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Iron in My Hands
Just when you think you’ve read all there is to read about lifting weights and building muscle, along comes another 80,000 words echoing in the corners and hallways of the musclehead schemes and routines and hints and tips with the intent to inform, encourage and entertain.
The immediate See iron, lift iron.
The ultimate Train hard, eat right and be happy.
Don’t you just love simple? It’s one of the main reasons I chose the sport. No pitcher, no quarterback, no foul ball and no meddlesome referee. Just you and the iron and the rhythmic sounds of action, the grunts and groans and clanks and thuds.
You are your partner, your team, your biggest competitor and your best fan; muscle and might are your favorite goals, with a good pump and burn to accompany you along the way.
And none of it happens without moving a ton of weights, forging countless sets and reps, enduring a pile of aches and maybe some pain, and amassing a stack of stories to tell.
And speaking of stacks of stories to tell, pull up a bench and I’ll tell you a few.
dd
The immediate See iron, lift iron.
The ultimate Train hard, eat right and be happy.
Don’t you just love simple? It’s one of the main reasons I chose the sport. No pitcher, no quarterback, no foul ball and no meddlesome referee. Just you and the iron and the rhythmic sounds of action, the grunts and groans and clanks and thuds.
You are your partner, your team, your biggest competitor and your best fan; muscle and might are your favorite goals, with a good pump and burn to accompany you along the way.
And none of it happens without moving a ton of weights, forging countless sets and reps, enduring a pile of aches and maybe some pain, and amassing a stack of stories to tell.
And speaking of stacks of stories to tell, pull up a bench and I’ll tell you a few.
dd
- GenresFitnessNonfiction
372 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 19, 2016
About the author
Dave Draper
20 books8 followers
Librarian note:
There is more than one author with this name
Dave^Draper
There is more than one author with this name
Dave^Draper
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 18, 2023
Over the course of the past 45 years, I’ve read more books, essays, and articles about weight training and physical fitness than can fit in a mid-sized U-Hall. I’ve read all the crap consistently published in muscle mags since the mid ‘70s, such as “the fastest way to six-pack abs”, “six-weeks to a herculean body”, and of course, the money-hungry publishers’ favorite: “The Real Secret to Muscular Development”. The secret changes from issue to issue, depending on whatever “champion” is being marketed that month. There’s been so much misinformation written on the subject, it’s almost impossible for the hungry novice to navigate through this jungle of training advice.
But, then the Blonde Bomber, Dave Draper decided to take up a pen in his iron callused mit, and set the record straight. With over 60 years of consistent training experience, and three major bodybuilding titles, he thought he might have something to say. What he didn’t expect was that he had a real talent for writing which brought his unique wisdom to life for thousands of us “muscle heads” to learn from and enjoy.
Strength and fitness coach Dan John likens Draper’s writing to Dylan Thomas’ “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night”. If you’ve ever marveled over that poem, you’ll get a good idea of the beauty and insight of Draper’s work. As John says in the Foreword to this book, Dave’s written work "soars from the mundane to the tremendous (and back again)”.
That’s exactly what I see in all of his work. Dave used to jokingly ask the question, “How many different ways can you write about this stuff, and still make it interesting and entertaining?”
Well, he always found a way, as illustrated by his keen insights and humor soaring like a B-52 in this collection of essays.
There’s a little something for everyone here--Inspiration and knowledge for a woman eager to lose a few pounds and get in shape, to the seasoned and rusty iron-head seeking advice as he battles his aging body for just the right workout groove. Dave keeps it all simple and understandable.
“The immediate message: See iron, lift iron.”
Look around. This world we live in is a mess.
“Who can fix it? We’ve been trying forever, here we are today and it’s still a beautiful mess. Still, our individual participation is vital. Don't do anything to make it worse, and maintain a positive and productive atmosphere around you. Contribute where you can with your talents, knowledge, awareness and energy, and recognize in your head and heart that you’re doing just that. You count. You influence your surroundings far more than you realize. Your smile can light up a room; your glare can darken it. Imagine what your laughter can accomplish right about now. Earthshaking.”
Control what you can control. The gym is a fantastic place to put this into practice.
“Even when the weights are virtually bolted to the floor, you have control. You can practice exhilarating isometrics, exertion with no apparent purpose other than pure exertion. Deeply rewarding and downright fun…”
Or better yet, “Let’s move light weights, since the heavy weights won’t go. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain. We are in the grips of a slump and the only thing standing in the way is the towering, unquenchable ego--a hairy monster with a big stomach and a little brain. The intellect tells us muscle in motion under resistance stimulates tissue growth and adds to the entire system’s health and well-being. Common sense and experience tell us not every day is triumphant. And the Good Book tells us there is a season for everything, reaping and sowing, pumping and burning.”
