"If I listened to my instincts, I'd be down at the pub chasing women, not under a 400 pound bar squatting"

Dorian Yates uses sharp contrast to highlight the internal struggle between primal desires and disciplined ambition. Instincts, as he suggests, are the baseline urges most people feel, the pursuit of pleasure, fun, and immediate gratification. Yates identifies these as impulses that could easily lead a person to less productive paths, such as idling in a pub and seeking casual thrill, rather than focusing on long-term growth or achievement.

Squatting under a 400-pound bar represents an entirely different mode of existence, one defined by rigorous training, self-control, and enduring discomfort for a larger goal. Yates posits that true progress comes from overcoming raw human impulses and consciously choosing to do what’s difficult and often unpleasant. The weight on the bar is not just physical; it symbolizes the burdens and challenges faced on the path to greatness. Each session under heavy weight is an exertion not just of the body, but of the will, a testament to the choice of discipline over fleeting pleasures.

This dichotomy underscores an essential aspect of success, not only in bodybuilding but in life. Human beings are wired to seek comfort, but the highest achievements require embracing hardship. Yates’s words reflect awareness of his vulnerabilities, an admission that he, like anyone else, feels the pull toward easy satisfaction. The difference lies in the conscious decision to resist those urges in favor of a higher pursuit.

By making the difficult choice repeatedly, he forges resilience, redefines himself, and achieves what most will not. His statement is a candid, almost humorous confession, but beneath the surface, it is a profound endorsement of the values of sacrifice, focus, and mastering one’s own nature. Authentic growth is born from the tension between desire and discipline, and the path to glory demands that instinctual comfort is consistently set aside.