Innovate or Stagnate- The Choice Is Yours, Part 1

Jamie Chaos

October 25, 2010

“Whatever weapon your enemy possesses must be duplicated or improved upon by you.” This is a universal truth of warfare and or competition, but it seems that the vast majority of lifters these days merely ape their competitors, rather than attempting to improve upon their enemies’ weapons. The internet is awash with amazingly repetitive conversations wherein various parties will query the masses regarding the efficacy of one of perhaps five lifting programs, with the purpose of competing against the very people they’re asking. The fact that this is inane and self-defeating is completely lost on these idiots, as they’ve come to the conclusion that the only efficacious training methodologies are those that have been created in the last 40 years and are currently popular. Anything else, in their obnoxious, poorly articulated opinions, is utterly futile. They seem to think that strength sports are like Nascar, and that everyone’s entering the field with precisely the same mechanics, and that we should all do the precise same thing in order to determine who’s the best at utilizing a one-size-fits-all regimen. I don’t know about you, but Nascar’s something to be avoided or mocked (or both), rather than something to emulate. If I know my enemy’s coming to battle with a broadsword, I’d rather make a game effort at rolling in with a lightsaber, rather than trying to battle them with their own fucking weapon.

As I’ve stated in a previous blog, I attribute this remarkable close-mindedness to our soft society’s myriad failings. Though we rail against the Chinese Communists and their societal emphasis on conformity, but our society is worse- even while we bloviate endlessly about our societal embrace of individuality, we’re even more prone to hammering down the nail that sticks up than they, or even the Japanese, are. “There are many around us who are entrenched in their beliefs and hold dear their view of the world as fixed and predictable. There are also people who, while not cynical, are still mindlessly accepting of these views. A new approach… to our lives is needed because the naysayers- those who demand empirical evidence- are winning. It is they who have determined what’s possible and what’s acceptable, to our collective detriment.” (Langer 18) People these days simply accept whatever they’re told, blindly, without looking at what they’re being told in a critical manner. This is why the idea that human civilization was previously hyperadvanced is laughed at, despite the fact that there the Temple of Baalbek is completely unrecreatable with modern technology, or the fact that the ancient Mesopotamians had batteries, or the fact that we have detailed descriptions of technology we’ve only recently recreated in the most ancient of Hindu texts (the mercury vortex engine). Archaeologists and the average person believes that these aberrations were mere toys of the ancients, or that immense amounts of slave labor could move 1200 ton stone blocks where our most advanced equipment cannot. Similarly, people explain away the strength feats of “old-timey” strongmen as the produce of genetic freaks, impossible to recreate even with the aid of our advancements in nutrition, supplementation, and equipment.

These absurdities persist in the face of evidence to the contrary simply because other people say so, and groupthink dictates that we ignore the outliers and focus only on the average human. In classic scientific inquiry, a majority of subjects need to show an effect to conclude that the effect is real. In contemporary scientific thought, there is currently a movement afoot to show that only one example can prove an effect is real- “if just one monkey spoke one real world, we’d have enough evidence to draw conclusions about primate communication abilities” and to suggest that the effect was recreatable.(Langer 17) This echoes exactly my sentiments- if just one person shows that something is possible, everyone can then strive to achieve their result. Just as Roger Bannister showed that the four minute mile was not an unbreakable barrier, the old time greats and modern beasts of the iron alter our reality to show that a 700+ lb one arm deadlift is just as possible as a sub 4 minute mile, if one properly applies oneself. If gravity can bend light and Lamar Gant can deadlift 6x his bodyweight, so can you- the possibility exists.

“The psychology first requires that we begin with the assumption that we do not know what we can do or become. Rather than starting from the status quo, it argues for starting from where we would like to be. From that beginning, we can ask how we can reach that goal or make progress toward it.”(Langer 15) Thus, our reality is fundamentally altered with the knowledge that such an act is possible. We’re inundated, however, with negativity, excuses, and disbelief. We’re skeptical of everything, and believe in nothing. This certainty is what holds us back- it hardens and closes our minds to the world in which we actually live, and creates an atmosphere of in which little is actually possible for “the average person”. You’re not average. I’m not average. There is no average. The idea of the interchangeability of humanity is a myth perpetrated by socialists, who in their laudable way wanted workers to be treated in the same manner that the owners were. Their rhetoric, however, has replaced observation of the real world, however, and we now ignore what we know and embrace that which we are told.

We need to start focusing on what’s possible, and ignoring the naysayers… since possible is far cooler (or in that case, hotter) than what’s probable.

Sources:
Langer, Ellen. Counterclockwise. New York: Ballantine, 2009.

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Jamie Chaos

I am a former all-time, all federation world record holder in raw powerlifting at 181lbs, a record I broke just to say fuck you to the internet’s “lifting” community and the powerlifting community at large. Over the last ten years I’ve written over 500 articles on strength training, nutrition, and supplementation, and continue to do so simply to fight the tide of weakness and sadness that currently pervades the scene I’ve called home for the better part of three decades. I’ve got personal trainin certs, BodyPump and BodyCombat certs, a BA in History and East Asian Studies from the University of Arizona, and MBAs from the Vienna University and University of South Carolina on my side, in addition to some sick lifts and a hell of a lot of rage. What the fuck have you got?

32 responses to “Innovate or Stagnate- The Choice Is Yours, Part 1”

Jesse Richards

October 25, 2010

Hell yeah!
Usher In a New Era of Post-Partisan Politics!

