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Thread: How to convince Dad to strength train.

  1. #1
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    Oct 2012
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    Default How to convince Dad to strength train.

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    Rip,

    I don't like where his health is going so I've been thinking of ways to persuade him into strength training. At 63 years old, he suffers from sciatic pain and has gastrointestinal issues. He's never lifted weights in his life but he has been a L.A. Marathon runner since 1986, never missing a race. He has the title of "Legacy Runner". That makes him really happy. And that makes me happy too.

    I used to think this was a great way for him to stay in shape but now I'd prefer him to get STRONGER. I'd like to show him some of Dr. Sullivan's Big Medicine writings in This Year in Strength Science to gear him toward resistance training...but I dunno. What would you do?

    Thank you.

    -Tartarus

  2. #2
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    Fire up your printer. Print this too: http://startingstrength.com/index.ph...s_big_medicine

  3. #3
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    Yesler's Palace, Seattle, WA
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe View Post
    Fire up your printer. Print this too: http://startingstrength.com/index.ph...s_big_medicine
    Unfortunately, there's not much one can do to force one's parents to do anything.
    Give him the information, and try not to argue about it.

    I would really love to see my mom barbell training, but she's so goddamn stubborn in thinking that she doesn't need to get stronger (though she was diagnosed as having low bone density at the young age of 52, and recently hurt her back pretty badly) that nothing I can say or do will make much difference.

  4. #4
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    I spent 4 years trying to convince my parents, that as ADSL internet was the same price as the Dialup internet they were using... it would be common sense to upgrade.
    They finally did it when an electrician recommended the exact same.

    I spent the last 2 years trying to convince my Mum to consider strength training, it took a doctor briefly mentioning it to see it happen.

    I don't know, hire a doctor to tell him to do it?
    Old folks are pretty good at blindly following medical advice, they don't know how to google and socratically reason as well as us superior young folk who know what's best for them.

  5. #5
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    You have your work cut out for you. He's 63 and a cardio addict who has never lifted. You could try a stick and carrot approach with some articles that show the detrimental effects of too much long distance running on the body and heart. It shouldn't be too hard to google some up. You could also show him that photo of Darrell Gallenberger in one of Rip's books doing a DL with 400+ at age 72 as an inspiration of better things to come and that are possible. http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...Q9QEwAg&dur=46

  6. #6
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    Thanks guys.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Trewarin View Post
    I don't know, hire a doctor to tell him to do it?
    Well, the article Rip references was written by a doctor.

  8. #8
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    Jul 2012
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe View Post
    Fire up your printer. Print this too: http://startingstrength.com/index.ph...s_big_medicine
    Just sent my mom this article. I'll be working through the lifts with her next week.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Trewarin View Post
    Old folks are pretty good at blindly following medical advice, they don't know how to google and socratically reason as well as us superior young folk who know what's best for them.
    Er, how many "old folks" have you interacted with?

    The Google thing is true for many, but the issue is that you have to fight against beliefs that may have been held for longer than you have been alive and are therefore pretty entrenched, not that older people are inferior at reasoning. Also, parents are going to listen to their doctors more than to their children in part because they remember how long their children were idiots about the world, and they probably will never really forget that on a gut level.

    As for younger adults, I know many people whose job it is to teach "superior young folk", and if this is what you're calling "superior" reasoning ability, that's kind of depressing.

    I suggest to the OP that, whatever he does, he not come at it from a place of condescension. Even those "inferior old folks" can sniff that out. Not to mention that, unless one's father was horrible and abusive, I would assume that he deserves respect and not contempt. You know, because he's one's father and all.

  10. #10
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    starting strength coach development program
    He was obviously joshing around, lol...wow.

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