Lifting weights makes you smarter

[JohnnyDoe]

Ever wondered why the system loves soft bodies and softer minds? Because lifting doesn’t just make you strong, it makes you dangerous. Not aggressive dangerous. Independent dangerous. As in: thinking for yourself, not swallowing whatever the ministry of truth is serving this week.

Let's break the myth: bodybuilders are not dumb. Quite the opposite. Resistance training is one of the most potent nootropics available; and it’s legal, unpatented, and inconveniently effective.

Here’s why:

• Neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity: lifting boosts BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor), the fertilizer of your brain. Think of it as NOS for your neurons. Want better memory, sharper focus, faster learning? Pick up the barbell (or the EZ-bar).
• Executive function on steroids: planning workouts, tracking nutrition, adapting to cycles: all engage the prefrontal cortex. You're not just lifting iron. You're managing complexity, solving problems, refining systems. Daily.
• Dopamine discipline: training raises dopamine and teaches your brain to delay gratification. That’s the opposite of TikTok and Uber Eats.
• Stress inoculation: controlled physical stress = better emotional regulation. Lifting trains your nervous system to stay calm under pressure. That's called resilience. Remember that?
• Improved sleep, better mood, lower inflammation: all directly tied to cognitive performance. Your foggy, anxious desk-job brain isn’t caused by lack of coffee. It’s caused by systemic weakness, metabolic and mental.

And yet, society pushes you to be sedentary, medicated, and dependent. Why? Because a population of clear-thinking, fit individuals is harder to manipulate. You don’t riot for crumbs when you know how to cook your own steak.

So next time someone says “lifting is just for meatheads,” smile. You’re building a smarter brain with every rep. They’re scrolling memes and rotting from the inside out.

Strong body = strong mind. Weak body = programmable unit.
(sorry, if you are strong but your BF is >20% you are a tub of lard and all the above doesn't apply)

 

[Justit]

Everything is so true! Probably the best explanation of lifing weights I have ever come up with in one single place. I am convinced the majority of people has no clue of weight lifting exercises benefits. What they might hear from time to time is: introduce regular strength exercises in your lifestyle, there are plenty of advantages. Nobody researches, nobody tries to understand why and what this would really mean for their physical and mental health. It is so much easier to stay on a sofa… the way you feel after exercises is incredible. And there are many people who don’t know this feeling. They are getting ‘satisfaction’ from eating- overeating junk food. The more they eat the harder it is to stop uncontrolled eating and the further they walk away from their healthy life with possibly bright mind.

 

[marioIT]

nice, I am building a new home gym right now. I know that brain fog feeling very well and know how clean and sharp your thought gets when you're fit.
Don't have good gyms around and there are so many gossipy idiots where I am living now, so i am building my own 🤣
do not neglect your body. If you're fit everything get easier and clearer.
And people respect more a well jacked man than a skinny fat dude (fat slobs get so much flak, you don't even need to spell it out...).
Also showing off some muscles can be enough to keep you out of risky situations.
I've been both jacked and out of shape and there is no comparison.
The second one is a miserable life. Your body slowly dies if you don't use it...

 

[JohnnyDoe]

nice, I am building a new home gym right now. I know that brain fog feeling very well and know how clean and sharp your thought gets when you're fit.
Don't have good gyms around and there are so many gossipy idiots where I am living now, so i am building my own 🤣

That's the best choice, especially today that gyms have become woke places full of people wasting their and your time. The "personal trainer" that asks you not to sweat on the floor is the ultimate degeneration. Or the 5kg plates that have become as big as the old 20kg ones, and all covered in shiny colored plastic. Not to mention the lunatic teen on tren because he saw it on tiktok

Space for a home gym is never enough, but in just 20sqm you can squeeze about everything you need. So have fun, and don't hesitate to upgrade to a warehouse 😀

do not neglect your body. If you're fit everything get easier and clearer.
And people respect more a well jacked man than a skinny fat dude (fat slobs get so much flak, you don't even need to spell it out...).
Also showing off some muscles can be enough to keep you out of risky situations.
I've been both jacked and out of shape and there is no comparison.
The second one is a miserable life. Your body slowly dies if you don't use it...

Being actually fit puts you in the top 3%. With fit I don't mean the Instagram-filtered skinny fat crowd, but real fitness: visible muscle, actual strength, and an athletic condition that allows you to use the stairs instead of the lift.
It also means you have something even rarer: a brain that works, and the discipline to build and maintain that condition.

20–30 minutes a day is all what it takes.
Most people waste more than that doom-scrolling trash.
It's worrisome to see that the majority of the world leaders are blatantly unfit for their job.

