History of Bodybuilding

The word bodybuilding is translated from French as “body culture. The sport has another name, more popular today – bodybuilding, that is, “body building”. Whatever the name of the sport, its essence is the same – a person is engaged in bodybuilding to build muscle mass and bring your body to a certain ideal. Creating an ideal body happens through intensive physical training and a special diet that provides the body with the right amount of energy. In order for muscles to develop, bodybuilders’ menus always include large amounts of protein.

A person who is into this sport is called either a bodybuilder or a bodybuilder. It can be either an amateur who comes to the gym to maintain his physical fitness, or a professional who takes part in competitions and constantly raises the level and intensity of the load.
A special theme is competitive bodybuilding, where a professional jury evaluates the musculature and external physical data of the athlete. Proportion, symmetry and the development of all the muscles are evaluated. The bodybuilder who, according to the jury, comes closest to the ideal wins.

History of the development of bodybuilding

It is considered that bodybuilding as we know it today began with E.Sandov, who was the first to demonstrate his developed muscles in plays, during wrestling scenes. Demonstrating a beautiful body and physical strength, Sandov not only entertained the audience, but also instilled in them a love for a beautiful, properly built body. In 1936 he even made a musical film about the origin of bodybuilding as a sport. Eugene SandovIn this film, Eugene Sandov was played by Nat Pendleton.

Although, Sandov himself was easily successful without the help of cinematography. Thanks to his performances, he found such popularity that he opened several businesses. By the way, one of Sandov’s businesses produced and sold products for bodybuilders. He is credited with the invention of the first training machines, which also served to train and develop muscles. Sandov seemed to know how to profit from his talents, even his own image he sold to Cabinet Cards.

On 9/14/1901 he organized the first ever bodybuilding competition, called “The Great Competition.” It was not held anywhere, but at London’s well-known Albert Hall. Not surprisingly, the competition was a wild success. The first bodybuilding contest in history was won by William L. Murray, a resident of the British town of Nottingham. The prize in the competition was a statuette of Evgeny Sandov, the founding father of bodybuilding. This bronze miniature of a strongman was created by Frederick Pomeroy. Today the same statuettes are given to the winners of the Mr. and Miss Olympia contests.

Bodybuilding in America

Oddly enough, but in America, bodybuilding came later. The main man who promoted bodybuilding here was Alois R. Svoboda. The first large-scale bodybuilding competition in the United States was held only in 1904. It took place on January 16 in New York City in Madison Square Garden. The winner of this competition was Al Treloar. Unlike the British competition, the winner was given a more practical prize than a bronze statuette. Treloar received $1,000, which was a huge amount for the early twentieth century. In addition to the cash prize, the winner received the title of “the most perfectly evolved man in the world.