Tag: Sports History

Basics

Have We Been Doing Gyms Wrong?

Conor Heffernan

< div id="entry"> < div id="main" class="main typography use-theme-bg"> < div> < div class="single-post-container" role="main" aria-label="Post"> < div class="container"> < div class="single-post"> < div class="pencraft pc-display-contents pc-reset pubTheme-yiXxQA"> < article class="typography newsletter-post post"> < div> < div class="dropCap-hcUVpW"> < div class="available-content"> < div class="body markup" dir="auto"> Walk into most gyms today and the experience is… Continue reading Have We Been Doing Gyms Wrong?

Suicide Milo Bar
Basics, Resources

The Thickest Barbell Alive and the Lost Art of Odd Lifts

Conor Heffernan

I am a big fan of novelty barbells. This is not news to anyone who has read my stuff for long enough. Give me an EZ bar, a trap bar, an earthquake bar, a thick bar, a homemade bar, or some bizarre object a strongman once claimed was impossible to lift and I am happy.… Continue reading The Thickest Barbell Alive and the Lost Art of Odd Lifts

Biographies, Resources, Training

The History of 21s

Conor Heffernan

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 The History of 21s

Basics

The Most Cited Squat in History Was a Marketing Stunt

Conor Heffernan

“Tom and I worked for Vince McMahon… as a marketing gimmick, we were obliged to go head to head in a ‘great squat-off.’” That’s Fred Hatfield reflecting on the 1992 contest with Tom Platz, a moment that is still regularly circulated as evidence in debates about training. The footage is treated as a kind of… Continue reading The Most Cited Squat in History Was a Marketing Stunt

Basics

When Did Exercise Become ‘30 Minutes a Day’?

Conor Heffernan

Open almost any public health website and you will see the same number repeated with quiet authority. Adults should aim for around 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week. This usually gets translated into the simpler phrase ‘thirty minutes a day’. The number carries a scientific aura. It sounds as if researchers eventually discovered… Continue reading When Did Exercise Become ‘30 Minutes a Day’?

Calvert one arm db press
Resources, Training

Before lifters added weight with plates, they poured it in by hand.

Conor Heffernan

I once spent a few days training with the legendary Mr. Olympia winner Frank Zane. One of the best purchases I ever made, I was always struck by Zane's observation that our bodies are, in many ways, the sum total of the equipment we have access to. If your gym has machines and no free… Continue reading Before lifters added weight with plates, they poured it in by hand.

Resources, Training

The History of the Reverse Grip Bench Press

Conor Heffernan

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

Biographies, Resources, Training

21s in Bodybuilding Lore

Conor Heffernan

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

Biographies, Resources

The Rise and Fall of the World Muscle Power Classic

Conor Heffernan

Admit it. We're somewhat spoilt for choice these days when it comes to contests of strength. Though not as well televised as some of us might like, myself included, strongmen competitions have grown exponentially over the past decade and a half. We have the World's Strongest Man (WSM) and its various qualifying rounds around the… Continue reading The Rise and Fall of the World Muscle Power Classic

Resources, Training

Who Invented the EZ bar?

Conor Heffernan

A piece of equipment so commonplace on the gym floor that we often take its very existence for granted. That, at least, is my impression of the E-Z Bar. Having previously discussed the history of barbells, the ancient origins of the dumbbell and even the Swiss Ball for God's sake, it's somewhat shameful that the… Continue reading Who Invented the EZ bar?