I had the house to myself the other night, and I did what all guys do…
I turned on Pumping Iron.
As I was watching (for maybe the 10th time) Arnold and Lou in the 70’s moving steel plates, getting a pump, gaining massive amounts of muscle, I had 2 thoughts:
1: What happened to bodybuilding that made people just go to super clean machine filled air conditioned gyms?
2: Why do people who aren’t training to get oiled up and pose in speedos think that bodybuilding and the movements included in that sport are dumb?
Lets address…
If you haven’t seen Pumping Iron, it’s a documentary about the rise of bodybuilding in the 70s, and follows the biggest names in the sport as they train, travel, and compete. Please go watch it right now, then come back to this. Actually, you wonlt come back to this post, you’ll probably just call up your boys and go train chest.
The movie shows how back then, it ws popular to train with barbells and dumbbells and come cables, and the goal was to get as big and strong as possible, while staying lean to show off how big and strong and awesome you are.
I don’t know about you, but I started this whole journey because when i was little I wanted to look like my G.I.Joe action figures, He-Man, and the other iconic little boy toys with rippling physiques. Part of that journey has to be the GRITTINESS of battling with the iron, getting into tough workouts, sometimes almost puking, pushing through, doing it with training partners, and coming out of the other side feeling like you’re the baddest MFer around!
New gyms these days where people are into bodybuilding look like 30,000 square foot hotel gyms. Air conditioned, clean brand new equipment, color coded and matching machines, a treadmill section, and so many dolled up prissy looking gym goers with the latest trends bumping elbows but not saying a word because they have headphones on, and no one is sweaty and everyones just following some dumb influencers booty builder program that clearly isn’t working. Sorry bro, repping YoungLA and high fade broccoli cut isn’y making you any more bad ass.
What happened to RUGGED training?! Squatting benching and deadlifting HEAVY barbells, getting drenched in sweat, blasting heavy music, pushing your training partners to do another rep?!
And then there’s the functional fitness crowd. The Crossfitters who used to brag about not doing curls, the bootcamp husbands who are battling the extra 35 pounds from lunches at Chilis, they look at bodybuilders as neanderthals, muscle bound oafs… but let’s be honest…
If you offered to wave a wand to any one of them and add 15 pounds of muscle, to make them look like a Marvel super hero, they’d all trade the chance at an new iPhone for it.
Am I trying to convince you to get into bodybuilding? No.
Am I trying to convince you that maybe spending a little more time focused on strong and jacked as shit might actually make you look better, perform better, and feel better?!
Absolutely.
But what do you do? Easy…
M: Squat heavy, work legs.
T: Press Heavy, work Shoulders.
W: Deadlift Heavy, work back.
Th: High volume legs.
F: Bench Heavy, work upper body.
Take the weekend off.
I have a whole program lad out, not because it’s any super secret sauce program that no one ever thought of, but if you need structure, it can help!
Email me with any questions, or to say thanks after you spend the next 6 months getting jacked and awesome!
