To mark the release of my new book, When Fitness Went Global: The Rise of Physical Culture in the Nineteenth Century (Bloomsbury, 2025), I’m giving away a copy.

To enter:
💪 Repost
🌍 Comment with your favorite strength tradition

I’ll pick a winner next week.

#StrengthHeritage #SportHistory

This #Bloomsday, I’ll be speaking on Sandow and strength in Ulysses—exploring Bloom’s curious obsession with the body. Join us for “Breathe and Bloom: Of Fathers and Figures” on June 15, Brighton Square. Yoga, readings, music & muscle

Link: bit.ly/3FIuW5Q

Just published an with Golden Era Bookworm tracking mortality across bodybuilding eras. Pre-1960 athletes lived longer than those from the post-1960 'Golden Era'. History warns us about sustainable training paths and steroid use in the iron game!

Preprint: bit.ly/3WRUgeS

As the article explains, from the 1950s onward, squatting becomes more complex. Bodybuilders use it for bulking & defining their legs, powerlifters for competitions, weightlifters and strongmen for assistance work

Innovation comes slowly but in the 1930s, squat stands and racks more prevalent. This opens the door for more people to squat heavy. During this time the 20 rep squat method is promoted as a bulking routine. The poster boy is JC Hise, who claimed to have gained 40+ lbs squatting!

So what changed? In the US of A, German immigrant Milo Steinborn introduced flat footed squatting in the 1920s using an 'interesting' technique he had learned in Europe. This is what happens when there are no squat racks kiddos

This was also the case for barbells!

Remarkably, this was how the majority of people squatted for nearly a century. Even when people began lifting weights more regularly in the 1890s and early 1900s, they did so on their tippy toes!

While people have squatted for millenia, it was not until the early 1800s when gymnasts began to promote the movement. The catch? It was done on tippy toes with a straight back

🚨New Article🚨

I published in a strength and conditioning journal! Thanks to Strength & Conditioning Journal for publishing my article on the history & evolution of the back squat. This is a must-read for strength fans, practitioners, & historians!

Link: bit.ly/49yiXSJ

🧵below

🔊Funded PhD Opportunity!🔊

Ulster University is offering a FUNDED PhD project studying the history and evolution of online fitness influencers. Please do share widely and get in touch if you have any questions!

📚 CALL FOR PAPERS 📚
Global History of Women's Professional Wrestling. An edited collection for @McFarlandBooks. Chapters welcomed exploring everything from the ancient origins to the modern era. See CFP below and please do share widely!

@bssh.bsky.social

A new blog post this week: Bouncing Deadlifts!

Really! The Hopper deadlift was popularised by JC Hise in the 1930s as a means of adding volume to the deadlift without overly taxing the lower back. Added fun is it creates more noise than an AC/DC concert!

physicalculturestudy.com/2024/11/20/f...

An introduction and shameless plug in one. I am a historian of physical culture/fitness with a keen interest in how global ideas about the perfect body came to be. My latest book is on Indian club swinging, the world's first global fitness craze!

Preview Link: bit.ly/46psN6h