For the first time in over 25 years, MD puts female bodybuilder on the cover.

[MCWAY]

That would be current Ms. Olympia, Andrea Shaw.



Unless I'm mistaken, the last time a female bodybuilder made the cover, it was the late Melissa Coates on the January 1997 issue of MDFH (Muscular Development-Fitness-Health).

[CalvinH]

I thought you said they put a female on the cover 

[Bevo]

I would be embarrassed to buy that with that on the cover

[MCWAY]

I would be embarrassed to buy that with that on the cover

I don't know if MD is sold on bookshelves anymore. The last time I bought one was at Barnes & Noble.

They may be purely subscription now. A magazine that skinny for $7 is a bit much. It's not like the salad days of the 2000s or early 2010s. One magazine from then is four times as big as the ones are now (granted, you had tons of supplement ads).

[Palumboism]

I don't know if MD is sold on bookshelves anymore. The last time I bought one was at Barnes & Noble.

They may be purely subscription now. A magazine that skinny for $7 is a bit much. It's not like the salad days of the 2000s or early 2010s. One magazine from then is four times as big as the ones are now (granted, you had tons of supplement ads).

I'm guilty of picking up an MD and Flex at Barnes & Noble just to flip through it.

[The Scott]

That would be current Ms. Olympia, Andrea Shaw.

Pass the salt.

[Cook]

I would be embarrassed to buy that with that on the cover

when I was a kid I was embarrassed to buy these magazines because I was afraid the clerk would think I was gay with some muscled up guy in his underwear on the cover. I am like you on this one though I would feel weird as Hell buying one of these.

[Van_Bilderass]

when I was a kid I was embarrassed to buy these magazines because I was afraid the clerk would think I was gay with some muscled up guy in his underwear on the cover. I am like you on this one though I would feel weird as Hell buying one of these.

When I was a kid I hadn't been exposed to peoples weird sexualities and would never have guessed there was constant sexual innuendo, I was naive. I remember buying the  MMI with both Bob Paris and his homo partner doing a side chest on the beach. Didn't think there was anything sexual to it.

I'm surpised there's still a paper magazine, I thought that was finished yeard ago. Reading bodybuilding mags was a lot of fun back then, learned English through them. Before the mags I was worst in class in English.

Never was a fan of female bb but that Ms O is quite a specimen, would turn my head without thinking anything sexual.

[wes]

I had no clue that bb mags still existed. 

[SOMEPARTS]

All the way big dude.

[Matt]

All the way big dude.

It's "Ma'am".

[Skeletor]

It's "Ma'am".

[Matt]

 

[MCWAY]

When I was a kid I hadn't been exposed to peoples weird sexualities and would never have guessed there was constant sexual innuendo, I was naive. I remember buying the  MMI with both Bob Paris and his homo partner doing a side chest on the beach. Didn't think there was anything sexual to it.

I'm surpised there's still a paper magazine, I thought that was finished yeard ago. Reading bodybuilding mags was a lot of fun back then, learned English through them. Before the mags I was worst in class in English.

Never was a fan of female bb but that Ms O is quite a specimen, would turn my head without thinking anything sexual.

MD, I believe, is the last one standing, unless IronMan is still doing quarterly publications. MuscleMag died 10 years ago, as did Planet Muscle; Flex went poof three years ago (merging with Muscle & Fitness). Then M&F went poof once the pandemic started.

[MCWAY]

when I was a kid I was embarrassed to buy these magazines because I was afraid the clerk would think I was gay with some muscled up guy in his underwear on the cover. I am like you on this one though I would feel weird as Hell buying one of these.

I didn't care what the clerk thought. Besides, muscle magazines were sold in GNC, when I was coming up. And, the covers had dudes with silicone-breasted girls shrink-wrapped around them.

[Matt]

I didn't care what the clerk thought. Besides, muscle magazines were sold in GNC, when I was coming up. And, the covers had dudes with silicone-breasted girls shrink-wrapped around them.

I didn't even think about it. Being a skinny ectomorph body type, within 6-9 months of training, it made sense to think I'm someone who works.

