Old don’t mean Out

call me boring but I prefer the old school method of building my body without fancy moves. it may be boring but its definitely working as it should and recorded

Maybe I started a long time ago when Frank Zane, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lou Ferrigno, Dorian Yates, Franco Columbu, Flex wheeler, Sergio Oliva… etc. (names not arranged in popularity order) was on every fitness enthusiast lips or having their posters in every gym. When books and reference is all we can get and there was no internet nor youtube to refer to. All we got was the bookshops with books, reference books & magazines written by the Legends or Published on their behalf. I know I got my “Arnold Schwarzenegger encyclopedia of modern bodybuilding” when I was 15 at I’ve to save a few months just to buy it off the shelves in Miri at RM80. Obviously mom disagreed and I couldn’t get the sponsorship from her. lol. But it was the only book I ever bought on bodybuilding then. I never had magazines on bodybuilding. As to why I bought this book? Cause Arnold knows his shit and he was my idol.

My 1st reference.. of course there are lots of terms which was very foreign to me.. like Martian’s language

From there I learn the basics compound moves like Bench press, chin ups, SQUATS!!! (I just love the squats), Deadlifts, Military Press, Dip… etc. And it’s what works. Of course back then it was just the movements and copying what I see on the pictures without understanding the importance of quality reps. A lesson learned in a hard way which caused me to limp for 2 years. Bad forms and Ego sure kills.

As I’ve mentioned before, after 9 years of rest, inactive lifestyle and research I came back into fitness with humility, sensibility and logic. I start of slow, light, basic and strict. Stacking up weights as I get stronger. Now and then I’ll have a few heavy days. But it’s always the basic compound movements.

Biceps are always Dumbbell / barbell / E-Z barbell curls / preacher curls / hammer curls, isolated dumbbell / cable curls, cable rope / bar curls…

Triceps are always Cable Rope / Bar / E-Z Bar Triceps / V-bar Pressdown, Skull Crusher, Cable Rope / Bar / E-Z Bar Triceps Extensions, Weighted Bench Dips, Isolated Dumbbell Triceps Extension, Isolated Dumbbell Kickback…

Chest – Bench press. Be it Incline, flat or decline, Flys variations of dumbbell / cable and machine, Dumbbell Pullover, Dips..

Back, Shoulders, Legs.. u get where I’m going… would be a list. but it’s all the traditional, straight to the point movements where you know it’s working the targeted movements. No fancy pose or movements to make it more fun and enjoyable. Bodybuilding is a lonely sport to most. To me especially cause I want to make the most out of it and have full concentration during each session and not waste time talking. Most think of it as a boring sport due to repetitive motions for long period of time so find it hard to maintain the momentum and stay on track. Hence there are tons of fancy, interesting moments being promoted just to make it more fun and interesting for those who finds it hard to commit to the real game. For one, safety was a concern. Having been a fitness trainer in a few gyms, I’ve seen some who twist, fracture, sprain and all sorta other injuries related to these new routines. There is nothing wrong with these new routines and workouts. Plus it encourages people to participate in a more active lifestyle. Just that the safety was overlooked and not many are informed on what should or not be done. Some just copied bluntly from the internet or youtube whereby a “Disclaimer warnings” has 1st beforehand inform them that they will not be held liable for any accidents or injuries occurred. But what can I say, it’s definitely making workout more fun and enjoyable.

What I recommends is go Old School. The traditional way how the Legends train and build up an awesome physiques. If it was wrong, hey, would we have idolized their Godly physiques? It may seem boring but it’s safe and proven. Serious Builders like myself are easily spotted training in these manner. Both types of workout works towards the same goal. Fitness & health. Different results but not everyone choose to be Incredible HULK! As long as you maintain a healthy lifestyle and remember to make safety the 1ST PRIORITY!!

How I got here…… Part 1

Do catch me on your local malaysia Cinema in Fist of Dragon on the 23 Feb 2012

I guess everyone have to start somewhere and mine was plain simple. I don’t like to be bullied… lol. Hence I started carrying my 1st DIY Milo dumbbell at 11 years old. It was fairly easy to make since I’ve seen dad’s in construction and I’ve seen him mix the cement. Milo is such a common household item and we had unwanted fabric wardrobe so I salvage the metal rods. I begged mom to get me a dumbbell and her answer was, “POT KONG AH?!” (Hakka language – gone mad?) So what you can’t get you just have to make and I’ve been learning to make my own stuff since young cause the things I asked for can be very, i mean REALLY EXTRAORDINARY!

So begins my weight lifting hobby until sweet age of 15 that I was spotted by girls during sports day in my singlet with my visible latissimus dorsi and I heard heavenly cries. *wink* I’m at the age of wanting to be the center of attention so what do I get? A RM80 Arnold Schwarzenegger encyclopedia of modern bodybuilding. So i started to focus more on building muscle rather than just raw strength. Like what dad likes to call it, “Train so strong for what, to be kuli?” (kuli = labourer or slave) Anyways, I got more technical with the guidance from Arnold’s book and managed to improve  my physiques. But diet was still a problem. I work hard, play hard and eat hard. So I was never in condition or so shredded. Just muscles and all. Then I met by buddies after O’Levels who are hardcore gym freaks. I started pumping harder and at high reps too. Challenging each other twas was a great motivation. But i guess the diet was still wrong and so was the workout. We got bigger not shredded. And at that time i was so involved in basketball that with all the exercise, I was practically active more than 12 hrs a day with 9 hours minimum cardio with basketball daily.

And the unfortunate had to happen. Few years down the line, I stopped bodybuilding due to personal reasons (a gal who didn’t like the idea other gals looking at my body) so there goes 6 years and during which I injured both my ankles which i’ve to limp for 2 1/2 years. Mom was so worried I’ll be disabled the rest of my life. I’ve seen tons of doctors, physicians, traditional masseur, and all sorta healers yet non helped. Spent a bomb there. Anyways, I gave up on them and after the break up I did a research on physiotherapy and conducted my own program to heal myself. And so my mom’s worries was cleared and I managed to heal my legs which I can press 15 sets / 8 – 12 reps of 550lbs on a leg press machine now.

But I weren’t fully back to the gym. Call it procrastination or laziness or even I’m not ready and I’ve to pick myself up after wasting so much time. So i took more years off to prepare my finances and get back on my two feet. I traveled a little bit before i came back to Malaysia to study again. I guess after opening my eyes again, I saw a lot of things and having both my parents health not in the best condition I decide to look into supplements to improve their health. I did lots of experiments and testing on myself to see the effects and often I’ll overdose myself just to find the outcome of overdosing it if it’s dangerous or not before introducing it to my parents.

Again, seeing more and more of my friends getting diagnose with sickness and read lots of news on the longevity of the human kind being cut short due to our unhealthy lifestyle I started looking into this area and found out that most of the time it’s the food that we consume. Stress and habits plays a role but I finally come to a conclusion that “YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT” is true. Hence I started to looking into food and dieting. I was a little looney and determined so I marked a day and told myself I’m not gonna say, “tomorrow” but it’s gonna be today. Most people fail because they keep pushing it and procrastinating it. So it was on a sunday that I decide and I cleared out all my supplies and gave it away. Rode my bike to Tesco and got all the healthier selections. Vegetables which can be eaten raw. I totally changed my diet on a monday and not addressing my cravings to the max. I had plain vegetable salad with lemon squeeze and olive oil as the dressing for a whole month without cheat. I forbid myself from cheating because 1 cheat meal will push me to be psychologically depressed because I’ll start missing the food and crave for the taste. So my plan was to kill my taste bud…..

….. to be continue……….