Why We Lift

Off Topic
41

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
LAMF wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
How big are you guys?

Which guys? Me and CLaw or whom?

Everyone. I know Prof X is pretty big so he knows some of the disadvantages but I think most of the posters here are under 200 pounds.

I don’t think I would want to have a serious body builders physique but it would be interesting if I could take one for a test drive.

There are so many sacrifices that go into serious bodybuilding beyond the usual diet and exercise related issues.

Adding 20 or 30 pounds can probably help most people in athletics but adding 50 or 60 will likely be a hindrance.

It can also take away from other enjoyable activities, hiking, hunting, kayaking etc.

I am just trying to figure out which posters here have made those sacrifices.

BTW I am 190 pounds. I was about a 150 pounds in college and at my most muscular I was 215 pounds but I felt it cost me speed and endurance when I was playing rugby.

This is not a knock on bodybuilders. It is their choice and it can be impressive as hell.[/quote]

Well speaking of myself, I am 230 and change at just over 6’ tall. That is not really where I want to be as I have too much fat right now. However the war against the fat, is almost over, and I will be kicking ass and taking names again, like in 6 weeks.

There are indeed disadvantages to having the “extreme” body builder physique. My RL mentor in weight training, ( grand-uncle ) was 6’6" and well over 300 lbs, quite lean. Fucking sasquatch. He never really took it as far as possible and he had some “disadvantages.” He was mostly about strength.

I know some older guys, ( mid 20’s to 30’s ) and they have more human stats ( compared to my uncle not myself ), like 5’11" and over 200 by a good shot, or something like that, and yep they have some “disadvantages.”

Agreed, there are many, many sacrifices that go into hardcore body building. I used to surf like I was pro as a kid, and I was on the swim team at school, I made Varsity Captain eventually.

I knew, even then that I could be ultimate-mr.-kick-ass-surfer or Captain of the swim team. I made my bed, I slept in it. On top of all that I had to put weight training dead last ( even after another sport Karate ) because, I had to prioritize. You can’t have it all, that’s for sure.

While I will always be a good surfer ( natural ability ), I know I can never be the king of beach again, until I go ape-shit on that sport like I did when I was a little younger. It’s the same way with bodybuilding, know you can’t be Phil Heath + Donald Trump + Stephen King + Joe Pass + President of the USA.

Someone can obviously be above average in many things, but they can never truly, truly, excel at many things.

I have sacrificed hardcore surfing. I don’t surf nearly as often, so I have been “demoted” to “Brosef” status, while that is still a very good thing to be called it’s not like the old days and it never will be again. At least I’ve still got all my nick names, + one new one, and hell the younger kids are still hearing stories about my crazy Conan Style shit.

I have limited swimming, to almost nothing.

Karate, is a thing of the past, as far as formal training. However I do still practice the katas on my own, among other things. That’s a long story though.

PS: You are an interesting dude when you are not being a smart ass ( nothing personal you can be quite funny ), Zap.

PPS: Kayaking is cool shit

42

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
LAMF wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
How big are you guys?

Which guys? Me and CLaw or whom?

Everyone. I know Prof X is pretty big so he knows some of the disadvantages but I think most of the posters here are under 200 pounds.

I don’t think I would want to have a serious body builders physique but it would be interesting if I could take one for a test drive.

There are so many sacrifices that go into serious bodybuilding beyond the usual diet and exercise related issues.

Adding 20 or 30 pounds can probably help most people in athletics but adding 50 or 60 will likely be a hindrance.

It can also take away from other enjoyable activities, hiking, hunting, kayaking etc.

I am just trying to figure out which posters here have made those sacrifices.

BTW I am 190 pounds. I was about a 150 pounds in college and at my most muscular I was 215 pounds but I felt it cost me speed and endurance when I was playing rugby.

This is not a knock on bodybuilders. It is their choice and it can be impressive as hell.[/quote]

The only real disadvantage I’ve experienced is trying to fit into small vehicles. Even clothing isn’t really an issue because most stuff can be bought on line now.

43

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
How big are you guys?
[/quote]

5’10, and a somewhat porky 244.5lbs as of this morning.

44

How can I be a wolf,a Predator in the ring if im as weak as a sheep?

45

“The Iron never lies to you. You can walk outside and listen to all kinds of talk, get told that you’re a god or a total bastard. The Iron will always kick you the real deal. The Iron is the great reference point, the all-knowing perspective giver. Always there like a beacon in the pitch black. I have found the Iron to be my greatest friend. It never freaks out on me, never runs. Friends may come and go. But two hundred pounds is always two hundred pounds.”

