Articles
People Who Lift Weights...And Weightlifters
July 30 2012
July 30 2012
A few years ago, I wrote a Performance Menu article about the difference between two types of people: those who lift weights, and those who are weightlifters. You might not have read it because it’s pretty old and I didn’t include it in Bones of Iron. I wasn’t happy with the way it turned out, aside from the main idea which I thought was pretty good. So I’ll hit that idea again here. Maybe the whole thing will taste better if I just keep dumping more frosting on it.
Some people lift weights, and some people are weightlifters. Believe me, brothers and sisters, there’s a big damn difference between these two groups. One of them is something you do, and the other one is something you are. People who lift weights don’t understand the difference as much as weightlifters do. People who lift weights often think of themselves as weightlifters, but they’re not. And weightlifters know this. Weightlifters know other weightlifters instinctively. They can tell if you’re a real member of the tribe just by looking at a few things you do and listening to a few things you say. These things usually don’t even occur to people who lift weights. Trying to explain them is like trying to explain why cool breezes feel good.
Once you’re a weightlifter, you’re a weightlifter for the rest of your life even if you stop training seriously. It never leaves you once you’ve had it in your cytoplasm. People who lift weights can make the transition and become weightlifters, at some point. It requires some big changes, but it’s possible. Once they’ve crossed over, they can look back and understand things they were never able to see before.
If you’re really a weightlifter, you probably understood everything I’ve said so far. If you’re a person who lifts weights, you might not know what the hell I’m talking about. It’s a good thing for you that I’m considerate and I care about your feelings, because I’m going to give you fifteen little tips that will make this as clear as an unmuddied lake.
1- People who lift weights rely on their discipline and commitment to summon up the strength to go to the gym and work out. Weightlifters get separation anxiety and feel like crap if they don’t go to the gym and work out.
2- People who lift weights watch mainstream sports events like the NBA Finals and say, “LeBron James is amazing. He’s a basketball god.” Weightlifters watch the NBA Finals and say, “I bet LeBron James can’t clean and jerk to save his ass.”
3- People who lift weights say things like, “Will you watch my form on these lat pulls?” and they don’t think there’s anything weird about it. Weightlifters say things like, “You’ve got a great looking snatch” and they don’t think there’s anything weird about it.
4- People who lift weights will walk right in front of you while you’re lifting. Weightlifters understand that you’re asking to get kicked in the face if you walk in front of somebody while they’re lifting.
5- People who lift weights think commercial gyms like LA Fitness are training palaces. Weightlifters think commercial gyms like LA Fitness are one small step above a leper colony.
6- People who lift weights have snazzy, colorful gym clothes that fit perfectly and accentuate their muscles. Weightlifters have neoprene knee sleeves that make the rest of their laundry smell like a dead rhino’s carcass when they wash everything together.
7- People who lift weights think biceps and calves are sexy. Weightlifters think quads and traps are sexy.
8- People who lift weights get to watch the Olympics at dinnertime. Weightlifters have to watch the Olympics at one o’clock in the morning.
9- People who lift weights wear black fingerless gloves when they work out. Weightlifters wear calluses and chalk when they work out.
10- People who lift weights think of running as a great supplement to their training. Weightlifters think of In-N-Out Burger as a great supplement to their training.
11- People who lift weights save their money for big flat-screen TVs. Weightlifters save their money for Eleiko bars.
12- People who lift weights try to look on the bright side when they have bad workouts. Weightlifters make up new combinations of cuss words when they have bad workouts.
13- People who lift weights can easily buy new jeans when they need them. Weightlifters…can’t.
14- People who lift weights think every gym should be equipped with a squat rack. Weightlifters refuse to acknowledge anything as a “gym” if it doesn’t have multiple squat racks.
15- People who lift weights watch travel shows where they fall in love with exotic locations like Fiji and Thailand. Weightlifters think it would be cool to take a trip to Bulgaria.
