The Run Right Into a Car Workout

Like all champions, Reg Park trained with total concentration and intense mental focus.

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

I saw something amazing this morning.

Amazing and scary.

And very, very stupid.

A 20-something guy was out jogging.

He was running right down the middle of
the road.

It was a side-street in a residential area,
and it was early - not many cars on the
road - so I suppose that was okay.

Sidewalk would have been better, but it's
been raining, and maybe the sidewalk had
too many deep puddles.

Whatever.

So there he is, running down the road.

Anyhow, a blue car comes up behind him,
slows down, and then moves over to pass
him.

Gives him what you would think would be
enough room.

But it almost wasn't.

Because the jogger suddenly veers to the
side, and almost steps right in front of the
car right as it begins to pass him.

The car veers over to the side and barely
misses him.

The driver honks his horn and undoubtedly
curses a blue streak.

Passes the kid, and gets on down the road
and as far away from him as possible.

Meanwhile, the kid is trying to figure out
what happened.

I look a little more closely, and of course
he has his ear-buds in - and he's holding
his device in his left hand.

And when he veered into the car, he veered
to his left.

Yeah, that was it. That was what happened.

Mr. Jogger looked down at his device - and
twisted to the side as he did it - and that
pulled him over to the left - and with his
ear-buds in and his mix-tape cranked up
to the max, the poor guy had no idea there
was a car anywhere near him.

No idea in the world.

It was a good thing the driver saw him in
time to pull out of the way.

Because otherwise we would have had bits
and pieces of jogger splattered all over the
neighborhood.

I share the story not to be harsh with joggers.

I know many of them.

Some of them are fine people.

And to tell the truth, there are many weight-
trainers who work out with just as much - or
as little - mindfulness as the jogger I saw.

They have no idea what's going on around
them - or where they are vis-a-vis anyone
else - or how close they are to bumping into
someone in the middle of a heavy set.

Nor do they have any idea what's going on
inside their bodies.

That inner universe Bill Pearl talks about isn't
exactly on their radar screens.

There muscles may be sending them all kinds
of important messages, but you know darn
well they're not hearing any of them.

Of course, that's how accidents happen - and
it's how results DON'T happen.

And please note: there's nothing wrong with
ear-buds, per se . . . . or with music . . . . but
you can't turn off your mind when you train.

I talk about things like concentration, focus,
and awareness all the time. If you're a long-
time reader, you've heard me talk about
plenty of times.

But it never hurts to be reminded.

And who knows - maybe somehow today's
message will get back to this morning's
jogger - assuming he made it home in
one piece.

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. I cover the mental aspects of strength
training and muscle-building in these books:

Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of Strength
and Development

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_training.html

Strength, Muscle and Power

http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html

Dinosaur Bodyweight Training

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_bodyweight.html

2.  My other books and courses are
right here at Dino Headquarters:

Hard-copy and PDF

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

Kindle

http://www.brookskubik.com/kindle.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: 

"Ear-buds in, music on, mind off, is not
a very good way to train." 

-- Brooks Kubik

BEFORE YOU LEAVE . . .

We have more than 25 Dinosaur Training books and courses in the Kindle bookstore - here are several of them - head on over and take a look at the others:

http://www.brookskubik.com/kindle.html

http://www.brookskubik.com/kindle.html

The One Thing at a Time Workout!

Like so many of the old-time champions, George Hackenschmidt knew that the mind and the body are inseparably linked. That's why deep concentration and pinpoint focus are critical to your training.

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Two quick notes, and then we'll talk iron.

1. The January Dino Files

Is right here - and it's pretty darn good -
so be sure to sprint on over and grab this
month's issue:

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_files.html

2. Join the Strength Secrets Facebook
Group!

John Wood has set up a great new Facebook
group.

It's called STRENGTH SECRETS - and it's by
invitation or special approval only - and it's
for people like you and me - who like the
kind of things that you and I like.

Go here to apply for membership (and tell
John I sent you):

https://www.facebook.com/groups/strengthsecrets/

This is a pretty good little group - and I
think you'll really enjoy being a member.

3. The One Thing at a Time Workout

One of the keys to success in your training
is to focus on one thing at a time.

By that, I don't mean to do one-exercise
workouts, although those can be very
effective.

