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Great Exerpt from Dave Drapers News Letter !
Anyone remember Dragnet, a cop show as old as television, featuring two
no-nonsense detectives getting to the bottom of crime without messing
around? Sergeant Joe Friday, the lead investigator, would repeat when
necessary, which was often, the stiff line, "Just the facts, Ma'am." It
worked every time. He and his partner, Officer Gannon, would go about the
neighborhood, collect the facts, solve the crime and go home. End of
story.
That's where we are today: Just the facts, Ma'am. Fiction, guessing,
exaggerations, elaborations, misconceptions, lies, tall tales and
conjecture will not do. Not anymore, not for you and me, not for bombers.
We're up to our ears in research, hypothesis, trials, analysis,
contemplation and consideration. We want the facts, Ma'am, just the facts.
Not reports, accounts, chronicles and data. Not anymore, not for you and
me.
I'm going to list 20 facts that pertain directly to you and me in our
endeavor to develop muscle and might. See how they compare to your list.
No yawning, ma'am, I'm just trying to get to the bottom of things.
Here goes:
1) There are no secrets; there are no shortcuts.
2) Weight training and proper eating combined is the most direct way to
build muscle and might.
3) Right living and proper rest contribute significantly to the lifter's
progress.
4) The trainee's genetic makeup is a large determining factor in his or
her structural and muscular development, strength and rate of advancement.
5) External factors, such as environment, gym atmosphere, support and
inspiration add greatly to the training process and outcome.
6) Consistency in training is an absolute in its success, as are passion
and commitment.
7) Training intensity must be measured and applied both intelligently and
instinctively.
8) Exercise and eating are basic and simple in form, yet tough in
application.
9) Many people start weight training to achieve fitness goals, only to
give up because they don't reach their expectations quickly, and because
the activity is demanding.
10) Mankind's failure to exercise and eat right is killing him.
11) Gain weight too fast and the lifter will gain fat weight; lose weight
too fast and he will lose muscle.
12) Early weight training requires order in exercise, sets and reps and
practice, as the lifter focuses on form, muscle engagement, pain,
endurance, exercise groove and pace.
13) Though fundamental, weight training and musclebuilding are ongoing
processes of learning and discovery, as the trainee's development unfolds,
as plateaus, injuries and obstacles are engaged and as time goes by and
years are added.
14) Hypertrophy, or musclebuilding, is caused by regular muscle overload;
too much overload can cause overtraining or injury.
15) Immature weight trainers seeking extraordinary musclebuilding goals
are easy prey for marketing hype promising sensational advancements from
pills packed with multi-syllable "cutting edge" ingredients, or advanced
methodologies that are, at best, novel.
16) Advanced or long-lasting musclebuilders, applying wisdom,
understanding, knowledge, and rips and tears, settle into the training
basics with finesse, intensity, instinct and continuing hope... continuing
discovery.
17) Musclebuilding is not limited to building physical health and strength
alone; as discipline, patience and perseverance are required to approach
the activity, so, too, are these rich qualities developed.
18) It occurs often that a seeker of muscle and might will undertake a
course of exercise and right eating for a worthy period of time and quit,
only to return steadfastly to the activity upon declining -- they never
were healthier, looked better and thought more clearly than when they
trained.
19) This might not agree with the so-called facts gained by research, but
about one in one hundred takes his or her health seriously by training
seriously -- another five pretend to care by going through feeble motions,
and the remainder don't care enough to even pretend.
20) One of the best arguments for exercise and eating right is, "What if
you don't?"
So, there's my 20. I know. Your list is bigger than my list, and more
comprehensive, too. You went into protein and hormones and high reps
versus low reps, catabolism and the truth about B-complex. You're so
smart. You ask, "What about multi-sets, the anabolic environment, the
progressive weight training techniques and percentages of the one-rep
max?" I get stuck as soon as I get past squats, tuna and water.
In an effort to reinforce my list I shall add a handful of training
factors that occur amid my workouts that deserve amassing.
There's the last rep in a set that I intend to perform, the last rep I'm
able to perform and the last rep I, in fact, do perform. Each one exceeds
the other until only darkness, stillness and silence stand before me and
quitting. When building muscle, that is the only rep. Seek it as a loved
one, or buried treasure, a vein of gold, oil reserves.
The focus required to build muscle and might is of the sort that allows no
other thought to penetrate the mind or feeling affect the body except the
total involvement of the movement. The lifter who converses -- chats,
gabs, gossips -- while he's lifting is divided. United we stand, bombers,
divided we fall.
Check all cell phones at the door.
