Health Hacker Adam MacDougall tips to get started with training
Marcus Bondi knows there are no magic tricks to getting stronger. It happens by fronting up and persevering, one second at a time.
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Have you ever noticed that when you’re doing something you really enjoy time just seems to vanish? Hours can feel like they’re flying by in seconds when you’re doing something fun, right?
But there’s an opposite side to that, too. Which is why 60 seconds will feel like an eternity and then some for Marcus Bondi.
The Sydney strongman will today attempt to break his own Guinness World Record for the most chin-ups performed in one minute. And just in case that doesn’t sound tough enough, he’ll be doing it while wearing a 45.3kg backpack.
The Chin Up, Bondi event at the Beach Road Hotel is designed to promote awareness for mental health and suicide prevention, as well as much-needed funds, and Marcus’s record attempt will be the main attraction.
“I broke the record about four years ago,” Marcus says. “It was 14 reps in 60 seconds.
“This time it’s about reminding people to keep your chin up.
“Letting people know it’s OK to just put one foot in front of another, to get out into nature, to reconnect.
“People don’t need to do what I do, and they don’t need to go and run a marathon. Take a walk around the block, do a single push-up. It’s a start, and you’ll feel better.”
Sixty seconds might not sound like a long time, but Marcus says he’ll be fighting the urge to give up for every single one of them. The secret, he says, is that there is no secret.
“Attempts like these are a gradual, incremental process,” he says.
“There are no magic tricks. It’s just reps and reps and reps, millimetre by millimetre, gram by gram, until you’re ready.
“The secret to not giving up is all in the plan. Stick to the plan, that’s the only secret.”
1 TAKE MICRO-STEPS. “Even if your plan is to increase the weight you’re lifting by one milligram, then that’s what you do,” Marcus says. “Stick to the plan, that’s the secret. It’s one step at a time.”
2 QUIT QUITTING. “It’s just not an option,” Marcus says. “I push myself to do my best and that means continuing to push until my body just won’t go any further.”
3 PLAN IT OUT. “You don’t just wake up one day and decide to try the impossible,” Marcus says. “I plan it out emotionally, strategically, intellectually, and then I work towards that goal every day.”
Ask Adam …
Q Hi Adam, I try to cook at home as often as I can but sometimes we all just feel like some quick and easy takeaway food. Are there any healthy options out there?
A Thai food is one of Australia’s favourite takeaway options but it can be a minefield for people trying to lose weight. My top tip is to avoid the Pad Thai (which can pack more fat than a Big Mac), spring rolls and curry puffs, and instead go for a Thai beef salad or grilled chicken skewers.
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