Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder

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Arnold:  The Education of a Bodybuilder by Arnold Schwarzenegger and Douglas Kent Hall is a great look into the life and mind of Arnold as he was first introduced to lifting weights and bodybuilding and throughout his rise and dominance of the bodybuilding world.What I really liked about this book are the descriptions of Arnold's mindset as he was realizing his potential and understanding that he could be the best in the world at something.  I think most people today see Arnold as the former giant muscle-bound dude with a funny accent who was in movies and now is in politics, but I think people may forget that he was truly, truly great at bodybuilding.  The book describes how his entire career he only lost three bodybuilding competitions, and all three of those times he took second.  That type of feat is extremely unheard of today and I think there is a lot that can be learned from someone who has accomplished what Arnold has.

In the book, Arnold describes a period early on where he would spend hours day after day lifting weights.  Nobody could really see what he was striving for so a lot of people questioned why he spent so much time doing what he did.  Nobody could see the vision he saw for himself.  His parents thought he was being a bum and his social engagements became more and more limited so his friends were kind of put off by what he was doing, as well.  But Arnold had found something that he loved and was passionate about and made him feel good.  He had found a goal and the drive and desire to achieve it.  Because of this, he cut out basically everything else he was doing and chose to put everything he had into reaching this goal.

This all-out, burn your boats type of effort is a rarity.  Considering how common exit strategies and the development of plans B, C, and D are, it's no wonder why people's plan A usually doesn't work out.  Then they sit back and think, "Wow, good thing I had plan B."  Well, maybe their plan A didn't work because they took time to develop their plan B instead of leaving themselves with no other option but for plan A to work.  This is the kind of attitude Arnold takes, and when you have that combined with his extreme self-confidence that he has the ability to get it done, that's the type of combination that allows you to become the best in the world.

You can be really good from purely raw talent, but everybody at that level is talented, so what separates the top guy from everybody else?  And then what allows him to stay there for the remainder of his career once that point is reached?

I think these questions can be answered in part by looking at how Arnold approached what he did, and I think those are highly valuable lessons to understand.

I recommend this book for anyone who wants to achieve something great.  The first half of the book will be perfect for you.  The second half is different weight lifting routines that Arnold put together, but I think the really valuable part of the book is that first 150 pages or so.

Your body.  Your training.

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