Maybe we all know a little more about each other now. Maybe not. You can make up your own mind where you fit in. It might seem like there’s an underlying thread in this post implying that weightlifters are superior to people who lift weights, but that’s not really what I was thinking. I’ve got a little more of a transcendentalist/hippie view of this whole thing. We’ve all got the same iron spirit running through us. It’s just that the spirit takes some people in one direction, and it takes others in a different direction. Some people become fanatics, while others just dabble. In my opinion, there’s nothing wrong with dabbling. Anytime somebody is using the barbell to get any kind of positive results, it’s a good thing. Weightlifters sometimes get carried away and treat people like pond scum if they don’t commit their entire lives to the sport. That’s not how I roll. Life’s too short, you know what I mean? People have freedom of choice and they can make up their own minds how deeply they want to dive into this thing of ours. They just have to settle up with the fact that part-time commitment delivers part-time results.
I’m a weightlifter. I knew that when I was fifteen years old.
What are you?
What do you want to be?
Some people lift weights, and some people are weightlifters. Believe me, brothers and sisters, there’s a big damn difference between these two groups. One of them is something you do, and the other one is something you are. People who lift weights don’t understand the difference as much as weightlifters do. People who lift weights often think of themselves as weightlifters, but they’re not. And weightlifters know this. Weightlifters know other weightlifters instinctively. They can tell if you’re a real member of the tribe just by looking at a few things you do and listening to a few things you say. These things usually don’t even occur to people who lift weights. Trying to explain them is like trying to explain why cool breezes feel good.
Once you’re a weightlifter, you’re a weightlifter for the rest of your life even if you stop training seriously. It never leaves you once you’ve had it in your cytoplasm. People who lift weights can make the transition and become weightlifters, at some point. It requires some big changes, but it’s possible. Once they’ve crossed over, they can look back and understand things they were never able to see before.
If you’re really a weightlifter, you probably understood everything I’ve said so far. If you’re a person who lifts weights, you might not know what the hell I’m talking about. It’s a good thing for you that I’m considerate and I care about your feelings, because I’m going to give you fifteen little tips that will make this as clear as an unmuddied lake.
1- People who lift weights rely on their discipline and commitment to summon up the strength to go to the gym and work out. Weightlifters get separation anxiety and feel like crap if they don’t go to the gym and work out.
2- People who lift weights watch mainstream sports events like the NBA Finals and say, “LeBron James is amazing. He’s a basketball god.” Weightlifters watch the NBA Finals and say, “I bet LeBron James can’t clean and jerk to save his ass.”
3- People who lift weights say things like, “Will you watch my form on these lat pulls?” and they don’t think there’s anything weird about it. Weightlifters say things like, “You’ve got a great looking snatch” and they don’t think there’s anything weird about it.
4- People who lift weights will walk right in front of you while you’re lifting. Weightlifters understand that you’re asking to get kicked in the face if you walk in front of somebody while they’re lifting.
5- People who lift weights think commercial gyms like LA Fitness are training palaces. Weightlifters think commercial gyms like LA Fitness are one small step above a leper colony.
6- People who lift weights have snazzy, colorful gym clothes that fit perfectly and accentuate their muscles. Weightlifters have neoprene knee sleeves that make the rest of their laundry smell like a dead rhino’s carcass when they wash everything together.
7- People who lift weights think biceps and calves are sexy. Weightlifters think quads and traps are sexy.
8- People who lift weights get to watch the Olympics at dinnertime. Weightlifters have to watch the Olympics at one o’clock in the morning.
9- People who lift weights wear black fingerless gloves when they work out. Weightlifters wear calluses and chalk when they work out.
10- People who lift weights think of running as a great supplement to their training. Weightlifters think of In-N-Out Burger as a great supplement to their training.
11- People who lift weights save their money for big flat-screen TVs. Weightlifters save their money for Eleiko bars.
12- People who lift weights try to look on the bright side when they have bad workouts. Weightlifters make up new combinations of cuss words when they have bad workouts.
13- People who lift weights can easily buy new jeans when they need them. Weightlifters…can’t.
