Almost everybody has, or should have, a lifting partner. If you are still lifting weights alone, it is time you consider finding yourself a friend to help you make your experience at the gym a breeze. Lifting becomes more comfortable with a gym friend, iron brother or iron sister, swolemate, or metal comprade, whichever term you use at your sport to refer to a lifting partner. However, finding a lifting partner is not as easy as you think. Not anyone you meet at the gym can make the right workout partner. It goes beyond physical compatibility, and there has to be some chemistry between the two of you. But how will you know that you’ve found the perfect lifting partner?
Well, the following are clues you may have found the ultimate lifting partner.
The perfect gym partner likes most of the things you want. That includes specific exercises and particular kinds of weights. If you find out that you and your new partner do more incline presses than decline presses, you found him/her! The same applies to the number of deadlift sets and preps, and the right partner will go just as far as you can go with deadlifts. If you feel overworked or underworked after a lifting round with your new partner, the chances are that they may not be the right partner for you.
The relationship with your partner must not be confined to the gym. The perfect lifting partner will maintain contact with you outside the workout spot. More often, the two of you would be seen grabbing a meal together or just strolling around town. Real lifting partners will often text, joking about weights, meals, and other things not necessarily associated with the gym.
A lifting partner where you live knows some of your family members. They will come to check on you when you don’t respond to your phone. Your partner knows a couple of your friends as well. Once in a while, your families share a meal or a drink at a high-end restaurant. Similarly, they are your first comforters when facing sad moments like grief. That is the right lifting partner for you.
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The truth is; it is easier to work with someone trying to achieve the same thing as you or similar. The ideal lifting partner shares your aspirations regarding what they want to accomplish in the short-term and long term. If you are working for a lean muscle, find yourself someone who shares that dream with you. Similarly, the perfect gym partner should aim for the same career goal as you. There is no point in training with someone whose primary goal is to win a local title while you are aiming for a significant IFFB title.
What does your lifting partner think about bodybuilding in general? Are they doing it for fun, or are they doing it to achieve short-term goals? Your partner’s thoughts about the exercises you do will tell you whether you have found the right lifting partner. You should consider finding another partner if they are mostly pessimistic about certain things. Reason? They will derail you and prevent you from achieving your bodybuilding goals.
A good match will be your biggest motivation in every bodybuilding aspect. Does your partner push you to achieve your set goals? Even when your will to go on is at its lowest? If yes, then you have just found yourself an ideal partner. The wrong partner would probably discourage you from doing certain things or don’t push you. Also, they should be by your side when facing a bodybuilding contest at any level. They should be among the first people to comfort you when you don’t perform as expected in a competition.
Most importantly, a lifting partner doesn’t see you as a rival but a comrade. That means sharing your successes and defeats in equal measure. That is the person you ought to keep as a lifting partner.
You don’t have to tell your lifting partner things about you. They should know you inside out as far as bodybuilding is concerned. That includes your strengths and weaknesses. The most significant role in their life is to help them become a better version of themselves. Your lifting partner should help you overcome bodybuilding challenges, such as successfully performing strenuous exercises. Most importantly, they should be completely honest with you. If you were losing focus and headed in the wrong direction, they should be able to point it out.
Now that you know what your ideal lifting partner should or should not do, let us see what legendary lifting partners' bodybuilding partners should emulate. You don’t have to copy everything they did, but let it serve as a guide to help grow your bodybuilding career.
Arnold Schwarzenegger is undoubtedly one of the best bodybuilders in history. His rigorous acting career meant he had to do a lot of weightlifting to take on giant monsters in his fictional world. However, he could not have been as successful without a supportive lifting partner. Arnold was struck by the tragic death of his long-time friend and lifting partner, Franco Columbu. The two first met in Germany in the 60s. Their friendship would move to the gym, where they broke and set new records in weightlifting. The duo would do as much as bench press 500 lbs. each and top it up with squats 545 lbs. Additionally, the lifting partners made the deadlift of 710 lbs. look like a piece of cake.
Arnold Schwarzenegger was not your ordinary movie star. Most of the things Arnold did in his action moves he could do in real life, thanks to his prowess in weightlifting. With Columbu, they would do some weight lifting an average person would consider impossible. For instance, they used 100-pound dumbbells for eight preps. And not only that, they did it for flat bench flies. Additionally, the partners would barbell row 315 for ten without a sweat.
