BEYOND THE MUSCLE: Vintage Bodybuilding Culture. A Call For It's Return.

The content of this blog is not necessarily dense, but admittedly I stay pretty serious face when I write. This is because I care. I have passion in my craft of lifting weights, talking about lifting weights, reading about lifting weights, and most importantly writing about lifting weights. To me it is more than a hobby or a lifestyle. Weightlifting and things affiliated with it are an extension of my being as a human. I don’t know how else to explain it without creeping you out. So I am just gonna leave it at that. Point is,  I'm so focused and obsessed with myself and everyone else who carry the torch of real strength that the only way I can lay my eggs of motivation into peoples brains is with intensity.

But even the darkest and most corrupted trigger man has to lighten up (but only when no ones looking.) Not really….but srsly. So I’m shifting gears and putting this thing in reverse. Were going on a field trip, brothers. You don’t know where you’re going, if you don’t know where you’ve been. I’m taking you to a place in time where vanity, pride, excess, and fame was the standard operating procedure. Where modesty was an insult. When life was simple and people were put into two groups: 1) You had muscles. 2) You were boring. If you haven’t guessed by now we are going to walk the halls of the single greatest decade in the history of Bodybuilding. The golden age of roid rage, the decade of decadence, 1980’s Gym Culture.

Even your redneck as fuck, drug dealing cousin from central Florida was hitting weights.

Before we go any further I want to go on the record and say that I am 100% serious about everything I will be showcasing. My commentary is true. I’m patiently waiting on this level of beauty to bloom once more. The best way to make this a reality starts with YOU, the reader. Live your life by the same code these buff bastards lived. Never miss an opportunity to flex. If you friends don’t lift weights, they are not your friends. The more buff guys there are in one collective group the better your life will be. If you shirt or shorts are too small, go down a size. Chicks wont bang a guy who squats 405lbs, Chicks will bang a guy who LOOKS like he squats 405lbs. HAILS! Let us respect the muscles who came before us. May we absorb their wisdom and ethics like a cheap white gym towel. Bow your heads and say with me …….

“In the name of The Squat, The Bench Press and The Holy Deadlift. Amen.”

QUESTION: IS IT STILL A MUSCLE CAR IF THE MUSCLE AND CAR ARE SEPARATE?

Do enough digging around in the back catalogs of FLEX magazine or google searching "80's BB (bodybuilders will from here on be abbreviated as BB) you will undoubtedly spot a familiar trend of weirdly buff dudes awkwardly posing in front of, what I assume, are their cars. This is an advanced maneuver. Is this a photo of Doug in front of his car OR Is this a photo of Doug's car and he is standing there? They had it down to a science. I cannot decipher between the two, which means that no one can complain about Doug being vain. It deflects mockery by posing this paradox. "Aye, fuck you Mick. The wife wants a photo of our car, she takes the damn photo. I swear you cant tell her nuttin'." Case fucking closed. You are now forced to mire' both Doug's chiseled physique and his very clean automobile.

"Picture me rollin in my 500 Benz with my 500 Bench max."

Exhibit B

Exhibit C

The Triple Threat: you know who he is, you know what he drives, and you know where he lifts. No further questions your honor.

If I may contradict my argument, There are rare instances where you simply cannot fool a man. If the guy shows up in the photo with a thong and gold chain we know your angle. Appreciate the effort buddy but stick to the stage, its much easier than real life. (still mirin' the.chest to lat separation though. respect,)

OK, last car themed photo I promise. I just want you observe the the "Hardstyle" pose in its infancy. Notice how both participants have slight knee bends. Proof of the Hardstyle's eventual evolution into full knee-to-ground contact. Also note this man gives the lady the right-of-way for outside bicep privilege.Very courteous move, but upon further inspection you will observe the left arm curled inward and well flexed. Quite possibly stronger of the two. An the extremely rare siting of both female flattery and showcasing the males best feature. Seeing the subtle complexities of the Hardstyle pose in its developing stages really brings a new appreciation of its evolution.

In times before digital cameras or smart phones with filters you had only one camera and one filter. The "Low Ceiling Basement Lighting" filter. This was the only location in the entire house able to do your figure justice was. Finished or un-finished, it didn't matter. The low ceilings provided that optimallighting that draped over every inch of your curves and cuts like a luxurious sex robe. The basement was the preferred filter for generations of men dying to document their gains. No one saw these photos either. The dude took them strictly for himself. The photos kept like treasured relics in scrapbooks across attics coast to coast.  Relics that would be unearthed by zit faced teens searching for nudie magazines in the twilight of Grandpas life. "Look here grandson...Grandpa wasn't always a shriveled sun grape. I woulda whooped your ass." You can hear this guy yelling at his wife to come downstairs and take some photos of him after his bicep super set. She likely finished the roll and was forced to immediately drop the film roll off at the local pharmacy.

