Stealing Good Ideas

 

     Someone told me at the gym one time—many years ago; I haven’t been to a commercial gym on a regular basis since the ‘90s—that I had a lot of creative ideas.  I can’t remember the exact words that he used, but something to the extent of “innovative” or “unique.”  He had been reading my (almost) monthly articles in IronMan magazine at the time.  At this point, I had switched over from writing many “bodybuilding” pieces, and instead wrote a lot of strength-oriented articles with ideas I had stolen from (primarily) Bill Starr and various Russian strength coaches such as Zatsiorsky.  That’s right, stolen.  I proceeded to tell him that, although I might concede to being creative, I was most definitely not (and still am not) innovative or unique.  I simply borrowed, and still borrow, ideas from a lot of great writers, strength coaches, bodybuilders, powerlifters, and other strength athletes that have come before me.

     Here’s the thing, though: if you’re going to be successful at your chosen strength sport—or, really, well, anything I suppose—you must learn to steal good ideas from those that have come before you.  In fact, the title of this very post is something that I have stolen from strength coach Dan John.  In his book “40 Years with a Whistle,” he tells the story of visiting a rugby team in Ireland, the Connaught Tribesmen, and listening to the team’s defensive coach, Peter Wilkins, explain his concept of bounce in practice.  Here’s how John explains it: “Bounce.  It’s the most elegant expression I’ve heard for getting back into the game.

     “Bounce.  It’s a combination of tumbling, grass drills, get-back-ups, Turkish getups, and resilience.

     “The moment he said it, I adopted it.

     “As I told him later, I would use my standard method of stealing good ideas.

     “At my next workshop, I will say, ‘as Peter Wilkins always says, bounce.’

     “At the following workshop, ‘as Peter Wilkins always says, bounce.”

     “After that, ‘as I always say…’

     “And so it continues.”

     Now that you understand where I’ve stolen the title of this essay, let’s turn to some of the best ideas that I’ve stolen over the years.  It must be said that these are kind of random, as I’m just going to write what is on the top of my head.  Later, I might realize that I had stolen even more ideas than what is present here, but, if that’s the case, I’ll just keep those other stolen ideas in my head until I write another article where I can pass them off as my own.  Also, this list isn’t meant to be exhaustive, as I’ve stolen so many good ideas that there’s hardly anything I write that doesn’t come from someone else.

Train as Often as Possible, While Being as Fresh as Possible

     This one comes from the legendary Russian strength researcher Vladimir Zatsiorsky, but I probably heard it from Pavel Tsatsouline, who would often use the quote when describing synaptic facilitation, or “grease-the-groove” training.  I’m not sure if that’s an exact translation from what the Russian actually said, but it’s probably close.  (I am a Russian Orthodox Christian, but the only Russian I know is what is used during liturgical services—I definitely couldn’t have a conversation in the language.)

     I probably read/heard this one sometime over 20 years ago, because I’ve been using it in articles and essays since around the turn of this century.  I’ve also said before that, “if you can train, then you should train,” which is a play on the same thing.  Basically, when it comes to strength, the more frequently that you can train a lift the better.  Remember: the more frequently you can train does NOT mean that the more frequently you do train, the stronger you will get.  If you start training your lifts each-and-every day, but are “bombing and blitzing” them with multiple sets for multiple reps, then you are on a sure road to disaster.

     The easiest way to “use” this saying is to start by training a lift (or multiple lifts) three-times-per-week.  At each training session, do enough so that you know you can train the lift again at the next session.  Don’t overdo it.  As your training progresses over the weeks, you’ll notice that you are able to do more and more at each session.  As your ability to train longer and heavier while still being fresh increases, so will your strength, power, and muscle mass.

More is Not Always Better, but it Usually Is

And

If You Want to Squat More, You Have to Squat More

     I’ve stolen from both of these over the years, and, although they're not exactly the same, they’re similar enough that I decided to lump them together here.  The first quote comes from a strength coach named Nick Horton, who used to run a really good blog entitled “The Iron Samurai.”  His stuff was a combination of Zen thought and Olympic lifting, so it was right up my alley.  I don’t know what happened to the guy; he hasn’t seemed to have an internet presence in around a decade or so, but his material was really good, and he had some good quotes that have stuck with me to this day.  And that I have often stolen.  Including this one.

