STRENGTH OVER SIZE

One rep max. No need to do more than one repetition of any workout?

Why powerlifting is superior to bodybuilding

When I was in high school and college, I was interested in bodybuilding — getting as massive and “swole” as possible.

But after college and now into my early 30s, I got into powerlifting — one rep max sumo deadlift, squat, and either bench press or heavy dumbbell press.

Now after the birth of Seneca, focus on heavy kettlebell workouts. The beast, 48kg, 105 pound kettlebell. I’ve been able to successfully floor press it (like doing a bench press, but from the ground), and also been able to one arm clean it. Now the next goal is being able to shoulder press the beast, and also do a Turkish getup with it.

And this is what I’ve learned:

You never need to do more than one repetition of any workout. Just a one rep max is your maximal “bang for the buck”— in terms of strength, and I’m sure ultimately size. Thus focus on “strength training” is superior to the mindless “grind out repetitions until you fail”line of “hypertrophy”training.
Trying to go for countless reps often will lead to some sort of micro (negative) injury, that can nag you for days or weeks on end. Not worth it.
I’ve never had any issues going for one rep max style workouts, especially if I attempted a single lift only once or twice a week. I have had annoyances after going for the “max reps” approach.

Why trying to maximize your size is bad

The big problem about trying to optimize your workout and diet to gain as much mass as possible:

You often actually end up gaining a lot of fat (body adipose tissue) along with your muscular gains. But aesthetically, it is better to be “lean and mean” than big fat and muscular. Also a lot of guys who are always weighing themselves (also a bad idea)— forget there’s a difference of weight (fat weight) and muscle weight.
You end up hating your life — because you’re always trying to force feed yourself food. This is horrible.
You might end up getting suckered into buying superfluous things like protein powder, casein, and all these other hyped up chemicals and strange things. Even worse, human growth hormones, steroids, etc.

Why do we lift weights anyways?

It seems a lot of younger guys try to get “super swole”and “jacked” to get the ladies. With powerlifting, it seems the goal is to indefinitely increase your “one rep max”for any given lift, and keep getting new “personal records”(PR’s).

But perhaps the best reason to lift weights is this:

To maximize your physiological power, *in order to* maximize your artistic and creative output, and ability to think insanely high and lofty thoughts.

I know I’ve personally had so many life and thought epiphanies while at the gym, and while superseding my (preconceived) limits in powerlifting. Exceeding 405+ pounds in deadlift, over 3 plates in squat, etc.

So I suppose it is this:

Weight lifting not as a means to an end, or to increase your muscular size. But as conquering your fears, superseding your preconceived limits, going *BEYOND* your “limits”, and harnessing your grand thoughts into artistic greatness.

ERIC KIM

MUSCLE MOTIVATION

475 Pound Sumo Deadlift One Rep Max

Why build your body?

Your own body as a work of art!

In Praise of Building Your Body

My Muscle Philosophy:

Treat your body as sculpture.

This is not my body

The first thing:

I don’t see my body as belonging to me. I look at my body like it belongs to someone else.

When I look at the Lamborghini of someone else, I admire it. When I see the muscles and physiques of anyone else, I admire it. Then I had the epiphany:

Why not transform my own body into a Lambo, and admire my own body instead?

The logic

The great logic:

It is far cheaper to get buff than to buy a Lambo.
The human body is the apex beauty. This means your personal goal in life should be to beautify your own personal body to the maximum (without plastic surgery, steroids, etc).
Ultimate democratic approach: Genetics doesn’t matter. Sex doesn’t matter. Racial ethnicity doesn’t matter. Anyone can both add muscle mass and subtract fat.
It doesn’t cost much to get ripped. Just intermittent fast [no breakfast, no lunch], one big ass meal a day, and mostly a ‘ketogenic’ diet.
Your body is always with you. Why not beautify your body to inspire yourself?