Yearly Archives: 2009

Zombie Fodder

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“There, Ricky Bruch, you can argue that too.”

70’s Big will always take a stand against conventional fitness wisdom and the fitness industry. It is a money oriented industry that thrives on selling a shortcut to emaciation. Being skinny with abs is just not impressive nor productive. This demographic will fall early and fast when the inevitable zombie outbreak occurs.

Face it, the following video is full of guys that are doomed to be zombie fodder:

Wow, that was a lot of underweight guys who probably wear skinny jeans. Surely those non-adult-males could have made better money as an extra in a porno or something (you know, like a guy eating a sandwich in the background…they needed one anyway). And the device itself is…inadequate. I can get plenty of exercise for the “hand shandy muscles” on my own, thank you.

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Today is the day that you get acquainted with Ricky Bruch. In short, the guy is fucking insane. It’s hard to glean any interesting information, because all the juicy stuff is just hearsay. From what I found in my “research” (which consisted of YouTube and eating snacks) is that he is a Swedish discus thrower who won a bronze medal in the 1972 Olympic Games. However, a steroid fiasco kept him out of further competition, and this pissed Ricky off. A lot. He trained like an absolute madman (which you’ll see in the video below), and proceeded to throw the discus between 3 and 5 meters further than the current world record (unofficial sources vary with the distance). After he stopped taking steroids, there are reports that he took about 750 vitamin pills a day while improving his performance even more.

If anybody has any sources on him, or they own his documentary/biography called The Soul Is Greater Than the World, let me know. It’s supposed to be very inspiring because of his undying motivation to get better. He has the perfect equation of
Beard + Mustache + Strong + Big + Intense Training + Insanity
Our kinda guy.

The following video has some clips of him training. It gets good around the 2:00 minute mark. If you are short on time, and only want to see him freak out, then go to the 3:00 minute mark. Lots of yelling.

After that first video above, we had to double up on the testosterone. Thanks Ricky.

Chicken Fried Steak

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“Why would anyone want to eat like that?”

I’ve always liked food. I’ll admit that I really didn’t know how to eat it, though.

Rippetoe reminds me of a medieval gentile; meat and mead are all he needs. I’ve seen him eat at least 10 different styles of meat, and every single one of them makes him say, “That’s the best shit you could ever put in your mouth!”

My buddy Chris is a grilling aficionado. It’s customary for him to grill pounds and pounds of meat, only to have them ground into satisfying bathroom visits within a day or so.

Gant is pretty serious about his eating, especially during a weight gaining phase. In fact, after the JM Blakely post, he brought in a two pound hunk of brisket to snack on while he trained. That’s dedication.

Gant invited me over for dinner last night. Some how he knew my chicken fried steak quota for the week had not been met. I walked in the kitchen to see him frying steaks, frying biscuits, and preparing mashed potatoes. It was just what I needed.

We each had about a pound of meat, quite a few fried biscuits, and generous helpings of mashed potatoes. It was easily a 2,000 calorie meal. This meal is particularly interesting for Gant, because he’s in the middle of moving back down to the 90 kilogram weight class for judo after competing in the 100 kg class. Hearty meals don’t scare this man.

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Homemade chicken fried steak, fried biscuits, and mashed potatoes...all in gravy

Gant, Chris, and I were once eating at a local burger joint after training and we were all eating large double bacon cheeseburgers. This equals one pound of beef not counting the bacon, cheese, bun, or condiments. As we ate, Gant matter of factly said, “This is about the amount of protein your average CrossFitter would eat in a day while on the zone.” He was referencing The Zone Diet in which food is roughly weighed and measured for every meal. 16 blocks is a typical prescription, and this would equate to 16 ounces of meat. Chris, who weighed around 250 at the time, didn’t understand. He stared, horrified at Gant, and said, “Why would anyone want to live like that?”
Edit: Brent was eating with us too. Sorry, Brent.

Got any good food pictures? Gant and Chris love to document the food that they build, and you should too.

DOs and DON’Ts of 70’s Big

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There’s gotta be some standards, for god’s sakes

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The epitome of 70’s Big

When the website went live, one of the first things that my friend Chris did was compile a list of things that would or would not exhibit what 70’s Big is all about. I share his concern. You see, 70’s Big has been alive for the better part of 2009. You, the reader, are at a disadvantage. You may not intuitively know what is acceptable.

