Arnold Schwarzenegger was met with a setback in the first Mr. Universe contest after he arrived in America. The bodybuilder came to the States with high hopes but suffered a surprise defeat against Frank Zane. But the fact that Arnie was taller and heavier than Zane made it worse. After breaking down in tears, the then-inexperienced bodybuilder decided to learn from Zane.

In his newsletter, the 76-year-old seven-time Mr. Olympia highlighted a fan question from The Pump app. The app member asked Arnold Schwarzenegger what he learned from the three-time Mr. Olympia about “diet and training” and how he applied it.

Arnold Schwarzenegger swallowed his ego

During the 1968 Mr. Universe contest, Arnold Schwarzenegger felt confident about beating the other contestants. He had also underestimated Frank Zane and paid for his overconfidence with the overall title. Afterward, he convinced the mathematics teacher to move to California and train at Gold’s Gym.

The difference between their training styles was apparent from day one. “He did a lot more for his ab work and smaller exercises for shoulders or triceps than I did,” admitted Schwarzenegger. Zane showed him many exercises that Arnie didn’t know existed. “I added in a lot of the exercises I thought at the time was Mickey Mouse,” wrote Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The Austrian Oak loved “big movements,” and thought Zane’s workout wasn’t as challenging. However, he swallowed his ego and followed what Zane did. Later, the five-time Mr. Universe added more sets to the exercises the King of Aesthetics taught him. While Arnie didn’t implement Zane’s diet because he was “bad at dieting,” the exercises considerably improved his conditioning.

However, Frank Zane wasn’t the only one who made young Arnold Schwarzenegger put his ego aside. Vince Girnoda, World Gym owner and one of Arnie’s mentors dispelled his concept of “Mickey Mouse” exercises.

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A painful lesson

One day, while working out, Arnold Schwarzenegger saw Vince Gironda performing an exercise for the triceps. The Iron Guru was lying down while performing the exercise with dumbbells. While Gironda explained that it isolated the outer head of the triceps, Arnie wasn’t impressed. He thought the weight Grionda used was too light.

However, the bodybuilding coach invited him to try the “Mickey Mouse” movement. Schwarzenegger performed the exercise and felt equally unimpressed. However, the following morning, Arnold Schwarzenegger experienced muscle soreness like never before. The bodybuilding icon felt his triceps constantly twitch. Girnoda had changed Arnie’s perspective with one exercise.

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While Arnold Schwarzenegger was confident in his physique, training with the likes of Frank Zane, Vince Girnoda, and others helped the Austrian realize that he needed to improve many aspects.