Essay On Bodybuilding

Athletes would train in gymnasiums, using various sized stones as weights to increase their muscular physique and physical abilities for the Olympics. By the 11th century in India, people were using dumbbells made of stone to increase their health and overcome the challenges of daily life. It wasn’t until the 1890s that bodybuilding reached a level of popularity. This marked the first time that weightlifting was used as a method of entertainment purposes and the beginning of the culture. At the start of its popularity, bodybuilding had the intention of thrilling crowds with amazing feats of strength instead of dazzling with a gleaming frame. Then, in the 20th century, Eugene Sandow bridged the gap between overweight strongman and bodybuilders as we picture them today. Known as the father of modern bodybuilding, Eugene became a phenomenon with his combination of muscle quality and strength. He would travel the world, outdoing all other strongmen and promoting his muscular physique.

In 1891, Eugene promoted the first ever bodybuilding show known as “The Great Show.” He began promoting the contest three years in advance to try and spread the trend. To be able to compete in the contest, competitors had to have placed in a smaller regional show. The qualities Sandow was looking for included general development, balance of development, condition and tone of tissues, condition of the skin, and overall health. After the competition, the bodybuilding culture became increasingly popular throughout the world.

As the popularity of bodybuilding was growing exponentially, women were introduced to the possibilities of achieving a higher level of physicality through weight training. Bodybuilding was considered a male-oriented sport until 1977...

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...sts a lot of money and the bigger their bodies, the more money the competitions make.

Although female bodybuilding is considered a sport, it means much more than that. Female bodybuilding is a way for thousands of women of all ages to express themselves and be unique. These women explore no only the limits of their own bodies but push their mental strength and determination to the limit. Even if the competitions went away, there would still be members of the subculture pushing to be the best they could be. The culture has its own family that makes the members feel like they are part of something. It can truly empower an individual, knowing they have complete control over his or her body by exerting extreme levels of discipline and dedication to achieve a goal. This subculture also had to try and resist the ideals of society’s conceptualization of a perfect woman.