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Life Force Personified – The Benefits of Strength Training

Stacy Gallagher 4 Comments
Life Force

Marty Gallagher's lifting career has spanned over 50 years.  He is a testament to a life long commitment to the benefits of strength training.  He started lifting weights when he was 12 years old studying Strength and Health magazines for training routines.  His dad purchased him a rickety weight set and set it up in the basement.  By the time he was 17 he won his first National title in Olympic lifting.

Marty grew up watching and learning from the Worlds best lifters of the day creating a foundation for the basic functional strength training strategies that he espouses and represents today.  His early training strengthened not only his muscles but his ligaments and tendons as well.  This formative training established a solid structure that made his body stronger and more resistant to injury.

As he evolved in his lifting and coaching he discovered the universal truth that these basic functional strength training strategies can help both the average and elite trainee to gain strength and become more injury resistant.  He has proven this theory over and over again with trainees that range from the morbidly obese to the elite spec ops community.  At 67 years old he continues to challenge himself physically understanding that as we age we must fight the tide of physical degradation.

Marty Gallagher is life force personified.  See video of barbell squats - 255 x 10 - 67 years old.

About the Author: Stacy Gallagher

My name is Stacy Gallagher. I have been involved in the fitness industry for over 25 years. I began the fitness education of a lifetime when I met and married my husband, Marty Gallagher. He is both World Champion powerlifter/coach and a prolific writer on all things fitness. I travelled with him to the top bodybuilding and powerlifting events for several years and gained a vast array of training knowledge that I utilized in my own competitive bodybuilding goals as well as with my clients. This was a formative time for me when I established nutrition and training habits that are my foundation.

View all posts by Stacy Gallagher | Website

  • A marvelous inspirational story that shows how one can gain and maintain functional strength at any age.
    Thank you for sharing.
    Look forward to seeing more articles.
    Paul

    Reply

  • I’m glad I listened to the end…this is still light weight for him and he was squatting in a way that made this light weight feel heavy.

    If this was a challenging weight for this guy, who once squatted over 800lbs and is a life-long trainer, then actually this video would have been discouraging even factoring in his age. It would have indicated that age-related significant muscle atrophy and severe loss of strength will overtake even the strongest and most diligent of trainers.

    I’m a skinny, worthless ex-soccer player yet I can squat 245X12 so that must be novice-level weight…good to see that this is still light work for Marty even at his age.

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