You Say Essential Worker, I Say Essential Lifter
You say essential worker, I say essential lifter.
It’s safe to say that 2020 has not been the greatest year for most people. What started off as a hopeful new decade quickly plunged into an array of panic, bad news, and hard times. In March we saw numerous countries come to a screeching halt and go into what was referred to as a ‘lockdown.’ Restaurants, clothing stores, cinemas, parks, entire cities were shut down. All of this due to the COVID-19 outbreak (thanks China!).
Among the corporate casualties forced to close up shop were gyms: all shapes and sizes, big or small, corporate or local, it didn't matter. We were told that it was absolutely imperative that they be closed immediately to slow the spread of the virus! But don't worry—Walmarts and fast-food restaurants were allowed to stay open at limited capacity (we know how clean those places are!).
The businesses allowed to stay open were called ‘essential’ and their employees were called ‘essential workers.’ They were ‘essential’ because without these businesses operating it would have been much harder for the general population to obtain basic necessities and maintain a semblance of normalcy...understandable.
But the closing of all ‘inessential’ businesses, as well as God-fearing houses of worship, made it obvious where the priorities stood. McDonald’s and Taco Bell were more essential than gyms and churches. I’m sure corporations were more than excited to see everyone ‘stay inside, get weak, get fat, consume, repeat.’ Religion is obsolete, fitness isn’t ‘essential,’ all that matters is the doctrine of corpocracy—now shut up and eat your large Crunchwrap Supreme.
While the general population was okay with this, there were a distinct few who refused to let the lockdown obstruct their journey for juicy, succulent pumps. The ones who continued the good fight—who rose above all odds, obstacles, and pandemonium, and did everything in their power to maintain physical superiority.
These were the ‘Essential Lifters.’ They weren't in cush air-conditioned corporate gyms anymore—not that it ever mattered. They were making their own weights, their own power racks, finding scrap metal and using it to pulverize their muscle fibers each and every day while the rest of society let their minds and bodies rot away in fear. It was liberating. Lifters everywhere were doing whatever it took to put on some size and to not let this time in lockdown go to waste.
Suddenly we were the free thinkers, the innovators, the beautiful ones, who refused to go out quietly—even if we were just lifting in our basement or doing pull-ups in the front yard. The popular stigma around lifters has always portrayed them as the typical ‘meathead’ with no real prospects or ability to think for themselves. In 2020 the dynamic shifted: essential lifters refused to buy into the fearmongering that has characterized this year.
[It Is Time to Practice Raw Egg Nationalism]
That’s not to say there aren’t genuine concerns about the COVID-19 outbreak—especially if you have preexisting conditions—but listening to the news and buying into all of the doomsday predictions without questioning makes you the perfect sheep. We know now that the numbers were blown completely out of proportion....unless they fit the mainstream narrative.
One notable instance is when it suddenly became safe to take to the streets in protests, where thousands were standing in close proximity to one another, but major publications—and thousands of public health ‘experts’—decided that the protests didn't contribute to the spread of COVID-19...but having a gym or a church open would so don’t question it! Who's the free thinker now normie?!
Lockdown restrictions are starting to ease up now as we approach the end of the year and some gyms have reopened. Many lifters have developed a long-term training style from this whole ordeal. As a matter of fact after putting together a decent home gym I rarely go to an actual gym anymore. I’ve gotten stronger lifting at home than I’ve ever been so why break the momentum?!
Being an essential lifter is about much more than continuing to chase a pump no matter your circumstances. It’s about not giving in, coming face-to-face with the harsh truth that existence is full of pain and suffering yet asking for more. In the wise words of Eric Bugenhagen: “It’s a mindset!”. We know it's not easy out there. But that's not enough to stand in our way. We have forged our entire bodies out of pain, turning our minds into fortresses of resolve. Through the bond of blood, sweat, and iron, we have been reborn.
In 2020 lifters were forced to adapt to a more primitive way of lifting—a return to tradition in a way. In times of trepidation most people will make excuses, while essential lifters will continue to make due. The hounds are at the gate. Obesity runs rampant in the West and is slowly making its way across the globe. Is there no hope? Is there no dignity? Essential lifters are the last stand—we are all that's stopping the world from plunging into a perpetual plight of unmotivated lard wrapped in flesh powered purely by double cheeseburgers and profuse amounts of blood pressure medication. My message to you all, disenfranchised lifters of the world: Stand strong together, be a light in a world that despises you. UNITE AND TAKE OVER!
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