Be A God Damn Man

Posted on by

PR Friday — Post training updates, PR’s, and what you are going to do to become more of a man in the comments (read this post first).

Quick Tip #3 — Be A God Damn Man

Look, I know the website has been in anaphylaxis. Shit ain’t the same, right? Well that’s fucking BULLSHIT. We need some adrenaline injected into our veins. We needed to be reminded of why we’re here. I’m loaded up on copious amounts of coffee and am listening to heavy metal. No, not the pussy-ass new-age shit like Disturbed that predicates itself on being angry at their mom for catching them wanking into their favorite tube sock. I’m talking about Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, possibly some Mötley Crüe. Grit, attitude, and uppercuts.

You know, the qualities that make a god damn Man. But what is a man?

What makes a man, is it the power in his hands?
Is it his quest for glory?
Give it all you’ve got, to fight to the top,
So we can know your story.
– Now You’re A Man

7891840What a nice summary. A man fights for glory. He’s doing everything he can to beat the FUCKING SHIT out of every day to meet his goals, to be successful. A wiser feller than myself once said, “Sometimes you eat the bar, and sometimes the bar eats you.” That means some days you’ll get elbow dropped from the top rope. But a man — a true hairy-chested sexual Tyrannosaurus — will wipe the blood and shame off his brow, get up, shake the top rope like an asshole, and get in the ring one more time. That’s what a man is.

Why is it so important to be a man? Aside from the intuitive notion that being a man is just, true, and innate, it’s the desire for success that makes it important. Life is a wonderfully beautiful thing; to sit idle like the oily surface of a swamp is a crime. Criminal is the man who doesn’t who doesn’t constantly strive for success, who doesn’t crave experience, and who doesn’t want it all. Criminal are the timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.

Are you on the path to getting whatever the hell it is that you want? If you could be doing more, then you need to slam your fist down onto a hard wood table, lift the table up to the heavens, and then break it in half over your head. Take these lumber pieces and light them on fire. Breathe the smoke before screaming as loud as you can. This will increase your testosterone levels by 37% and immediately make you more attractive to the opposite sex (women love the smell of “outside”).

Now get on track. What do you want to be? Need to be? What challenges sit between you and manliness? I understand some of you can’t just quit your job or family to try and choke slam your truest desire; that’s why 70’s Big is here for you. Because at the very least you can step into a weight room, load the bar, and move some god damn iron. Getting stronger requires commitment and desire. It’s never-ending; you can’t be “too strong”. It teaches the mentality that meeting your goals is hard, grinding work, but you can face each step with an animalistic intensity. You know that attacking the bar is more successful than just trying to move it. Your mindset before each session, set, and repetition is going to dictate how badly you destroy it. The same concept applies to life; attack your non-lifting goals with the same berserking intensity and you’ll have a hard time failing.

tom-selleckWhile being a man is chopping wood, bulging quadriceps, juggling beer kegs, John McCain, and bending re-bar, anybody can be a man by taking a risk and challenging themselves. Have you been lifting in the gym for a year? Sign up for a meet and put your ass on the line. Bored with your job? Fucking do something about it. Be innovative, create your own job, make your company better, or say, “Fuck it,” and do something else.

Everybody has something locked away in their mind that they wish they would have done or wish they had the balls to try. Go and do it. Explore the world, compete, and challenge yourself. If life takes a fat shit on you (as it often does), wipe it off, get back up, and keep striding forward. Be a god damn man.

 

Post a comment about what you are going to do in order to be more of a man — NOT what you are already doing, but something that you can and will do in the future. 

52 thoughts on “Be A God Damn Man”

  1. This. This writing is the beating heart of 70sbig. I may not be crushing gym PRs lately, but I’m crushing life PRs over the past year or two. This is what the movement is about. Well said Justin.

  3. Great article, Justin.

    Here are my two things:

    -Going to compete. Haven’t competed since college football and a few CF competitions after that. I miss it. I need it. And I’m sick of having nothing to train towards. I hear there’s a strongman competition in my state in February. Done.

    -Going to say “fuck it,” spend the money, and get LASIK. My eyes are holding me back from things I want to pursue in life and I’m going to change that.

    Now on to PRs:

    -Yoke walked 760 for about 40 yards. It was heavy. 200 pound PR

    -Rack pulled an axle bar loaded to 640 from my knees for a triple after the yoke walk

    -PR’d my spinal erector soreness afterwards

    -PR’d yoga by starting it? Anyone have any suggestions for a good yoga video to follow on the YouTube? Or am I wasting my time?

    -PR’d my weight – about 230 now. Don’t want to get too much heavier so I can still compete LW for strongman.

  4. Well, we know what Justin’s resolution needs to be. Junk the girly-man Motley Crue, and sub-in some good Viking Metal like Amon Amarth. Those guys are definitely 70’s Big. 1370’s Big, to be precise.

    • Somewhere in the site history we talk about Amon Amarth — but it’ll be a good addition to the Pandora station. Motley Crue is hit or miss (hence the snide “and maybe some Motley Crue” in the post ).

      • A friend of mine actually had the chance to go drinking with their lead singer at the Wacken Open Air festival in Germany. Every bit as awesome as you would think it would be. Like being in Valhalla’s mead hall.

  6. I couldn’t agree more with the message of this post.

    In the last 6 months, I’ve been busy becoming a man, getting a much more interesting and much better paid job and moving out of my shitty place into a much nicer one that I actually own.

    When it comes to the weight room, after dealing with never ending shoulder issues, knee pain and lower back cramps I decided to kick my old high volume programming to the curb and start out fresh.

    This week was the first week on the Texas Method, doing a complete reset, and here are the lifts:
    – Squat: 253 lbs for a 5RM (medium)
    – Press: 99 lbs for a 10RM (medium, first week of overhead pressing ever)
    – Deadlift: 330 lbs for a 5RM (easy as pie!)

