Intensity...

We all hear about it, most of us talk about it, and a lot of us brag about it...but WTF (hey, I said the name of my column! clever!) is it?

Luckily, if you a reading this column, intensity probably isn't something your lacking. Eliteft.com isn't exactly a magnet for the lackluster and unmotivated. The truth of the matter is, I have never had the privilege of meeting Dave Tate. I do, however, have the daily urge to paint his likeness on my living room wall as some sort of weird shrine where I can sacrifice live chickens (free range) and bison to his badassness.

*Side note: If you live on your own, I encourage you to do this and then send as many pictures to the site as possible. For some reason, my wife isn't too keen (sweet word) on me creating a giant, sacrilegious oil-painted mural of the head of elitefts™ in her home and then feeding it live animals...even though I'm pretty sure doing such (stacked with a little creatine maybe) would add 20 pounds to my bench press. Fuckin' women. Am I right?

Oh yeah, intensity.

So, as we've covered, if you're reading this column instead of calculating your calories on your keen (again, sweet word) new fitness app or trying to find the best deal on bulk Argentinian Weeping Yellow Penile Cactus Placenta Extract (it cuts cortisol by .022%!), then not only are you automatically a real man's man (that goes for you too, ladies), but you're also more than likely not lacking any intensity. Does that mean you know what intensity really is, though? Well, it might, but I'm going to give you my take on it anyways.

What ISN'T Intensity

Intensity, or "being hardcore" in the language "fucking douche bag," can clearly be, as we will get into, a lot of things. It really fits my semi-philosophical asshole "it's different for everybody, be open minded about your training, I got paid to have an nWo Hulk Hogan beard once" style of ranting quite well. But, before I get into how you can't be closed minded about what intensity IS, please allow me to become closed minded so that I can tell you what intensity ISN'T.

Intensity ISN'T:

  • Lifting as heavy as humanly possible for no rhyme or reason for half reps and with terrible form.
  • Screaming during your set when you aren't actually pushing yourself in any way, shape, or form.
  • Complaining about a gym's staff, towels, parking, or anything else the doesn't directly affect your training. (Unless you're being molested, or something from the staff or the towel gives you the clap or something. Even then, who hasn't gotten Towel Clap. Am I right? uh...) © Goodwyn | Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images
  • Basing your supplement regime on an army of herbs and extracts. (See placenta extract above).
  • Head banging while jamming out to your iPod between sets.
  • Jean shorts.
  • Carrying a massive gym bag with you everywhere...but not using it for anything.
  • Wearing a belt and wrist straps for cardio.
  • The way most people do cardio.
  • Gear, with no rhyme, reason, research, game plan, or common sense.
  • Throwing shit around.
  • Spandex man pants. (And remember, that's coming from me. Spandex man pants bought my car).
  • Making a spectacle of yourself. There's a local guru here in the Tampa area who has made a pretty big name for himself (and thus, I'm sorry, will remain nameless). He is a really smart guy, and I read and respect a lot of his work. Yet, I am constantly filled with the need to just punch him in the throat due to his pre-lifting spectacles. Tell me, in all seriousness, that you think it's cool for a grown man with a damn PhD to psyche himself up for a heavy set of squats by screaming,  "MY PERSEVERANCE IN THE EYES OF DEFEAT WILL BE MY DRIVEN FORCE AND WEAPON OF DIVINE INTERVENTION AS I QUELL THE DEMONS OF DESPAIR!" Granted, I yell the same exact thing before and after sexual intercourse, but it has no place on the gym floor.

*Yet another quick side note: The way this column is going, the keywords are likely to be "Placenta Extract," "Sexual Intercourse," and "Demons of Despair." Awesome.

So WTF is intensity?

Well, we've certainly covered what it's not. As you may or may not have gathered, intensity is not what a lot of the peasants out there do just to say they're "INTEEEENNNNSEEEE" or "HAAAAARRRDDDDCOOOORRRRE." That's not real intensity. That's just another example of over compensating.

REAL Intensity

Real intensity is dedication. And dedication is made up of numerous other factors like focus, drive, passion, etc. Dorian was intense with his balls-to-the-wall heavy training. Lee Haney was intense with his "stimulate, don't annihilate" philosophy. Intensity isn't a definitive thing or action. There are many ways to bust your ass in and out of the gym. Intensity is the act of doing so, regardless of the method. If you walk through your workouts with little to no effort, then that's not intensity. If you give your workouts all that you've got, whether you're deadlifting 585 pounds or 135 pounds, THAT is motherfucking ever-loving badass intensity.

How am I Intense?

  • I eat for a purpose. My food is fuel. I time what I eat, and I know exactly why I am eating what foods and when.
  • My training gets one hundred percent of my focus. I strive for perfect tempo and rep range with the heaviest weight possible for the given goal of reps. I want my form to be perfect and my mind-muscle connection to be on point. I want a deep and focused contraction and maximum stimulation of the given muscle.
  • I plan ahead. I don't allow roadblocks. When issues arise, I plow the fuck through them.
  • Very large testicles.
  • Sweet beard.

Truth be told, the last two tend to fluctuate. Read into that however you will.

How are You Intense?

Remember, intensity does not have a closed definition. How do you exemplify your drive, passion, and determination? What are your goals? Are you one of those guys who just talks about your goals and complains, or are you the type of motherfucker that sets a goal, looks at what has to be done, and sets forth to do what you've gotta do?

It's not a thing. It's a mindset. If there were ever a secret weapon in what we all do, it doesn't come in a five-pound tub, a pill bottle, or a syringe. It's balls out motherfucking intensity.

Drive
Determination
Passion

Mother
Fucking
Intensity

Seriously. How are YOU intense?