Modern boxers such as the likes of Mike Tyson lift weights like regular bodybuilders. Most of them also use performance-enhancement drugs and steroids. There is a thin line between bodybuilding and boxing. Although the two are separate careers, they have a common factor, which is the gym. Before hitting the ring, Tyson spent hundreds of at the gym working out and lifting weights like every other bodybuilder. Zab Judah is not just a normal weight-lifting partner, he is also a reputable boxing champion and is considered the best welterweight boxer.
However, if you were to face either of them in a training session, your life would flash before your eyes. The speed, furiousness, aggressiveness, and intensity of their training is out of this world. If you walked into the gym and didn’t know them well, which is quite unlikely, you can’t say one of them is the trainer. Zab Judah stated that Tyson worked as much in training as he works in the ring. That is perhaps why the legendary boxer has seen more success in the ring than any other fighter in history.
Typical exercise for Tyson and Zab involves 2000 squats and a 66-pound barbell accompanied by 500 shrugs. They also do a lot of neck exercises using various weights. Their partnership in weightlifting has seen them become undisputed boxers in their respective fields.
Most people only know Kenneth ‘Flex’ Wheeler and Ronnie Coleman as rivals. Many people don’t know that the two trained together as well. Their connection goes beyond the ring to other aspects of bodybuilding.
For instance, Ronnie once stated that Flex introduced him to steroid use. But that is not the juice here. The two bodybuilding icons did a lot together to achieve mutual dreams, except when competing against each other. Flex Wheeler has won 4 Arnold Classics and many other titles. Ronnie Coleman, on the other hand, commonly referred to as the real-life ‘Hulk,’ won Mr. Olympia eight years in a row. The combined achievement of the two bodybuilders is a feat many bodybuilders can only dream of.
The two bodybuilders are known to have intense back, shoulder, and chest workouts. The workouts included barbell deadlift, T-bar row, assisted and non-assisted pull-up machine, inclined barbell raise, and seated calf raise, among others.
Dexter Jackson and Kai Greene had a unique training style that involved body part split. The overall objective was to develop maximum muscular mass hypertrophy. The exercises typically involved 3 to 4 sets. Additionally, each training had approximately six activities. If you are still wondering why you need a lifting partner, try digging deeper into the kinds of exercises these two did together. The discipline and commitment to do these exercises successfully come with the collaboration of two like-minded bodybuilders.
Their vigorous exercises saw them succeed in their respective fields, sometimes in the same competition, beyond expectation. Dexter is an Olympia bodybuilding champion and a 2015 Arnold Classic winner. Kai Greene may not be fortunate, having come second in the Mr. Olympia competition three consecutive times in 2012, 2013, and 2014. However, his bodybuilding has contributed to his successes in other areas such as acting, as a trainer, and artist.
The duo is lucky to train alongside Arnold and Columbu. Zane and Draper may not have achieved much in their bodybuilding career, but they are among the best lifting partners. Their training followed a weekly routine with each exercise to achieve a particular goal.
On Mondays, Zane and his partner would do quadriceps and calves. They would do forearms and Abs in the evening of the same day. Every other day of the week had two sets of exercises, one in the morning and the other in the evening. On Thursdays, for instance, they would do back exercises in the morning then shoulders, forearms, biceps, and abs in the evening. Their training involved three days of rest every week.
Frank Zane is a 2-time Mr. Olympia winner, while Dave Draper is considered a legend from the golden era. The latter won Mr. New Jersey when he was only 21.
Bodybuilding is a sport of pride, but one can achieve a lot more if they have a lifting partner to help them gain some lifting milestones. The best bodybuilders in history have had a lifting partner at some point in their fitness careers. A lifting partner does not necessarily make the weights lighter but will motivate you to lift even heavier weights. As highlighted earlier in this article, the perfect lifting partner will push your fitness limits and inspire you to bring out the best in you.
If you have never thought about getting yourself a lifting partner, it is about time you found one. A lifting partner doesn’t have to be a fellow bodybuilder, but it would be better if they are one. Finding a lifting partner could be as easy as approaching anyone at your gym. It will take you a couple of days to know whether they make a perfect partner. If not, feel free to move to the next person.
All in all, find yourself a lifting partner disciplined enough to help you realize your bodybuilding dreams. Bodybuilding comes with many freedoms. Consequently, many people do not get to the top because of a lack of discipline. Additionally, you may have heard of prolific bodybuilders who came down crashing after finding themselves bad company.
In conclusion, a lifting partner is like your third eye. They see what you don’t see and know what works for you and what does not. Listen to what they say; you don’t have to agree with everything they suggest, but consider their opinion when making critical bodybuilding decisions.
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