Real recognized real. Big dudes were friends with other big dudes. Not by choice, by necessity. The more big dudes in one location, the bigger everyone looked. I call it Muscular Conjugation, A transfer of genetic material between two lifters. The muscley genetics transferred from one physique to the nearest neighboring physique. Which is beneficial to both hosts, thus increasing the overall strength of a buff dude colony. 

Similar to Muscular Conjugation we have what is known as "Anabolic synergism." Again, the mechanism of action occurs when a colony of buff dudes and their buff girlfriends formed in a public space. Anabolic synergism is most often seen when multiple bodybuilders are pressed together for a photo opportunity. Their builds become stronger and bigger than if just a single BB was present.

Not a single ounce of irony in this photo. It's what Iron Madien would look like if they spent more time weightlifting instead of logging flight hours for a pilots license So they can play a 4 hour set in Lima Peru.

So many avenues of approach in this gem. Could spend an hour writing about this so I will let the reader indulge themselves in this one. I do, however, want to bring your attention to the middle mans shirt. It is literally a shirt that says Vitamins. It has a picture of vitamins below it. Fuck. Brilliant. Is this shirt part of a series? Is there another that says "Protein" with a scoop of whey below it? Is there one that says "Food" and features a steak with a glass of milk? I need to know goddamnit. Who made this shirt?!

Obviously without social media how is a lifter suppose to stroke his ego? How is the lifter gonna let the betas know hes out there? You know what they did? They used their own money to buy ad space in a muscle magazine. Respect. That means whatever picture was hitting the presses had to be your absolute best work possible because that's the only one people would see (plus you fucking paid for it). I like this idea better. So instead of flooding the public with shitty pictures of a temporary physique, you only brought out the big guns.

While I'm on the subject here are some gain photos that need to stop. The 20 min. arm pump, the appearance of a obscure basilic or cephalic vein that cannot even be measured with a small ruler, the full mirror gym selfie of someone who is not sweating, any picture in a bathroom with the toilet visible, and a photo that is both out of focus and visibly heavily filtered. Look, I'm the document your progress guy 100% no doubt. A little vanity is good for the human condition. Pictures are crucial in motivation and reflection. But I'm pleading with gym culture to please bring an end to the hour by hour update of what your building. It ruins the transformation and makes even people making big strides look thirsty as fuck. Not every workout needs a photo. Weightlifting ins a tricky balance between vanity and humility. Close the curtains, get to work, and come out when you have actually built something worth showing.

So much more to cover. I could write for days about this topic and all its glory. I'll save the rest for another post otherwise this thing will never get published. Too easy to get lost in a wormhole of oiled & thick physiques. 

The legendary Scott Hall. None greater.

Doug Young is not concerned with your macros count. Your mobility does not impress him.

 
And now I leave you with the hardest, most savage, black metal friendly wrestling tag-team to ever step inside the ring. Ax and Smash. Pioneers of both the bloated powerlifting guy look and the wet leather black masked assailant villain that haunted your dreams as a youth look. 


DEMOLITION

inspired to craft my own Demoliton mask now.

STAY GRIM.

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"Grant us your powers of annihilation. Crush the skinny fat prophet, death to fad diet faith!"

Many hails to all my fellow die-hard servants of the Iron Underworld. I'm coming in hot on tonight's post. Armed to the teeth with motivation, purpose, direction, and dark sided pictures to look at. A lot has been happening in the BMF camp as of late. Eager to spread the gospel with all my brethren. So lets start spilling blood right now.

There is plenty of light to shine toward the mortal figures of man. The summer harvest of gains and thickness has been bountiful this season. The seeds of rusted iron that we planted in the throes of winter have now fully blossomed and are ripe for picking. The Weightlifting Lords have heard our cries and accepted our offerings. In return the Iron Lords have rewarded our devotion to the Barbell Temple with new PR's, new max's, better form, stronger diets, chiseled physiques, bigger muscles, stronger minds, and improved focus. If you are reading this post I hope you are one of the peasants who struggled day in and day out through winter anticipating this summer. This is your season to flex on the weak betas and false alphas of this shit planet. Enjoy your harvest. You fucking earned it. If you are disappointed in your harvest and wish you planted more seeds and tended to your crops properly then I must say to you "preparing for failure is the same as failing to prepare."

TO KNOW THE ENEMY IS TO KNOW THYSELF.

I assume you have identified the poisonous people and threats to your well being. I hope you have shown your enemies no remorse, no mercy, with pity for none and hate for all on path to carving the giant that is your frame. I also hope you have provided help, coaching, motivation, while mentoring your gym brethren. The light of physical strength is there for all who choose to see. All you must do is open your eyes. For we are nothing without each other. Our enemies will not speak of our strength, they will speak of our weakness and exploit it to eliminate us. THIS is why we spend our waking hours and channel all of our energy into heavy weights, strange food, and mirrors. We must give our enemies nothing to speak of. They will speak with the words of a mute that will fall on the ears of the deaf. They will only tear themselves down while we build ourselves up and protect our hunt.Let all those who stand in our way of physical and mental strength gains be vanquished and shallow buried into unmarked graves. We have no pity for those who oppose in the same way we have no pity for the weights. We are trained to kill both.

