THE "IRON GURU" SECRET TO NON-SUCKY WORKOUTS
I was reading about the late, great Vince Gironda the other day. (The "Iron Guru" of the Golden Era.) This guy was a total maniac. He’d kick you out of his gym if you even mentioned the word "squat." He’d eat 36 eggs a day. He’d drink raw cream and protein powder until he looked like a Greek statue carved out of granite. And he had zero tolerance for whiners, tire-kickers, or "science-based" dweebs who wanted to argue about studies instead of lifting heavy iron.
Why do I mention this?
Because I see a ho’ bunch of guys in the gym today who look exactly the same as they did last year.
They show up.
They lift weights.
They maybe even drink a protein shake or two.
But the mirror?
The mirror is laughing at them.
It’s tragic, really. Like watching a zombie movie where the zombies are trying to bench press.Most people think they are "hardgainers" or have "bad genetics." Baloney. The real problem is they are missing the "Old School" fundamentals that guys like Gironda and Mike Mentzer knew decades ago.
If you are stuck in a rut, here is likely why:
1. You train like a wuss
Sorry, but it’s true.
Mike Mentzer (the only bodybuilder to ever get a perfect score in the Mr. Universe contest) preached "High Intensity" training.
He didn’t do 20 sets of fluff.
He did one set.
To absolute, total, "gun-to-your-head" failure.
If you can finish your set and text your girlfriend immediately after, you didn’t train hard enough.
You don’t need more volume.
You need more guts.
2. You eat like a bird
You cannot build a mansion without bricks.
And you cannot build muscle without food.
I’m not talking about "tracking macros" on some fancy app designed by a geek in Silicon Valley.
I’m talking about eating.
Real food.
Meat. Eggs. Potatoes.
If you aren’t in a surplus, you are shrinking.
Gironda used to make his guys drink raw eggs and heavy cream. (The "Hormone Precursor" diet).
I’m not saying you have to do that.
But if you’re scared of carbs or fat, enjoy staying small.
3. You don’t sleep (The "Anti-Hustle" Muscle Secret)
Here is a fact that drives the "hustle culture" goobers crazy:
You do not grow in the gym.
You grow in bed.
Arthur Jones (the inventor of Nautilus) said that if racehorses were trained as much as most bodybuilders train, you could bet on an out-of-shape turtle to beat them.
Recovery is not a "break" from training.
It IS the training.
If you are sleeping 5 hours a night and stressing about your boss, your cortisol is eating your gains for breakfast.
Sleep more.
Work less.
Grow big.
4. You have the attention span of a gnat
Program hopping is the silent killer.
You try 5x5 for two weeks.
Then you see some YouTuber doing "German Volume Training" and switch to that.
Then you try CrossFit (God forbid).
Stop it.
Pick a routine and stick to it for 12 weeks.
Boring?
Maybe.
But effective?
You bet your sweet bippy.
The Bottom Line:
If you look the same today as you did six months ago, don’t blame your genetics. Blame your approach.
Train with fury.
Eat like a king.
Sleep like a sloth.
And stop looking for the "magic pill" from the latest goo-roo. It doesn’t exist.
Cam Rickerby