One of the focal points of the Weider training system is to help people understand the link between athletics and nutrition.
As early as the 1930’s Joe Weider was warning of the dangers of smoking and consuming alcohol.
The Weider principles were developed to provide “education of the whole person: body, mind and spirit” and to provide a set of training and lifestyle guidelines that were research based and tested.
Joe Weider is not only an entrepreneur; he is also an active body builder and fitness enthusiast. He truly does practice the principles that he is credited with developing. Joe himself does not claim to have invented the principles; rather that he honed them into the standards they are now.
His greatest accomplishment with the Weider Principles was to bring the research of nutrition in to the realm of bodybuilding and provide scientifically proven guidelines to help others achieve their fitness goals.
There are three large overlaying Weider principles that are then split down even further into sub principles. The three categories, with a very brief example of the subcategories of each are:
Weider Principles to Help Plan Training Cycles
- Double or triple split training principle – breaking your workout into two or three shorter but more intense training sessions per day.
- Principles to help arrange the exercises in each workout.
- Descending sets principle – start with the heaviest weights use lighter weights each sets as the muscles tire. This is also called “stripping”.
- Principles to help perform each exercise.
- Quality training principle – gradually reducing the rest time between sets while maintaining or increasing the number of reps per set.
Each of the three categories of principles contains between three and thirteen principles designed to provide the best training strategies possible.
Weider Nutrition
Weider produces an extensive line of nutritional supplements for athletes. These supplements focus on healthy nutrition and balancing carbohydrates and protein for optimum performance and development.
Weider nutrition focuses on supplementing the body with vitamins, nutritional supplements and herbal products designed to maximize lean muscle mass and increase strength and performance.
Weider Nutrition also markets protein shakes and a herbal green tea supplement that are extremely beneficial to decreasing body fat and helping the body maximize the effectiveness of exercise to lose weight.
Further Accomplishments
Joe Weider continues to work tirelessly to promote healthy nutrition and fitness. He has received awards from many different groups and agencies.
- In 1992 he received the Dwight D. Eisenhower Fitness Award form the United States Sports Academy
- 1991 the Boy Scouts of America presented him a Distinguished Citizen Award naming Joe Weider as the “Father of Fitness”.
- 1995 the Governor of California, Pete Wilson, presented Joe Weider with the Lifetime Achievement aware for the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports.
Joe Weider has always been and will continue to be a moving force and a strong influence in bodybuilding and sports nutrition.