“We’re learning, day by day. Thank heaven for weightlifting and muscle building. We’re able to make every day a special day. Once past the front counter and along the dumbbell rack, we can finesse our training into a fulfilling challenge or an engaging game: a skillful sport, an uplifting activity or a delightful diversion.”
“Where you have control, take control: exercise and eat right! Training rules, and you’re the law. It’s the stabilizer when your foothold slips, the fortifier when plans are laid to waste, the friend you know amid strangers, the oxygen and fruit of life in a barren place.”
Get the picture? Draper loves this stuff--the lifting of iron; the rugged hard work of muscles doing their thing under resistance. His passion and enthusiasm is contagious.
Not all muscle heads are, er, muscle heads. A lot of us figured out early on that weight training is for the health of the mind, too.
In this fantastic collection, there are so many gems of wisdom, anyone interested in getting fit and mentally healthy can find inspiration aplenty.
There are 73 essays here, written over a few years. They can be read one right after another in a few hours, or one or two as you need them, like those inevitable times you need that little extra motivation to pry yourself from the sofa and boobtube. Whether the activity that’s calling you is just a walk around the block, or a little yoga, or a session of pilates, or some good, old-fashioned iron pumping, this book will put you in the right frame of mind to get moving.
Although there are some suggestions for workout routines to try, this is not a training manual. For training specifics, check out Draper’s “Brother Iron, Sister Steel”. It contains all the training information you’ll ever need, along with the fabulous Bomber wit thrown in. For those folks interested in getting fit, but haven’t got a plan or a clue of where to start, Draper has a great book for you, too. “Your Body Revival”. It’s worth a lot more than its weight in gold.
But, then the Blonde Bomber, Dave Draper decided to take up a pen in his iron callused mit, and set the record straight. With over 60 years of consistent training experience, and three major bodybuilding titles, he thought he might have something to say. What he didn’t expect was that he had a real talent for writing which brought his unique wisdom to life for thousands of us “muscle heads” to learn from and enjoy.
Strength and fitness coach Dan John likens Draper’s writing to Dylan Thomas’ “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night”. If you’ve ever marveled over that poem, you’ll get a good idea of the beauty and insight of Draper’s work. As John says in the Foreword to this book, Dave’s written work "soars from the mundane to the tremendous (and back again)”.
That’s exactly what I see in all of his work. Dave used to jokingly ask the question, “How many different ways can you write about this stuff, and still make it interesting and entertaining?”
Well, he always found a way, as illustrated by his keen insights and humor soaring like a B-52 in this collection of essays.
There’s a little something for everyone here--Inspiration and knowledge for a woman eager to lose a few pounds and get in shape, to the seasoned and rusty iron-head seeking advice as he battles his aging body for just the right workout groove. Dave keeps it all simple and understandable.
“The immediate message: See iron, lift iron.”
Look around. This world we live in is a mess.
“Who can fix it? We’ve been trying forever, here we are today and it’s still a beautiful mess. Still, our individual participation is vital. Don't do anything to make it worse, and maintain a positive and productive atmosphere around you. Contribute where you can with your talents, knowledge, awareness and energy, and recognize in your head and heart that you’re doing just that. You count. You influence your surroundings far more than you realize. Your smile can light up a room; your glare can darken it. Imagine what your laughter can accomplish right about now. Earthshaking.”
Control what you can control. The gym is a fantastic place to put this into practice.
“Even when the weights are virtually bolted to the floor, you have control. You can practice exhilarating isometrics, exertion with no apparent purpose other than pure exertion. Deeply rewarding and downright fun…”
Or better yet, “Let’s move light weights, since the heavy weights won’t go. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain. We are in the grips of a slump and the only thing standing in the way is the towering, unquenchable ego--a hairy monster with a big stomach and a little brain. The intellect tells us muscle in motion under resistance stimulates tissue growth and adds to the entire system’s health and well-being. Common sense and experience tell us not every day is triumphant. And the Good Book tells us there is a season for everything, reaping and sowing, pumping and burning.”
“We’re learning, day by day. Thank heaven for weightlifting and muscle building. We’re able to make every day a special day. Once past the front counter and along the dumbbell rack, we can finesse our training into a fulfilling challenge or an engaging game: a skillful sport, an uplifting activity or a delightful diversion.”
