What athletes looked like 100 years ago and what modern bodybuilders think about it

The training process and nutrition of modern bodybuilders are different from what was available to the first athletes. Nevertheless, even now you can’t look at their photos without admiration. They trained about a hundred years ago, but even today many people are far from their results.

If these athletes had our capabilities… Modern bodybuilders are sure that they would not cede the podium. So, let’s remember the classics. We get inspired and get the opinion of their followers. How can you evaluate such a form today?

By the way, not everyone believes that modern nutrition is better. There is also an opinion that the first athletes were much luckier with genetics. Let’s watch, understand and be inspired.

Bernard McFadden

Bernard McFadden was a sickly child. Orphaned at the age of 11, he began working on a farm. Hard labor and good nutrition made him a strong young man. At the age of 16, Bernard began working out with dumbbells. He also performed daily walks.

By the age of 20, McFadden had become a raw foodist. Practiced fasting. Advocated against white bread. He took photos before the diet and after. In one of them Bernard stands with 100-pound dumbbells above his head after a week-long fast.

In 1893, the young man saw bodybuilding progenitor Eugene Sandov perform during the International Exposition, which was held in Chicago. This inspired McFadden so much that in 1904 he decided to hold bodybuilding competitions. He also had a physical culture magazine published under him. Bernard was a businessman and could afford it.

Charles Atlas

Charles Atlas (real name – Angelo Siciliano) is considered the creator of bodybuilding. It was Charles who developed a unique set of physical exercises. The athlete called his method “dynamic stretching”.

Having achieved a beautiful physique, Atlas began to make his first steps as a model for famous sculptures. Today, they can be seen in different cities in the United States. For example, the statue for Washington Square or the Brooklyn Municipal Building in New York.

He also actively participated in competitions. On his account such titles as “The Most Beautiful Man in the World” and “The Most Perfect Man in the World”. In the 30s, Charles was considered the most “relief” athlete.

Sigmund Klein

Sigmund Klein was a native of West Prussia. He was an acrobat, gymnast and bodybuilder. He won numerous competitions. He became the U.S. professional weightlifting champion.

Klein actively promoted kettlebell lifts. He even created the Iron Game training program. He also realized himself as a coach. Had his own hall of stars in Hollywood. In 1927, he opened his own physical training studio in the heart of New York City.

Interest in athleticism appeared in Sigmund at the age of 12, when his father began to lift a 112-pound kettlebell from the floor with one little finger. And his older brother worked in a bakery, so the boy had to carry sacks of flour. They replaced the kettlebells for the future athlete. He got his first barbell only in 1919. Then he began to actively train.

What do modern athletes think about the first?

Evgeny Filatov

top-10 Olympia Amateur World Shadown, vice world champion in bodybuilding

They are quite dry. Considering that bodybuilding originated in the USA, they lived in America during the depression. Consequently, they had nutritional problems. You could say it’s a natural drying out. In addition, they did not have the training process that we have now. They had only one criterion – to look drier and a little bit bulkier.

I think if those people had the capabilities that bodybuilders have today, they would look just like they do today. Even genetically those athletes were stronger and healthier than they are now.

Alexey Cherednichenko

absolute world champion in bodybuilding among juniors (IFBB Worlds), absolute champion of Russia

These athletes have a well-developed physical form for those times. It is the result of the knowledge, experience and understanding they had at the time. It is unlikely that their nutrition was any different than it is today. It may even have been better and cleaner. But that doesn’t apply to the range and availability of the foods we have.

I’m sure they had the same goals as modern bodybuilders. Namely, maximized musculature and strength. Of course, the evaluation criteria are completely different nowadays, so there is no point in comparing in this case. Each time and era has its own criteria and benchmarks.

Eduard Gavrilchenko

European bodybuilding champion, vice-champion of Russia IFBB, three-time champion of Moscow

Those were the times when bodybuilding was just emerging. The so-called “presteroid” era. Athletes worked with free weights (barbell, kettlebells, dumbbells). One of the main indicators was the development of strength. The first competitions included not only posing, but also strength exercises and power acrobatics. These were the real stars and respected people in the community.