Doesn't it stand to reason that people who work out would be buying magazines on that subject?

Years later, I asked a woman if she felt that bodybuilding had any homosexual connotations, and she said that her assumption was that bodybuilders were manly and tough. That made sense to me - bodybuilders would be within the top 1% of strongest men.

I think the people reading bodybuilding magazines who would have to worry about being assumed to be gay would be those who obviously don't work out. Then you may sort of wonder why they buy the magazines or follow the contests.

MCWAY:
Speaking of gayness, didn't your homosexual brother-in-law compliment you for having massive delts?
?

[Humble Narcissist]

I had no clue that bb mags still existed. 

They exist but are expensive as hell.

[Phantom Spunker]

I didn't even think about it. Being a skinny ectomorph body type, within 6-9 months of training, it made sense to think I'm someone who works.

Doesn't it stand to reason that people who work out would be buying magazines on that subject?

Years later, I asked a woman if she felt that bodybuilding had any homosexual connotations, and she said that her assumption was that bodybuilders were manly and tough. That made sense to me - bodybuilders would be within the top 1% of strongest men.

I think the people reading bodybuilding magazines who would have to worry about being assumed to be gay would be those who obviously don't work out. Then you may sort of wonder why they buy the magazines or follow the contests.

MCWAY:
Speaking of gayness, didn't your homosexual brother-in-law compliment you for having massive delts?
?

[mops]

Even kids watching cartoons were told it was gheey as fuck

[MCWAY]

I didn't even think about it. Being a skinny ectomorph body type, within 6-9 months of training, it made sense to think I'm someone who works.

Doesn't it stand to reason that people who work out would be buying magazines on that subject?

Years later, I asked a woman if she felt that bodybuilding had any homosexual connotations, and she said that her assumption was that bodybuilders were manly and tough. That made sense to me - bodybuilders would be within the top 1% of strongest men.

I think the people reading bodybuilding magazines who would have to worry about being assumed to be gay would be those who obviously don't work out. Then you may sort of wonder why they buy the magazines or follow the contests.

MCWAY:
Speaking of gayness, didn't your homosexual brother-in-law compliment you for having massive delts?
?

The irony of your text is apparently lost, as you keep foolishly insulting my brother-in-law, by calling him a homosexual, which he is not, never has been, nor ever will be.

Ask his wife and his frat brothers (he's a Nupe), if you don't want to take my word for it. And the compliment was on my traps, for the nth time.

As it relates to women, it's well known that the ladies like big muscular men, provided they are not super-ripped. Back in high school, a girl looked at a magazine a classmate and I were reading. She saw a picture of Berry DeMey in contest shape and thought he looked disgusting. Then, she pointed to a guy with brown hair and stated that THIS guy looked hot.

It turned out it was also a pic of Berry DeMey in off-season mode and without the blonde dye in his hair.
 

[funk51]

  MD, first all nude cover on a mainstream muscle mag. no. 3 pic below

[MCWAY]

Back to the topic at hand, I don't recall a reigning Ms. Olympia being on the cover of ANY magazine since Lenda Murray in the mid-90s. Even, then it was a swimsuit/lingerie deal for FLEX and Murray wasn't alone. She was with fellow six-time Ms. Olympia, Cory Everson and a bodybuilder-turned-fitness-competitor, Sharon Bruneau (who traded her sinew for silicone).

Here's Murray's last MD cover over 30 years ago:



And her last Flex cover:



Edit - I stand corrected. Her last cover (full) was M&F in 1997 (she did has a small inset cover on a 2003 issue of Flex, after regaining the Ms. Olympia title in 2002).

[MCWAY]

  MD, first all nude cover on a mainstream muscle mag. no. 3 pic below

I figured the American Gladiator girls would make several covers.


As with the men, when they aren't in contest mode, they're more appealing to the opposite sex.

Once MD turned into All-Natural MD, I don't remember anymore female bodybuilders on the cover (unless I missed one).

[Megalodon]

Bodybuilding played a more significant role in normalizing testosterone usage among women and the resulting physique than the trans industry.

[G_Thang]

Cover could be hotter with Brian Shaw (no homo)