Caravaggio was calling for heads back in the 1500's. goddamn if did he didn't paint some vicious depictions of enemies getting served cold. murder boner achieved.

USING THE TOOLS TO BUILD

Tools are needed to build an empire. We must lay our heads down before the creators of human history and give them praise. They have suffered so we can survive. You may ask yourself "what tools?" I speak of infinite resources at your disposal. Its 2015...WE HAVE THE NET. The internet is alive and well. Everyone can become an expert on anything now. no excuses. If you workouts suck, your progress sucks, your not getting the results you want. consult the net! find out something. anything. Its a fucking wormhole of information. Everyone is always talking about how every fitness article or advice contradicts every other article or advice. I wont argue that is incredibly true but that is not a free pass to say "fuck it. Im confused and I don't wanna try so I am out." 

What worked for the other guy may or may not work for you. Weightlifting is all about learning, growing, trying, and pushing. You gotta think like you are playing a chess game with your body. Your body is fucking Garry Kasparov and you are nobody. You must find ways to beat it and constantly reinvent yourself to stay one move ahead.  Men who do not lift, their bodies control them. Men who lift seriously, they control their bodies.

There will come a point your body will stop responding to your lifts because its part of its routine. This is when you zig instead of zag. Get out there and sniff out new lifts, new workouts, new gyms, new meals, or new ideas. Be open to anything that may improve your physique. If something doesn't work cross it off your list and move on. Ask my close friends and they will tell you I am always saying "its all relative" and really it is. if somethign doesnt feel right research it and try to self correct. If you cant seem to hit that 315lbs bench max get on the laptop and start searching tips on how to improve bench max. Try them. If they dont work then try something else. I feel like I really shouldn't need to type that. You must understand I am not trying to talk down on you. I am trying to remind you that what you need is there. You just have to do the footwork.

Whether you lift with a tight group of experienced brothers or are the only person in your entire backwoods village in the butt hole of Indiana who even attempts to lift weights. (all alone) The results you make are on you. All the support, knowledge, and friends in the world wont make you strong. You have to do it yourself. You ultimately do every single lift, curl, push, press, pull, squat, and pause all by yourself. Its you versus the everything. Get that in your head now. Its your fight. Time to fucking finish it. GET SOME!!

Here I am doing Lat pulldowns at my gym (ROCKWEL BARBELL CHICAGO IL) with three of my absolute best friends/blood brothers with me. I love these men and they have helped me so much but, as you can see from this photo, I am all alone. I am the man who has to pull that weight. none more powerful than me. I am an island. photo by: Chris Fowler

At the risk of being melodramatic being in the weight room is like survival. You have to adapt if you wanna stay alive. You must evolve, adapt, and overcome. Try everything you want (and a few you dont) to make yourself stronger and smarter. 

How I feel when I am walking into the gym on a Friday night. A night when everyone else is spending money they don't have, at bars they hate, with people they don't really know. I am the masked intruder ready to break and enter the gym. I will walk to the weights with the mindset of a violent thief. I will take what I want. I am GOD.

If you ever wanna light a fire under your nubile ass and be ready to fucking crush the weights then do yourself a favor and watch this incredibly "real talk" speech given by Alec Baldwin from Glengary Glennross. Even if you have seen it already. Give it another view. I promise it gets better with every watch.

"The leads are weak? The fucking leads are weak? Your weak!"

  

aye dude thanks for collecting all your excuses on why you aren't in the shape you wanna be in together in this pile. I got the answer to all your excuses.... *proceeds to light the excuses on fire and then stab the fire with a knife.  His buddies keep things entertaining by reciting ritual chants of Lucifer and all his magnificent power.

 

 If you need to convince yourself that your lack of progress is someone elses fault (i.e work, being poor, being fat, not knowing where to start) then you have a lot of work if you want to run with the herd. The rest of the world is moving fast and you are standing still. Letting the strong wolves get ahead of you while you drift into the back. 

In a group of wolves the slowest and weakest wolves make up the rear end of a pack. When they are threatened they flea together. The predator will seek chase. The wolves in the rear will be the first to die in the teeth of the predator. They couldn't keep up and because of that they paid a heavy price....their life. No other proof is needed to get strong and stay strong. If you are not in the front you better be as close as you fucking can to leading the herd. Because when the hunt is on and your instincts kick in if you cant maintain with the alpha, you are fucking dead.

Where do you see yourself in this pack?

go on.....

Life Goals.

Relationship Goals.

The founders/employees of Rockwell Barbell. Chicago's premier rehabilitation center. Dedicated to transforming yesterdays skinny fat, bar crawler, beta boys into tomorrows bar bending, battle tested, men of the future. Ready, willing, and able to lead from the front.

wanna share this quote my buddy Eugene dropped today at Rockwell Barbell during our Floor Press burn outs. "We want to take people from being at the bar to being under the bar."

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