Arnold Schwarzenegger Blueprint Trainer Day 50

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Arnold is famous, among countless other things, for his powers of visualization. Most famously, he wrote in “The Encyclopedia,” “In my mind I saw my biceps as mountains, enormously huge, and I pictured myself lifting tremendous amounts of weight with these superhuman masses of muscle.” Just as compelling, in the “The Education of a Bodybuilder,” he obsesses over his idol Reg Park to the point that “in my mind, I could actually see myself standing in Reg Park’s body.”

It can be easy to read those stories and think of Arnold as a dreamer or an artist, but according to Bill Dobbins, co-author with Arnold of “The Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding,” to do so overlooks what made the Oak such an unparalleled success: his pragmatism. “Working with Arnold … has taught me the truth of the saying, ‘Seeing through the game is not the same as winning the game,’” Dobbins told Bodybuilding.com in an interview in 2007. “The so-called ‘artistic’ mind is prone to try and understand what the underlying reality of a situation is. Arnold is more interested in understanding the literal reality and figuring out how to achieve his goals in any given situation.”

Case in point: the 1970 Mr. Universe competition, where Arnold faced off unexpectedly against his hero Park. “I thought he was on my side!” Arnold recalls in his autobiography “Total Recall.” His adult accomplishments now head-to-head with his childish dreams, Arnold held firm to the blueprint: “When a reporter make me how it would feel to compete against the greatest Mr. Universe ever, I lost my usual happy-go-lucky attitude. ‘Second greatest,’ I corrected him. ‘I’ve won the title more times than him.’”

Arnold left with the crown that day, saying, “A few years earlier it might have been different, but now it was my turn to be king.” Tackle today’s workout and get your own crown.

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