14- People who lift weights think every gym should be equipped with a squat rack. Weightlifters refuse to acknowledge anything as a “gym” if it doesn’t have multiple squat racks.
15- People who lift weights watch travel shows where they fall in love with exotic locations like Fiji and Thailand. Weightlifters think it would be cool to take a trip to Bulgaria.
Maybe we all know a little more about each other now. Maybe not. You can make up your own mind where you fit in. It might seem like there’s an underlying thread in this post implying that weightlifters are superior to people who lift weights, but that’s not really what I was thinking. I’ve got a little more of a transcendentalist/hippie view of this whole thing. We’ve all got the same iron spirit running through us. It’s just that the spirit takes some people in one direction, and it takes others in a different direction. Some people become fanatics, while others just dabble. In my opinion, there’s nothing wrong with dabbling. Anytime somebody is using the barbell to get any kind of positive results, it’s a good thing. Weightlifters sometimes get carried away and treat people like pond scum if they don’t commit their entire lives to the sport. That’s not how I roll. Life’s too short, you know what I mean? People have freedom of choice and they can make up their own minds how deeply they want to dive into this thing of ours. They just have to settle up with the fact that part-time commitment delivers part-time results.
I’m a weightlifter. I knew that when I was fifteen years old.
What are you?
What do you want to be?
I think the jeans thing is hysterical. Totally relate
Actually none of those things qualify you to be a weightlifter. A weightlifter is one who participates in the sport of weightlifting, which doesn't involve the deadlift, squat or bench press.
Maybe you could work on training your sense of humor a bit - that would clear this all up for you pretty quickly.
the squat, bench, and deadlift are the tested lifts in power lifting, which, with Olympic lifting, fall under the definition of weightlifting. Guy builds himself up to an impressive snatch or a big squat, they both plan their lives around training, they don't go to the gym to "get a work out in". And personally, having only done power lifting stuff, oly lifts look more like weight-slinging then weight lifting. lol all you people... getting butt-hurt? On MY internet?!
"weightlifting" is the official internationally recognized name for the sport of the snatch and clean & jerk. There's nothing emotional about clarifying that fact to someone who wants to whine about not being included under the umbrella of "weightlifting".
I actually don't talk shit about powerlifting or powerlifters. Matt used to be one and doesn't either. No one's getting butthurt other than the poster and apparently you, who have already criticized weightlifting as being inferior to powerlifting.
Lastly, and probably most importantly, it's important to have a sense of humor. If you know you don't fit into the category of people who don't take training seriously, you shouldn't be upset by this at all. Even those who don't take training seriously shouldn't be upset - they should be able to laugh about it and go back to doing what they're doing because that's what they want to do.
Fuck.
Also, did this DM post get removed or something? Enjoyed the end of the conversation, but missed the original post.
I don't know what happened to the comment. We didn't remove it.
Great post!
Great, Great Insight, Matt, as always
Looks like I mostly fall into the "lifts weights" category. That said, I've improved my body in amazing ways, so I think I'll stick with it.
Fun article.
Awesome.
I'm not so experienced in weightlifting like you(not even 1/10th) but I can comment what I see. Also It's not attack on your job in popularizing this sport (coaching, book, seminars, dvds, Catalystathletics site, thanks for that).
wish you all the best
BTW: part of your site readers excited about the Bulgarians but where are they in these Games? Probably they have read from your book that Bulgarians are good and repeating as parrot.
You state that (presumably you're outside the US so your criticism doesn't apply to yourself) we're not good because we don't work hard enough. The point I'm trying to make with my sarcastic response is that it's remarkably naive and overly-simplistic to boil down the disparity between the performances of US lifters and those of more dominant countries to ours simply needing to work harder. Arguably, often US lifters DO work harder than many others, literally, because without national or commercial or even cultural support, by and large in addition to training our lifters must work, usually full-time. This isn't true for all of them, but we have literally a handful of lifters in an Olympic/national training program only, and it receives so little funding it's almost a sick joke. The rest are in school, working jobs, and training under coaches who are overworked and underpaid if paid at all. Compare that to a system with professional coaches, a country that cares deeply about the sport, athletes who begin at young ages and are developed properly long term and for whom there are incentives to perform. Here weightlifters are guaranteed nothing but a life of poverty and obscurity. The only reason to do it is for the love of it - I believe that should be and can be incentive enough, but there are limits to what one can do with no money.
