Hail to the Dinosaurs!
I did podcasts last week with with Bill Kociaba
of Kociaba Fitness, Nik Hawks of Paleo Treats,
and Eric Fiorillo of Fiorillo Barbell Co.
I'll send links as soon as I have them. You'll
like all three of the podcasts.
On each of the podcasts, we covered different
aspects of real world, no-nonsense strength
training. And we talked about the mental side
of things as much as the physical side.
That's because the mental component of
strength training is hugely important -- far
more important than most people ever
imagine.
And in this regard, Nik Hawks asked a very
interesting question in the Paleo Treats podcast.
He asked me if I had ever read The Talent Code,
by Daniel Coyle.
Answer -- no, but I have read The Little Book
of Talent, also written by Daniel Coyle.
Daniel Coyle did something very interesting.
He researched what common factors link
top performers in all aspects of life. Artists,
musicians, writers, athletes, martial
artists, etc.
One of the common factors was that successful
people tend to train, practice or work in spartan
environments -- not fancy, luxurious or richly
appointed ones.
The best tennis players come from tennis clubs
that practice on cheap looking courts with grass
and weeds poking up here and there.
The best musicians come from music schools
that look like an elementary school that should
have been renovated 50 years ago -- or from
music camps where the kids sleep in log cabins
that look like they might blow apart if the wind
blows.
Ditto for skiers and ski schools.
The very best high schools in the entire world
(the best academically) look like they were
built right after World War Two. The rooms
have walls, blackboards, and desks. Nothing
else.
In other words -- spartan and basic.
Spartan and basic is important, because it
eliminates distractions.
It's also important because it keeps you
from getting too comfortable.
If you train somewhere that looks and feels
rich and luxurious and wonderful, you start
to feel that you've "made it." You've "arrived."
And the result is that you start to cut back
on how hard you train.
You see this in the Rocky movies. Rocky is at
his best when he trains old-school. In Rocky III,
we see him training luxury style, while Clubber
Lang does pull-up after pull-up in a little hole
in the wall gym somewhere. And -- spoiler
alert -- it doesn't go well for Rocky.
Nik asked me if I trained in my garage because
I knew that it was better to train spartan and
simple -- in spartan and simple surroundings.
That was a good question.
The answer is, I know it now. And yes, that's one
reason I train in my garage.
But I didn't suddenly wake up and make the
connection. It was a gradual progression from
fancy gym to old-school, black iron gym to
home gym to even more minimalist home
gym.
And now, it's just me and the barbell.
Barbell, basement, lifter.
Except I'm out in the garage -- which makes it
barbell, garage, lifter. Less alliteration, but the
result is the same.
Wherever you train, and whatever you do, keep
it spartan. Simple and basic is best. It keeps you
focused -- and it keeps you hungry.
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. The first issue of the Dinosaur Files quarterly
was printed on Friday, and we've been dropping
them into the mail as fast as we can -- along with
the special bonus certificates making each reader
an official member of the American Strength and
Health League. Go here to grab your copy of the
Dinosaur Files quarterly:
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_quarterly.html
P.S. 2. Knife, Fork, Muscle was printed on Friday,
as well, and the books should be shipped to us
today -- and as soon as we have them, we'll start
filling all orders ASAP. So if you've been waiting,
now is the time to take action:
http://brookskubik.com/dinosaur_nutrition.html
P.S. 3. My other books and courses -- and Dinosaur
Training DVD's, shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, etc. --
are right here:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
P.S. 4. Thought for the Day: "You don't build
strength by training pretty." -- Brooks Kubik
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