The fitness industry, was and is, a notoriously dubious business place. For every honest athlete seeking to help his fellow trainer, there are dozens of genetically blessed individuals who seek to make a living with half-truths. This chicanery, is however, a time honoured tradition as evidenced by today's article. Surveying the great names of the physical… Continue reading Lies, Snake Oils and Downright Deception: Selling and the Fitness Industry
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 George F. Jowett, ‘The Standard That Determines the Ideal Shape’, The Key to Muscle and Might (c. 1925)
While many credit Eugen Sandow as the father of modern day bodybuilding, very little is said about William, 'Billy', Murray, the world's first recognisable bodybuilding champion. Today's post will look at the interaction between Sandow, the unofficial father of bodybuilding and Murray, its first official king. So who was William Murray? How did he win? And why… Continue reading Bodybuilding’s First Champion: William Murray
Are bodybuilders becoming too large? It’s a simple question but one loaded with controversy. Today most Internet forums are filled with heated arguments about whether the ‘mass monsters’ of today are helping or hurting the sport. Rather than continue the common narrative that the 1990s and the Dorian Yates era was the dawn of the ‘Mass… Continue reading Tracing the Mass Monster in Bodybuilding
Though the fitness industry of the early 1900s pales in comparison to the present, there is little denying that the twin evils of advertising and marketing were as important back then as they are today. This was especially the case for Eugen Sandow, whom many credited with having the world's most perfectly developed body. This claim, as… Continue reading Scots v. Sandows
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 George F. Jowett, ‘The Standard That Determines the Ideal Shape’, The Key to Muscle and Might (c. 1925)
Published in the San Francisco Examiner in 1894, the above illustration depicts the Apollo Belvedere alongside the famed US boxer Peter Jackson and, of course, Eugen Sandow. Disputing the various forms of manly beauty, the response to the cartoon was surprising to say the least. While many lauded Sandow's physique, others were less than impressed. John Stanton from… Continue reading The Three Types of Manly Form
After three years of pumping up, slimming down and posing, Britain, and the world was treated to the first ever bodybuilding competition in 1901. Hosted by the legendary Eugen Sandow, the 'Great Competition' as it was known claimed to have found the most perfect specimens alive. Unsurprisingly it wasn't long before other nations, notably America, began to hold their own… Continue reading 1903 and the birth of American Bodybuilding
Published in the San Francisco Examiner in 1894, the above illustration depicts the Apollo Belvedere alongside the famed US boxer Peter Jackson and, of course, Eugen Sandow. Disputing the various forms of manly beauty, the response to the cartoon was surprising to say the least. While many lauded Sandow's physique, others were less than impressed. John Stanton from… Continue reading The Three Types of Manly Form
While Eugen Sandow has long been been held in esteem in the lore of bodybuilding, fans of weightlifting have seldom seen the Prussian as a figure of great importance for their sport. This is unsurprising given that over the past half-century, Sandow's image has become so integral to bodybuilding that the sport's top contest, the Mr.… Continue reading Sandow, Hercules and the Birth of Modern Weightlifting
