The Insult that Made a Man Out of Mac

As a kid I collected comics from the mid 60s and early 70s. I read them from cover to cover pouring over each detail. One of my favorite ads was titled "The Insult that Made a Man Out of Mac!" promoting a seven-day path to larger muscles and toughness. The copy asked if I was "fed up with seeing the huskies walk off with the best of everything" and triggered every adolescent insecurity I ever imagined. I never ordered the program but always wanted the self reliance it offered. For all I know the story of a young 98-pound weakling who was kicked around the beach by stronger surfer types still resides on back covers telling the story of how Mac the weakling orders the Charles Atlas book and becomes the Hero of the Beach with his new physique, ending years of torture and finally winning over the heart of a bikini-clad lady. Or maybe worse the ad has been revised to reach out to a new generation of overweight kids.

The ad popped into my head this weekend because Some Fat Is Wackers believe that our contest is only about losing weight and not getting stronger. I know some of us are Charles Atlas believers and work out incessantly. Others are trying diet-only regiments. Numerically it is true that our contest focuses on weight loss and there won't be a bus pull contest at the Pig Roast to determine who among us has developed Herculean strength.

Still I can't believe that some FIWers continue to ignore the impact that weight training can have on weight loss. Clearly, the stronger and more conditioned we are the faster we'll lose weight and more importantly maintain our post-Fat Is Wack fitness. I don't know much about Atlas but below is an old exercise he used to promote as a free tip to push his book. So FIWers believe in the power of the push up and bench press. It it helped Mac it can help you.