 

[NewHorizonsParaguay]

I have a gym in my apartment building. It is small, but it is the only truly valuable asset among all the other amenities they advertise (2x2m pool, playroom with ps5 and other bs).

I go 4-5am. Always empty.

Asuncion Public gyms. The more upscale it is, the more you can expect it to be a shit-show. To sweat there, big crime. 95% coaches are basically cheerleaders. It is a place where ppl go to show off. Foreigners thinking they are socializing with the wealthiest people in Py.... Meanwhile, the wealthiest individuals have their own gyms in their 20-bedroom homes or private social clubs with luxurious amenities.

However, even these gyms have their uses as a tool... Gym coaches are rarely skilled at handling financial capital (always tight on money), but they often possess decent social capital. They know a lot of prostitutes/bitches/of girls.

 

[Justit]

I have a gym in my apartment building. It is small, but it is the only truly valuable asset among all the other amenities they advertise (2x2m pool, playroom with ps5 and other bs).

I go 4-5am. Always empty.

Asuncion Public gyms. The more upscale it is, the more you can expect it to be a shit-show. To sweat there, big crime. 95% coaches are basically cheerleaders. It is a place where ppl go to show off. Foreigners thinking they are socializing with the wealthiest people in Py.... Meanwhile, the wealthiest individuals have their own gyms in their 20-bedroom homes or private social clubs with luxurious amenities.

However, even these gyms have their uses as a tool... Gym coaches are rarely skilled at handling financial capital (always tight on money), but they often possess decent social capital. They know a lot of prostitutes/bitches/of girls.

Going to the gym at 4-5 am is absolutely wow 👏
One of the most important parts (if not the most important) in a great lifestyle is sleeping well and enough hours. We can follow a correct balanced diet, work out regularly, but without sleeping well and enough this does not suffice. Do you think you sleep enough with your gym time at 4-5 am?

 

[NewHorizonsParaguay]

Going to the gym at 4-5 am is absolutely wow 👏
One of the most important parts (if not the most important) in a great lifestyle is sleeping well and enough hours. We can follow a correct balanced diet, work out regularly, but without sleeping well and enough this does not suffice. Do you think you sleep enough with your gym time at 4-5 am?

Unless clients are in or important asados, I go to bed early, so I get my 8 hours to wake up at 4. Until 10am I focus on myself - gym, books, padel, swimming. Then my work day starts. I possess military discipline in these (unfortunately, not when it comes to eating).

 

[Justit]

Unless clients are in or important asados, I go to bed early, so I get my 8 hours to wake up at 4. Until 10am I focus on myself - gym, books, padel, swimming. Then my work day starts. I possess military discipline in these (unfortunately, not when it comes to eating).

What I have recently discovered when speaking to many people who want to follow a healthier lifestyle/ improve health is that they are willing to eat less, say no to whole food categories (which I am not a big fun of) , but almost nobody I spoke to was willing to start exercising! Neither cardio nor weights. Even not increasing daily step count… this was quite surprising to me.

You already have amazing sleeping & exercising habits which is fantastic . What helped me with eating is the following:

- understanding that eating is getting the right macro and micro nutrients our body needs to function well. Eating is not a source of joy or tool to manage stress.
- once I know how many calories I need for the day and what are the macros (carbo, proteins and fats), I create a plan for the next day and follow it. We don’t have to become crazy about grams… but at least if I know that I need to eat one portion of pasta and one portion of chicken I will not be eating two or zero. It helps and it works.

 

[marioIT]

these days I like to swim too (in open water, no sharks where I am now 🙂)... yesterday i swam 1hr in the morning and 1 in the evening... after that I slept like a baby for 8 hrs!

 

[Justit]

these days I like to swim too (in open water, no sharks where I am now 🙂)... yesterday i swam 1hr in the morning and 1 in the evening... after that I slept like a baby for 8 hrs!

Swimming is definitely one of the best exercise we can practice.
Would love to have open water with no sharks too 😉

 

[JohnnyDoe]

Stop this nonsense against sharks! These guys are innocuous stupid animals with bad eyesight, they don't like eating humans.
In fact, cows are far more dangerous than sharks: they kill around 22 persons per year in the US alone, compared to the average 5 kills worldwide by sharks.
Avoid Switzerland, not the sea!

 

[Justit]

Stop this nonsense against sharks! These guys are innocuous stupid animals with bad eyesight, they don't like eating humans.
In fact, cows are far more dangerous than sharks: they kill around 22 persons per year in the US alone, compared to the average 5 kills worldwide by sharks.
Avoid Switzerland, not the sea!

I did not say I want to jog in a field full of cows either 😅