A Bodybuilding Heretics Rant

SemperFi

Well-known member

Heretic - a proponent of any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs.

Belief is an amazing thing. If we believe we can do something , then we most often can. If we believe something is impossible, it usually is. Our belief system limits us and shapes our entire lives. 

Heretics do not share the common beliefs of the masses. They like to believe they think bigger and better. Not in an arrogant manner but in a way that many have yet to come to understand or experience for themselves. Almost every new belief system has been proceeded by a heretic - Moses, Columbus, Jesus, Darwin, Bakker, Gandhi, etc. 

As the new believe system takes hold and new followers join the movement the heretic disappears. The former heretic is now seen as a hero, a savior, a forward thinker or a trailblazer and a whole new system of beliefs is now seen as the norm.

Advances in science are changing the understanding of the human body and how it relates to bodybuilding. Many of these advances are revolutionary and seen by the masses as heresy. The masses have yet to believe that something that they have been taught to be true can no longer be considered as the whole truth. The masses do not wish to believe that they have been betrayed so they continue down the path of the old beliefs in the hopes that the new truths will be proven false. This will allow them to go about their business as usual making them feel vindicated for staying the course in the face of uncertainty.

The "old" ways are not necessarily wrong but are no longer the most effective way of doing things or don't provide answers to the interesting questions. The old ways of bodybuilding are generally accepted by the gym rat simply because they have seen others believing them to be right without knowing "why" they are right.

In defense of the "old" ways they are not all wrong. They have worked time and time again. I am just presenting a more progressive new way of thinking concerning strength development. 

I admit I am part of the heretic movement in bodybuilding because my beliefs have been proven true in first hand accounts of these new beliefs systems being applied in real live people. Most if not all of you will not agree with what I have to say but that is ok. We each have our beliefs and when those beliefs are strong enough there is no convincing change. ;)

Just for the sake of proving an argument ask yourself - Will lifting heavy weights make you stronger? Now ask yourself - Why?

See... if you don't know "why" than you are simply following what you have seen other do or have been taught. But.... if you know "why" then the answer to the first question is irrelevant because you now can think for yourself and know exactly what you need to do to get stronger. Yes, lifting heavy weights can make you stronger but it is NOT because you are lifting heavy weights. If you know what makes the body stronger then you can go to the source of the strength increasing catalyst and skip the assumed belief of how to get stronger. Focusing all of your effort on the catalyst is where your belief system will begin to change. 

Our bodies do not know the difference between lifting 10lbs or 100lbs. It simply knows how to react to stimulation. I am here to tell you getting stronger does not come from a physical act alone. Strength development is a neurological reaction and has very little to do with the physical action. The physical action is simply the trigger that fires the catalyst for strength development. It does NOT matter if the trigger pull is adjusted to 3lbs or 500lbs. The trigger simply needs to be pulled for the catalyst to fire.

Down the rabbit hole we go......

How could an ordinary 24 year old man lift a 2400+lb car that had fallen off it's blocks pinning his father underneath? How could such an individual become impossibly strong in a moments notice only to return to his former level of strength just seconds later?

At this point please do not confuse strength development with muscle development. They are two different topics but do cross paths. Right now I writing specifically about strength development and will cover muscle development and how the two are inter-related in the future.

To be continued.....

SEMPER FI

 

Dolf

Moderator

Good read SF...

The way we trained in the military is a prime example. We did zero weight training. Everything was with body weight. Pushups, situps, crunches, pullups, running, swimming, bear crawling, foot marching, rope climbing, and many other things. Most of us weren't big, but were strong. 

In each individuals mind there is their own definition of strong. Most see a guy bench over 500lbs for a single, and they say wow that guys strong, but that same guy can't do 2 pullups or climb a 30ft rope. He couldn't put a 120lb pack on his back and march 15 miles up and down hilly territory. Is he strong? Yes and no...  

I was going to touch on mental strength, and intestinal fortitude and how it applies to being, and getting strong, but I' sure if you're gonna touch on that in part 2 or part 3 lol.

Thanks SF and +2 can't wait for the next part.

 

strong

Member

IMO Dolf,  You are not strong because you can bench 400+. I was so strong when I lifted and did construction work. I was much stronger than now. Of course it was quite a while ago. I benched 405 for 2 last year but I wasn't strong. My body was just trained for that lift at the time.. 

Great read Semper FI...

