Old Strongman Lifts

[WillGrant]

Good point, Boyer didnt have any maybe Grimek had the same genetic flaw. Back then you didnt need abs though just all raw strength and mass.

And lots of Dball 

[BB]

Grimek did have Testosterone supplied to him in the early 50's by Ziegler. I personal do not trust any lifters after WWII . Post War/ Late 40's is when you start seeing references to steriods and when honest people like Peary Rader, etc..... remember first hearing of them.

The Grimek references are found here: http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/JSH/JSH1993/JSH2001/jsh2001b.pdf .

Long, interesting article by John D. Fair, who had access to many York lifters, in house files, etc......

[PANDAEMONIUM]

Reg was strong, like really fucking strong. First muscular guy to bench 500lbs at 220 bodyweight. 500lb rows, 600lb squats, 405lb front squats, 315lb shoulder presses, 225lb barbell curls, 1000lb calf raises, 120lb standing dumbell presses. Not to mention all of his other old school strength feats like doing bench presses with two, 155lbs barbells (fucking crazy!!). He was pure class and definitely my fav old school strongmen/bodybuilder, and unlike alot of BBers, he was as powerful as he looked. I would rather look like and be as strong as Reg than be like ANY of the walking chemical bag midgets in the IFBB today. Also, Steeve Reeves was a poor mans Reg Park.

You must be quite the physical specimen, with a name like "genetic marvel"

[Vince B]

Grimek apparently was involved with Ziegler and testosterone in fifties. According to an article by Fair, Grimek didn't get any benefit so discontinued using them. He did recruit some weightlifters for Ziegler to experiment with. After 1959 they used Dianabol but the trials weren't particularly well controlled and Zeigler used hypnosis and suggestion in an attempt to get the subject to lift more weight.

I have to laugh at how Ziegler eventually washed his hands of the weightlifters and bodybuilders at York because they were taking way too much. They were eating the pills like candy! Yep, sounds like muscleheads for sure. Ziegler insisted he was the doctor and they more or less ignored him and figured their own doses by trial and error. What a crazy history followed after he retired.

There is no real evidence that any of the muscle guys used any drugs before about 1956 or so. That still allows that it was possible.

[io856]

muscleheads without drugs don't exist

hope this helps 

[Mr Nobody]

Truck pull and push, farmers walks, tire flips, keg toss, keg press and keg carries, sled drags, one arm press, log press, etc,etc. Having yokes made now.

Cool stuff Coach, when do you open your gym again? I have been a judge at The Highland Games a couple of years which are events like camber toss, hammer throw etc. the training these type things is interesting.

[Mr Nobody]

Grimek apparently was involved with Zeigler and testosterone in fifties. According to an article by Fair, Grimek didn't get any benefit so discontinued using them. He did recruit some weightlifters for Zeigler to experiment with. After 1959 they used Dianabol but the trials weren't particularly well controlled and Zeigler used hypnosis and suggestion in an attempt to get the subject to lift more weight.

I have to laugh at how Zeigler eventually washed his hands of the weightlifters and bodybuilders at York because they were taking way too much. They were eating the pills like candy! Yep, sounds like muscleheads for sure. Zeigler insisted he was the doctor and they more or less ignored him and figured their own doses by trial and error. What a crazy history followed after he retired.

There is no real evidence that any of the muscle guys used any drugs before about 1956 or so. That still allows that it was possible.

Interesting stuff Basile I guess we will never really know most these guys are gone. Did you ever meet or speak with Vince Gironda? He had some off the wall ideas some worked.

[Vince B]

I talked to Gironda a couple of times. The first time he made fun of me because I fetched some photos I had taken of Arnold and he told the lads that I was a guy who kept photos of guys in his car! Funny now that I look back on it but hardly amusing at the time. I always considered him an asshole after that. Especially when I saw his gym walls full of photos of himself or with important people. That really affected me because I never put up my photos in my gym. My family did but I never did. I guess it was hard to be modest and a bodybuilding champion at the same time. Of course, my success wasn't much in the scheme of things. However, even the top guys are hardly remembered now and that says a lot about so-called Mr Universe titles. It is mostly vanity.

Gironda knew a lot about training but he missed out on getting wealthy even though at one time in the sixties he was selling courses and singlets to all and sundry. I think his stubbornness contributed to his not having a better gym. When he was flooded one year it just about wiped him out and after that his business sort of evaporated. In the meantime, Golds Gym had become a worldwide phenomenon and that wouldn't have pleased Gironda because he had a successful gym before Joe Gold did. Still, he left a legacy and is still remembered which is about as good as it gets in the Iron Game.

[burn2live]

Burn2live, where did you hear or read that?

