Depending on the gym you attend Good Mornings are either a commonplace exercise or a complete rarity. Aside from the cynical observation that far too many back squats one sees in the gym are bastardised good mornings, the reality is most like the latter. Used by numerous bodybuilders, powerlifters and athletes, the Good Morning is... Continue Reading →
Bruce Lee’s Workout From Warm Marble: The Lethal Physique of Bruce Lee by John Little (1996)
After much research, and with the help of two bodybuilders who were also his close friends and students in the San Francisco Bay area, Lee devised a three-day-per-week bodybuilding program that he felt fit his strengthening and bodybuilding needs perfectly. According to one of these men, Allen Joe, "James Lee and I introduced Bruce to... Continue Reading →
Should you Workout to Music? Old School Approaches
Unless you own a home gym, the issue of whether or not you train to music is usually decided for you. Nowadays the gym stereo is a much a part of the gym floor as the weights themselves. Depending on your gym, the decision to leave your headphones at home results in anything from pop... Continue Reading →
Forgotten Exercises: The Dumbbell Swing
Almost a half-century ago the one and two hand swing lifts were very popular among lifters and bodybuilders alike, especially the one hand lift. Over the years, however, both of these lifts have slumped into oblivion so that today there are very few who ever practice them, either as an exercise or for record-breaking performances.... Continue Reading →
John Christy, Why Aren’t I Getting Bigger?, Hardgainer Magazine, May/June (2003)
Author’s note: If you're wondering why this isn't the second installment of "The Keys to Success" series, it’s because the article “out-grew" the pages of HARDGAINER. l've decided to turn "The Keys to Success" into my first book. I should have it completed by the end of the year. Ah, the grand old question of... Continue Reading →
Abe Goldberg (1951) Article -Low Back Power
Written in the 1950s but containing information relevant to the modern gym goer, the following article by Abe Goldberg will be sure to interest both those seeking to bring up their squat numbers and bend over without significant discomfort. A nice follow on from our article on the reverse hyperextension, Goldberg's exercises will hit your posterior chain like... Continue Reading →
Vince Gironda, ‘Workouts And Body Rhythm’, IronMan Magazine, (November 1983)
Question: You seem to write a great deal about exercise techniques, yet I have noticed that much of it is in fact conflicting advice. I have been bodybuilding for ten years now, before that I did six years of weightlifting. I still do not know what is the best system to use. Vince, how do... Continue Reading →
George F. Jowett, ‘The Standard That Determines the Ideal Shape’, The Key to Muscle and Might (c. 1925)
There is no doubt in my mind that Eugene Sandow's rise to fame was due more to the symmetrical shapeliness of his enviable body than to the difficulty of feats of strength he performed. Generally speaking, there are two things which will always impress the mind of the body culturist, shape and strength. With strength,... Continue Reading →
David Rensin, ’20 Questions with Jack Lalanne’, Playboy Magazine (October, 1984).
"When the interview began in La Lanne's living room at 8:30 A.M., he had already been awake for five hours. He'd exercised, had breakfast and donned a red jump suit."Most people know La Lanne only from his TV show. It's the least of his achievements. On each birthday, La Lanne performs a muscle-numbing feat. At... Continue Reading →
Product Review: Heroic Sport’s Pahlavandle Clubs
Regular readers of this blog will be aware of my fondness for Indian clubs. I've posted on them at several points, published a few academic articles on them and even spent a year in Cambridge doing a thesis on them. Alongside and indeed fuelling this interest, has been my daily use of the Indian clubs.... Continue Reading →