 

siegmund

Moderator

i 100% agree with you dolf , in my opion thats strong what your saying now. ....there is only like 1 person that knows the truth about me.  but i under went the training.  until i threw my life away and killed a petafile ...i threw a career and my dream.away. and thats why i NEVER TOUCH ON OR BRING UP.  !!!!   

but back to the subject IMO , push ups , pull ups. , and stamina. are and to add mental wndurance not to feel pain , not to feel failure.  

i would end up on my head or my stomach from. miscle fatigue. before i gave up.   

but your definition of strenght is the same as mine i said to much already.   ...sieg

 

Dolf

Moderator

Intestinal fortitude is when you've pushed your body to to what your muscles tell you are it limits, but you have the mind strength, courage, and stamina to push your body beyond its limits. Having a strong mind, and intestinal fortitude go hand in hand. A couple of examples are marathon runners and tri athletes usually have and display intestinal fortitude. Another good example of intestinal fortitude is Marcus Luttrell and what he did to survive in Afghanistan. There's a great book and movie about it called Lone Survivor.  

 

blastthru23

Moderator

Kind of like guts, the guts to keep going in face of the greatest stress. I'm pretty sure I've never been there, emotional maybe, but physically, never had the experience. It's something i would have liked to experienced, who knows, it may happen. Those whom I've known who were in battle seem to have that quality that one gets when pushed beyond the limits of usual human exertion.  I'll check out that book, maybe the movie, but a good book sounds like a good idea

 

SemperFi

Well-known member

The book is very good and Berg did an outstanding job bringing it to the screen. One of the very few movies that I have ever seen that is as good as the book.

SEMPER FI

 

blastthru23

Moderator

I feel like i need to step up the intensity in my training.... it can be difficult to get the intensity when you're self-trained i think. I just have to push myself harder. No doubt about it. Every damn time I look back on the time i spent training, i ALWAYS see that i could have pushed harder. Lacking intestinal fortitude i guess.

 

SemperFi

Well-known member

In my last post I closed by asking, how could an ordinary 24 year old man lift a 2400+lb car that had fallen off it's blocks pinning his father underneath? How could such an individual become impossibly strong in a moments notice only to return to his former level of strength just seconds later?

There are only three answers that make sense to me -

1. Belief based intervention of a higher power.

2. An over stimulation of the central nervous system.

3. A combination of both.

I said earlier that strength development is a neurological reaction and has very little to do with the physical action. The over simplified explanation to support that statement is strength increases come from the stimulation of the central nervous system. This stimulation begins a process that reprograms the body to activate more muscle fibers. Stimulation of the central nervous system is the catalyst (why) to getting stronger. Not to discredit a belief based intervention of a higher power but from a scientific viewpoint the man in the car example experienced a "fight or flight" activation of the nervous system.

 So now that we know the "why" to getting stronger it is time for us to delve into the world of "how" we can stimulate our central nervous system on a daily basis and benefit from the strength gains that are associated with rewiring our own bodies.

To be continued.....

SEMPER FI

 

Dolf

Moderator

I wouldn't call that lacking intestinal fortitude. That's what I call never satisfied. No matter how well you trained and how much effort you gave when you look back, and say I could've given more effort or done more that's never being satisfied. Once you're satisfied with what you've done or what you're doing progression stops imo. If you're never satisfied with how you performed or what you've done you'll strive to do more, and push harder.  

 
M

Mister A

Guest

After Ronnie Coleman broke his back or whatever happened to him, he said that instead of wishing he had scaled back the intensity of his training - which no doubt contributed to his physical decline - he actually regrets not going harder.

He said specifically that he has always been mad at himself for his famous 800 pound squat for 2 reps. He said he had another rep in him, but racked the weight instead.

This is an extreme form of dissatisfaction from someone who's probably a bit closer to whatever is beyond a human, but goes to show that this dissatisfaction in one's performance is actually an innate characteristic of the champion's mindset. It's that overall discontentment with yourself that pushes you to be better, that drives your improvement, that overcomes your limits. Finding the power to be thankful for this dissatisfaction will compel you to use it for what it actually is - a tool which brings out your very best - than to allow it to manifest into self pity.

Identify the issue.

Find a way to be grateful for it.

Move forward.

 

blastthru23

Moderator

Never satisfied, never give up, never back down. After graduating from a top university, i over heard my former mother-in-law say, "he's not very celebratory!" To me, it was just one hurdle, with many more to go. I'm not "there" yet... It's like the journey to Ixtlan, you never get there (Carlos Castaneda). Instead, the journey is the destination.  A lovely paradox  :)

 
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