Every Man should be strong. For generations, Men did the hard work, and our bodies changed to reflect that. Shoulders grew broad, and legs grew thick. Our chests became barrel-wide, and our arms thickened out, all to handle the rigors of hard, strenuous labor in the extreme temperaturs. Men did the hunting, the heavy lifting, the fighting for untold years. Now, many of us sit on our couches and play video games, the most difficult thing we do is walking up and down stairs to our apartments, or to the video store. We no longer run down deer for meat, we just pull up the pizza app on our phones. We live in a comfortable society built by great men over generations who sacrificed everything to ensure that we wouldn’t have to bleed for a little safety. It’s a sacrifice many of us take for granted, and a tradition we have unthinkingly turned our back on.
No longer. Now, we’re getting in shape.
Can You Save Your Own Life?
Most survivalists have a saying, “it’s not if, but when,” and it’s a fantastic reminder for our daily lives. You never think you’ll be the one to blow a tire on a highway until it happens. That your house will never be broken into until there’s someone breaking in through the window. So many exercises are evolutions of basic bodyweight movements, functional movements designed to get you out of trouble. Hanging from a cliff edge? That’s a pull-up. Fallen tree or house beam? That’s a bench press. Collapsing timbers? That’s a squat. The deadlift traces it’s beginnings back to train porters picking up heavy luggage bags. Having a solid physical foundation not only helps you feel better about yourself, but the knowledge that if your life suddenly becomes an 80’s action movie, you can save your own life is a great comfort to have.
The Rebuke of Indolence.
It’s incredibly easy to spend your days sitting on a beanbag chair, watching tv and eating nothing but nachos. In fact, a fair amount of consumer industry is based on keeping you doing exactly that. Great Men, though, the kind of Men we look to emulate, to live as, don’t. While there’s nothing wrong with resting after a hard day of work, or keeping your Sundays holy with good rest, we weren’t made for it 24/7. We were made to move, to jump, to stretch, to strain. We were made to be in conflict with our environment, whether that be pounding the pavement while running a 5K, or fighting under a two hundred pound barbell. It’s where the adrenaline hits and we start to feel truly alive and engaged with the world, where we tap into that primal masculinity that coursed through the veins of our great ancestors. It’s where we really become MEN.
So Where Do I Start?
Drop and give me twenty. That’s a great place to start. A lot of people do functional bodyweight exercises. Starting your day with sets of push-ups, squats, sit-ups and lunges sets the mood for the whole day, and gets your blood flowing first thing in the morning. If you feel the call of the iron, but have no clue what do with a barbell, Stronglifts.com has gotten millions of people pumping huge sets over the years, and I recommend them. I, personally, use Superhero Jacked, I’ve gotten great results from their Superhuman Program, but the buy-in price can be steep for someone who’s very new to the whole ‘fitness’ idea.
It’s time to shed the fat and start looking like real men. Always upward.
