The truth about strength

 "Silence is a source of great strength" - Lao Tzu

In this past year, I have learned a tremendous amount of information about what strength really is. While my physical strength has improved, I believe my improvement in mental strength has been more significant. Often many people view strength as how much you can bench press or squat or curl (lol). I however tend to believe that strength entails much more than the numbers one lifts in the weight room (especially considering the horrendous form used by most people today). So what is strength? I believe strength starts with the amount of resistance you can handle without giving up. While you can equate this to weight room, I often think about other experiences. Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, my hero and favorite boxer of all-time, was wrongly convicted for murder and served 19 years in prison until finally his case was overturned in the year 1985. In prison Rubin never stopped taking care of his mind and body, every day he would total over 10,000 push-ups and he read hundreds of books each year. Another person who defines strength is Bruce Lee. While many people know of Bruce's punching and kicking power, few know of the strength he had to go beyond the limits that society placed on Chinese men in his time. Often directors of movies wanted to tell Bruce what moves he should do in each scene. Bruce refused to do this as he wanted to "honestly express himself." By refusing to be a robot Bruce turned down a lot of potential movies, as well as a lot of money. But as the truly strong people know it's never about the money. Another trait that Bruce had was humility. Nowadays as soon as a kid gets a little muscle he wants to show off to everyone he knows. We have all seen it, a kid gains 10 pounds and he thinks he is the next Ronnie Coleman; tank-tops and sleeveless shirts become a regular part of these "muscular" kids outfits. However, as soon as these types of kids reach a plateau or face a little adversity they never enter the weight room again. REAL STRENGTH is pushing past plateaus and not letting adversity get in the way of you and the goals you have set forth. Strength can not be achieved through anything except long hours and hard work.  So what are you waiting for ?

Thanks for reading. JG