I had an awesome roundtable with Frank Yang and Matt Ogus today where we talked about lots of bodybuilding and fitness topics. I hope you find it as interesting and insightful as I did! Thanks to Matt and Frank for their time!
Here are the questions I asked them during the interview, the video is un-edited and un-cut. If you want to hear their answers you have to watch the video :) I apologize for the sound. I had a beautiful, high quality stereo recorder on the table in front of us .. that I forgot to turn on. Sorry, I am a studio kind of guy – I am not used to this field work. You can still hear fine but its not the quality I wanted :(
Interview Questions
MOTIVATION AND GOALS
Who is/was your fitness role model?
Why did you start working out?
Why is fitness important to you?
What are your current fitness goals?
What are your long term fitness goals?
On days when you are crazy busy and feel like shit, what motivates you to get into the gym?
If you knew that you wouldnt gain an ounce of muscle or get one bit stronger in the next year, would you still workout?
Everyone gets injuries now and then, what is your philosophy when it comes to working out and injuries?
what are your long term life goals?
whats changed in fitness world, where do you see it headed
what do you think the general population is interested in, appearance or health, and why?
MISTAKES
What is the biggest nutritional mistakes people make when trying to cut?
What is the biggest nutritional mistakes people make when trying to gain muscle?
What are the biggest 2-3 gym mistakes people make when trying to gain muscle?
Did you make any stupid mistakes when you first started? What ones?
EXPECTATIONS
Newcomers to lifting seem to often have very unrealistic expectations about how much muscle they can gain – not everyone has great genetics. For a natty 21 year old who has already been working out for a year and used their newbie gains, what percent of guys do you think could add the following amounts of *muscle* (not muscle +fat) per year?
what percent of guys could add 5 pounds in the second year?
what percent of guys could add 10 pounds in the second year?
what percent of guys could add 20 pounds in the second year?
what percent of guys could add 30 pounds in the second year?
what percent of guys could add 40 pounds in the second year?
Not everyone has good genetics. What percent of teens do you think could build a physique like yours naturally if they were willing to workout hardcore and use flawless nutrition …
in 1 year
in 3 years
in 5 years
in 10 years
SPORTS
Do you do sports outside of bodybuilding? Which?
Do your sport has helped your bodybuilding?
Do you think your bodybuildng has helped your sport?
If you had to give up your bodybuiding or your sport, which would you give up?
CARDIO
How often do you do cardio and what kind?
Do you like doing cardio?
How important do you think cardio is for overall health?
Do you think cardio helped you or hurt you with your strenght and mass gain goals and why
SUPPLEMENTS
What supplements do you use? (not brand names, I dont want to advertise – for example, creatine, not Jack3D)
How much do you think they help? What percent edge do they give you?
Do you think complete beginners should use supplements or should they wait a year or two?
There are jealous haters everywhere. How do you handle it when someone accuses you of steroid use?
NUTRITION
How many meals a day do YOU eat typically?
Many people look at you and people who have physiques like you and think that the reason you look that lean is that you have a fast metabolism and you can eat whatever you want. Do you have to watch what you eat?
What do you think of intermittent fasting?
Would you ever consider working out before breakfast?
Is it just IIFYM or do you think vegetables, fruits, and whole grains are important too?
How much protein do you get and from what sources?
RANDOM QUESTIONS
Do you think complete beginners should bulk?
What is your favorite place to do skateboard squats?
Whats the most important thing you have learned when it comes to fitness and health?
If you could change one physical aspect of your body what would it be?
How did YOU learn about learn about lifting weights/nutrition?
How often do you change your workout routine?
If you could only recommend one book for someone staring in fitness, what would it be?
Think back to what you were like when you were 15, what advice would have helped you the most when you first started?
What advice would you give someone who has plateaued either in terms of strength and size or in terms of getting lean.
If your mom or dad starting working out and you were their trainer, would you have them squats and deadlifts?
Whats the next big thing. First it was strength training, then Arnold had everyone wanting to look big, now it seems to be all about aesthetics. What do you think the next big thing will be?
Support networks are very important for achieving success in fitness. What do you think the future holds for online fitness communities.