Those acquainted with the history of Physical Culture will no doubt recall the Saxon brothers, a travelling troupe of German strongmen who performed at the turn of the twentieth century. Blessed with remarkable physiques, the trio's mighty strength was undoubtedly aided by their healthy appetite for food and drink. In fact, as today's brief post… Continue reading Eat like a Saxon!
Published by the mid-century Bodybuilder Alan Stephens, the following article from Your Physique magazine details some time honoured means of bulking up in the easiest and most efficient way possible. Though much of Stephens' advice will seem like old hat to those a few years in the Iron Game, his writings were geared toward the beginner… Continue reading Alan Stephen – Bulking is Easy (1950 article)
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
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… Continue reading Henry Downs, How I Trained to Win the Mr. Britain Title (1957)
In the decades before bodybuilding became fashionable, when young men wanted to workout, they would say, "Hey, lets' go to the YMCA and lift weights" In fact, during the early part of this century, weightlifting was much more popular than bodybuilding, in part because bodybuilding was regarded as too narcissistic. Inveterate observers of weight-training history… Continue reading Mike Mentzer (1995) – Mr. Universe Mike Mentzer’s Training Invention
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
It all began in April 1965 in a Joe Weider magazine... Sick and tired of conversations about who was the greatest bodybuilder, Weider had decided to create a competition pitting champions from around the World against each other. In the same year that the iconic Gold's Gym opened, Weider's 'Mr. Olympia' would see A Mr.… Continue reading The First Mr. Olympia
Face it. Every now and then you want to try something new in the gym. A new lift, a new rep range or an entirely new style of training. The mind gets bored of monotony, something which the lifters of yore were all too acquainted with. Today's post on the Sig Klein challenge will not only… Continue reading The Sig Klein Challenge
Born at the turn of the twentieth-century, Tony Sansone is perhaps one of the most famous physical culturists never to turn his hand to bodybuilding. Nevertheless his influence on bodybuilders and those seeking to get in shape was remarkable. Training under both Bernarr McFadden and Charles Atlas, Sansone developed one of the most sought after… Continue reading Tony Sansone’s Weight Gain Diet
Forced Rep, Negatives, Free Weights & Machines - People have called me mad. They say no sane man would inflict my degree of discipline on himself. Perhaps they're right, but I feel that extremism in the quest of your best is no vice. If I seem to be in be in the iron grip of… Continue reading Andreas Munzer – The Ideal Way to Massive Legs (1995)
