Re-Education of a Bodybuilder

This blog is for all things fitness related. Hence the name Fitness Frenzy and so this week it’s a fitness book review for all of you!

    This week I wanted to talk about Arnold Schwarzenegger's book Education of a Bodybuilder. Phenomenal read for anyone interested in beginning their fitness journey, not just bodybuilders! Although if you’re anything like me you might discover a love of competition and a whole new path of achievements to achieve! Or if you just need some fuel to reignite that passion for being fit, this is it!                                                                                                                            

    Packed full of gems to help you grow stronger and bigger in the gym and funny life lessons Arnold's story is a good one. Starting in his small hometown in Austria, the story shows how Arnold’s love of lifting started as well as the life and passion required to be Mr. Universe! Refreshing and forthright you get to see up close and personal what a champion has to sacrifice to succeed and the mindset of a winner. Not all fun and games but is it worth it in the end? That’s a question YOU have to answer.

    Personally, Arnold was my first introduction to Bodybuilding and educating myself as a young adult and I've learned many valuable lessons from his years of experience and trials. So reading this brought back so many good memories and gave me a plethora of ideas to help me continue to make progress. Of all the lessons I think the most valuable is that sometimes you have to chase a dream that no one else can see, but as Arnold shows if your will is strong enough then you can bend steel and reality to get what you desire.  

    I won’t bore you with everything I learned but I implore you to buy a copy and see for yourself what lessons you gleam. But I will discuss my favorite lesson from the book. The shock the muscle principle, which sounds fancy but it's really just reinforcement of the adaptation principle. Your body adapts to what it is used to and so if you don't do different things, you won't get different results. Arnold’s example is doing a ton of quality repetitions 30+ 50+ in order to pump blood to the muscle and force growth. Sounds crazy but something about his track record makes me believe he might be onto something.  Being adaptable and different is a good metaphor for life too, you can’t follow in everyone’s footsteps and expect different results. So, this New Year do something different and get those results you want! Go the extra mile that no one else is willing to! On top of the lessons, Arnold goes the extra mile and even provides photos with form critique and a sample workout with descriptions to help you get started on your fitness journey! This book has it all and is a must read for 2023!    

    I will finish the post with this. Arnold made it his mission to show that bodybuilders had real go muscles capable of incredible feats of strength and not just useless show muscles. Well, I'm going to make it my mission to teach gym enthusiasts and fitness freaks that the same effort we apply in the gym can help us succeed and thrive in other aspects of life. The consistency we learn when we don’t initially see results. That delayed gratification + the faith and intelligence to keep going is what separates the winners and losers in life. So, wear that on your shirt with pride and be proud of yourself!



Stay fit physically and mentally!


P.S. Many people believe that gym bros and sisters are vain and only interested how they look. Prove them wrong read a book and max out your thought processes this week!

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