, nutrition or contest prep.

Training – Some clients can be afraid to try new things, especially if it goes against the standard, traditional way of doing something or maybe contradicts what a previous coach may have said. At the end of the day, if you want to look different, you’ve got to be willing to do something in the gym that you’ve never done before, or you’ll just keep getting what you’ve got. This might mean digging even deeper for more effort and intensity or to switch over to a completely different training method to shock the body. Don’t expect a different physique with the same old training day in day out, month after month, year after year.

Nutrition – I can’t believe how many cases of cookie-cutter templated diets I come across in this industry. It’s horrible. In my opinion, diet is the one variable that should have the greatest amount of individual customization over anything else in the program. Every client has their own goals, body fat distribution patterns, dietary restrictions, digestive issues, insulin sensitivity, carb tolerance and metabolic strengths or weaknesses. I start every client’s diet with a full analysis of what they’ve done and what they’re currently eating, instead of using some pre-set formula. You won’t get to where you need to go if you don’t know where you’re at or where you’ve been.

Prep – So many clients tend overlook things during a prep that in reality are just as important as your training and nutrition. If people paid as much attention things like sleep, stress,  anxiety and controlling the mind to eliminate negative thinking, they would have a much smoother prep experience. It’s tough to get your body to co-operate when you haven’t taken care of the basics and it will eventually start working against you to prevent you from achieving the extreme look you’re training for. The mind absolutely controls the body.

Favorite industry highlights

I think the moment that I felt the same level of satisfaction and reward when my clients would win shows as I felt when I was winning shows myself, was when I knew for sure that coaching was where I wanted to be. It’s a highlight for me whenever a client places well in a show. I don’t look back and think that I’m proud of one over another. I put effort into each of them and I’m proud of all the achievements to the same extent.

We’ve had a ton of Team T-Rex clients do very well in competitions and I’ll always take a lot of pride in that, but I’m finding the kicker is when people also change their lifestyle and use the prep and bodybuilding lifestyle as a positive change to improve many other areas of their life. For whatever reason (bad personal experience etc.), too many people put down prep and I think there are thousands of people out there that have used competing to create structure in their lives that carried over to other facets.

Your favorite quote you like to use with clients

Focus on what needs to be done, not how you’re doing and let your coach do the worrying – that’s what you pay them for! Either put your full trust in the process or not at all. You can’t expect incredible results with a half-assed effort and following only parts of the plan.

Coach Sean