I'm talking about your mindset when you
train.

Serious strength training is a very unusual
and unique activity. It requires a special
mindset -- a mindset that is much different
than the mindset most people employ
throughout the day.

Most people go though the day in an endless
series of frantic multi-tasking, plate-spinning
and juggling.

They're doing one thing on one side of the
computer screen, another thing on the other
side, and third thing on their nearby laptop --
and they're answering email while they do it
all -- and they're on their I-phone -- and they're
conducting three different conversations with
three different people -- and they do this all
day long.

They never focus on one thing. They just
juggle and jiggle and jump from one thing
to another.

That's life in the modern world, but it's not
what you do when you train.

Training requires a much different approach.

When you train, you need to focus on one
thing at a time.

You begin by focusing on each rep.

You take your reps one by one.

You don't worry about the next rep -- or the
next set -- or the next exercise.

You turn your focus inward, and dive deep
into the rep.

You live the rep.

You become the rep.

And then you do the next rep.

When you finish your set, you take a rest and
focus on the next set -- and when you do the
next set, you do it rep by rep.

And that's how you do your entire workout:
rep by rep, with total concentration and laser
focus.

In short, when you train, you focus on the
here and now.

It's actually what our brains were wired to do.
Not multi-tasking -- but rather, pinpoint
concentration.

It's good for them -- and it's important to use
them this way -- and that's actually one of the
most important benefits of serious strength
training. It helps wire your brain the way
it's supposed to be wired.

I trained last night, and for 58 minutes I was
deep in the zone. Total concentration. Maximum
focus. Pushing and pulling in the here and now.

And it felt pretty darn good.

Give it a try and see for yourself.

As always, thanks for reading and have a
great day. If you train today, take it rep by
rep -- and make it a good one!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. 1. I teach you how to concentrate and
how to focus on your workouts in Dinosaur
Training and Dinosaur Bodyweight Training:

Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of Strength
and Development 

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_training.html

DINOSAUR BODYWEIGHT TRAINING

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_bodyweight.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are
right here at Dino Headquarters:

Hard-copy and PDF

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

Kindle

http://www.brookskubik.com/kindle.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: 

"When you ride on the back of a tiger,
focus on the tiger." 

-- Brooks Kubik

BEFORE YOU LEAVE . . .

We have more than 25 Dinosaur Training books and courses in the Kindle bookstore - here are several of them - head on over and take a look at the others:

http://www.brookskubik.com/kindle.html

http://www.brookskubik.com/kindle.html

Does Strength Training Rewire Your Brain?

Front squats at Dino Headquarters. Strength training is a form of meditation - and like meditation, it rewires your brain.

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

I would LOVE to see someone do
some research about the effect of
serious strength training on
the human brain.

By "serious strength training," I'm
talking about the kind of training
that requires deep, intense, lost
in the moment, total, complete,
100% focus.

It's precise, perfect and controlled.

It is a unity of mind and body.

It is meditation while exerting
force against heavy resistance.

Researchers have studied the
effect of meditation alone, and
they've found that it can re-wire
the brain and the nervous system.

It literally builds your brain cells.

If 10 or 20 minutes of meditation
can have  THAT much of an effect,
imagine what 60 minutes of super-
concentrated focus with a barbell
in your hands can do for you!

Train with concentration, focus, and mindfulness.

By the way, this is one of the reasons
why I always emphasize the mental
elements of training.

The mental elements of training are
important because they help you build
more strength and more muscle.

But they're also important because
they help you build more brain-power.

Have you ever heard the old expression
"sharp as a tack?"

Maybe it should have been "smart as
a barbell."

Anyhow, it would make a great
research project!

As always, thanks for reading and
have a great day. If you train today
(as I will), make it a good one!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. For more about the mental elements
of strength training, grab these:

Dinosaur Training has been a world-wide best seller for over 20 years.

Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of
Strength and Development

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_training.html

Dinosaur Bodyweight
Training

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_bodyweight.html

Strength, Muscle and
Power

http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Use
your brain to build your brawn,
and vice-versa." -- Brooks Kubik

We have more than 25 Dinosaur training books and courses in the Kindle bookstore - head on over and take a look:

http://www.brookskubik.com/kindle.html