Important suggestion for Administrators/Moderators

[The Munster]

I have a suggestion for the Administrators and Moderators (and everyone for that matter) on IM.

We need a thread started for and maintained for beginners to bodybuilding and fitness. Over the last few weeks, IM has had a number of people join and ask some very beginner questions like how to start. In all honesty, I haven’t seen some of these people get very much help, especially considering the incredible amount of knowledge and experience on this board. I know plenty of us are weary of answering in to much detail because so much information is guarded as it has been paid for by paying trainees.

I know a lot of the people that find their way to IM do so in search of more DC training info, but plenty are coming by from other places/reasons too. For the folks that are true beginners to bodybuilding/weightlifting/fitness, I hate to see them go away for lack of good advice. And, some are coming to IM and asking about DC training but have no business getting into it because they are again, beginners.

Wouldn’t you all agree that with the members we have here and all the information/experience they contain, we could set people off on the right path.

My suggestion is this:

Let’s start a thread for beginners and sticky it in the IM Main Discussion Forum. The Administrators/Moderators of IM can write the opening articles or designate certain members to write them, either by writing directly in the thread or submitting the articles to the Adms/Mods first and having them select them. The opening articles can lay out the basics in the following:

Training—the basics behind muscle growth, training frequency, intensity, sample workouts, training for mass, training for fat loss
Nutrition and metabolism—the basics behind sound bodybuilding eating, sample meal plans, the basics of metabolism
Recovery—the factors that contribute to and take away from proper recovery
Supplementation—basic supplementation for beginners, what works, what is a waste of time/money
Reading—books/articles/websites that cover the above in an understandable way but don’t overwhelm or confuse the beginner

Basically, I think we should lay out a plan that is simple enough to follow but thorough enough to produce significant results in a persons first 1-2 years.

Whenever someone comes on IM and starts asking obvious beginner questions and really wants/needs help getting started we can refer them to this thread and have them read it first and then ask questions. This way beginners can get a great deal of solid information and no one gets in trouble for spilling info that they weren’t supposed to be sharing.

If you could go back to when you were just starting out and give yourself even a fraction of what you’ve learned, wouldn’t you want to do it?

What do ya'll think?

[homonunculus]

Munster,

Sounds like an FAQ.

I like the suggestion, but it does seem that much of this has been covered elsewhere. (A search for Bodybuilding and FAQ will give tons of hits.)

DC has an FAQ in his forum that I think covers much of the basics. Much of what you speak of involves a great deal of work to cover what can already be found very readily all over the internet.

For anyone reading this who has asked a question that was not answered, let's certainly make this thread one where you will be noticed. (I personally try to make sure this does not happen, although I know we can't catch everything.)

Munster - if you can bump some threads with unanswered questions, that would be great.

-R

[The Munster]

Munster,

Sounds like an FAQ.

I like the suggestion, but it does seem that much of this has been covered elsewhere. (A search for Bodybuilding and FAQ will give tons of hits.)

DC has an FAQ in his forum that I think covers much of the basics. Much of what you speak of involves a great deal of work to cover what can already be found very readily all over the internet.

For anyone reading this who has asked a question that was not answered, let's certainly make this thread one where you will be noticed. (I personally try to make sure this does not happen, although I know we can't catch everything.)

Munster - if you can bump some threads with unanswered questions, that would be great.

-R

Yeah, I see what you mean.

I just tried the FAQ button in the top bar while in the Dogg Pound. I searched for squats and it came up with nothing. Chances are I'm using it wrong.

I just hate seeing beginners come and get frustrated when they obviously need some initial guidance and get told (a) we can't answer that because plenty of people here pay for that information or (b) do a search.

But, I guess if they want it bad enough, they'll take the time to do the research and find the information.

I think we are both right.

[winnie]

.

I just hate seeing beginners come and get frustrated when they obviously need some initial guidance and get told (a) we can't answer that because plenty of people here pay for that information or (b) do a search.


I think we are both right.

Munster, I must have missed when this happened as I have never seen someone respond to a beginners question like that before here at IM. If you could PM the links that you find in which this happened.


Thanks

[homonunculus]

Yeah, I see what you mean.

I just tried the FAQ button in the top bar while in the Dogg Pound. I searched for squats and it came up with nothing. Chances are I'm using it wrong.

I just hate seeing beginners come and get frustrated when they obviously need some initial guidance and get told (a) we can't answer that because plenty of people here pay for that information or (b) do a search.

But, I guess if they want it bad enough, they'll take the time to do the research and find the information.

I think we are both right.

Hey Munster,

Just try a regular search and you'll find lots of stuff on squats. Perhaps winnie can address the FAQ option.

Frankly, finding information via a search is a much more efficient means than simply asking the question: the / an answer is already out there to many, many, many beginner / newbie / entry-level questions.

Def. bump the posts though, where beginner-level questions were not answered b/c someone is paid for that info. Skip and DC are the two here that would do that, but they are working will upper level competitors / bodybuilders.

I recently (only time I think I've done this) withheld a little info. (but answered the question about some info. that was posted on another board) r.e. last week show prep. b/c the protocol I have come up with has taken me > 5 years to refine and I do plan on taking on clients in the next year. However, this is also not a entry level kind of question. (Heck, last week show prep. seems to be one the hardest things in bodybuilding to get right from what I've seen - even the pro's screw it up fairly regularly.)

-R

[The Munster]

Munster, I must have missed when this happened as I have never seen someone respond to a beginners question like that before here at IM. If you could PM the links that you find in which this happened.


Thanks

Winnie,
I didn't talk that last part out just right. What I meant was, I would hate to see it happen, not that it necessarily has. I'm sure you guys have noticed that more and more people are coming to IM. I might be wrong, but it seems like we've been seeing more beginners coming around than before. My suggestion for the "beginners information thread" has a pre-emptive (sp?) purpose. I don't mean that beginners or newcomers have been getting the cold shoulder. To be honest, this is the one board on the internet that I think that WON'T happen. It's just that there are so many members on this board that have paid for information from DC, Skip and others that I think it makes plenty of people weary of posting helpful information in fear of being told not to say this or that.
In no way shape or form am I saying that people have come to IM and been mislead, or not lead.
I just think it would be a great service to people seeking that initial information to get started in bodybuilding or fitness to have a thread that goes over the basics.
Not DC basics or dieting for a contest basics.
The basics basics.
This board has such a fantastic group of people with a wealth of knowledge it seems a shame if even 1 person coming here for information on how to get started goes away with the same questions they came with.
I know it might take a lot of work to get a thread like that put together, I'm just thinking of the numbers of people that a thread like that would surely help.
Though I'm no expert and I don't have near the information and experience that some others do here, I would certainly be happy to contribute to something like that.

Do you see my meaning?

[Creator_11]

I have a bunch of adobe acrobat bodybuilding book and various info, that could help these guys out, they can just pm me anytime and I will give them a url link to it.

Also I think a lot of beginners who ask beginner questions sometimes are too lazy to just read this shit up on the net. When I was 16 I spent most of my time reading about this stuff and trying to apply it. It wasn't till I got a few months or years experience that I started to really ask for tips and tricks.

I just don't want to see this place turn into a bb.com because we have a ton of people coming here who know nothing about bodybuilding, but are just looking for some quick tips and magic pills to get ripped quickly or pack on some quick mass with some gear.