Name a more iconic duo than Franco and Arnold. Within the sport of bodybuilding, the relationship between Franco Columbu and Arnold Schwarzenegger was of the most enduring and impactful the sport has ever seen. From Pumping Iron to controversial Olympia wins, they did it all! Okay, that last line was tongue in cheek but, more… Continue reading How Franco and Arnold Changed Hollywood Forever
A few weeks ago I published a short article on Henry Rollins' short essay, 'The Iron and the Soul.' Rollins' appreciation for the deeper meaning of exercise struck a chord with me early in my training career and, like an old jumper, is something that brings me comfort to this day. The essay spoke to… Continue reading Inspirational Reads: Chris Shugart, ‘Merry Christmas Bob,’ 2000
For Nasser El Sonbaty, who has spent 19 years torching, torturing and otherwise harassing every muscle fiber on his 5'11" frame, there are two absolutes. "The first thing is consistency; the second, intensity." Given his behemoth lower quarters -- complete with voluminous muscle bellies, subterranean separation, Gibraltarian density and shape -- we took notes. Nasser… Continue reading Kathleen Engel, ‘Put Size on Your Thighs with Nasser El Sonbaty’, Muscle & Fitness, 63: 6 (2002), 134-138
"And now for something completely different" I'll be spending a few weeks discussing various writings on lifting weights that have left an imprint on me in many ways. As anyone who has dedicated themselves to the gym for a prolonged period will attest, lifting weights is about so much more than exercise. It is a… Continue reading Inspirational Reads: Henry Rollins, ‘The Iron and Soul,’ 1994
I was flicking through some old strength magazines during the weekend and came across a lift that I doubt many of us are familiar with. Called the 'Seesaw' press, it is essentially a standing dumbbell shoulder press but instead of pressing both dumbbells at the same time, you alternate between reps. As you lower one dumb-bell, you… Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The See-Saw Press
Having previously discussed the history of the squat exercise, today's post examines the creation of the Rader Chest Pull, an exercise that Peary Rader, one of the Irongame's biggest names in the twentieth-century, often used in conjunction with the squat. Typically Rader would inform trainees to perform this exercise directly after a set of twenty… Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The Rader Chest Pull
Without doubt one of the odder movements in the gym goers' repertoire, the reverse grip bench press is a lift you're unlikely to see on a regular basis. Somewhat circus-like in its execution, the lift is nevertheless an invaluable one to those suffering from issues of shoulder mobility and I'd suggest, boredom. A fun lift… Continue reading The History of the Reverse Grip Bench Press
We have come a long way in terms of boosting our workout performance by fine-tuning all the habits that surround that single one, and in particular, by refining our menus to suit our goals. Athletes have always done their absolute best to find that perfect ratio when it comes to food intake in order to… Continue reading Guest Post: The History of Sports Nutrition
I loved this movie. That's it. Review done. Watch it here. More seriously, Marc Martinez has created a documentary about bodybuilding's Golden Age that manages to do what so many Iron Game documentaries struggle with - he captures the wonder of bodybuilding. This is a movie centred on California and bodybuilding from the late 1940s… Continue reading Movie Review: Dream Big (Marc Martinez, 2022)
What teen or young lifter hasn't been seduced by the idea of bigger biceps? Indeed in the bodybuilding universe of both males and females, no pose is more iconic that the front or back double bicep pose. A difficult set of muscles to grow, except of course for the genetically gifted, the biceps have been… Continue reading 21s in Bodybuilding Lore
