Interesting exercise clothing related quote from 1902: :D

"Dress. This is a very inexpensive item in physical culture. In the privacy of your own room or gymnasium it is best to exercise completely stripped, with the exception of socks and shoes. At any rate it is advisable to be stripped to the waist at least, in order to give each muscle the greatest possible freedom."

http://www.sandowplus.co.uk/Library/Pope/sa03.htm

This entire site, BTW, is very nice: http://www.sandowplus.co.uk/

This is from www.etmonline.com, lest we forget --

gymnasium
1598, "place of exercise," from L. gymnasium "school for gymnastics," from Gk. gymnasion, from gymnazein "to exercise or train," lit. "to train naked," from gymnos "naked." Shortened form gym is attested from 1871. Introduced to Ger. 15c. as a name for "high school," in Eng. it has remained purely athletic. Gymnast (1594) in the modern sense is a back-formation of gymnastic, (1574) from Gk. gynmastikos "pertaining to or skilled in bodily exercise."

:lol: I had forgotten. :tucool:

This is an extremely interesting site both for its similarities to today and its differences.

I know, Chicanerous, you will be able to explain all this, so I am anxiously awaiting your post.

The differences are that even the one that I would rate as most attractive...I still Don't find attractive. The only that comes close is a nude of Charles Atlas in a bent over pose and ther is looks like the photo was the equivalent of air-brushed. The body that has the most appeal to me overall is Sansone but he seems "chestless" for lack of a better word. The bodies for the most paert seem so uneven and not attractively shaped. Even the opening page with a picture of Sandow, I do not find appealing.

I find it strange that the people are so big, blocky and bulky and yet still show six packs....how is that possible? The picture of Sandow looks like his gut is hanging over his thong and yet he has a six-pack.

I must say, that I find the people over the last 35 years far more attractive to look at, then the men in these photos.

On the other hand, there is so much similarity in culture. There is a whole group of individuals, each developing their own theories as to exercise and comparing their theories to each other's just like we do today.

Look at this quote. Does it sound familiar?
"Ask a man who is not a follower of a systematic course of physical culture why he does not exercise, and his answer will most probably be, "I haven't the time.""

This is a quote from Pope's 1902 book, the Science and Art of Physical Development, the same book that Chicanerous links to.

I don't really know much about this era or the sport of bodybuilding; a lot of what I know and post on the forum is more like kinesiology rather than history or even weight-lifting theory. So, with that said:

I find it strange that the people are so big, blocky and bulky and yet still show six packs....how is that possible?
A lot has to do with the lifts these men practiced. Bent-presses (http://www.naturalstrength.com/history/detail.asp?ArticleID=556) were one of their staples, heavily involving the core and especially the obliques. These men had very strong abs and extremely well developed obliques (over developed by modern standards), which gave them that very blocky look.

The ideal man was also completely solid with a waist like a tree trunk, not the barely there v-tapered look of the Muscle Beach era. The look is based on the proportions of sculpture and art of the male figure made in Classical Greece and Ancient Rome. Here's a link about it: http://www.sandowmuseum.com/ideal.html

Particularly revelant is this quote: "Unlike today, the proper proportion for a man's waist would have been more muscled. At that time, a man must show a tight and well-defined midsection, but the obliques and lower back must have also been well-exercised and solidly built. A waist that appeared too slim, made a man 'appear weak'"

The picture of Sandow looks like his gut is hanging over his thong and yet he has a six-pack.
In Sandow's front picture, he's pushing his stomach out a bit, which is definitely not how a modern bodybuilder would attempt that pose. It's also a bit misleading because the image isn't very good. It wasn't photoshopped for the website title very well (in terms of "cutting out" the figure from its original picture and, I think, coloring it.)

The body that has the most appeal to me overall is Sansone but he seems "chestless" for lack of a better word. The bodies for the most paert seem so uneven and not attractively shaped.
I've read that overhead pressing was much more highly regarded than horizontal pressing (benching); its popularity was like that of the bench press today. So, this could be a part of the reason. I think, while these men certainly trained for aesthetics, their primary concern was strength; for this purpose, the pecs are not a hugely important muscle, especially when you consider the measure of a man is how much he can press overhead.

Look at this quote. Does it sound familiar?
"Ask a man who is not a follower of a systematic course of physical culture why he does not exercise, and his answer will most probably be, "I haven't the time.""
I saw that quote and actually chuckled. Somethings never change! :lol: