My brother works at DistributionNet USA.
I got the inside scoop on all the various magazine circulations of actual bodybuilding mag sales
These are the actual numbers for Dec of 2006:
Muscle and Fitness 428,000
Flex 102,000
MuscleMag 51,000
Muscular Development 41,000
Ironman 39,000
Planet Muscle 29,000
I guess the "duel" in the eyes of bodybuilding fans doesn't really translate in the market. It's a bloodbath. Weider moved 530k units (M&F and FLEX) in December. THIRTEEN times what MD did. interesting...
I subscribe to MD. I guess they are way too hardcore to compete with the other mags at the magazine stand.