Before you ever pick up barbell, you should know the story of Milo. It should be posted on the door of every gym.
Milo of Croton was a six-time Olympic wresting champion nearly 3,000 years ago. The legend of Milo and his bull is perhaps one of the most famous weight-training stories of all time.
As legend has it…
… young Milo began training by picking up a newborn calf, placing it on his shoulders and carrying it for one mile. Milo would do this every day. And as the newborn calf gained weight and grew larger, Milo grew bigger and stronger.
Eventually, Milo was carrying a full grown bull on his shoulders for a full mile. And as a result, Milo had developed incredible strength and power.
This story demonstrates one of the guiding principles of training: The principle of progressive resistance.
Adhere to this principle and you can build super-human strength. Add just two pounds to the bar every week and after 12 months you’ll have added 104 pounds to your bench press.
Get greedy and try to add 25lbs to your bench press in one jump and your progress will sputter and stall. The key to consistent gains is progressive resistance.
And we have Milo of Croton to thank for that.
Most people have heard the story of Milo and his bull. But here are some more interesting details about the life in Milo. Keep in mind, the facts have been stretched and exaggerated over the years. So we don’t know if any of this is actually true so take it all with a grain of salt.
* Some people believe Milo ate 20 pounds of meat, 20 pounds of bread and drank 18 pints of wine per day.
* Legend has it that Milo carried his own bronze statue to the Olympia.
* Milo often challenged bigger and stronger man to try and forcibly remove a pomegranate from his grip. No one ever succeeded and despite the enormous grip strength it took to maintain his grasp on the fruit, the pomengranate was never damaged.
* Other reports claim that Milo would stand on a greased shield and challenge others to push him off. No one could.
* Still another report claims Milo could burst a band tied around his head simply by inhaling and forcing the veins in his head to swell.
Is it any of it true? Who knows. And to be honest, it doesn’t matter. The lesson here is the amazing thing that happens when you properly apply the progressive resistance to your training.
Just as the magic of compound interest can grow a dollar into a fortune, the magic of progressive resistance can transform a weakling into a strongman.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Pass the salt, please. Interestingly enough, here is a study that found grazing cattle gained about 2 pounds per day, or 14 pounds per week. Either Milo was genetically gifted or he had a series of young bulls to carry.
Oops…here’s thelink:
http://www.ans.iastate.edu/report/air/2006pdf/R2068.pdf
One of the most basic yet forgotten principals of weight training. I once had a bodybuilding book by Samir Banout (remember him?) in which he said he built his strength coaxing gains rather than forcing them. This is the essence of progressive resistance. And, in my opinion, doesn’t require failure training. Just consitent and regular increases in weight (with an occasional back off).
@ Bob: Or option 3: The story is just fairy tale.
While perhaps it’s doubtful that Milo made it up to a full-grown bull, others have duplicated the feat and had some success.
Back in the 1940’s, the Borden Milk company did a promotion much like Milo’s. Basically, they hired a farm boy named Allen La Fever and had him lift the a growing calf every day.
I forget how many days he was able to lift the calf (I do remember that at some point he failed). You can read a quick recap here: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,776540,00.html
Although in this experiment, the calf gained “only” 86 pounds in 61 days - far short of the two pounds per day modern cattle gain. (I suspect this is because modern cattle are pumped full of hormones that make them gain weight faster).
Perhaps in Milo’s time a calf would gain weight even slower, perhaps a pound per day - which would make the feat a little more realistic.
@ Thomas:
“Coaxing strength gains”. I like it. It’s certainly accurate.
Interesting link to the Bordon’s Milk test…I notice the date is Dec. 17, 1945. Man, the things we didn’t know back then could now fill an entire library. But I doubt the average man is as strong.
Speaking of Bordon’s Milk, I have recently added raw whole milk to my diet in an attempt to speed recovery and help with joints…do you have any info or opinions?
Bob:
I don’t have any opinions on raw milk. I’ve always wanted to try it but until recently I couldn’t find any sources in my area. Let me know your experience with raw milk.
Ok, glad to.
I started drinking raw milk about three weeks ago. I was led to it by a couple of things. One was something you posted in this blog about the diets of the old timers. I recalled how I used to eat as a kid and the endless strength and recuperative abilities I had then and I asked myself what I have been doing differently in my diet. Milk jumped immediately to mind. I haven’t consumed much milk for many years. The raw part came because I just happened to notice a raw milk delivery truck outside the store…so…I investigated.
Here’s a good info source, and also the producers of my milk:
http://www.organicpastures.com/faq.html
I absolutely crave the stuff now. It has become my breakfast, lunch, dinner and treat drink. I am partially allergic to pasteurized milk: sinus headaches, runny nose, etc. Not so with raw milk. It is a different food entirely.
I began drinking it in the hope it would help with some elbow problems that have plagued me since the mid 1970’s. I also wanted faster recuperation after hard workouts.
I am pleased to report that my elbow problems have all but disappeared. I have not noticed any difference in recuperation time, thus far.