Hail to the Dinosaurs!
I hope you had a very merry Christmas, and I
hope the old Year finishes on high note for
you -- and that the New Year brings you plenty
of strength, health and happiness.
For some, Christmas brought a barbell set or
another piece of equipment -- or a book or
course or DVD on strength training, diet or
nutrition. Those are always the best gifts.
And that brings me to an email from Lance
McAllister, a 68 year old Dino who has a
Christmas memory to share:
"Merry Christmas, Brooks. And thanks for all
the great advice.
I have an idea you might want to use if you
hit a "sticking point" in your columns: it
might be interesting for your readers to talk
about their first barbell set and the circumstances
whereby they wanted and got it.
I started lifting at age 15 in 1961, thanks to a
friend whose parents gave him the York 110-
pound set for Christmas that year.
We would lift in his garage, which had a raised
wooden floor on one side.
Soon thereafter I got a Billiard Barbell 110-
pound set from my parents. The plates were
gold and the instruction book was written by
Bruce Randall.
My friend and I each bought a pair of 25's to
supplement our sets.
The next year, I bought a set of about 140
pounds from a friend who didn't use it any
more, made by Bur Barbell. The plates were
smaller and fatter than those from the other
sets.
We learned that another classmate had a Dan
Lurie set, and I remember he had a pair of
12.5 pound plates that worked perfectly for
us, since we liked to add weight in 25-pound
increments for many exercises.
I still have several of those Billiard plates, and
also have most of the Bur plates, plus some larger
York plates I bought much later (though I recently
sold my 75-pound plates, which I think may have
been York).
And I still lift, though, at 68, not nearly as much
as when I was younger. I had bone spurs removed
from both shoulders 10-15 years ago but they have
recently grown back, and I think I'm gonna folow
your lead and dump the benches in favor of
standing presses.
Anyway, thanks again for your insights; keep 'em
coming!
Lance McAllister"
Lance -- Thanks for sharing the memories. Your
first barbell sounds very similar to my first barbell.
What a great present -- and what a lifetime of
great memories!
I'd be interested to hear from other readers who
want to tell us about THEIR first barbell. I bet
their plenty of good stories and good memories.
And to everyone -- thanks for reading and have a
great day. If you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Here's something that will start your New Year
off on the right foot:
http://brookskubik.com/dinosaur_nutrition.html
P.S. 2. My other books and courses -- and Dinosaur
Training DVD's -- are right here:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "You always remember
your first barbell. That's part of the magic."
-- Brooks Kubik
*************************************************
