I could not resist! In order to honor the historic blowout on the semifinals by “die Mannschaft”, I write this articles dedicated to my favorite team and the once in a lifetime (hopefully not!) event that they gifted us this past week. Here are seven principles that can help you on your way to your personal World Cup victory:
1. Have a plan. Be sure what you want to achieve over the next 6-8 weeks. Even a poorly laid out plan beats not having one.
2. Be thorough. The Germans knew every detail about Brazil; you should know everything about your training and diet.
3. Stick to the plan. Sounds obvious, but a lot of people do a week of cutting, two weeks of bulking, a week of arm focus, etc. The result? The same physique, a year later. Once you pick a plan, give it at least six weeks.
4. Be creative but not for the sake of being creative. Rotating Klose and Ozil was creative, and because of the creativity, it ripped holes in the defense. Training biceps everyday is creative and fun, but it will not get you bigger arms but rather inflamed elbows. Search results, not novelty.
5. Focus on yourself. Just like the Germans were not concerned by Brazil’s strengths, you must focus on what is important to you and what is doable according to your body. What other people do is meaningless.
6. Don’t listen to the noise from the outside. Germany is not as bad as they were made out to be against Algeria, and not as good as they were seen playing against Brazil. The team knew that and pursued what they had to do. Pick 1-2 qualified advisors and stick to what they have to say.
7. Enjoy the victories, but do not get too absorbed. Winning a semifinal is good, but it is not everything. By the same token, building a great physique is a noteworthy accomplishment but also is taking the time to help others get to where you are.
Let’s hope for a great and fair final game,
Maik Wiedenbach