     That’s right; more is not always better, but it usually is.  Especially when it comes to squatting and pulling movements.  A lot of casual lifters probably wouldn’t need to be told this in regards to their upper bodies, where they typically do too many sets of the “beach” muscles, the chest and the arms.  But most lifters should absolutely do more leg and back work.  Which brings us to the next quote.

     The second quote comes from legendary Russian powerlifting coach Boris Sheiko, at least I think it does.  I remember reading it first at a time when I was using one of Sheiko’s programs for powerlifting.  It basically means that if you want to squat more weight, you need to squat more often, and with more volume than you are currently using.  So, yeah, more is not always better but it usually is.

How You Feel is a Lie

     This one comes from Olympic lifting coach John Broz.  I would have thought this was a dumb quote when I first started out in bodybuilding, because I would always take extra days off if I felt overly fatigued or tired.  But then I tried the aforementioned Sheiko’s powerlifting programs.  When training Sheiko, I often felt tired, sore, and a little cranky.  And some days I just didn’t think there was any way I would make it through a day of training.  But my lifts went up.  And up.  And up.

     I should have understood the wisdom of this quote even before then, however.  What Broz means is that you can’t accurately predict how a workout is going to go on a certain day, or even how well a program is working for you, based on how you feel.  And this is most certainly true.  I can’t tell you the number of days that I thought I was going to have a crappy workout, only to go into the gym and hit a near personal best.  The inverse is also true.  Some days I’ve felt awesome, full of energy and vigor, only to show up for my workout and have no “snap” to my lifts and didn’t end up having a good workout at all.

     If you want to know more on this stolen idea, I wrote an entire essay dedicated to it last year.

In the Beginner’s Mind There are Many Possibilities.  In the Expert’s Mind, There are Few.

     This is a quote I’ve used often when writing about budo (traditional Japanese martial arts), but it applies equally well to lifting.  It comes from the late Zen master Shunryu Suzuki, who was pivotal in bringing Zen Buddhism to America.

     I think that the quote is important—and important to have in mind frequently—because it's a simple human tendency to think we know more than we do.  Or it’s a tendency once we do know a lot about lifting, and have gained an appreciable amount of strength and muscle mass, to stop learning from others.

     The bottom line is that we should never stop learning.  If we think that we know everything there is about lifting, then we aren’t going to use a new idea that we come across even if that idea might be more fruitful for our gains than some of the stuff we are currently doing.

     There is a popular Zen story that goes something like this (there are some different versions of it that you can find, but this is just my personal telling of it):

     An American professor of Eastern Religions goes to Japan so that he can meet, and learn from, a well-known Zen master.  Finally, after much traveling, he arrives at the home of the Zen master, who is expecting him.  The master is serving tea.  He gestures toward an empty chair in front of him, and the professor takes a seat.  As soon as the professor is seated, he begins to go on and on about Zen this and Zen that.  But finally, he does manage to tell the master that he would really like to practice with him, and attain enlightenment.  The master says nothing, but pours their tea.  He pours the professor’s cup full, and keeps on pouring, the tea spilling onto the table, the floor, and even the professor.  “Stop! Stop!  My cup is full!” the professor screams.  “Then empty your cup,” the master says.

     We all need to keep a beginner’s mind, and empty our cups from time to time, so that we can continue to learn and grow, both intellectually and in terms of size and strength.

Are You on a Training Program or Are You Just Working Out

     I wasn’t going to include this one since I recently wrote a post entitled just this, but then I realized that a “stealing good ideas” essay wouldn’t be complete without at least mentioning this quote from Vince Gironda.

     You must be on a training program in order to achieve gains.  Too many lifters simply go into the gym and “work out.”  They might work out hard, or work up a sweat, or get a good “burn” in their muscles, but if those things aren’t part of a detailed, oriented plan, results simply won’t come.

     As you go through life, don’t be afraid to steal good ideas.  In fact, stealing good ideas is one of the keys to success.