“Where you have control, take control: exercise and eat right! Training rules, and you’re the law. It’s the stabilizer when your foothold slips, the fortifier when plans are laid to waste, the friend you know amid strangers, the oxygen and fruit of life in a barren place.”
Get the picture? Draper loves this stuff--the lifting of iron; the rugged hard work of muscles doing their thing under resistance. His passion and enthusiasm is contagious.
Not all muscle heads are, er, muscle heads. A lot of us figured out early on that weight training is for the health of the mind, too.
In this fantastic collection, there are so many gems of wisdom, anyone interested in getting fit and mentally healthy can find inspiration aplenty.
There are 73 essays here, written over a few years. They can be read one right after another in a few hours, or one or two as you need them, like those inevitable times you need that little extra motivation to pry yourself from the sofa and boobtube. Whether the activity that’s calling you is just a walk around the block, or a little yoga, or a session of pilates, or some good, old-fashioned iron pumping, this book will put you in the right frame of mind to get moving.
Although there are some suggestions for workout routines to try, this is not a training manual. For training specifics, check out Draper’s “Brother Iron, Sister Steel”. It contains all the training information you’ll ever need, along with the fabulous Bomber wit thrown in. For those folks interested in getting fit, but haven’t got a plan or a clue of where to start, Draper has a great book for you, too. “Your Body Revival”. It’s worth a lot more than its weight in gold.
April 10, 2018
Oh deliciousness, why didn't this last longer. This is legendary book for muscleheads. It's perfect training companion. Unless you're pushing weight in exact moment when Draper is on the spree, because there's good chance you'll die under bench press with smile on your face. It's pretty damn hard to push that olympic bar loaded with at least your bodyweight for 10 reps while Draper draps his lines in your ears, making you laugh like an idiot. I was walking around the gym with shit eating grin on my face, and probably erection in my pants. Why the erection? I don't know. I just forgot to keep myself in check while listening to this. Maybe even FOL-ed (farted out loud) few times without knowing. Nevermind. My social demise was worth it, every second of it. No regrets. I just hope those girls that kept secure distance from me last few weeks will come back. You, boys, can stay where you are. Just kidding. I need you when I get stuck again with 90 kilos on my lungs. Oh look, there's second book!
June 13, 2020
I love Dave Draper.
June 19, 2020
Love his sytle
I spearheading Dealer's work. He is no musclehead; he is literate, stylistic, and a pure joy as an author and storyteller.
I spearheading Dealer's work. He is no musclehead; he is literate, stylistic, and a pure joy as an author and storyteller.
July 12, 2022
Was hoping for it to include more ideas for exercise, sets, reps, etc. but all I really took home was super sets are legit and I should be doing more kneeling cable crunches. The writing was good and easy to read but just lacked what I hoped for (I think brother iron sister steel may be more insightful to old school bodybuilding?!)
April 3, 2022
This guy is just so original. Any gym rat would love to listen to it on audio book while training
November 3, 2023
Edit: 3 Nov 2023
Got bored, so I picked this up again.
Chapter 56
"Never know who's reading my pointless nonsense. They're extraordinarily satisfying, too. Swell time-killers and give one the cool appearance that he knows what he's doing."
This explains most of my listening experience with the blond boomer. I might listen to Chapter 65 again for the inspiration and Chapter 72 for the emotions.
---
I didn't expect most of this to be Dave Draper's musings. I thought it's going to be a collection of anecdotes, but it's all essays. Entertaining, but give me something biographical instead. I also want stories about the golden era of bodybuilding.
Instead of reading this, I listened to its audiobook version, because I had one more Audible credit. I stopped at Chapter 35, but I enjoyed listening to Steven Oswalt's handsome and calming voice.
I might pick it up again when I'm ready for this book.
Got bored, so I picked this up again.
Chapter 56
"Never know who's reading my pointless nonsense. They're extraordinarily satisfying, too. Swell time-killers and give one the cool appearance that he knows what he's doing."
This explains most of my listening experience with the blond boomer. I might listen to Chapter 65 again for the inspiration and Chapter 72 for the emotions.
---
I didn't expect most of this to be Dave Draper's musings. I thought it's going to be a collection of anecdotes, but it's all essays. Entertaining, but give me something biographical instead. I also want stories about the golden era of bodybuilding.
Instead of reading this, I listened to its audiobook version, because I had one more Audible credit. I stopped at Chapter 35, but I enjoyed listening to Steven Oswalt's handsome and calming voice.
I might pick it up again when I'm ready for this book.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews