#290 Legendary Advice From Frank Zane

Who is Frank Zane?

For those of you who don’t know who Frank Zane is, he was one of the OG Golden Era bodybuilders from back in the day. Compared to some of the Golden Era bodybuilders, he was on the smaller side, but his aesthetics were off the charts.

Frank has always been someone that I’ve looked up to, and paid attention to. The cherry on top? When I pitched Arnold to be my business partner, one of the things he said to me was that my abs and physique remind him of Frank Zane’s. Talk about a crazy compliment.

Meeting Frank at the Arnold Classic

I first met Frank Zane years ago at the Arnold Classic in Columbus, OH. At the time, he was about 70 years old. Sure, I wanted to meet him, but I also had some very specific questions for him.

What did I ask him? I asked him about certain poses, angles, and what worked best for him. What happened next? My shirt’s off, I’m hitting his iconic poses, and he’s adjusting me on the fly.

My next question was, "If you could change something about your training, is there anything that you would recommend?" He said, "I trained pretty heavy, but not crazy heavy. Here’s what I figured out…"

“You’re going to hurt anyway, Cory.” I said, “Okay, what do you mean?” He said, “You're going to hurt if you don't train, you're going to hurt if you train. You're going to have an ache in your knee. Your back's going to hurt a little bit.”

What’s the takeaway here? You have the choice. Are you going to train or are you not going to train? What quality of life do you want to have?

What if I didn’t train?

I believe that I’m a strong guy – especially for my age and size – but I get banged up from time to time.

But what happens if I didn't train? What happens if I didn't push? I’d be fucking weak and my body would hurt anyway. The alternative? To train. Training will help you get stronger, and training will help you maintain strength as you get older.

Choose to be strong, not weak. Choose to push your limits, don’t choose mediocrity. Choose discomfort over comfort. The choice is yours.