30 Aug Is fitness just about lifting weights?
“Lift more weight! Yes, lift that! Lift weights 3-5 times a week! Barbells, dumbbells!”
This is what you always hear. It’s what you see every day in fitness magazines or on bodybuilding websites.
Fitness has become synonymous with lifting weights, but I don’t agree with this narrow perspective.
Fitness—or better yet, being fit, in good shape, and healthy—doesn’t have a single solution.
Out of all the activities you might enjoy doing daily, lifting weights is often touted as the most beneficial. But beneficial for whom? I’ll tell you—for the companies behind those fitness magazines and websites.
If you take a closer look, you’ll find that every supplement magazine sponsors or endorses its own products. With a little curiosity, you can easily discover which companies are behind each muscle or fitness magazine out there.
Every workout plan, every diet pushed by a magazine, a trainer, or a website, comes with a few recommendations.
Lately, some have started claiming you don’t really need supplements to see results, but that’s a misleading statement.
When they show before-and-after photos and testimonials from people swearing by their program, how many will try to replicate it exactly, including the supplements? How many would skip the supplements entirely?
As I’ve said before, fitness isn’t about making people healthy or fit anymore. It’s about selling the most products, making the most money, and growing an already massive customer base.
Why can’t fitness be associated with self-defense, boxing, kickboxing, dancing, swimming, rock climbing, or playing team or individual sports?
I practiced kickboxing for about a year with an ex-European Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu silver medalist and kickboxing teacher. To this day, I think of it as the best sport I’ve ever trained for.
I lost significant weight, became faster, improved my agility, discovered balance, and much more. My coordination improved, and my overall athleticism drastically increased.
After eight years of weightlifting, I gained muscle mass and strength, but fitness is about more than just that.
During my year of kickboxing, I rediscovered my passion for training. The variety of hits, combinations, bodyweight exercises, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu on the mat left me in better shape than before.
Now, you might think I’m crazy for bashing weights—something I love—but consider this: wouldn’t you rather do something you love? Something you’re good at and enjoy day after day?
Maybe you’re fast, coordinated, and have sharp reflexes. Why suppress those in the gym in pursuit of 21-inch biceps? If you enjoy nature, why not try swimming, cycling, or rock climbing?
In the long run, doing something you love will always bring more benefits than doing something you hate.
Someday, usually around the age of 30, you might start regretting all the nonsense you read online—all those false hopes, and hours spent in the gym without any notable rewards.
Some people can adapt and stick with something every day until they become champions, ignoring distractions and reaching their goals.
But the majority of people just want to have fun. That’s the reality.
Less than 5 to 10 percent of gym-goers actually enjoy being there. Sure, they want bigger biceps or a bigger chest, but they hate the gym, the weights, the other members, the showers, the pills, the diet, and the lifestyle.
Fitness or being fit isn’t just about lifting weights. And that’s perfectly fine. I’d choose a fit kickboxer over a tired, gassed meathead any day. And for sure, I’d choose one of those salsa dancers over girls spending a lifetime on the treadmill.
In the end, people need to realize that it doesn’t matter how you achieve your fitness goals. Nobody at the beach is going to ask if you squat 320 pounds or bench-press 280. People admire a good-looking body, but they don’t care how it was built.
Magazines, trainers, and coaches have started pushing aggressive messages, mocking those who don’t lift. The internet followed suit, with people asking each other if they “really lift,” if they train hard enough, and boasting about their workout routines.
But really, who cares? These are just slogans created to make you part of a tribe or a cult—a legion of brainwashed customers who identify only with the master trainer or master program, making fun of everyone else and dismissing other methods.
Only the fitness industry profits from this, not you, me, or the millions of people constantly trying to get in shape. As I’ve said before, fitness isn’t about getting people in shape, but about getting people to buy products.
No single method works for everyone, and no method is superior. So, dissing others for lifting weights or for not lifting weights is just plain stupid.
I trained with a professional male dancer for a while. I’ve never seen legs like his—more impressive and powerful than 99% of the people in the gym, despite him using light weights for stretching and training. His body radiated power, agility, and strength, and he moved with a grace most could only dream of.
There’s much to say about what fitness is and isn’t, but understand this: choosing an activity that requires strength, power, speed, and agility will benefit you. If you love lifting, great, but there are other ways to build a healthy, good-looking body beyond the gym.
People should take a moment to think about what they enjoy doing. Do they enjoy static routines, or do they want to perform outside, inside, move a lot, jump, run, or swim?
In the end, there’s an activity for everyone—something you’ll enjoy and have fun doing. You can always mix things up. Nobody expects you to do the same thing over and over like a machine.
In the summer, get outside more—run, bike, swim, climb. Use the winter months to build strength and power, spend some time focusing on bodyweight exercises or combat sports—it’s all up to you.
Fitness is more than going to the same gym all your life, lifting the same weights, and spending time on the treadmill. Even your job changes, so why keep your fitness routine stuck in the gym? Have some fun, experiment, and start enjoying what you do.