sometimes i see job requirements saying you need 5 years of LAMP experience or resumes listing years of experience for each language....

what would you need to prove you have 5 years of experience at something ?

i mean what if you rested for a while from coding ? what if you were actually "learning" during the first few years ?

i feel no confidence at all and although i have been learning web programming (lamp) since 4 years ago, i am uncertain whether my skills qualify as to those of someone who has "5 years of LAMP" experience, and how would i be able to find out ?

i've written several web apps....but they haven't taken off as i hoped.