Tag: Old Bodybuilding Routines

Training by Conor Heffernan

Forgotten Exercises: The Scott Press

The first Mr. Olympia and one of the 60s most admired bodybuilders, Larry Scott is rarely credited these days as being a bodybuilding great. Whereas Zane, Arnold or Olivia are regularly, and rightly, praised for their physiques, Scott is too often seen as an afterthought. Trained by Vince Gironda and the winner of two Mr. Olympia’s Scott’s thoughtful training style should not be underestimated. It was, after all, Scott who helped popularise Gironda’s preacher curl in the 60s and 70s.

Working together, Gironda and Scott made quite the formidable pair. The object of today’s post, the forgotten Scott Press, is testament to that statement. So in today’s brief post, we’re going to examine the history of the Scott Press before giving some words as to how to best implement it in your own training programmes.

Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The Scott Press
Training by Conor Heffernan

Henry Downs, How I Trained to Win the Mr. Britain Title (1957)

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December the 11th, 1955, was a date to remember for me, for it was on that day I was placed second in the Mr. Britain contest. I had trained harder for that contest than any up to that time and thought I was in better shape than ever before. Well as you know, I didn’t make the grade, so this year I used a different approach to what I had previously done.

Continue reading Henry Downs, How I Trained to Win the Mr. Britain Title (1957)
Training by Conor Heffernan

Forgotten Exercises: The Scott Press

The first Mr. Olympia and one of the 60s most admired bodybuilders, Larry Scott is rarely credited these days as being a bodybuilding great. Whereas Zane, Arnold or Olivia are regularly, and rightly, praised for their physiques, Scott is too often seen as an afterthought. Trained by Vince Gironda and the winner of two Mr. Olympia’s Scott’s thoughtful training style should not be underestimated. It was, after all, Scott who helped popularise Gironda’s preacher curl in the 60s and 70s.

Working together, Gironda and Scott made quite the formidable pair. The object of today’s post, the forgotten Scott Press, is testament to that statement. So in today’s brief post, we’re going to examine the history of the Scott Press before giving some words as to how to best implement it in your own training programmes.

Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The Scott Press
Training by Conor Heffernan

Henry Downs, How I Trained to Win the Mr. Britain Title (1957)

Screenshot 2017-12-15 10.18.40.png

December the 11th, 1955, was a date to remember for me, for it was on that day I was placed second in the Mr. Britain contest. I had trained harder for that contest than any up to that time and thought I was in better shape than ever before. Well as you know, I didn’t make the grade, so this year I used a different approach to what I had previously done.

Continue reading Henry Downs, How I Trained to Win the Mr. Britain Title (1957)
Training by Conor Heffernan

Forgotten Exercises: The Scott Press

The first Mr. Olympia and one of the 60s most admired bodybuilders, Larry Scott is rarely credited these days as being a bodybuilding great. Whereas Zane, Arnold or Olivia are regularly, and rightly, praised for their physiques, Scott is too often seen as an afterthought. Trained by Vince Gironda and the winner of two Mr. Olympia’s Scott’s thoughtful training style should not be underestimated. It was, after all, Scott who helped popularise Gironda’s preacher curl in the 60s and 70s.

Working together, Gironda and Scott made quite the formidable pair. The object of today’s post, the forgotten Scott Press, is testament to that statement. So in today’s brief post, we’re going to examine the history of the Scott Press before giving some words as to how to best implement it in your own training programmes.

Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The Scott Press
Resources by Conor Heffernan

Dorian Yates’ Workouts from 1982-1985

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Yates in 1986

Known as ‘The Shadow’ in bodybuilding circles, Dorian Yates was the goliath of early 1990s bodybuilding. Winning the Mr. Olympia six straight years in a row from 1992 to 1997, Yates was famed for his intense approach to training. A modified form of the high intensity training advocated by Arthur Jones and Mike Mentzer, Yates’ success briefly brought this style of training to the bodybuilding fore.

The following post, stemming from a Dorian article with Flex magazine from the mid 1990s, details the Englishman’s training programme prior to his meteoric success. While everyone wants to know how a champion trains, knowing how they became a champion is equally important…Enjoy!

Continue reading Dorian Yates’ Workouts from 1982-1985
Resources by Conor Heffernan

Kathleen Engel, ‘Put Size on Your Thighs with Nasser El Sonbaty’, Muscle & Fitness, 63: 6 (2002), 134-138

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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 pounds his quads once a week, his hamstrings twice. He is loath to describe an actual routine. “To tell you the truth, my routine is always changing. When it comes to quads, I do squats, legs extensions and hack squats, but the order of the exercises changes, the amount of sets for each exercise changes, and the amount of rest between sets changes.” When he trains quads and hams together, he varies the order from workout to workout. “If I think I need more leg development, then I train quads on Monday morning and hamstrings Monday afternoon. Then on Friday I’ll do hams and quads again.”

Continue reading Kathleen Engel, ‘Put Size on Your Thighs with Nasser El Sonbaty’, Muscle & Fitness, 63: 6 (2002), 134-138