Hell, you may open your tub of soy protein after gelling your hair while listening to Nickelback and sipping a smoothie. For god’s sakes, this is for your own good! Okay? I can’t have you going around talking to your friends about 70’s Big when you’re convincing someone that your shirt is fucshia with a Bud Light in your hand. And I’m pretty sure Rip would find the athleticism to backflip kick you in the jaw if you were convinced Crown Royal was the best kind of whiskey. Look, it’s just bad for my reputation if you talk about 70’s Big after shaving your chest, doing a few sets of curls and push-ups, then hitting up the bar with your favorite “whore-stink” cologne on.

No, I can’t have that. There has to be some standards, dammit.

DOs

DON’Ts

By no means is this list finalized or comprehensive. You’ve got a whole weekend to make suggestions. Choose them wisely…

Adult Males > 200 pounds

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“Don’t forget: there is a good lookin’ female drinking more milk than you are”

We’ve had a few posts that explain what type and amounts of food you’ll need to consume if you’re wanting to get 70’s Big. Some people, however, don’t realize the purpose of this level of food intake. As always, it depends on your individual situation.

No one is suggesting you eat a giant bowl of ice cream, brownies, and magic shell if you already weigh 250. However, if you weigh 150, you better be stuffing your face. The “professional eating” approach is always suggested for guys who weigh under 200 pounds.

Remember: Adult Males > 200 pounds

A gallon of whole milk a day usually does the trick, regardless of who you are. My buddy John Sheaffer and I both drink at least a gallon, and I weigh 225 and he weighs 235 (he’ll be making a strong push to get to 250 by December, and eventually will make it to 275). Whole milk has a beautiful balance of calories, fat, carboydrates, and protein. Remember, it exists to make baby mammals grow, so start suckling the teat of growth.

There is a good looking girl at the gym we held a seminar at in Denver this past weekend. The gym owners, Jodi and Skip, told me that she drinks 6 gallons of milk a week while strength training, weightlifting, and doing conditioning workouts. She weighs 150 with very little bodyfat. In other words, she eats according to the needs of her activity and sport. If you’re trying to gain considerable size and strength, go with the shovel technique. If you are at the optimum bodyweight at your given height, then eat to maintain the muscle mass you already have. In any case, don’t ever forget that there is a good looking female who is drinking more milk than you are.

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The following photo was submitted by Randy, a deployed US Marine. Apparently they can’t get a gallon of milk when deployed, so they have to get creative with their calories.

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Randy pounds two double whoppers with cheese stuck together

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Here is part 8 of the 70’s Big Interview with Rippetoe.

70’s Big Presents: Mark Rippetoe Interview Pt. 8 from 70s Big on Vimeo.

Rip references the directory of 70’s Big conducive gyms in this video. It will be very difficult to be added to this select list. The qualifying factors include your openness to helping new members, equipment, gym philosophy, the training of the owner(s), and a stable of people that are working to get strong. This list will be comparable to Bill Starr’s list of “Gyms Friendly To Weightlifters” that was published in Defying Gravity (a good, quick read for anybody competing in the barbell sports).

Rockin’ Socks

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“It really tied the room together”

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Doug and Clay Patterson team deadlift 1,416 lbs...in socks

In order to be 70’s Big, you don’t need to be donning garb from the time period nor do you have to be actually from the era. You just need to be big and strong. You’d sure as hell look so much cooler if you were rockin’ seventies garb, though. Insert Skater Socks here. An excerpt:

Growing up in the 70’s rocking my tube socks skating around town was a part of my childhood dreams. I loved tube socks! I had most all colors they offered at the time for my simple pleasure of having a sweet collection of striped tube socks made me super duper happy as a child. My childhood dreams were so simple and pure.

And so are ours. This site has an insanely large collection tube socks in any length or color that you could ever want. Not only that, but they have pictures of chicks wearing knee-high socks, and we all like chicks, right?

Socks like these really tie the room together, especially if you’re goal is to don apparel from the seventies. I’d suggest getting some to complete your Halloween costume.

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To finish off this video trifecta of friends (Chris, AC, and I), here is a video of me squatting from early September. I’ve since done 500 for five singles and 495 for two doubles (one rep away from three doubles).



Got any videos of you or your trainees? We’d like to see them. Send submissions to media@70sbig.com.