51-year-old Lee Priest was among the best bodybuilders of his time who worked hard in the gym. However, unlike most regular fitness or bodybuilding enthusiasts, he never listened to music in the gym. Many people today find it difficult to train without music. Whether it’s an empty or crowded gym, you’ll often see people with headphones on.

So why didn’t Lee Priest need them? The Mr. Universe winner answered in a resurfaced video. The bodybuilding veteran said all he needed to stay motivated in the gym were weights and focus on his goals. Even during his prime, people said, “The gym’s too quiet. How do you train? You need motivation,” to Lee Priest.

However, Priest treated external factors like music not as an aid but as a distraction. “Motivation comes from within… I could train anywhere as long as I got weights and that’s why music doesn’t motivate me,” Lee Priest said in the resurfaced video. The Australian bodybuilder advised that you must keep the bigger goal in mind and treat every workout as a building block.

“If you know what you want to achieve, you can train anywhere,” said Lee Priest in the resurfaced video. It’s invaluable advice for anyone looking to achieve their fitness goals. While many start with noble intentions, not everyone can keep the end goal in mind. This is why gyms become emptier as the year progresses. The initial burst of motivation can only last so long.

However, the uncrowned Mr. Olympia focused on training to the best of his ability. As a result, Lee Priest even defeated Ronnie Coleman a year before The King won his first of eight Olympia titles. However, the 51-year-old isn’t the only bodybuilding legend speaking about distractions in the gym.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger echoed what Lee Priest said

The 76-year-old bodybuilding legend also wanted to know about the device that most people play their music on. While people didn’t have smartphones during Lee Priest of Arnie’s era, they’ve become a problem today. In fact, Arnold Schwarzenegger said that smartphones are “designed to distract us.” The legend has seen it at Gold’s Gym.

Arnold Schwarzenegger said that people browse their smartphones between sets. However, since the devices are integrated into our lives, people often get lost in them. Smartphones, just like music, distract people from focusing on the workout. A quick look at your phone between sets turns into inconsistent rest periods, ruining the training intensity.

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Hence, legends like Lee Priest, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and others tell people to focus on their workouts and end goals.