Here is a link to the article, it's pay per view unfortunately

http://journals.lww.com/acsm-csmr/Abstract/2004/08000/Anabolic_Androgenic_Steroids_and_Testosterone.11.aspx

[wes]

"even lengthened the arc of his urine”

A truly great benefit/side effect!! 

[Mr Nobody]

I talked to Gironda a couple of times. The first time he made fun of me because I fetched some photos I had taken of Arnold and he told the lads that I was a guy who kept photos of guys in his car! Funny now that I look back on it but hardly amusing at the time. I always considered him an asshole after that. Especially when I saw his gym walls full of photos of himself or with important people. That really affected me because I never put up my photos in my gym. My family did but I never did. I guess it was hard to be modest and a bodybuilding champion at the same time. Of course, my success wasn't much in the scheme of things. However, even the top guys are hardly remembered now and that says a lot about so-called Mr Universe titles. It is mostly vanity.

Gironda knew a lot about training but he missed out on getting wealthy even though at one time in the sixties he was selling courses and singlets to all and sundry. I think his stubbornness contributed to his not having a better gym. When he was flooded one year it just about wiped him out and after that his business sort of evaporated. In the meantime, Golds Gym had become a worldwide phenomenon and that wouldn't have pleased Gironda because he had a successful gym before Joe Gold did. Still, he left a legacy and is still remembered which is about as good as it gets in the Iron Game.

Good stuff, he sounds like a stubborn ass that refused to go along with the "Bodybuilding Establishment" at the time which hurt him in the long run alot of the champions trained there at once I understand then left. I have a couple of his books he was a big proponent of the high fat low carb diet. He had some good ideas for sure.

[Mr Nobody]

Last semester I had to give a presentation on drugs in sport. The coordinator gave me a really nice paper on the history etc of performance enhancers in sport. Unfortunately I had to return it to him, but the information is documented in academic literature. I have the presentation here somewhere, will go find it. It may have the reference at the end actually...


Charles Édouard Brown-Sequard, 1889, injected himself with dog and guinea pig testicles extract
“Increased his physical strength and intellectual energy, relieved his constipation and even lengthened the arc of his urine”

Also, before this apparently there were animal experiments done. Here's the reference to the paper:

Foster, Z.J. & Housner, J.A. 2004, "Anabolic-androgenic steroids and testosterone precursors: ergogenic aids and sport", Current Sports Medicine Reports, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 234-241

Damn interesting I guess people will stick anything into their bodies for extra muscle even back in the 1800's.

[Vince B]

Melvin Goodrum said he got some vet steroids and mixed them in his bathtub. I think he got some side effects so he discontinued with that shit. I mean, there must have been other desperate dudes out there in the good old days who dreamed of being Mr America. If the drugs were available some musclehead would have been using them. Then he would tell close mates and soon enough everyone would be using that stuff. It is clear that testosterone was heralded as a wonder drug in the 1940s so we have to assume that some bodybuilders tried it. What we don't have is actual evidence. In those days bodybuilding was thought to make you musclebound, slow and stupid so those guys hardly wanted the tag of being unnatural and cheaters. If any used they kept it a guarded secret. The big pecs started showing up about 1945. I think the bench press was popular about that time so that could be the explanation. Eiferman and Ross had big pecs in those days. I don't think it is fair to label those guys as steroid users because there is no evidence that they did use testosterone.

[Mr Nobody]

Melvin Goodrum said he got some vet steroids and mixed them in his bathtub. I think he got some side effects so he discontinued with that shit. I mean, there must have been other desperate dudes out there in the good old days who dreamed of being Mr America. If the drugs were available some musclehead would have been using them. Then he would tell close mates and soon enough everyone would be using that stuff. It is clear that testosterone was heralded as a wonder drug in the 1940s so we have to assume that some bodybuilders tried it. What we don't have is actual evidence. In those days bodybuilding was thought to make you musclebound, slow and stupid so those guys hardly wanted the tag of being unnatural and cheaters. If any used they kept it a guarded secret. The big pecs started showing up about 1945. I think the bench press was popular about that time so that could be the explanation. Eiferman and Ross had big pecs in those days. I don't think it is fair to label those guys as steroid users because there is no evidence that they did use testosterone.

Grimek and those guys in the 1940's and 50's may have dabbled a bit in drugs but most of there strength and physiques were built on hard training I believe, with old shool barbells and dumbells. These old stories are cool. The vet steriods didnt help Goodrum much.

[Vince B]

John Grimek tried testosterone with Dr Ziegler in mid fifies according to Fair, but reported it did nothing at all for him. That suggests he never tried such things before. Later he tried Dianabol and still no effect. Grimek must have had plenty of male hormone and using more did nothing at all for him.