In any case, I'll concede that the US undoubtedly has lifters who are not working as hard as they should or could be; I can actually think of a few off the top of my head. But that it's the crux of the problem, I can't agree.
It's collectively our own fault for the state we're in. I don't blame anyone else. Maybe where you're from people know and care about weightlifting, know about and care about weightlifters, and respect and admire the athletes and coaches. Here, we silly Americans have to keep doing our best to keep chipping away at the uninitiated public, and entertainment is easily the best vehicle to carry awareness of the sport to new people, so please forgive our petty transgressions in our feeble and perhaps futile attempts to pull ourselves out of the current state we're in.
Second, I'm surprised that anybody thought I was disrespecting "people who lift weights" since the entire last section of the article made it clear that I don't have a problem with anybody in the barbell world. I wrote "Anytime somebody is using the barbell to get any kind of positive results, it’s a good thing. Weightlifters sometimes get carried away and treat people like pond scum if they don’t commit their entire lives to the sport. That’s not how I roll." I did that specifically to point out that I don't have a bad attitude towards bodybuilders, powerlifters, or people who just like to exercise at commercial gyms. I've trained with all of these groups of people at some point in my lifting life, and I'm cool with everybody.
My whole point was that weightlifters (and I mean Olympic weightlifters) are different from everybody else. Not superior, just different. A Ferrari is different than a Humvee. It doesn't necessarily mean one is better than the other. It just means they're different, and they serve different purposes.
But regardless, everybody has their own view of things. I get that. I'll keep a close eye on my douche baggery in the future. I don't want it to get out of control.
Ever heard the rule that if you are sitting at a poker table and you cant pick out who the suckers are, guess what, its you?
Yeah, read that article again, guess what.........
I cry myself to sleep at night.
Best part is the observation that it's the tiny details that let members of the tribe instantly recognize each other. Rings true to me.
I'm a snowboarder who happens to lift weights, and I know lots of people who snowboard but very few snowboarders or skiers. (I do like to think I lift like a weightlifter even if that's not my mental image of myself...)
As an example, the minimum starting salary for the NFL in 2011 was $325,000... I'd argue that the US has the talent and strength to field a strong O Lifting Team, but with opportunities like that, a lot of those individuals are going elsewhere. So, unless the US is willing to pay average lifters a six figure salary and great lifters millions, I think the majority of the US athletic talent will continue to pursue other well paying professional sports.
That was pure and true, its not about hating on traditional gym lifters. We all have differences. Glad to see u are doing good brother.
Btw, why cant you walk infront of someone that is working out if he is a "weightlifter" ?
I did find this humorous, but I also found this thought provoking! I have only been seriously lifting since March 2015, so I am still very much a newbie. I feel like I identify with both sides, to be honest. I feel like I am teeter-tottering in between a female who "lifts weights" and a female weightlifter. I feel like I am in the middle of the transition!
Anybody who does #4 is the spawn of pure evil, IMO. My boyfriend has done similar to me a few times in my garage gym and it pisses me off every single time. I feel like being startled, scared, interrupted or invaded during any lift is just dangerous to me and anybody else around me.
I've been guilty of #6. Normally not into aesthetics, but...yeah, I'll admit to that one :(
#5, 7, 9, 12 and 13 I love!
Random comments: Quads and trap envy is a newer concept I have come to appreciate!
Also, realizing that fueling up and learning to stop demonizing foods truly supplements my workouts! I tried running 3-4 times a week AND lifting heavy 3x a week. All I did was wreck myself!
#14 is a total unicorn! Luckily, I have my own squat rack at home, but if I ever had a gym membership again & had access to more than one rack...I'd never leave
Stupid Comment