The Westside Barbell club run by Louie Simmons, is one of the current institutions of the iron game. Known for producing champion powerlifters and even effective machines such as the Reverse Hyper Extension, there is little doubting the club's importance for lifters, whether or not they adhere to powerlifting itself. In today's short post, we're … Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The JM Press
As I'm sure you have noticed, I love the history of Quebec strongmen, in particular Louis Cyr. As discussed, Cyr represented more than strength; he stood as a symbol of French Canadian opportunity in the face of an history of oppression. Little wonder Cyr's funeral in 1912 is still alluded to in Quebec press. The … Continue reading The Fall of a Giant – The Crowning of a Newcomer
Earlier in the week I was fortunate enough to spend time with a friend of mine who has recently qualified as a physiotherapist. Discussing the relative merits of different exercises and training protocols, my friend lamented his profession's reliance on cookie cutter protocols for rehabbing patients. In their view, many physiotherapists tended to prescribe 10 … Continue reading 3 Sets x 10 Reps: The History, Logic and Reasoning
The quest for greater size has long plagued both the 'hard gainer' and the muscle bound hunk. At times it can seem that the need to ingest greater calories is almost as taxing as our workouts. A predicament that John McCallum, the focus of today's article, was keen to address. As you'll read below, McCallum devised … Continue reading John McCallum ‘Get Big Drink’
Better known as Rheo H. Blair, Irvin Johnson was one of the foremost bodybuilding nutritionists of the 1950s and 60s. Producing one of the most sought after protein powders in the Iron Game, Blair was lauded for his nutritional knowhow and ability to achieve seemingly unbelievable weight gain amongst his clients. Bearing that in mind, … Continue reading Irvin Johnson’s Scientific Body Building and Nutrition Course (1951)
One of bodybuilding's most perplexing problems is deciding on how many repetitions. In recent years there has been a tendency to standardise the number to around ten, as this is felt to provide the best combination for muscular bulk, strength and stamina. Not too many years ago the guiding rule was low reps for bulk, … Continue reading Ivan Dunbar, How Many Reps Makes the Champion? (1964 Health & Strength Article)
One of the most maligned exercises of recent decades has been the military press done behind the neck. Owing it is said to the undue stress this exercise places on the shoulder joints, lifters have been advised to avoid this technique at all costs. I, for many years, was one of those lifters. Not only … Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The Bradford Press
