Arnold Schwarzenegger warns against future of America creating ‘generation of wimps’

If one man knows struggle, it’s a seven-time Mr. Olympia.

Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Austrian bodybuilding icon and actor turned politician, warned against the US creating a “generation of wimps” and said to embrace struggle during an appearance on “The Howard Stern Show.”

“The more you struggle, the further you’re gonna go and the stronger you’re going to get,” the Hollywood action star said Wednesday. “It’s just the way the world works.”

Schwarzenegger, who celebrated 40 years of US citizenship this year, explained that “young kids today” tend to shy away and “baby themselves” from the struggle that comes with hard work in order to achieve success.

“Anybody that tries to baby themselves, and pamper themselves and protect themselves — ‘Oh, I don’t want to feel bad, I don’t really want to go through any discomfort’ — It’s over,” Schwarzenegger continued. “You have to be able to struggle.”

“The Terminator” star then asked a rhetorical question of which group helped build the US, “Is it people that slept in? Was it people that were wimping out?”

“No. These were ballsy women and men that went out there at five in the morning and got up and they struggled, and they fought, and they worked their butts off. That’s what made this country great,” Schwarzenegger said.

“Continue this way. Don’t start creating a generation of wimps and weak people.”

Stern had asked if Ozempic — the weight-loss drug that has taken the US by storm — is avoiding the larger issue by its users.

Schwarzenegger, 76, alluded that the self-described miracle weight loss drug was taking one key ingredient out of the recipe for success: “resistance.”

“The human mind can only really grow through resistance. You can only strengthen your character, become a really strong person inside, if you have resistance.”

Schwarzenegger makes the point that he’s not asking for others to ignore being considerate of others but that there needs to be a line in the sand between struggle and over-babying.

“Let’s go and teach kids to be tough, to do sports, to study and struggle and go through these kind of painful moments sometimes.”

Schwarzenegger shares four children; Katherine, 33, Christina, 32, Patrick, 30, and Christopher, 26, with ex-wife Maria Shriver, whom he divorced from in 2021. He also shares his son Joseph, 26, with his housekeeper Mildred Baena.

During the interview, the former bodybuilder shared that he has issues with coming to terms with his changing body.

“I kind of smile because every day I do look in a mirror and I say, ‘Yep, you suck,’” he told Stern.

“I look at this body … look at those pectoral muscles that used to be firm and perky and really powerful with a striation in there. Now they’re just hanging there. I mean, what the hell is going on here?”