The vet stuff gave Melvin gynocomastia. Of course, Melvin swears he has had that condition since adolescence.

[Mr Nobody]

John Grimek tried testosterone with Dr Zeigler in mid fifies according to Fair, but reported it did nothing at all for him. That suggests he never tried such things before. Later he tried Dianabol and still no effect. Grimek must have had plenty of male hormone and using more did nothing at all for him.

The vet stuff gave Melvin gynocomastia. Of course, Melvin swears he has had that condition since adolescence.

Grimek had raw genetics I think if he were around today with all the shit they are taking you probably talking a Mr O. So who impressed you the most in the old days talking physique and personality?

[geneticmarvel]

You must be quite the physical specimen, with a name like "genetic marvel"

thats exactly why i chose the name there boy  

[~UN_$ung~]

muscleheads without drugs don't exist

hope this helps 

exactly, muscleheads without drugs = swimmers

the human bodyb is not ment to hold an extreme amount of musclemass, itrs biologically innefficient

[Figo]

John Grimek tried testosterone with Dr Zeigler in mid fifies according to Fair, but reported it did nothing at all for him. That suggests he never tried such things before. Later he tried Dianabol and still no effect. Grimek must have had plenty of male hormone and using more did nothing at all for him.

The vet stuff gave Melvin gynocomastia. Of course, Melvin swears he has had that condition since adolescence.

the usual story, much like Larry Scott, who when asked how much dbol he did used to say "until I get nosebleeds", it was common knowledge he used/abused dbol, look at at the nice round bloated moon face on Scott in the 60's. Many years later, when it became a big media negative story, he started to claim to have done 5mg a day the one time (way after his olympia days ), and it did nothing for him...

Grimek, Reeves and the other york boys all did test and dbol in the 30's.

[Figo]

Reg was strong, like really fucking strong. First muscular guy to bench 500lbs at 220 bodyweight. 500lb rows, 600lb squats, 405lb front squats, 315lb shoulder presses, 225lb barbell curls, 1000lb calf raises, 120lb standing dumbell presses. Not to mention all of his other old school strength feats like doing bench presses with two, 155lbs barbells (fucking crazy!!). He was pure class and definitely my fav old school strongmen/bodybuilder, and unlike alot of BBers, he was as powerful as he looked. I would rather look like and be as strong as Reg than be like ANY of the walking chemical bag midgets in the IFBB today. Also, Steeve Reeves was a poor mans Reg Park.

over at ironage 3 guys just dropped of heart attacks and one shat his pants, at that comment!

[Figo]

I talked to Gironda a couple of times. The first time he made fun of me because I fetched some photos I had taken of Arnold and he told the lads that I was a guy who kept photos of guys in his car! Funny now that I look back on it but hardly amusing at the time. I always considered him an asshole after that. Especially when I saw his gym walls full of photos of himself or with important people. That really affected me because I never put up my photos in my gym. My family did but I never did. I guess it was hard to be modest and a bodybuilding champion at the same time. Of course, my success wasn't much in the scheme of things. However, even the top guys are hardly remembered now and that says a lot about so-called Mr Universe titles. It is mostly vanity.
Gironda knew a lot about training but he missed out on getting wealthy even though at one time in the sixties he was selling courses and singlets to all and sundry. I think his stubbornness contributed to his not having a better gym. When he was flooded one year it just about wiped him out and after that his business sort of evaporated. In the meantime, Golds Gym had become a worldwide phenomenon and that wouldn't have pleased Gironda because he had a successful gym before Joe Gold did. Still, he left a legacy and is still remembered which is about as good as it gets in the Iron Game.

Funny enough, I was paging through Unleashing the wild physique today!
Gironda wasnt loved by many, but was a living legend, and still talked about years after his passing.
He loved what he did, and in his own way, was probably content.
Definitely knew his bodybuilding.

[geneticmarvel]

over at ironage 3 guys just dropped of heart attacks and one shat his pants, at that comment!

Well sorry i gave them a reality check. Somebody had to.

[Figo]

Well sorry i gave them a reality check. Somebody had to.

doesnt work. They refuse to wake up. Each to their own.

[FREAKgeek]

Grimek, Reeves and the other york boys all did test and dbol in the 30's.

The developments of synthetic test was still in its infancy.

[Mr Nobody]

Funny enough, I was paging through Unleashing the wild physique today!
Gironda wasnt loved by many, but was a living legend, and still talked about years after his passing.
He loved what he did, and in his own way, was probably content.
Definitely knew his bodybuilding.

Yea the dude was an asshole but knew some good stuff.