Incredible.

What I want you all to focus on, aside from how awesome the old guy was in the video, is that he apparently is in his 50’s (maybe 60’s, I can’t tell because the words are lost in his beard). I mean, he looks like he’s at least 72, but that’s not the point. He lifted that fridge overhead like a man should, much to the approval of his wife. And he didn’t need the tailgate down.

Wouldn’t it be nice to do that at 50 years old? I don’t know about any of you, but I’d like to still compete in weightlifting at that age. My friend, Lon Kilgore, started competing when he was 11 and still competes into his early 50’s. That’s awesome. If that’s gonna happen, then we need to address a few things.

The only person that has been on this site that is in danger of doing something spectacular as a world class athlete is Kendrick Farris. The rest of us lift because it is a glorified hobby. Some readers may do it because it helps them do their job as a law enforcement officer or military personnel, but for those of us that will compete in things that probably won’t get us killed, we are simply hobbyists.

We have goals and should train hard, but we need to be mindful of not completely breaking down in the process. Strength is incredibly important for longevity and overall health, so let’s not let our pursuit of it turn everything into an unhealthy endeavor. Keep in mind I’m not saying that Skinny Guy needs to have a pristine diet. No, that little bastard needs to eat everything so that we don’t have to call him Skinny Guy anymore. Eventually he won’t be skinny, and he’ll learn how to eat correctly for the maintenance of lean body mass, and we’ll have a delightfully productive human male among us.

But make sure you’re doing all of the little things correctly, like warming up properly, handling injuries and set backs correctly, and taking rest when you need it. And next time you make an AC Jump on your weight, remember Bill Starr’s old adage:

Patience + Persistence = Strength

A Request For Experienced Lifters

I’d like to ask any experienced lifters and competitors to share what they have learned they need to do in order to keep training, whether it be training for competition or maintenance, as well as anything they wish they would have done differently when they were younger. I shouldn’t have to say this, but “experienced lifter” would probably mean you’re at least in your thirties if you’ve been training consistently, and I’d like to hear from much older guys. I’m gonna send this link around to pull in some good feedback, and you should do the same.