46

Ive always worked out since 6th grade but 7-9th i slowed down on the weights and picked up track and cross country. Was Varsity on both and was rookie of the year my freshmen year in high school. but with all the running i became supER skinny. I didnt like it that much. Almost had a six pact but i had NO muscle. What the heck i couldnt even bench 135lbs back when i was 125lbs.

Well after the freshmen i stopped all sports because of a hurt cartliage in my knee and a bad achilles tendon until my second semster of my 10th grade year. Alot has changed since then, my maxes have ALL WENT UP, my MUSCLE MASS had extremely went up, and actully formed a whole new me with wide shoulders, pecs that are visible, biceps that strech out my shirts. It is a glory bless.

Weight lifting has truely changed my life. It had builded up more self confindece, Im better at sprints now, my overall self has rasin to a new level. that is why i lift! It had transformed me and became a part of me, a part of my life.

My current stats:
Weight:170
BF: 12%
Height: 5’9
age: 18
grade: 11th

Maxes:
bench:235lbs
Clean and Jerk: 200lbs

47

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
LAMF wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
How big are you guys?

Which guys? Me and CLaw or whom?

Everyone. I know Prof X is pretty big so he knows some of the disadvantages but I think most of the posters here are under 200 pounds.

I don’t think I would want to have a serious body builders physique but it would be interesting if I could take one for a test drive.

There are so many sacrifices that go into serious bodybuilding beyond the usual diet and exercise related issues.

Adding 20 or 30 pounds can probably help most people in athletics but adding 50 or 60 will likely be a hindrance.

It can also take away from other enjoyable activities, hiking, hunting, kayaking etc.

I am just trying to figure out which posters here have made those sacrifices.

BTW I am 190 pounds. I was about a 150 pounds in college and at my most muscular I was 215 pounds but I felt it cost me speed and endurance when I was playing rugby.

This is not a knock on bodybuilders. It is their choice and it can be impressive as hell.[/quote]

An extra 30lbs of mostly muscle wouldnt make that much of a difference I have seen 120lb kids who cant run a mile and I have seen 250lb kids who can run 2-3 miles wich would have a easier time hikeing or kayaking my money is on the 250lb kid. Your bodyweight dosent have that much to do with your quality of life considering your a healthy bodyfat percent.

this is just my opinion Im sure some fitness expert has a different idea.

48

[quote]n3wb wrote:
An extra 30lbs of mostly muscle wouldnt make that much of a difference I have seen 120lb kids who cant run a mile and I have seen 250lb kids who can run 2-3 miles wich would have a easier time hikeing or kayaking my money is on the 250lb kid. Your bodyweight dosent have that much to do with your quality of life considering your a healthy bodyfat percent.

this is just my opinion Im sure some fitness expert has a different idea. [/quote]

I agree. I don’t see how weighing as much as I do would prevent me from “hiking, hunting and kayaking”. I think some people have extremely limited thinking on the subject and say things like this to justify why they don’t push harder to gain more. My largest obstacle is other people’s perception, not muscles. There is a rather large difference between being 250lbs and muscular…and weighing 300lbs in contest condition.

49

I mean, why wouldn’t you lift???
I just can’t understand why someone wouldn’t want to be bigger, stronger, better, and more confident every single day. If you don’t want those things…well, that’s just fucked up.

50

[quote]Professor X wrote:
n3wb wrote:
An extra 30lbs of mostly muscle wouldnt make that much of a difference I have seen 120lb kids who cant run a mile and I have seen 250lb kids who can run 2-3 miles wich would have a easier time hikeing or kayaking my money is on the 250lb kid. Your bodyweight dosent have that much to do with your quality of life considering your a healthy bodyfat percent.

this is just my opinion Im sure some fitness expert has a different idea.

I agree. I don’t see how weighing as much as I do would prevent me from “hiking, hunting and kayaking”. I think some people have extremely limited thinking on the subject and say things like this to justify why they don’t push harder to gain more. My largest obstacle is other people’s perception, not muscles. There is a rather large difference between being 250lbs and muscular…and weighing 300lbs in contest condition.[/quote]

I have never been 250 and you probably have the frame to carry it better than I do. From my experience 215 slowed me down and I was not fat.

I would love to haul you up and down the High Peaks and see if you can keep up with my scrawny ass.

You and I have different destinations.

51

I like the sense of direction and the visibiltiy of results. I really can’t explain it much beyond that, but I don’t see myself giving it up anytime soon.

52

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
Professor X wrote:
n3wb wrote:
An extra 30lbs of mostly muscle wouldnt make that much of a difference I have seen 120lb kids who cant run a mile and I have seen 250lb kids who can run 2-3 miles wich would have a easier time hikeing or kayaking my money is on the 250lb kid. Your bodyweight dosent have that much to do with your quality of life considering your a healthy bodyfat percent.

this is just my opinion Im sure some fitness expert has a different idea.

