A Lesson

There’s a lot of shenanigans on this website and most of it pertains to lifting weights and eating meat. I’ve always thought that 70’s Big was more of an attitude, a mindset that could be applied into life. This mindset would entail gritty determination mixed with blood and sweat.

There are moments during training where I’ve hung my head, drained. My sweat would drip to the floor and blood would trickle into my socks. It’s a feeling of being truly alive when being battered, bruised, and bloody is worth the gain.

Typically I don’t like to share too much about my personal life on this website. It keeps it from becoming too “bloggy” and reserves my sense of privacy. However earlier today I helped bury my grandfather and learned a great deal — enough that I thought it would help you.

When we the pallbearers finally placed my grandpa’s casket in place, the men from the local Veteran Affairs played Taps for him one last time as they readied, aimed, and fired their rifles. It was at this moment that I realized how great of a man he was and how proud I was to have been loved by him. After serving in the Air Force, he and my grandma had a family in a rural area. He worked every day of his life on railroads and farms to provide for his family, including my mom. There was never any doubt my grandpa was committed to his family. Not ever. He was married to my grandma for over 50 years and took care of her despite having heart attacks and strokes in the last ten years. He and my grandma were always there for their children including when any of us grandchildren were born. He poured himself into working hard his entire life, always smiled, and was at peace with loving his family. My grandpa was the epitome of a father figure, one that every person should have.



The reason I bring him up is because his consistent hard work and good nature are a beacon in a cynical society. He toiled throughout his life for the benefit of those that he loved. Nowadays we have the luxury of avoiding such labors, yet training is one of those activities that can knead this lesson out. It is the physical representation of committing to something, doing it with fervor, and accomplishing what you set out to do. Look inward to your own life for that source of inspiration whether it be a loved one, a public figure, or character and combine that inspiration with what you’ve learned under the bar. Now harness that feeling, that bleeding conviction, and use that in your life whether it be for your love, passion, or ambition. Use it to achieve more than what you have right now. Family, love, work, school, knowledge, skills, or abilities…never again will you lay idle.

Some men rollover and quit. Others step out into the world every day to be the best they can be. Which are you?