Muscles Do Not Make You Superman- A Tribute To Robert Enke

This will be a more somber post, so be warned.

The very tragic suicide of Robert Enke has shocked the country of Germany and the rest of the sports world. There you have a very accomplished athlete, predestined to be the goalie for Germany at the World Cup 2010, married, well respected within his community, who still felt that there was simply no way out for him. Why would someone, who is seemingly on top of the world choose such drastic action?

I am afraid there is no good answer, but I have met many guys with fantastic physiques who were deeply unhappy due to their inability to disconnect their sport and life as such.

Let's face it, many of us train to feel better, look better and improve their standing with the opposite (or same) sex. And that is certainly fine, as long as you don't develop an obsession and start abusing the sport and your body as a protection for some deeper issues.

(To be fair, in order to develop an outstanding physique you need to be somewhat obsessed with training and dieting.)

The problem arises, when athletes lose touch with reality and start to think that a better physique and athletic success is the solution to all of life's challenges. It is not.

Bodybuilding is extremely helpful in giving you structure, discipline and the feeling of accomplishment which then spills over in the rest of your life. This, however, requires that you have a life outside the gym. When I hear competitors talking about eating 11 meals and working out 4 hours a day, I can't help but wonder: " What else are these guys doing?"

Don't isolate yourself, participate in other people's ( non-bodybuilders) lives, develop some interests outside the gym. Bodybuilding is a part of life, but it is not all there is.

Train hard,

Maik