💪Ralph Macchio Waxes Karate Kid, One-Arm 225 Bench, Tiger's Flip Book, Arnold, Reading Encyclopedias & more

ISSUE #65 - April 26th, 2019

ONE

NOSTALGIA - This week I listened to one of the coolest, most enjoyable podcast interviews I've ever experienced with Ralph Macchio doing a deep dive on perhaps the #2 movie of my childhood, The Karate Kid (behind the Rocky Series, but no need to quibble).

We moved around a lot when I was a kid (I once attended four schools in five years) and when I say I related to Daniel LaRusso, I mean I kind of idolized his story: new kid shows up at new school (me), he's made fun of for being a dork (me), he gets embarrassed at school in front of other kids (me again), gets picked on (me)... and THEN, he meets Mr. Miyagi (not me), learns karate (I took out a few books from the library), and destroys his nemesis in a fight in front of the entire town (I dreamed of this - but not me)... And so, when Bill Simmons had Macchio on, let's just say it was a Crane Kick to my brain. I recommend listening to it, especially if you've been watching the new Cobra Kai series on YouTube Premium.

TWO

FITNESS - Long time readers of the FF5 know that at heart, when it comes to lifting, I am a meathead. I like picking up heavy things. I like talking about picking up heavy things. I like feats of strength. And this week, I saw something that blew my mind.

Anyone who has ever walked into a gym knows what a bench press looks like. When it comes to a standard amount of weight to do sets with (or warm-up sets with) for veteran lifters I'd say 225 lbs. is a good base (that's a bar with two 45 lbs. plates on each side). What if I told you that a guy named Larry Wheels posted a video on Instagram this week of him benching 225lbs... with EACH ARM!?!?! The balance alone on this 450 lb. feat would be insane. Nevertheless... You can watch it here.

THREE

BOOKS - I love books where authors set out to tackle something extremely difficult or weird or nonsensical and then write about it with a sense of humor. AJ Jacob's book, The Know-It-All: One Man's Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World, checks all of the boxes.

If you aren't familiar with Jacobs, he's a long time Esquire writer and columnist and he typically writes books where he takes on a challenge and lives it to its fullest. In this case, he decided to read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica from A to Z... and it is fantastic. One of my favorite sections is when he segues from the French writer Montaigne to the word 'moron' and explains how he's feeling via a Friends episode. If this sounds like something you'd find funny, you'll really enjoy the read.

FOUR

TIGER - I know we're two weeks out from Tiger's win at the Masters, but I saw this post featuring a 30-second flip book recapping Tiger's last 22 years and it just got me.

Somehow, in half-a-minute, this hand drawn flip book captured the most emotional moments of his golf career with hugs from his dad and kids and it has so much heart and well... for whatever reason it just works and makes you feel good. Whether you're a Tiger fan or not, I think you'll like this one.

FIVE

A TREMENDOUS QUOTE ABOUT STRENGTH:

“Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger