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Bodybuilding History: The Golden Era of Bodybuilding
Bodybuilding can be described as
the methodical and deliberate reconstruction of body tissues and cells, in an
attempt to optimize/maximize the lean muscle mass while at the same time
minimizing the body fat levels. The roots of bodybuilding can be traced all way
back to the ancient Greece. It was the ancient Greek athletes who normally
trained in gymnasiums, however, they didn't use resistance training to modify
their bodies, but rather as a means of improving at the particular sport(s)
they participated in.
Bodybuilding
Turning Points
It was in the 11th century that
bodybuilding actually first arrived on the scene. Back when Indians would use
some primitive dumbbell weights which were carved from stones for the main
purpose of getting stronger and bigger. However, it wasn't until mid-19th
century when weight training became popular as a means of increasing strength
and improving health. People began getting exposed, to what was later to be
known as, the physical culture; through the traveling strongmen of the time.
Over the years, weight lifting has
evolved and grown so much that today, the bodybuilding practices in the early
periods of 1800s to 1900 seem archaic, at best. The bodybuilding practices of
the 19th century included, issuing challenges to other strongmen so as to see
who could out lift the other, as they moved from town to town. Some other
practices usually included; lifting animals and pulling carts. The public loved
watching the strongmen compete. Back then, how their physiques appeared didn't
factor into their displays of physical strength and prowess. As a matter of
fact, protruding stomachs and fatty limbs were common place amongst the
competitors. Well, as 20th century approached, a man emerged and bridged the
gap between the unsightly and overweight strongmen, and the bodybuilders as we
know them today.
The
Bodybuilding Golden Era
One of the biggest influences in
bodybuilding, is the bodybuilding legend known as Eugene Sandow. He is
officially the first famous bodybuilder, and the father of todays, modern
bodybuilders. Eugene Sandow, born in the year 1867, became a phenomenon thanks
to his unprecedented unique combination of great muscle strength and quality
physique. He became a turn of the century physical cultural icon. He is still
referred to as one of bodybuilding's greatest icons. Eugen Sandow was the
muscle superstar bodybuilder of his age. He developed some of the very first
bodybuilding equipment and also launched the first ever bodybuilding magazine.
The magazine was originally known as "Physical Culture," but later
changed to "Sandow's Magazine, of Physical Culture."
The golden era of bodybuilding came
about in the 1970s. During this decade, one of the bodybuilding greats, Arnold
Schwarzenegger, put bodybuilding on the map. After a lot of success in Europe,
Schwarzenegger, who was also popularly known as "Austrian Oak", burst
on to international bodybuilding scene. He won the Mr. Olympia title at a
record breaking age, of 23, beating Sergio Oliva. Arnold would later on go on a
winning streak, and won the Mr. Olympia title every year, up to the year 1975,
a record breaking six times.
The Mr. Olympia competition was
later on split between two size categories; the tall man and the small man. Before
1976, it was the tall men who had always won, however, in 1976, Franco Columbo
became the first small man to win the Mr. Olympia title.
The next influential bodybuilding
legend to burst on to the scene was a guy by the name Lee Haney. He broke
Arnold Schwarzenegger's record, and won eight consecutive Mr. Olympia titles
from 1984 to 1991. Since then, bodybuilding has undergone many changes.
How
Bodybuilding Has Evolved
As compared to some of the modern
bodybuilders, the "golden age bodybuilders" knew how to bulk and cut properly,
because they normally relied on the most basic and fundamental nutritional
information. They kept it simple. There wasn't any Ketosis diets, they did not
eliminate carbohydrates, and they knew what needed to be done in order to
achieve maximum muscle growth.
Reliance on drugs has been a major
blow to bodybuilding. Today, there are dozens of anabolic steroids which are
far stronger. There are also many new classes of different drugs such as human
growth hormones, and several other peptide hormones in the market. Worse still,
most modern bodybuilders even use insulin, which is very dangerous. These types
of drugs have led to production of massively disproportionate, and imbalanced
body physiques, because many of the drugs do not just cause muscle growth, but
they also make everything else in the body grow, including the organs, bones
and even some potentially cancerous body tissues. That's the main reasons why
some modern bodybuilders look imbalanced while the golden era bodybuilders
looked like the actual epitome of masculinity.
On the other hand, bodybuilding has
also seen some tremendous positive changes. There are new great practices of
weight training, and knowledge about the best diets which is all central to
bodybuilding success, at all levels. These changes have helped enhance the
lives of many bodybuilding enthusiasts.
Useful
Information
There are many useful and
interesting sources of information on the internet. Many website stating they have the key to success. The fact is, we are all different and all
need something different to be bigger, stronger or faster and to improve or
better ourselves. The Truly Huge
website was created to help people develop their strength, fitness or overall
health with supplements advice, training techniques and dietary information
available for all.