The Secret Of Mind And Body

"You don’t understand. I need it. Do you want to help me or not?" said the guy quickly with a rage in his eyes that I’d never seen before.

The first confused moment finished few later: “Guy, you cannot do it, give up. If you want to do some sport I can help you but keep away from your head these stupid paranoias”.

He looked at me with tears in his eyes: “You’re a no-good man! You don’t know nothing about sport! You limit to look at me like I’m now, you don’t manage to imagine me stronger neither to see the rage, the motivation and the pain inside me looking beyond this my body....” He made the sign to say something else, then he turned and walked at a good pace towards the exit.

I called him “Guy! Wait a moment... what would be this great motivation? Then, let me understand... why do you want to win the most important American weightlifter competition? do you want by any chance to demonstrate something to your girlfriend?”

"The victory’s not important for me. I need the prize of 80 thousand dollars to save my younger brother from the street! My brothers and I were born in a very poor family, like many other here in the favelas of Rio. In our favelas, there’re incursions of the police squads, the death battalions, almost every day. I’m trying to keep my younger brother far from the gangs, but it’s difficult. Our father was died in a police raid, he was killed by a stray bullet which was directed to a drug trafficker who lived fifty meters after us. Our mother, after his death, felt in a severe state of depression and she’s not able to maintain all the family. The Saint Francis Missionaries help us but this is not good. I’m trying to earn money working with a carpenter who was my father friend but the wages don’t allow me to enrol to the gym! Some months ago, my brother is entered in a drug trafficker gang under the control of Ramires, one of the most important and ruthless drug traffickers of our favelas." While he was speaking his eyes become like transparent lights, and I was understanding what his heart was felling. He was the embodiment of the sadness of a story like many others. The fists clenched more and more on his legs "I’m trying to explain him that if he continues to do so he will harm only himself and us who love him, but he ignores my suggestions. I’ve tried to talk with his gang but I’ve received warning to not snooping around and, then, a broken nose!" he closed his eyes remembering those disagreeable experiences. "I want win for him and our mother... I want to bring them far from here! And you’re the only who can help me to achieve this goal, you’re the only who had never bowed to the outrages and who is respected by narcos..."

He seemed me different from the usual bullies coming at the gym. "Guy, the life is not easy for everybody. You must know that if I will train you, I will make you sweat other blood. It will be the 10 hardest months of your life. Your mother gave you the life, I will reprogram it. I transform the brats in real men, independently from the age. You will become a man but, before, you shall become a child, cry, ask for piety and nobody will help you. You’ll fight yourself before to be ready to fight with the world. There’ll be nobody to lift you up from the ground. You shall do it by yourself. You shall react and learn how to get up on your legs. I’ll teach you that you shall never give up in the life. You shall never let your guard down, never give up, never get soft. Do you understand, ninos? Are you able to resist to all that?"

"Let’s start!" Answered hesitant Carlos.

"Well, come here tomorrow earlier in the morning, before to go to work, here, in my arena, and we’ll talk about what will be necessary to do. It’s all for the moment."

But, little before he would exit from the gym, I stopped him. "In a week, you will have a meeting with a special person who will help you a lot. He’s a mental coach."

"Is he a shrink?" added immediately Carlos contemptuous.

"No, it’s worse. For the moment go home and rest you. We’ll see here tomorrow."

I saw him through the gym windows exiting slouch, he seemed without chest. His head bowed. “There’ll be a lot of work to do” I thought. The first to believe to be successful would be just him.

II

The day after Carlos arrived in time at the gym. He wore a tracksuit, gym shoes and he drag a great bag.

"For heaven’s sake, son, what on earth there is in that bag?" I addressed indignantly to him.

"Beh, I took all my savings and I spent them for the clothes and for that…it’s the last supplement, the weight belt, some books that I brought to show them you and my spare clothes..."

"Mmh, at first address me as ‘tu’, we’ll share time and emotions together and it’s important that you see me as a friend. Then, I think that this session will be completely dedicated to the explanations."

"But what, do we don’t start? But we have few time at our disposal!" Said the guy with vehemence.

"Carlos, Carlos, I’ve trained a lot of people before you. I know the time necessary to become stronger. I know that without a good mental base you’ll be destined to the flop and I know that, right now, you’re plenty of wrong convictions." I pressed immediately him. "At first, I don’t want to see you again enter this gym with these fitness boy shoes. Never dare you to profane this temple. Do you know that the best gladiators and pioneers of our loved sport have fight here? Start to feel their spirits inside you during your training! Wear decent clothes when you enter here. Put these shoes!" I Said throwing at his foot a pair of common work shoes with the iron reinforced point.

Carlos bended to take them and made a grimace of trouble "Ouch, but what... How are they heavy! What are they for?"

"They’re for let you back home with your feet! If a 25-kilo disk would accidentally fall on your feet fingers you will be forced to walk on your heels for the rest of your life, and it would not be a good scene to assist".

Carlos, with his upset face, wore quickly the work shoes.

"Well, the first lesson will be for the "Releasing of the brain trash". Explain me how do you trained in this period, if you had never done it, how do you supported yourself with the nutrition and tell me about your general life style." I encouraged him to tell about.

"Yes, I’ve just brought with me some book to show you..." and opened the bag to take some book whose covering didn’t promise nothing good.

