Showdown in the Weightroom | Asian Air True Stories | GoldSea Asian American Supersite

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Showdown in the Weight Room

o I was working out in the school weight room doing my daily benchpress sets. I was about to do my first warmup set when this white guy and his girlfriend decide to visit me at the bench set. The white guy asks me if he could work in the next set, and I reluctantly gave my permission. So as I was stretching, the guy asks if he could work in now, and added that he would have been done by the time i finished stretching. This kind of pissed me off, and I had to gently and loudly remind him that it was out of my good grace that I allow him to work in the next set and that he had no place rushing me. This especially pisses me off because I am a rather skinny guy and require a lot of concentration when I lift weights. I generally do not like to be rushed. So anyway, I had a suspicion about the guy, so I pretended to be having trouble while lifting my first set (135lb). My arms were shaking and my face red. I exaggerated my struggle with the last rep of the set. When I finished, I sat up and collected myself. It was now his turn on the bench. He put on a quarter plate on each side of the benchpress (185lb).
It was painfully obvious by now that he had turned this into a weightlifing competition for the benefit of his girlfriend. He lifted the set pretty consistently, and his form was actually pretty good. When he finished, he flashed a big shit-eating grin at his girlfriend and gives me the same look. The ass is probably feeling pretty good about himself. He had just bested a skinny asian guy at the manly sport of benchpressing. I look at him like "Whatever", I take off the 25lbs from each side and proceeded to add a plate and a 10 lb to each side. The bar is now sagging under the weight of 265lb. This is definitely not the usual weight I lift. But in the spirit of competition, I lied down and proceeded to rep it consistently 6 times.
Throughout the set, I was aware of the white guy and his girlfriend observing my set (as well as the rest of the people working out, as this drama had attracted an audience by now.) But by the time I put the bar back on the rack, the white guy was quietly sneaking out of the weight room with his girl.

Moral of the story:
Looks can be deceiving, but more importantly. You have nothing to show off if you can lift 185lbs. You have nothing to show off even if you can lift 265lbs. You maybe only have something to show off if you can lift 500lbs. So don't try to provoke people in the weight room.

This guy now probably has developed an inferiority complex towards Asians.
Durin
Thursday, March 07, 2002 at 16:43:47 (PST)

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READER COMMENTS

I hope that you will be able to build up your self-confidence enough to let yourself lead a healthy lifestyle. Exercising is good, but remember, when you do so, you need the calories to go with it. Sometimes you may need professional help, see if there are any support groups. From hawaii
Monday, August 19, 2002 at 02:59:40 (PDT)

Wow, Durin! You are a true hero to the Asian American community. From this day forward I hereby declare March 7 to be National Durin Awareness Day--the day we Asian Americans took whitey down a notch.

Okay, I'm done with the smart-ass sarcasm. I'm not here to be a hater. While your story certainly is entertaining, I find your final comments to be a bit ambiguous. At first, it definitely sounded like you were making this incident to be a lot bigger than what it really is, but your moral suggests that benching contests hardly prove anything. Yes, you were the winner that day in the weightroom, but perhaps you'd agree with me that it's still a rather petty victory. Making a racial contest out of everything or just being overly competitive with white guys (or any other color guys) over such minor details are misguided. And, implying that the guy has developed an inferiority complex just seems to bring more attention to your own. I'm kind of surprised how far you went just to show off.

Lastly, if you don't like people working in with you between sets, then just say so. Don't reluctantly agree and then grumble about it.
Pro Fighter Q
Monday, July 08, 2002 at 20:54:40 (PDT)

Well, what's the point of tennis or golf, or other athletics? The only thing I can think of that one might say is playing with other people, but, one can also train and talk shop and compete with other bodybuilders, powerlifters, or Olympic lifters. Note that I mentioned different types of lifters--to the true enthusiast of the iron game, there is far more to it than just the bench press.

It takes a mind-boggling amount of work, dedication, and proper knowledge of diet and training to achieve a HUUUUGE body. It's not something that just happens by going to the gym a lot (witness all the stick boys in the gym year after year who never gain). And you don't just get STUCK with that body. It can always be shaped and trimmed according to one's desire.

As for girls...yeah, having a great body gets one a lot more positive attention. No matter how big one gets, there are always certain girls who go crazy over that look and size. However, the truly huge and dedicated aren't doing it just for the girls. It's just a way of life.

There are numerous other benefits to lifting that I haven't mentioned. For instance, the natural high one gets from an intense lifting session.

Why do runners bother running so much...why run marathons or ultra-marathons when they can stick to 5k's and 10k's or just run on a gym treadmill? Why do triathlons or ultra-triathlons when one can just pick one of the events and do that moderately?

AM Jedi Lifter
Monday, July 01, 2002 at 12:28:31 (PDT)

I'm wondering--what's the point of all this. If you're stick thin then gaining some muscle is good. But I don't know many girls that really care that much for huge muscles or how much a guy can bench press. Physically, a trim, athletic type is often preferred though girls are different just like guys in their preferences. Some just want you not to be overweight. I think alot of times, how much you bench or how big you are is more competition with other males or fools who know nothing about women. And freaks who spend hours at the gym and become really massive--what's the point unless you're a barroom brawler or professional athlete? Certainly exercise is enjoyable and weight lifting you can see clear gains and have straightforward goals and measures of progress but whey not take up golf or tennis?
What's the point?
Saturday, June 29, 2002 at 23:29:15 (PDT)

Wow, we have a lot in common. I'm also an Engineer in Canada and have also never had a girlfriend. I am white, but speak basic Cantonese. I am shy but I am building up confidence this summer by going to the gym, something you've already done. I'm fairly skinny but it really doesn't matter. I've realized it's all about attitude and confidence, something I've never fully used. It's kind of funny though, the way you're attracted to WF and I'm attracted to Chinese Females. Good luck.
Deus Ex
deus-ex@mail.com Monday, June 24, 2002 at 20:38:36 (PDT)

I'm not here to brag; I enjoy competing with MYSELF more than anything. I just wanted to write so more people will see that AM's do more than study and such.

I've been lifting for a few years, but not always so seriously or consistently. I'm 5'7" and used to weigh about 130 pounds. It was an accomplishment for me in the beginning to be able to bench a plate (135 pounds total) for reps. Now I weigh just over 150# and am completely ripped (5% bodyfat). I have great posture now and with the way my body looks and the way I carry myself, I probably seem a little taller than I really am.

I bench about 265# now and it's gradually climbing up. I also deadlift over 3 plates, squat over 2 plates (needs a lot of work), and can do chinups with 2 plates (an added 90# to my bodyweight) on my dipping belt. These numbers don't seem so impressive to me (especially the squat) because I know of others who are more impressive. I am gradually improving, though!

I am also a pretty good runner and jumper, an incredibly fast sprinter, and can learn physical things very quickly and expertly.

And I'm not just a musclehead/gymrat! I have a graduate degree in science from a top 5 school in the U.S. That explains why you don't see AM's like me competing in sports. I went on the fastest academic track from a very early age and never seriously considered sports as more than anything but fun and as a hobby.

I am thinking of doing sprinting and jumping again for fun, and am also considering going into amateur powerlifting. I should be able to bench 3 plates raw (315#...probably much more with a bench shirt), squat 3-4 plates, and deadlift 4 plates (405#) easily within a year and stay under 160# bodyweight (and ripped at the same time!). And I've never taken anabolic steroids or pro-hormones!

AM Jedi Lifter
Tuesday, June 18, 2002 at 01:40:52 (PDT)

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