The following was written by Gary Gibson. Do a search if you’re interested in reading his past entries.
First Day at the Beach in a Long, Long Time
Some of you reading this have probably seen my very first post in these pages, which included a picture of me in my early teens (I appreciate the donations you then sent to my food fund). That picture was taken at New Smyrna Beach roughly 20 years ago. In fact it’s been damn near 20 years since I’d set a foot on the beach till yesterday. Got a little bit of sunburn (apparently my menalin levels only confer resistance–not invulnerability–to UV damage), but more germane to the readership of this site is that I was about 60 lbs heavier than the last time I bared my nearly nude body for such wide public viewing. Yesterday’s return to the beach also coincided with my crossing the 190-lb barrier on the scale for the first time.
Let me qualify this. All the many years I spent being disturbingly skinny, I was actually proud of my disturbing skinniness. I’d whooped with joy when I discovered “Muscle & Fitness” at the age of 15 because I’d found a magazine that celebrated the 90’s smallness into which I hoped to grow. I loved the fact that I had razor sharp abs, even if they came at the cost of emaciation. So even though I now care more performance than appearance, it was a little weird to have so many people see me with that much fat around my midsection. I’ve had time to get used to it when alone and nekkid, but that was the first time my powerlifter’s mono-ab and burgeoning love handles were on public display.
Very happy to report that I didn’t feel the urge to start a conditioning blitz to get “beach pretty”, that on balance I much preferred having the extra muscle and fat, and that I care far, far more about hitting a 500-lb squat at the Raw Nationals this summer than getting a narrower midsection.
Like I said, I just crossed that 190-lb barrier on the scale. I’m pretty confident I’ll cross the 200-lb threshold to male adulthood before the month is out. In fact, I’m pretty sure I’ll have to cut a little bit to compete in the 90 kg class in July. The cut may result in a tighter midsection after I’ve put on another ten pounds of muscle and I may even go back to the beach. This time, I’ll wear sunblock.
———-
It is important to note that Gary is not a novice, yet he is growing like one. He places performance ahead of appearance right now, and this is what a real athlete will do. Now, just because Gary perceives himself as fat does not actually mean he is (I’d personally like to see a picture of this new bodyweight, no homo, because I don’t trust a guy’s opinion on how fat he is when he’s been skinny his whole life, even if it is Gary Gibson), nor does it mean he is stuck with it.
This is called growing into a weight class, and Gary will get to the point where he will fill out his frame near the top end of whatever his desired weight class is. He will continue getting more muscle as he continues to get stronger, and he eventually will have to cut to lift in this weight class. Age, genetics, and a bunch of other shit will decide how lean he will be at his “walking weight” (the weight he will walk around at before he cuts to meet weight requirements), but he will undoubtedly be more muscular with less fat than he is now. And perhaps it will let him prowl the beach with his chin a bit higher.
The questionable picture of Gary that he references
I’m slightly heavier than gary, a little bit shorter, and much weaker. I still have a six pack but it kinda protrudes out a lot more than the 90ssmall 6 pack and I have definite love-handles. Gary is still probably ripped to shreds at 190.
love this write up. feeling the same Gary. fuck aesthetics for now.
This post is useless without (current) pics.
He has some videos on his training log, although I think they are when he was hanging out around the 160’s.
–Justin
@ gzt
I completely agree.
Gary is quite inspiring, mainly because he did put some fat on but is not instantly reverting back to getting those hot abzz.
Amen, Gary. I used to scare people at the beach for the wrong reasons (they were afraid I would blow away in a stiff breeze). Now I scare them for the right ones (they think I will eat their children).
I’m with gzt, too. I was expecting a current pic with this.
Hey Gary, can’t wait to meet you at Raw Nats in July.
“Do a search if you’re interested in reading his past entries.”
Uh-oh, the aloof “just use the damn search function” has officially been imported to 70s big.
It isn’t hard, and it works quite well. I didn’t want to go and link the series.
–Justin
Melanin is the skin pigment Gary. Good stuff about your lifting, keep that progress going man.
@Justin
By linking back to previous posts you will increase your searchability with Google and move your Google ranking up for more terms. (This is also true of external links back and links out). For example the Gary posts alone should boost your “90’s small” term up in the ranks with proper linking. :) You should be on the first page for “90’s small” but you don’t show up at all.
The googlebots do weird things.
Cheers
Interesting, but I still wouldn’t have done it last night anyway. Why is this complicated-ass thing the case? Just how the internet works?
–Justin
Hey, y’all.
I’ll try to get a pic. I just feel weird posing for those things in my skivvies. Here’s a link to my Youtube page. Currently the latest video is of the USAPL 2010 Florida States. The few before that are of me training up to it at 179-188. Scroll down in the list and you’ll see me training and competing at 165. http://www.youtube.com/user/garypgibson
I’m looking to do something similar – get up over 200 lbs, then cut down to fit into the 90 kg class for a powerlifting meet in midsummer. Except, obviously, your strength goals are much loftier than mine.
Get big and strong now, worry about bodyfat later. Who cares about having some extra fat for a few months? It’s a long term investment, my friends.
Indeed. And this idea isn’t novel at all, since it’s the same thing I’ve been saying since September. Get your body weight up to get your muscle mass up, and then worry about the bodyfat later. It won’t be healthy eating to gain if you’re a guy, but you can eat healthy later.
–Justin
Greetings form Germany! (first post from Germany?)
Nice work Gary! I’m just a bit nervous that I’m going to be lifting in the same class as you this summer.
I’m making a (less dramatic) weight jump as well. My g/f saw me at the beach this past weekend for the first time in 2 months (roughly 10-15lbs heavier) and said “you look strong”
Did anyone stare or comment about the pudge? If not, no reason to feel self-conscious about it.
Off topic, but anyone else rocking a killer 70sbig stache besides me right now? God I love this thing. I’m also driving a van and sporting jean shorts in my bowling league. No shit.
Gary and Zack can be on my team when the zombie apocalypse comes, love handles and all. No homo.
Also, the first hit for 90s small on a google search is this abomination of a thread.
http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1067914
Scot, that’s a funny thread.. I think polling women is stupid, though. They don’t really know what they want, do they?
When I got stronger I held my head higher and thus got more women, even though my 6-pack was gone. In the end your confidence is what matters most and strong=confident.
Dudes, I know a lot of women don’t read this site, but I’d like that to change. Keep the potentially insulting comments about women to yourself.
–Justin
Come on bro
–A.C.
@Gary – Do you perceive yourself as fat?
Justin, to elaborate on what EJLouis said about Google rankings, Google ranks search results by “popularity” (as well as relevance), where popularity is the result of a complicated and secret formula. It is known, though, that if a specific page has a lot of other pages linking to it, that increases the original page’s popularity – after all, if a bunch of people are linking to a page, it must be at least okay and therefore more appropriate to share with searchers than some page no one ever links to. This goes even when linking within your own site. So the more links to 70s Big there are, even if they are from one 70s Big post to another, the higher 70s Big will appear in Google rankings. I don’t know how many you need to do to make a difference or whether or not it is worth it to try, but that’s what I know on the subject.
Hmm. Well that’s interesting. My as well do it. Thanks, dude.
–Justin
I personally am a very big fan of polling women.
Anyways, I got my first singlet today so I’m feeling pretty tough. Went into the garage and set a C&J P.R. at 105kg. Feelin’ the mojo.
@Randy_Hill
You’re right. In fact, I’d go so far as to say you’re damn right.
Confidence gets the ladies.
Whether or not six-packs get the ladies is highly debatable, but one thing is for sure: low confidence = no ladies.
Six-packs do not instill confidence.
Strength and size sure as hell do.
It’s got to be some kind of hormonal thing, eh?
Women do not care how much you squat! However when you are able to squat twice your BW your manliness just shows through! I can’t do it yet but I am gaining on it!
The reason I said the thread was an abomination was because of all the 90’s small (probably anorexic) guys on there making excuses for not putting on weight. Not that we should discount women’s opinions. I would be a liar, and pretty much all the other dudes on here would be to, if I said that I didn’t train at least partly for the benefit of looking good for the ladies. So the trade off is, letting the abs go, and gaining the kind of strength I used to dream of. The confidence that comes from knowing you can handle any situation life throws at you is a far more valuable asset than the confidence that comes from having a Twilight ready set of abs. With women and in life in general.
Randy Hill,
We know what we want. It seems you don’t know much about women.
But yes, a confident, 70’s Big guy, is far sexier than some skinny queer with abs. Men should be much bigger than their women.
Haha. Gold star for you.
–Justin
Stepped on the scale yesterday for the first time in a week or so and I was up over 5 pounds. Feels good. Getting closer to manhood.
@sexy Lady….
Yeah Skinny queers eh?…..Kill em all I say….even better, put them all in a gas chamber :)
FFS people…this is a great website with loads of great info on strength training and diet…but honestly, the homophobic comments are starting to piss me off.
For all the ignorant people out there…not all gays are feminine and into “abs and skinny jeans”…some of us actually drink beer, powerlift and enjoy getting 70`s big.