Have you ever seen those guys that go to the gym every day, every week, year in and year out and always look the same? They are the "constants". They never change. They're always there, and they always look the same. No better, no worse. Years go by, and they just stay the same.
You see them and you often wonder what they're doing wrong. You wonder if they're eating wrong. You wonder if they're using weights that are too light, or if they're just lazy. They always look the same. It's almost frustrating to you. These folks are taking up the same equipment as you, but they're not getting any better. They're just staying the same.
But they might be on to something.
Success in any arena is measured by accomplishment of stated goals. As a young trainer, your goals are probably to gain muscle mass while shedding body fat. You wish to make measurable changes to your physique over the months and years that you spend in the gym. You want to grow. You want to improve. You know there are setbacks and breaks, and victories and breakthroughs. You take the ebbs with the flows.
Let's look at one of the "constants" - one of the guys that never showed any marked improvement. He's 60 years old. He's been coming to the same gym, five mornings a week for twenty years now. He uses the exact same weights, has the exact same weight and body fat percentage, and is in the exact same shape. Has he accomplished anything at all? Yes. He has defeated the aging process by twenty years.
Think about it. If you train twenty years and you look exactly the same at 60 as you did at 40 - then you have accomplished something great. You have postponed the aging process. As your peers see their bodies fall apart, grow weaker, look worse, and generally feel worse - you are almost the same physical human specimen at 60 as you were at 40. You've found the fountain of youth!
So the next time you have to wait for the leg press because some old man is doing his 20-pound, 15-rep sets, don't get frustrated. You're looking at an excellent role model for yourself, as you leave the stage of "Build muscle and lose fat" and enter the "Stave off aging and stay alive!" set of goals. Good luck in your journey. If things go well, you'll be happy to end up as a "constant" one day. It beats the alternative...