You know, powerlifting should really have its own glitzy award show like the actors do. If this event was ever televised, I believe it would be a huge hit, unlike the sorry spectacle being delivered these days on network TV. I don’t know about you, but I rarely, if ever, watch the Academy Awards anymore.… Continue reading ‘A Lifetime in Powerlifting Well Spent: Ernie Frantz,’ Powerlifting USA, June (2010), 61-64
Okay, you pencil-neck geeks, listen up. I am sick and tired of people dogging on upright rows. It is tired, clichéd, and predictable. Don't believe me? Check out any generic 'exercises to avoid' article and you'll usually find upright rows there. I am not an exercise scientist, but I am an angry historian which makes… Continue reading Why Does Everyone Hate Upright Rows?
Alternative title: A Character Study in Why I Hate Social Media Social media killed the fitness magazine—and the internet just watched. Today I want to take stock and talk about the humble fitness magazine. When were fitness magazines first sold, why did people buy them and why, ultimately, did people discard them. While it may… Continue reading Muscles, Misinformation, and the Death of the Fitness Magazine
At what price do you value Fitness? £50? £1,000? Has it a Price?Yet it need cost you almost Nothing to obtain and retain.It needs but TEN MINUTES A DAY OF YOUR SPARE TIME Every year thousands of people in this country die in the very houses they hoped to enjoy in their leisure, their every… Continue reading Frank Miles, ‘What Price Fitness?,’ Health & Strength, December 3, 1938
Academic Books are notoriously expensive. That isn't because the authors demand huge royalties... we don't, but rather because they are often sold in small numbers. I am thus thrilled that my publisher, Bloomsbury, have taken a decision to publish a paperback copy of my last book, Indian Club Swinging and the Birth of Global Fitness which… Continue reading My Indian Club Swinging Book is Now Affordable!
Describing himself as Arnold's Seminar Nutritionist, Balik opened his short pamphlet on gaining muscle with the often forgotten law that 'nothing beats persistence.' Produced alongside a pamphlet on gaining muscle, which we'll be discussing in a future post, Balik's Total Muscularity represents a great insight into the training philosophy of 1970s Muscle Beach bodybuilding. Sparing myself… Continue reading John Balik, Total Muscularity: SuperStar Nutrition (Santa Monica, 1979)
Mike Mentzer remains one of the most fascinating characters in the history of bodybuilding. A deep thinker and proud contrarian, Mike is one of the few men in bodybuilding to achieve a perfect score in a competition—and do it on more than one occasion! His training style was defined by the high-intensity training first proposed… Continue reading Interview with Mike Mentzer author John Little
Gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time is often held up as the Holy Grail of body recomposition. A desirable goal, that advanced or even intermediate trainees are now told is only possible for beginners or those using chemical means. Today's post examines the rather lengthy sounding Anabolic Burst Cycle of Diet and Exercise… Continue reading Gaining Muscle and Losing Fat: The ABCDE Diet Experiment
The Bent Press was a staple for 'old school' strongmen and women seeking to show off their strength. The movement couldn't be simpler. Pick up a dumbbell or barbell from the floor. Get it to chest height and then slowly press it overhead while simultaneously moving yourself underneath it. Check out an iconic shot of… Continue reading The Bent Press: The Most Fascinating Lift
Remember that time Franco Columbu broke his leg carrying a refrigerator on his back? Pepperidge Farms remembers... I love strongman and strongwoman festivals. If you have been on this website for more than five minutes, this much is clear. I also love how chaotic and unorganised early strongman shows were. From heavy deadlifts with blocks… Continue reading Near Tragedy: When Bill Kazmaier Almost Killed O.D Wilson at the 1989 Pure Strength Contest