I agree. I don’t see how weighing as much as I do would prevent me from “hiking, hunting and kayaking”. I think some people have extremely limited thinking on the subject and say things like this to justify why they don’t push harder to gain more. My largest obstacle is other people’s perception, not muscles. There is a rather large difference between being 250lbs and muscular…and weighing 300lbs in contest condition.

I have never been 250 and you probably have the frame to carry it better than I do. From my experience 215 slowed me down and I was not fat.

I would love to haul you up and down the High Peaks and see if you can keep up with my scrawny ass.

You and I have different destinations.[/quote]

I have absolutely no interest in going up and down the High Peaks. However, I have done much hiking through parts of South America and would love to see you unload 50-100lbs of supplies back and forth between the loading truck and the schools we worked out of daily. I was apparently very much in demand when there was heavy shit to carry any distance at all.

Yes, it is based on the individual, the genetics and overall bone structure. That is what makes blanket statements so off base.

Personally, I would rather have the size and strength to carry someone…than simply be someone who can run away real fast.

53

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
LAMF wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
How big are you guys?

Which guys? Me and CLaw or whom?

Everyone. [/quote]

I am currently not big at all. (6’ ~210 and about 10 pounds overfat.) I had injuries that kept me out of the gym for years, so this entire past year back in the gym I have focused on either rehab or dieting. Going “off” my diet has meant eating maintenance level calories.

That said, while in Officer Candidate School, I was a lean 220 at 6’. My two best friends were 6’3" and 240 and 6’5" at 250-260. We had no problems doing obstacle courses, rope climbs, pull-ups, or anything like that. We did not fall out of runs.

Interesting side note: The little guys could smoke us in the 2-mile run time - when we had on comfy shoes and shorts. But when it came to running in combat boots and 40 lbs. of gear, the little guys couldn’t take the abuse and fell out.

If anything, since we were all so used to grueling work outs, we were better able to handle the demands of the military. Lots of little guys fell out of long runs we took while in boots and in full combat gear. Those little guys did not have the will forged in the weight room. They could not, as Arnold used to say, “break through the pain barrier.”

Small guys like to tell themselves that muscle is non-functional. I’m so over that debate. It’s like arguing that you can only consume 40 grams of protein a sitting. I no longer argue about things I’ve lived.

I lived functional while being much larger than average. Hell, even if you don’t consider a lean 220 big, there’s no denying that my friends were monsters. They also dominated while at OCS.

Anyone who wants to think otherwise is free to continue thinking like a jealous loser. They probably also think that anyone with money was born into that, too.

Whatever.

54


Someone needs to tell Jeff Monson (one of the greatest submission grapplers in the world) to lose some of that non-functional muscle.

55

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
It can also take away from other enjoyable activities, hiking, hunting, kayaking etc. [/quote]

In July I was 235 lbs. - way overfat. I went caving in Puerto Rico. I was so agile (even while carrying excess bodyfat) that I became a de facto guide - ensuring that the much smaller people made it through the caves. I was also the first one - by several minutes - to make it to the top of a very high mountain.

Bodyweight is a very poor proxy for whether someone can hunt, kayak, etc.

56

[quote]CaliforniaLaw wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
LAMF wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
How big are you guys?

Which guys? Me and CLaw or whom?

Everyone.

I am currently not big at all. (6’ ~210 and about 10 pounds overfat.) I had injuries that kept me out of the gym for years, so this entire past year back in the gym I have focused on either rehab or dieting. Going “off” my diet has meant eating maintenance level calories.

That said, while in Officer Candidate School, I was a lean 220 at 6’. My two best friends were 6’3" and 240 and 6’5" at 250-260. We had no problems doing obstacle courses, rope climbs, pull-ups, or anything like that. We did not fall out of runs.

Interesting side note: The little guys could smoke us in the 2-mile run time - when we had on comfy shoes and shorts. But when it came to running in combat boots and 40 lbs. of gear, the little guys couldn’t take the abuse and fell out.

If anything, since we were all so used to grueling work outs, we were better able to handle the demands of the military. Lots of little guys fell out of long runs we took while in boots and in full combat gear. Those little guys did not have the will forged in the weight room. They could not, as Arnold used to say, “break through the pain barrier.”

Small guys like to tell themselves that muscle is non-functional. I’m so over that debate. It’s like arguing that you can only consume 40 grams of protein a sitting. I no longer argue about things I’ve lived.

