Years ago, when I was a regular columnist for Ironman Magazine , I wrote an article in which I said, "bodybuilding has ruined strength training in America." I'm pretty sure that I got more hate mail from that ONE article than all my others put together, and I wrote a LOT of articles for Ironman in the '90s and the early years of this century, so that's saying something. But I stand by that statement. Now, you may ask yourself, why am I beginning an article on strength training for martial artists with an anecdote I wrote for a bodybuilding magazine that most martial artists are never going to read? And the reason is simple: bodybuilding has also ruined martial arts strength training in America. Why? Most martial artists who take up weight training in this country are greatly influenced by bodybuilding-style training , whether they know it or not, the kind of training that relies on multiple sets of multiple reps in order...
Essays on Old-School Strength Training, Classic Bodybuilding, Traditional Martial Arts, and Budo Philosophy