He who stares out the window or at the exit door between sets, or reads
Vanity Fair while seated on the leg extension or otherwise abandons his
attention to more important things than intense and directed training is
on the outside looking in, lonely and alone. His days attending health and
strength are numbered. He needs purpose, or his purpose renewed. Somehow
he forgot the good reasons he's in the gym, and notes only the
less-desirable attendants of the training process. He's bored and
unrewarded, one step from lazy and on the brink of apathy. Give the man a
generous portion of old-fashioned encouragement, a timely attitude
adjustment and the excitement that comes from the last almighty rep, the
same rep that builds muscle and might. Attentive Inspiration would awaken
him and passion would spur him along. He must be attentive, doubt free and
forceful. If he's not, he's history, yesterday, gone. His troubles are
just beginning.
Doubt is like heading down the freeway in the wrong direction. It's only a
matter of time before there's a head-on collision with reality. Doubt
doesn't appear once or twice during the wild ride, and then vanishes. It,
like oncoming traffic, is continuous till you turn yourself around. Keep
your eye on the road, driver. Beware of Construction Zone. Shoulder Work
Ahead.
Just when you think you can't go on (but you will) and you've endured more
than you can stand (of course, you know no bounds) and your back and mind
and spirit are surely broken (they are, in fact, like pillars of steel), a
stranger says, "Where'd you get all those muscles, Mister," or "Wow,
you're looking good, Man." Ah, sweet music to the ear. Encouragement, my
friend, is a better musclebuilder than the bench press. Sincere support at
the right time builds bodies more ways than Wonder Bread. Throw some
crumbs out there; they come back when you need and least expect them.
The antithesis to doubt is certainty. Here's where I trip slightly over my
two left feet: I'm not certain about certainty. Nothing is predictable,
not exactly. That doesn't mean there is no place for a genuinely positive
attitude. In fact, if there is one sure thing, it would be there is no
place for a negative attitude. The gym, and the action that takes place
within its boundaries, must be assertive, straightforward, unyielding and
intense. And how can they be without a strong attitude to lead and
accompany the overpowering combination? Do not enter the iron and steel
environment with questionable confidence. You are fire against ice. Do not
stand before the power-rack with fear and submission. You are warrior
against foe. Do not wander about indecisively searching for something to
do. Grab a handful of metal and get to work. You are lifter against iron.
I hear music coming from the speakers, '60s stuff that bounces off the
walls like good old memories. This is perf, providing it's not too loud...
accompanies the rhythm of training and prevents people from whispering
like they had secrets. I train in a tall and clean concrete rectangle
where everyone is busy building muscles and testing their strength without
being jerks. It's like heaven, I think.
My point: Bomb it with God's might... DD'
Anyone remember Dragnet, a cop show as old as television, featuring two
no-nonsense detectives getting to the bottom of crime without messing
around? Sergeant Joe Friday, the lead investigator, would repeat when
necessary, which was often, the stiff line, "Just the facts, Ma'am." It
worked every time. He and his partner, Officer Gannon, would go about the
neighborhood, collect the facts, solve the crime and go home. End of
story.
That's where we are today: Just the facts, Ma'am. Fiction, guessing,
exaggerations, elaborations, misconceptions, lies, tall tales and
conjecture will not do. Not anymore, not for you and me, not for bombers.
We're up to our ears in research, hypothesis, trials, analysis,
contemplation and consideration. We want the facts, Ma'am, just the facts.
Not reports, accounts, chronicles and data. Not anymore, not for you and
me.
I'm going to list 20 facts that pertain directly to you and me in our
endeavor to develop muscle and might. See how they compare to your list.
No yawning, ma'am, I'm just trying to get to the bottom of things.
Here goes:
1) There are no secrets; there are no shortcuts.
2) Weight training and proper eating combined is the most direct way to
build muscle and might.
3) Right living and proper rest contribute significantly to the lifter's
progress.
4) The trainee's genetic makeup is a large determining factor in his or
her structural and muscular development, strength and rate of advancement.
5) External factors, such as environment, gym atmosphere, support and
inspiration add greatly to the training process and outcome.
6) Consistency in training is an absolute in its success, as are passion
and commitment.
7) Training intensity must be measured and applied both intelligently and
instinctively.
8) Exercise and eating are basic and simple in form, yet tough in
application.
9) Many people start weight training to achieve fitness goals, only to
give up because they don't reach their expectations quickly, and because
the activity is demanding.
10) Mankind's failure to exercise and eat right is killing him.
11) Gain weight too fast and the lifter will gain fat weight; lose weight
too fast and he will lose muscle.
12) Early weight training requires order in exercise, sets and reps and
practice, as the lifter focuses on form, muscle engagement, pain,
endurance, exercise groove and pace.
13) Though fundamental, weight training and musclebuilding are ongoing
processes of learning and discovery, as the trainee's development unfolds,
as plateaus, injuries and obstacles are engaged and as time goes by and
years are added.
14) Hypertrophy, or musclebuilding, is caused by regular muscle overload;
too much overload can cause overtraining or injury.