October 25, 2010

O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN! O-BAMA! YES WE CAN!
Anonymous

October 25, 2010

What one man can do, another can do.
Daniel

October 25, 2010

My thoughts exactly, Jamie. My long-term goal is a 700lb conventional Deadlift. I will pull it someday in spite of the haters.

And I'm going to look like a total badass as I do so.
Anonymous

October 25, 2010

If a monkey can get elected, you can do anything you set your mind to.
Manveet

October 25, 2010

anybody else astonished at how absurdly long Lamar Gant's arms are relative to his torso length?
Jamie Lewis

October 25, 2010

That is bizarre.
Mike

October 26, 2010

Lamar Gant had freakish arms that went almost down to his knees, but even more freakish was that he held both the deadlift AND bench press record in his weight class at the time, which should just not happen. The same thing that makes a great deadlifter (long arms) should make for a shitty bencher. But alas, it was not so…
Jesse Richards

October 26, 2010

Hey Jamie, what is your opinion on John Broz and his guys? Don't recall you ever mentioning him, but it seems like his philosophy matches up with yours pretty well, and any time you can get a 20 year old to an 800 pound raw squat, you have to be doing SOMETHING right?
Glen MacCharles

October 26, 2010

Those links were really interesting. Nice picture at the end too.

And not that it matters but I finally posted something to my blog.
http://glenmaccharles.blogspot.com/2010/10/first-blog-post-ever.html
Anonymous

October 26, 2010

Glen, how was the show? I suspect that it's a lot harder to run that course than it looks??
Anonymous

October 26, 2010

Back to back knowledge, great post.
Glen MacCharles

October 26, 2010

That course is WAY harder than it looks on TV. By far the most physically demanding thing I've ever done. So much fun though; if you ever get a chance to try out for it you definitely should. Bueno Aires was awesome too. That city moves at a breakneck pace 24 hours a day. The show will air this spring on TV-tropolis. If I had to guess I would say March but my guessing doesn't really mean much.
Anonymous

October 26, 2010

Glen, the critical question: Is Jill as hot in person?
And, did you win? (I'll bet you are signed to silence, but can you hint?)
Daniel

October 26, 2010

Jamie, do you think the fact that i'm gay could have a negative effect on my lifting potential? I mean, in that i think about men in a romantic way, could that cause lower testosterone? I'm a fucking badass anyway, fuck it I can't help that i was born gay, should it matter? Thanks for any advice Jamie, i know i can get a serious answer here.
Daniel

October 26, 2010

Strong poser ^, but I spell better than your ignorant ass.
Iron

October 26, 2010

Brutal post. Brutally strong post.
Dray

October 26, 2010

According to a previous post, homosexuals actually have higher free testosterone levels.
Daniel

October 27, 2010

Thanks Dray, i'll look that up. I just wanna know i can be homosexual AND a fucking badass too!
Anonymous

October 27, 2010

It would seem that you are not much of a bad-ass, if you have to confirm it on an Internet blog full of strangers. You said you were gay, don't add "stupid" to the list. No offense intended.
rejuvenile21

October 27, 2010

Why the hate on socialists?

I can name a plethora of socialist who stood out against the status quo to create revolutionary change because they percieved a idea and ran with it. It was only through the coercion of the elite however that the ideals fell short in practice. In each instance of revolutionary socialism they understood the limitlessness of human potential and wanted to harness that power. (marx, hegal, bukanin,descartes, mill etc..).

The postivist research methodologies CnP now embraces in the blogs articles are a testement of rejecting the status quo, hell even free speech was just a dream of yesteryear and can be easily lost as you have mentioned when people forget to embrace the power of human intellect in the individual.
HE HATE ME

October 27, 2010

Lamar Gant's deadlift ain't got shit on that chick pressing up those heavy hooters with perfect form.
Daniel

October 27, 2010

@ Anonymous: That's not me. It's some stupid internet troll.
JasonDB

October 27, 2010

This is me… but I am an internet troll… I just use my real pictures and identity sometimes whenst trolling.

Good blog this go around Jamie.
Glen MacCharles

October 27, 2010

I didn't get to meet Jill Wagner. This is going to be season one of Wipeout Canada so the hosts are different. http://www.tvtropolis.com/wipeout/Meet+Hosts/3103153/story.html Her name is Jessica Phillips and yes, she is hot in person.
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs902.snc4/71509_446180012535_542092535_5889958_1473694_n.jpg
And you're right, I'm not allowed to talk about who won. No hints either, you'll just have to watch the show.
Anonymous

October 27, 2010

Good pic, Glen. Thanks.
Jamie Lewis

October 27, 2010

Rejuvanile- I hate on the socialist precept of egalitarianism, among many other things. I enjoy picking apart Marx, primarily because he saw humans as interchangeable organic robots. If my value to society is the equivalent of a mouthbreathing Nascar fan, whosoever has made that valuation will die slowly.
Anonymous

October 29, 2010

Enlighten us as to how exactly your, or any of our, values are significantly higher than aforementioned Nascar fans; how has/will SOCIETY benefit from you?

CnP, changing the world one blog post at a time.
Anonymous

October 29, 2010

society benefits from those who excel at worthwhile endeavors, whether or not proles benefit from those endeavors.
Anonymous

October 29, 2010

Good job saying something and absolutely nothing at the same time.
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