    I also did a ton of mobility and prehab stuff… looking forward to getting healthier, stronger and finally getting over 200 lbs and becoming an adult male!

  11. Upon learning of the filet mignon-psoas parallel, I am going to do my damnedest to resolve bovine hyperlordosis.

    Also, I will put myself outside my comfort zone and build my side business to the point I can leave the day job behind.

    I will deadlift 500 this year and press 300 before they put me in the ground whenever that may be.

    If you will it dude, it is no dream.

  12. Training is taking a back seat to getting a big raise at work and getting my girlfriend moved into my house. I’ve only been able to train late nights in my cold garage about twice a week. Still hit a couple PRs:
    Deadlift: 410# x 1
    Front squat: 255# x 3

    I’m not quite squatting twice a week. More like twice every 11 days. Even with limited training time, I can find two half hour blocks to squat.

    Being a man is about taking care of shit, taking what’s yours, setting yourself up for success, and always making progress. While I try to do that, I can always see where I could do better.

    Plus I want to build a lifting platform for my garage with my own two hands.

    • Making my own lifting platform was one of the best things I did in my garage. Pro tip: use the right kind of liquid nails to help stick the rubber mats to the plywood. I just used the general-purpose stuff and was a sad dog when it lifted off a few months later.

  14. OK one more try…

    Big squat PR! I hit 405! My first meet is in 15 days!

    (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));
    Post by Dallas Strength and Conditioning.

  15. I’m going to nut up and keep my fucking back flat when I Deadlift today. I’m going to squeeze the bar like I’m squeezing the throat of some jackass wearing flannel who can’t Bench 225 but it trying to steal my woman. I’m going to finish reading the Texas Method Advanced and get fucking started on it.

  16. The Spartan Race I’ve been training for is in a month, and I’m nervous and excited. And I’ve also remembered just how much I dislike running.

    To be more of a man… hrm. Well, I could just not shave my legs, but instead, I’m going to make my own javelin, so I can practice for the javelin throw obstacle.

  17. Seven hells, I’ve been waiting for a post like this. I’ve lurked on this site for a year and this post finally got my juices flowing enough to post.

    PRs this week @218#:

    Texas method intensity day:
    LBBS 400#x5
    OHP 190#x1 (press had been stuck at 185 for eons)
    DL 430#x5, felt tasty

    Also, 70sbig.com post PR (1×1)

    Stay thirsty my friends.

  19. Tom Selleck is legit.

    Prs:
    Lb squat 280x 5,5,7, pretty easy.
    Have a belt and lifting shoes now so I’m finally taking this seriously. I got off my high horse about both of those (former crossfitter) after reading prettying the entire archives back to 2009. You convinced me justin.

    Tried voodoo floss on my elbow, felt good (in a painful way) but haven’t tested it yet. I’m now thinking the cause might have been crappy shoulder mobility coupled with the low bar. Not medial though so idk.

    I am the strength coach for a high school football team. I was handed a mess this summer and taken them from horrendous quarter squats and round back deads to decent high bar squatting and pulling. I’m open to any advice (in general) from anyone with experience here.
    I was thinking some bosu balls and trx straps would be functional and not as stressful as the barbell stuff. Thoughts?

  20. I almost forgot. I’m gonna grab life by the throat and become a better man by working on my schoolwork instead of going through all the 70s big archives haha

  21. PRs-
    DL: 545×1 (pretty easy – I am hoping to reach to reach my goal of 6 plates on each side by year’s end… 40 lbs to go.)
    SQ: failed at 525 (545 is the goal by end of Feb.)

    Going to man up by competing in a PL competition next Feb/Mar. Also going to look at my options for getting out of the Army… It’s just not for me. I could be better served somewhere else and doing what I enjoy rather than be bored/not challenged.

  22. I’ve been tinkering with the idea of having a mma fight. I’ve been training since may and after reading this I fucking have to do it now. I ain’t no bitch.

  23. Goals set at start of year –

    -read 2 books a month – done.
    -make baby – 3 months done.
    -squat 405lbs – added 15kgs to squat in 9 531 Cycles. En route.
    -start writing – done and put it out into the world.

    New Goals to hit to make people rezpect the Cock.

    -read my unborn baby every major classic before birth so they may enter the world a don
    -encourage all my friends to do WHATEVER the fuck they want to do at all times
    -Powerlifting Total of 600kgs.
    -smash up my smart phone and start communicating like Croc Dundee in the Bush.

    Oh yes. I also started a podcast. Check it.

    https://soundcloud.com/podcasting-bro

    great post Justin, thanks.

    –

  24. I really do not mean to be “that guy” trying to find a magic cure as i have tried the advice from the last podcast that andwered my question. Tabada sucked ass yesterday.

    That said, does can anyone speak to whether applying the volume/intensity week to week as effective, as opposed to within the trainin week? For instance monday a: squat int. bench vol. monday b: squat vol. bench int. I will probably try it but did not want to waste 8 weeks or longer finding out its not enough stress (if i don’t have to). Thanks.

    This site and all the resources are incredible. Always helpful and consistently follows up. How can/do we pay i forward?

  25. Pingback: Monday 11/11/13 - Veterans Day: WOD for Warriors

  27. Sometimes I think the word “man” is being used to mean “physically and mentally strong, descent human being” which is probably doing a good job of alienating female readers.

    Either way, competing in the longhorn open in a week and a half. I’ll try my best not to get last in the 220s!

  29. Pingback: Be a god damn man

  30. Pingback: Saturday LINK DUMP! 12.7.13 « Crossfit South Bend blog

  31. Pingback: Be a god damn man | White Mountain CrossFitWhite Mountain CrossFit

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.