"Mmmh, I see. And, looking at these books I’ll understand how you’ve trained?" I answered promptly.

"Yes, I followed the program of the super champion Mr. Olympia to get enormous arms, then also this workout sheet, the quantic pumping, of Mr Universe and..." said while he was taking enthusiastic all these magazines from his bag and throwing them up on the table.

"For heaven’s sake son, stop you. Have I already told you that this is a temple? You’re torturing the spirits of ancient warriors beyond my patience with these chatters! Show me your most recent routine and your nutrition diary." I said completely overwhelmed.

He searched thoroughly the bag he had brought with him and took out a plasticised sheet on which I couldn’t see how much kilos he had lifted. Moreover, he didn’t know what would be a nutrition diary adding that he had always eat when his instinct let him understand that it was time to eat.

Resigned, I sighed and said "Let’s see what have you done in the last period." What a fright it almost gave me reading his papers! " Smith machine stretching on the flat bench 6 sets x 10, peck deck 5 sets x 12, cable cross 5 sets x 20, stretching to the press machine 5 sets x 8 reps, leg extension, sissy squat, cable push-downs, French press...it’s better to stop here, today the disappointments have been too much. My poor physique could not support more. Sit down and listen to me, then..."

"But what’s wrong? The super pumped trainer of my old gym said me that it is just in this way that he’s grew up. The leg extension isolates the muscle and then with the sissy squat I destroy it!" affirmed self-confident Carlos.

"Carlos, listen, the only thing that you destroyed is your good sense. The leg extension and, then, how can you do an exercise called sissy squat? It’s an exercise for sissies. I’ve just four words for you 'shut up and squat!' The sissy fuck against a good squat 'ass to grass’. Do you understand? Now, I want to be very frank with you. Up to now you’ve only lost your time. This routine is trash. Sit down and listen to me carefully. I will explain you the training lost Secret. That which forged thousands of iron athletes. I will put you back in the men category. Where the beauty was the strength and the strength was the undisputed power on all creatures of the universe. Are you ready? Now we can start.

III

You must know that I’ve American origins. My origins are very ancient and it’s said that my forebears are descended directly from ancient warriors. For a long time in my family a story is passed on.

About 30 years ago, 2 twins were born in a hospital of a rural country in the boundless Russia.

They both had on average abilities, but they had a strong personality and well precise goals in their mind. They grew up together until they married and went to live far each other with their respective wives. Then, they let out of their sight.

Many time after they saw again at a family meeting. The twins were still very similar. They had a like job, several sons and a wonderful wedding. Moreover, they had both matured a strong passion for the body culture.

But there was a difference.

One of them was enormously greater, stronger and more buffed than the other.

As concerns the twins I must say that they began together the body training.

What made their appearance so different?

The Knowledge. The right knowledge and a constant application.

I cannot promise that the success will be immediately yours if you will begin to follow my instructions. But I can guarantee that you will make a very fascinating trip looking for your potentialities and that I will give you all the necessary means to be excellent. It’s up to you then to put them in practice and act.

What the story taught us, guy?

The man since his origin has been always growing with the progressive overcharge. Do you know the Kaizen principle? It has been passed on directly to me by the last Japanese samurai warrior. According to this principle in your life you must always improve yourself, constantly. Even if you do a step behind, later you must do two steps ahead.

It’s said that at the age of the big conqueror Rome, there was a courageous and feared warrior. It’s known that this warrior trained transporting a young lamb on his shoulders along the path of a stadium. Every day, in the silence of his yard, he took this lamb on his shoulders and went all over his path. Day after day the lamb grew constantly of half-kilo, one kilo per day. Every day the warrior continued his training. He almost did not notice that the lamb was becoming a great adult bull since he was becoming constantly stronger too getting used to the changing bull weight. When after two years the one who was defined as the strongest gladiator of all arenas came to play him, found the warrior walking happy with a bull on his shoulders!

You cannot even imagine his reaction.

It’s said that he is still running away. I think that it’s just from him that the marathon legend took its origin! Well, that man did not manage to see beyond his nose. He saw only the current athletic performance of brute force without being able to understand how it could have been occurred. He saw the finish line and not the whole path to achieve it. Every success seems easy once achieved, but it’s never preceded by a linear way, you can even stumble along the path but if the goal is there, fixed in your mind, before or later you will achieve it. Undoubtedly our warrior trained to achieve that result

But the gladiator was too busy to hear his inner voice saying that it was impossible and that, undoubtedly, he was in front of a demon spitted out from the Cerberus jaws instead of a common man with an extraordinary tenacity. Well, the warrior had been successful since he had applied the Kaizen principle, the principle of the progressive overload. Train you trying to constantly overcome your limits at the gym like in your life and you will obtain all you fixed results. This is the most important concept and I invite you to put it well in your mind. Until you will continue to pump, to lift always the same sissy weights, doing a lot of sets and reps, you will remain just a spineless sissy!

The second secret comes from the Vikings! It’s written in the rock and passed on only to the bravest among the male first born of the strongest warrior families,

You must know that someone among these valorous men fight nude against the adversaries. They were called "furious" just for their ability in not feeling the stabbing pain of cut wounds they received. They continued to move ahead and fight, always, up to the victory. Then their wounds healed. Before the battle, do you know what they were thinking that would have occurred? They believed to be protected by the God Odin in person!