Arnold Schwarzenegger and the start of bodybuilding
Arnold was a young man whose family at first had no idea why he built his life around muscles. This is part 3 of the series: the story of how persistence, reading and training partners turned an ordinary boy into a bodybuilder.
Why did Arnold choose bodybuilding?
“Arnold Schwarzenegger Education of a Bodybuilder by Schwarzenegger Schwarzenegger and Dougals Kent Hall” conveys one thing very well: the bodybuilder didn’t want a quiet, predetermined life. In his parents’ eyes, their son’s undertaking was without prospects, odd and unserious. In their world, a young person was supposed to do something steady, calm and easy to understand.
Arnold wanted the opposite. He wanted to do something stunning, something interesting and unprecedented. When his father asked what he was ever going to do with those muscles, Arnold answered straight out: he wanted to become an actor and go to America. The family was shocked. They even thought it wouldn’t hurt to call a doctor, because his parents had begun to doubt their son’s health.
Honestly, this is a familiar picture even today. When a young person starts training very seriously, people immediately ask whether they’re overdoing it. The difference is that Schwarzenegger wasn’t training just for abs or a beach body. For him, bodybuilding was a road to a bigger life.
Arnold got to know his body instead of just lifting
His life had taken a turn. All his attention went to training and muscle development. Everything else became secondary. But an important detail is that the bodybuilder didn’t stop at the weights. He began to study the theoretical side of bodybuilding more and more.
He read everything he could get his hands on that was directly or indirectly related to bodybuilding. Anatomy, the structure of the musculature, the physiological foundations of training — these weren’t dry school subjects to him but practical tools. When you know what a muscle does, it’s easier to understand why one exercise works and another doesn’t.
Bodybuilding magazines didn’t escape his attention either. New friends helped him make sense of the English-language texts. They didn’t just translate the words but added their own comments and remarks. That’s how “Muscle Builder” and “Mr. America” reached Arnold, featuring Larry Scott, Ray Routledge, Serge Nubret and other names of the day.
The strongest impression, however, was left by Reg Park. Arnold saw in Park something that Steve Reeves, with an elegant line and a slender physique, didn’t offer. Reg Park was big, powerful and imposing. That very look lit up Arnold’s eyes.
“That man is a beast; I want to become like that too, big and powerful,” Arnold had dreamed.
Training turned from a habit into a competition
Soon the changes began to show. His musculature grew, his body became more shapely and the overall impression began to resemble that of a bodybuilder. His training frequency rose from three sessions to six sessions a week. That was no small change. A rhythm like that already demands a plan, sleep, eating and a mind that can withstand the strain.
But Schwarzenegger needed more than instructions. He needed someone who would keep him sharp. Someone who would fight fatigue and hardship in the same way. Training together created an element of competition, and that is exactly what pushed him to try harder.
This is where Karl Gerstl comes in, a good friend of Arnold’s who was a doctor, and a training partner. When the hard days came, Karl didn’t immediately blame the body. Karl simply said: “It’s not your body — that can’t change in a day or two. The cause is your mind; it’s tired.”
So what actually happens? Some days the bar moves easily and you feel strong. On other days the same weight feels like an unfamiliar load. The bodybuilder learned that swings like these don’t mean failure. They are part of training.
What does Arnold teach today’s trainee?
A simple truth: muscles don’t grow from a list of exercises alone. They grow when a person can act consistently, keep learning and, when necessary, pull themselves together. In Arnold’s case, it was precisely this mix that mattered — a big goal, constant learning and a strong environment.
If you take one thing away from this story, it’s first of all the attitude. Training doesn’t have to be heroic every time. Sometimes it’s enough to show up and get the plan done. Sometimes a training partner helps. Sometimes a single sentence at the right moment helps.
Arnold considered both physical and moral support important. Especially the latter. When the last reps were hard, Karl Gerstl’s words gave him new strength and confidence: “One more time …, one more …” That’s old gym logic, but it still works today.
The most useful lesson isn’t that everyone should want to become like Reg Park. It’s rather that serious progress needs a clear reason. If the reason is weak, the will disappears at the first sign of fatigue. If the reason is strong, even a hard day becomes doable.
FAQ: Arnold and early bodybuilding
Why didn’t Arnold’s family understand his interest in bodybuilding?
To them it seemed an uncertain and odd path. Arnold talked about muscles, becoming an actor and going to America at a time when his family expected a much more ordinary life from him.
Why was Reg Park so important to Arnold?
For Arnold, Reg Park embodied size and strength. Park wasn’t just a good-looking physique but a powerful role model by whom Schwarzenegger set his goal.
What can a recreational lifter learn from this story?
Consistency is worth learning. Not all training days are equal, but a good plan, knowledge and a supportive partner help even when motivation is low.
(To be continued)
Author: joker
Source: WHO – physical activity.
Come and train! ArtGym
