Heresy!
I just want to be so big that it becomes an inconvenience for folks around me - where it would feel rude not to apologize for my gargantuan size.
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Most of the time, I find, that the people giving out unspecific advice like this - are not carrying the physique to warrant being listened to.
Post a pic before mounting the podium.
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Facts; the modern fitness claims are fallacy created to sell supplements and gym memberships. Our shoulder capsules were never designed to do bench presses nor were our spines or knees designed to squat 450lbs x 8. Not part of our evolution. The hallmark of modern fitness is machines, juiced up trainers selling you a membership and the latest legal grow juice, etc.
"That which is natural is not that which is best.
Dying at 30 is natural. Losing all your teeth is natural. Drinking unsanitised water is natural. I personally choose to partake in none of these things."
Irrelevant to a discussion on our evolutionary biomechanics.
He even opened with this, saying he wasn’t big and didn’t care to be. Totally fine, because I think his behaviors match his goals, but how does that establish the credibility to say “you guys on T-Nation shouldn’t lift heavy”?
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I got “big” but it kept me from enjoying life…mountain hikes, long weekend bike rides with the family weren’t comfortable or as easy.
Its interesting that, in the military, the “big” guys are the ones that get cut. Carrying too much muscle or fat, you’re not going to make it to the elites whether it is Army, Air Force, Marines or Navy. A book by a retired SEAL, Dick Couch, notes the bodybuilder types are usually out by the 2nd week as they’re not fit enough for the program or the demands of the job. Interesting persective after reading that and I started re-adding more conditioning work – running, swimming, rucking. Training in a climate controlled gym really isn’t real world…
Then how can we do those things?
You act like somebody had something specific in mind and designed these things for some specific purpose which supports your opinion.
I really don’t believe that was the case.
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What an interesting and wide ranging discussion. It prompted me to think about my own training history and there were certainly times that I was lying to myself about the fact that what I was doing was healthy. It was healthier than sitting on the couch doing nothing, but the almost singular focus I put on getting the next 5lbs on my squat, bench and deadlift certainly wasn’t as good for my physical health as a more balanced approach would have been. Looking back though I’m fine with that – I mentally needed what I was doing at the time I was doing it and I wouldn’t change anything despite having some joints as a result. I don’t think I’d be where I am in my career or marriage if I hadn’t had that outlet in my 30s. So perhaps it was good for my overall health after all.
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I’m quite well aware of this, but the goal for most here is to look better. For me, it is always to get bigger and leaner… understandably, that would get in the way of me becoming a Seal. Luckily, I’m not aiming for something like that.
GREAT name.
I didn’t say we couldn’t do those things. I’ve benched and squatted heavy (four or more plates), but was it the right thing to do? Probably not, as my shoulders can get tweaky these days. Friends have similar issues.
And “opinion” is different than fact. There are countless books by researchers which talk about our biomechanics in terms of our evolution. Ask any orthopedic surgeon who knows his stuff what our shoulders are designed to do.
Here’s another fact. I was just over 240lbs when I was hitting my PRs. A 285lb gorilla – +45lbs heavier than me – could easily have outlifted me by a factor of 10x. A gorillia is estimated to be able to do a 4000lb bench, on average. No steroids, no shirt – and a gorilla can easily rip strongman’s arm off as easily as pull apart a banana tree. That is based on a diet of predominantly plants, some bugs, a random small animal. In the meantime, we suck down protein drinks, creatine and don’t even come close…
Humans were never designed for strength…we’re endurance animals, possibly multi-faceted animals but best at long distance.
BTW, based on your picture how long have you been lifting? Doesn’t appear to be very long?
Re: military - I trained differently when I wanted to do that stuff. Behaviors have to match goals. I no longer have a ranger school or something in front of me, so I can afford to train differently.
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I can promise you, I am not an endurance animal.
Is gorilla the benchmark for strength now? Gonna go hit up CRiSPR for some gene editing if that is the case.
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So you yourself have done these things! 
They weren’t designed for it, but here we are numbering in the millions, DOING THESE VERY THINGS!
Maybe I was going for the SEALS?
Tell us more stories about stuff you’ve never done. I’m always down for a good laugh.
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“They weren’t designed for it, but here we are numbering in the millions, DOING THESE VERY THINGS!”
Yep, and there are people getting hurt, injured as a result. Millions? Maybe in first world countries where we have access to gyms, weights. Apparently you haven’t been in rural areas of 3rd world countries where their ‘weight lifting’ is called work.
Guessing you’re in your 20s, don’t read a lot and haven’t lifted very long since you’re pretty skinny in your photo so you don’t have any relative background or experience to speak of.
It is actually the SEALs – so you clearly weren’t trying out for the teams. Stories of stuff I’ve never done? This is coming from the guy in picture? Give me a break…
Of course you will provide one of your own for the gallery.
Cowards love anonymity.
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Throwing stones whilst hiding behind anonimity… classy.
Post a pic or shut the fuck up.
Sorry, in a “no prisoners” kinda mood today apparently.
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Heres another for your fap files.
Don’t break it though. You know that thing wasn’t designed for that .
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Sorry to hear that.
No…you tell me. If you were in Ronnie’s position would you be saying that you wish you’d squatted 800 for four instead of two…or would you be wishing that you’d tried a more moderate approach as he says the pain that he goes through on a daily basis is a nine or ten out of ten.
And what if you didn’t have his income? What if your injuries prevented you from working and feeding your family? Worth the poundage / rep triumph that only you really cared about?
I know which side of the fence that I am on. How about you?
I don’t understand. Who would think that this old earth suit is designed to work forever? It is just part of growing older.
All good things must come to an end. Getting up in age does not make physical things get easier. One of my favorite replies about getting smaller and weaker as I age is, “It is better to be a has been, than a never was.”
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BS? Really? So we can all squat as easily as Tom Platz can we?
You do realise that the configuration of people’s hip joints differ don’t you? As well as the ratio of limb to torso length.
So barbell squatting…especially to what many would call acceptable depth isn’t as easy and natural for some as it is for others.