I have spoken so much of Louis' great strength that now I must tell you of his great weakness - eating. His excuse for eating so much was that his great expenditure of strength required it. That was just his joke, though, for he was a slave to the table all his life. He could… Continue reading How Much Could Louis Cyr Eat?
What we shall endeavor to do here in this section of Chapter 5 is to outline for you a few choice specialization programs which can be utilized by you in the training year, for whatever particular training goal you may endeavor to fulfill. These routines are not mere figments of my creative imagination, for they… Continue reading Anthony Ditillo, ‘Various Strength Specialization Routines’, THE DEVELOPMENT OF PHYSICAL STRENGTH
IT needs no emphasizing to say here that it is incumbent on every one to conserve, and, as far as one can, increase, to their full development and vigor, his bodily and mental powers. What- ever agents will best promote this, it is admittedly a duty to make use of. One of the chief means… Continue reading Eugen Sandow, ‘Hygience and Medical Gymnastics,’ Sandow on Physical Training AND MEDICAL GYMNASTICS.
So often in today's world of World's Strongest Man, Olympic Weightlifting and Powerlifting, the assumption that strength is defined by maximum weight lifted goes unchallenged. It is as if we accept unquestioningly that the person who can lift 500 pounds once is stronger than the those who can 'only' lift 400 pounds for reps. It's… Continue reading What is Strength?
Playboy, character or revolutionary? Rarely are such terms used to describe the same person and that is what made Malcolm Alexander Allison such an enigma to those who knew him. Allison was hugely influential in the introduction of modern training systems in 1960s England but his reputation as a trainer was often overshadowed by matters… Continue reading Malcolm Allison and the Modernisation of English Football
Today, when you think about gyms, you imagine rows of treadmills and dumbbells and a mixed crowd of fitness enthusiasts and occasional visitors with headphones doing their own thing. While this might be the ideal setup for many, gyms didn’t always look like that. If you’re a regular at the gym, it’s important to know… Continue reading Guest Post: The Brief History of Fitness Industry
This is now the eighth .... EIGHTH ... year of this blog. While I don't always get the time I need or want to write for this site, it holds such a fond place in my heart. I created this website in 2014 when I had just finished my undergraduate degree. I didn't know what… Continue reading 2021: The Physical Culture Review
Since the early 1990s, the Western World has been infatuated with a wonder supplement that increases athletic performance, helps build muscle and has relatively few side affects. Creatine is perhaps one of the best known supplements available on the market. It has been praised and castigated for its effectiveness and oftentimes has been mistakenly deemed as… Continue reading Creatine: A Short History
Today's post comes primarily from the Ma Strength Olympic weightlifting book written by Manuel Buitrago, an expert on Chinese weightlifting techniques. In part 1, we finished off with the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1912. From here, China entered a tumultuous period to establish itself as a Republic and gain international recognition. Therefore, reformers kept… Continue reading Guest Post: History of Chinese Weightlifting Part 2: Republican Period – Great Leap Forward
Periodization means “to divide into periods,” when defined by most dictionaries. That’s also the way that I view this term as it applies to strength training. I’m a big believer that some form of change in a routine every three or four months or so is as good mentally as it is physically. In addition… Continue reading Bob Whelan, ‘Common Sense Periodization’, Hard Gainer, July-August (1999), 21-24.
