he subject I will be analyzing is the early years of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s life: entering the bodybuilding society. A critical period in his life and a turning point, which, for sure, fulfilled his destiny. Today, in a world of marketing and advertisement, everyone wants to sign up in a gym or do sports, but then, in the 1960s only a few enthusiasts were trying to accomplish in making their body better, and one of them was young-15-years-old-Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The essential point – was an autograph from Reg Park, which caused Arnold to say: “I want to be the best-built man in the world” and who knows, what could happen ,if young boy didn’t get such portion of enthusiasm, engagement, and feeling that he needs to succeed in lifting and bodybuilding.
The major points on which I will focus on, are the first days in gym, thoughts, and impressions and finally training and plans about career and life. All these elements can not be separated, because of the interconnections between them and, for sure, if some of them did not appear at the particular time, we have probably never seen Arnold, as a world’s famous men icon. The 1960s was an important period in Arnold Schwarzenegger’s life. A period, when a young boy became a man. Time which can characterize Arnold’s entire life and gives an important lesson how to achieve our goals with having the plan, pursuing the next steps and keep going father.
(final draft)
As for being, one of the most successful people, Arnold Schwarzenegger pursued different careers and despite all problems and misleadings accomplished and fulfilled his goals. Being an ordinary person from a small Austrian village, he set his own path to make his dreams become true, no matter what. His life is full of ups and downs, million-to-one chances and unexpected failures. All this made him not only one of the strongest men in the world, but lead him to success. Arnold Schwarzenegger shows us, that no matter what you get: a triumph or overthrow, you should move farther and follow your way to a target.
Back in 1962, when the youth tried to use the barbell in order to be in shape for soccer, began the uprising of a person, who is known, as Arnold Schwarzenegger. When he was a teenager, Arnold’s father believed that his youngest son would become a professional soccer player, but Arnold had his own thoughts about his future. Actually, even being Mr. Universe, he could not say why he chose bodybuilding, expect that he loved it. At the beginning, all whom he knew thought, that he was crazy and his parents could not understand why their son did this and push himself to the limit, until total exhaustion. Arnold did not care about this, he just wanted to follow his calling of life, no matter what it would cost.
The key event which happened at this period, was when Arnold found photography of Reg Park and flushed with the desire to become the best-built man in the world. For this aim, he extended his training to six days per week and developed his schedule how to train and get better results than others. His 8 best training principles were discovered then and never changed during all his bodybuilding career. An interesting fact is that he was the first, who mentioned that lifting requires brain work too. He indicated that with 100 percent concentration he reached higher results. "The first step is to really believe that becoming massive is possible … In the same way, you can command your muscles to lift heavy weights when everything else suggests that you cannot, so you can mentally coax your muscles to grow larger and stronger.” (Muscle & Fitness: Arnold Talks Training). Also, he used visualization techniques, to imagine how he grows bigger. Such small tricks and thoughts can really extend your abilities and bring significant results. Another feature, that demonstrates Arnold’s extraordinary behavior is that he never hides his weaknesses, but shows them as a reminder to himself about the importance of self-improvement and hard work. With the aim to pump his muscles, especially the weak ones, Schwarzenegger used to do fewer reps, but with higher weight, that he could manage to deal with. He was convinced that such technique gives more results than just running through without breaking your limits.
Not the last point to mention, that one of the major key to target a score is gaining knowledge as much as possible. Arnold said: “By seeking out information and experimenting with new approaches, you're better able to discern what works from what's a waste of time. Because each individual is unique, Mr. Olympia's training routine may not work best for you.” (Muscle & Fitness: Arnold Talks Training).
By the time Arnold become famous, he was misunderstood by people, because of his training methods and practices, but such misconceptions didn’t distract him. A good example of Schwarzenegger’s self-confidence and even stubbornness is his talk with the father about the American dream and possible migration to the USA. While Arnold was seriously talking about his plans, his family just ignored him, but it did not hurt Arnold, he just realized that if people did not share his thoughts or did not like them, it is their problem. After this, he taught the “three-part formula”: self-discipline, positive mental attitude, and honest hard work. These three basic rules accompanied Arnold through his entire life, bringing success and mental harmony.
Considering all of this, Arnold Schwarzenegger made himself and accomplished his dream: he went to America and became one of the best in lifting and bodybuilding. His mental discipline and stubbornest, hard work and positive thinking gave him an opportunity to realize himself and become a person whom he wants to be. He became a symbol of a real man for millions of people from different generations, raised lifting to new heights, showed how important it is to love what you do and never turn back when facing difficulties on a way to your main goal.
To conclude, even becoming famous and reaching possible heights, Arnold Schwarzenegger does not forget his life rules. He uses them in everyday life, business and political career. Being an icon for millions in sport, he also followed by common people for his skills and personality.
...(download the rest of the essay above)