I lived functional while being much larger than average. Hell, even if you don’t consider a lean 220 big, there’s no denying that my friends were monsters. They also dominated while at OCS.

Anyone who wants to think otherwise is free to continue thinking like a jealous loser. They probably also think that anyone with money was born into that, too.

Whatever.[/quote]

In officers training I was chosen to lead the morning exercises based mostly on how I looked and performed on the obstacle courses. I think the only reason so many people believe size causes that much of a limitation is due to some deep rooted desire to justify why they don’t push as hard.

The average NFL runningback is over 220lbs at around 5’10" to just over 6ft. How is it they can perform better than most humans on the planet, but there are so many who call themselves “regular weight lifters” who seem to think anyone much bigger than them can’t even go on a hike due to being so weighed down by muscle mass?

Shaun Alexander- Seattle Seahawks 5’11" 225lbs
Mike Anderson - Baltimore Ravens 6ft 230lbs
B.J. Askew - Tampa Bay Buccaneers 233lbs
Marion Barber - 6ft 220lbs
Kevan Barlow - New York Jets 234lbs
Darian Barnes - New York Jets 240lbs
Mike Bell - Denver Broncos 220lbs
Thump Belton - Denver Broncos 232lbs

The list goes on…and most of these guys are more developed than most of the people on this forum worried about not being able to “function”.

I just don’t get what is causing people to think this way. The real world doesn’t seem to operate like that. If your genetics suck, don’t try to bring down everyone else to your level.

57

bigger and stronger

58

For those that understand, no futher explaination is necessary. For those that don’t understand, no further explaination is possible.

59

Lifting provides us with a way to surpass our own limits and I think that’s the best satisfaction anyone can have. In a sense, it’s one of the only domains where everyone starts on a level playing field. It doesnt matter if you’re rich or poor, European, American, Asian (to a certain extent) or whatever.

You’re out there to get bigger, to get stronger, to surpass your own limits… to prove to yourself that you can do it and when you have, there’s no better feeling in the world.

That’s why I think body building is 100% pain 100% commitment and 100% satisfaction.

but hey… that’s just me.

The people who say; ewwwwwww that’s too big that’s gross don’t even merit an explanation. if they don’t want to push their limits and are happy with whatever (usually) pathetic excuse of a “regime” then so be it. I think it’s only natural that the rest of us want to strive to be the best/strongest etc. Natural selection?! lol

60

The “disadvantages” I spoke of where, noted in parentheses, to emphasis the subjectiveness of this whole discussion.

Being half past 200 #s and muscular, is not a “disadvantage” in and of itself, it’s neutral. Especially in a post-modern-urban setting, where you are making at least middle income.

Guys that are much bigger than average, and muscular, have trouble fitting into “small” cars, but this can be remedied, with a custom design. I know a lot of really tall and big ( big fat ) people, and they have their sports cars, custom made. The biggest bodybuilders I know, don’t have a prob fitting into these custom cars.

Most larger than average guys concerning muscularity, can’t handle ape-shit, cardio activities. I’m not saying they can’t handle a flight of stairs, or can’t kayak casually, but they can no sooner run a 50k, than the toothpicks who can beat the Whiskeytown 50k like it owes them money, can incline bench 180# dumbbells for reps.

Whatever gets you through the night.

However, there are certain things that one must for go, if they will become that large, ( or say run a 50k without ending up in ER ) and there is no denying that.

The biggest “disadvantages” that I can think of and the “sacrifice” I spoke of, is in regards to building the muscle. Anyone who has done this, knows it is a race against time. You must put some things ON HOLD, until you get where you want to be.

Of course one can get a freaking medical degree if they want in the mean time, but the overall point is that SERIOUS, bodybuilding must be high on the totem pole, or you won’t get shit out of it.

Once I get to where I want to be, I sure as hell can maintain it all, AND practice many activities at an intensity that will allow me to get better and better at them, and will have minimal impact on my hard won physique.

In the mean time, I have to make “sacrifices.”

My bottom line, here is that one CAN NOT, be at TWO ENDS of an athletic EXTREME, at the SAME TIME. One can balance a fine line and become Jack-of-all-Trades-Master-of-None. Similarly to say those NFL guys, or even better Rugby pros. But you can’t be Lance Armstrong + Serge Nubert, you could be a half-assed Lance + Nubert hybrid, but you CAN NOT be BOTH. Make your damn bed, and sleep in it.

Further I do have a activities outside of bodybuilding, I play tennis at least once a week, and do still surf, just minimally. I also travel a lot, but that’s mostly business.

For the record, my main priorities are:

  1. The people I love to death.

  2. Playing my role in the Family businesses