Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Yesterday I sent out an email about
intelligent training for lifting
longevity.
Later in the day, I saw a new photo
of Jim Schmitz doing a split clean at
a recent contest. (I posted this on my
Facebook page -- so go see it.)
Jim Schmitz is one of the top Olympic
weightlifting coaches in the country.
He has been the head coach of the USA
weightlifitng team at the Olympic
Games not once, not twice, but THREE
times.
He was born in 1945, so he's 67 years
old.
And there he was -- out on the platform --
snapping the bar up to his shoulders as
he dropped into the split.
That's pretty impressive for a 67 year
old man. Most men that age have trouble
walking -- or bending over and tying
their shoes. Heck, some of them have
trouble sitting down.
But Jim Schmitz is still lifting. And
that's pretty darn impressive.
Part of Jim's lifting longevity may be
the result of his training methods. He's
never gone in for the bizarre or the
over the top extreme stuff.
In his training manual, "Olympic Style
Weightlifitng for the Beginner & Inter-
mediate Weightlifter" (available from
IronMind, and highly recommended -- and
ditto for the companion DVD), Jim Schmitz
promotes THREE TIMES PER WEEK TRAINING!
Yes, you read that correctly.
Not the Russian system -- not the Bulgarian
system -- not the Chinese system -- not
any off the internet program where you
train six days a week -- but THREE workouts
per week.
He promotes relatively low tonnage for an
Olympic weightlifter. Beginners do the 5 x 5
system, and as they advance, they move up
to programs like 3 x3, 3 x 2 and 3 x 1 (a
total of nine sets and 18 reps).
The exercises, of course, are the basics
for Olympic weightlifters: cleans, snatches,
clean and jerk, back squat, front squat,
pulls, etc. Nothing fancy.
That's what Jim Schmitz teaches, and it's
how he trains, and it's how he's always
trained -- and there he is, still training
and still competing at age 67!
This is a GREAT example of common sense in
training -- and an example of how keeping
things simple and training intelligently
(rather than ego-driven training or following
the latest program you find in cyberspace)
pays lifetime dividends!
So whatever your age, stop and reflect on
what you're doing and how you're training.
Are you positioning yourself for lifelong
strength and health? Will YOU be hitting
it like Jim Schmitz when you're 67?
The bottom line is this. I want to be like
Jim Schmitz when I'm 67. That's MY goal. It
should be YOUR goal as well.
As always, thanks for reading and have a
great day. If you train today, make it a
good one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. All of my books and courses promote old
school, no nonsense strength training and
muscle building. All of them will make you
strong and well-conditioned -- and they'll
help you achieve your goal of lifelong
lifting. You know where to find them -- so
what are you waiting for?
a. DINOSAUR TRAINING: LOST SECRETS OF STRENGTH
AND DEVELOPMENT
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_training.html
b. STRENGTH, MUSCLE AND POWER
http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html
c. GRAY HAIR AND BLACK IRON
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
d. DINOSAUR BODYWEIGHT TRAINING
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_bodyweight.html
e. CHALK AND SWEAT
2. My Legacy of Iron books, Horatius, Black Iron: The
John Davis Story, my DVD's and my Dinosaur Training
courses are right here:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
3. Order two or more products together and save BIG
CLAMS on s&h.
4. Thought for the Day: "Train smart, and as you get
older, train even smarter." -- Brooks Kubik
