Golden Era Motivation 2

Some more tips and tricks from the greats of bodybuilding

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Back in 2021, I wrote a series of email blasts for a friend of mine who had started a fitness company. The emails were called “Golden Era Motivation,” and they were basically intended to provide some… well, motivation using stories, examples and wisdom from the Golden Era of bodybuilding. I wrote ten in all. I thought it would be a good to get these up here lest they disappear forever. I’ve also had a lot of requests for more classic bodybuilding content.

In this second part, I’ve given you twodoses of motivation: one on the importance of visualisation for success, and the other on the carry-over benefits of proper leg training.

More to come!

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Seeing Is Believing

This week’s motivation lesson comes from one of the true greats of the sport and of the Golden Era in particular: Arnold Schwarzenegger. The lesson concerns visualization as a means of achieving your goals.

Soviet weightlifters have been using mental techniques since the 1970s at least, and now they’re a common part of the repertoire of elite athletes. These athletes will use the power of intense concentration and imagination to run through the routines, from start to finish – and that even includes the moment they step up onto the podium to collect the winner’s trophy. Tiger Woods, for instance, has practised such techniques from his teens, and swears by them.

Here’s Jack Niklaus, another world champion golfer: ‘I never hit a shot, not even in practice, without having a very sharp in-focus picture of it in my head.’

And now scientific studies have begun to verify just how helpful these techniques can be, and why. Weightlifters’ brains, for instance, have been shown to be activated in the same way when they think about lifting weights as when they actually lift them. One study (From mental power to muscle power--gaining strength by using the mind - PubMed (nih.gov)) even suggests that mental training can be almost as effective as actual training when looking to build muscle.

Like Tiger Woods, at a young age Arnold Schwarzenegger discovered the power of visualization. This began when he first saw Reg Park, in his movie role as Hercules, in a magazine.

“If I had any feelings of being lost in my life, these feelings were suddenly gone. From that time, I had the direction. I realized that I had a special ability that could not be trained. The ability to see things very clearly.” And instead of seeing Reg Park on the stage, Arnold began to see himself: “I’ve seen hundreds of bodybuilders around me, holding a trophy and hearing everyone chanting my name.”

From then on, that vision guided Arnold. “It was so strong that I didn’t even need the discipline – I was just attracted to go to the gym every day. I knew that every training is taking me one step closer to turning this beautiful vision into reality. My life took a single direction – Mr. Universe, training and shaping.”

Arnold won the Mr Universe at just 20 years old. Of course, Arnold went much further after that, winning the Mr Universe four more times before winning the Mr Olympia, bodybuilding’s contest of contests, seven times – as well as becoming a movie star, politician and global icon.

Your goals may be slightly more humble than Arnold’s, but there’s no doubt that having a vision of what you want to do and being able to see yourself doing it – being able to taste the success you want – will carry you a long way towards achieving it.

Seeing is believing.

If you’re interested in learning more about visualizing your goals, start with this article.

Don’t Skip Leg Day

We all know the stereotype of the gymbro who hits his upper body hard, without fail, but also never fails to find a way to avoid training his legs. Hell, the matchstick-leg physique has even been given its own category in bodybuilding competition – the so-called ‘men’s physique’ competition, in which competitors wear long board shorts to hide their lack of leg development.