15) Immature weight trainers seeking extraordinary musclebuilding goals
are easy prey for marketing hype promising sensational advancements from
pills packed with multi-syllable "cutting edge" ingredients, or advanced
methodologies that are, at best, novel.
16) Advanced or long-lasting musclebuilders, applying wisdom,
understanding, knowledge, and rips and tears, settle into the training
basics with finesse, intensity, instinct and continuing hope... continuing
discovery.
17) Musclebuilding is not limited to building physical health and strength
alone; as discipline, patience and perseverance are required to approach
the activity, so, too, are these rich qualities developed.
18) It occurs often that a seeker of muscle and might will undertake a
course of exercise and right eating for a worthy period of time and quit,
only to return steadfastly to the activity upon declining -- they never
were healthier, looked better and thought more clearly than when they
trained.
19) This might not agree with the so-called facts gained by research, but
about one in one hundred takes his or her health seriously by training
seriously -- another five pretend to care by going through feeble motions,
and the remainder don't care enough to even pretend.
20) One of the best arguments for exercise and eating right is, "What if
you don't?"
So, there's my 20. I know. Your list is bigger than my list, and more
comprehensive, too. You went into protein and hormones and high reps
versus low reps, catabolism and the truth about B-complex. You're so
smart. You ask, "What about multi-sets, the anabolic environment, the
progressive weight training techniques and percentages of the one-rep
max?" I get stuck as soon as I get past squats, tuna and water.
In an effort to reinforce my list I shall add a handful of training
factors that occur amid my workouts that deserve amassing.
There's the last rep in a set that I intend to perform, the last rep I'm
able to perform and the last rep I, in fact, do perform. Each one exceeds
the other until only darkness, stillness and silence stand before me and
quitting. When building muscle, that is the only rep. Seek it as a loved
one, or buried treasure, a vein of gold, oil reserves.
The focus required to build muscle and might is of the sort that allows no
other thought to penetrate the mind or feeling affect the body except the
total involvement of the movement. The lifter who converses -- chats,
gabs, gossips -- while he's lifting is divided. United we stand, bombers,
divided we fall.
Check all cell phones at the door.
He who stares out the window or at the exit door between sets, or reads
Vanity Fair while seated on the leg extension or otherwise abandons his
attention to more important things than intense and directed training is
on the outside looking in, lonely and alone. His days attending health and
strength are numbered. He needs purpose, or his purpose renewed. Somehow
he forgot the good reasons he's in the gym, and notes only the
less-desirable attendants of the training process. He's bored and
unrewarded, one step from lazy and on the brink of apathy. Give the man a
generous portion of old-fashioned encouragement, a timely attitude
adjustment and the excitement that comes from the last almighty rep, the
same rep that builds muscle and might. Attentive Inspiration would awaken
him and passion would spur him along. He must be attentive, doubt free and
forceful. If he's not, he's history, yesterday, gone. His troubles are
just beginning.
Doubt is like heading down the freeway in the wrong direction. It's only a
matter of time before there's a head-on collision with reality. Doubt
doesn't appear once or twice during the wild ride, and then vanishes. It,
like oncoming traffic, is continuous till you turn yourself around. Keep
your eye on the road, driver. Beware of Construction Zone. Shoulder Work
Ahead.
Just when you think you can't go on (but you will) and you've endured more
than you can stand (of course, you know no bounds) and your back and mind
and spirit are surely broken (they are, in fact, like pillars of steel), a
stranger says, "Where'd you get all those muscles, Mister," or "Wow,
you're looking good, Man." Ah, sweet music to the ear. Encouragement, my
friend, is a better musclebuilder than the bench press. Sincere support at
the right time builds bodies more ways than Wonder Bread. Throw some
crumbs out there; they come back when you need and least expect them.
The antithesis to doubt is certainty. Here's where I trip slightly over my
two left feet: I'm not certain about certainty. Nothing is predictable,
not exactly. That doesn't mean there is no place for a genuinely positive
attitude. In fact, if there is one sure thing, it would be there is no
place for a negative attitude. The gym, and the action that takes place
within its boundaries, must be assertive, straightforward, unyielding and
intense. And how can they be without a strong attitude to lead and
accompany the overpowering combination? Do not enter the iron and steel
environment with questionable confidence. You are fire against ice. Do not
stand before the power-rack with fear and submission. You are warrior
against foe. Do not wander about indecisively searching for something to
do. Grab a handful of metal and get to work. You are lifter against iron.
I hear music coming from the speakers, '60s stuff that bounces off the
walls like good old memories. This is perf, providing it's not too loud...
accompanies the rhythm of training and prevents people from whispering
like they had secrets. I train in a tall and clean concrete rectangle
where everyone is busy building muscles and testing their strength without
being jerks. It's like heaven, I think.
My point: Bomb it with God's might... DD'
