Nasser El Sonbaty
May 12th, 2008
He was born on October 15, 1965 in Germany.
A graduate from University of Augsburg in Germany, earning a masters degree in History, Political Science, and Sociology Nasser began bodybuilding in 1983. His first competition was in the Junior State Championship in Germany, where he placed 6th. His first appearance in the Mr. Olympia competition was in 1994, where he placed 7th. In total, Nasser competed in nine Mr. Olympia competitions. His best placing in The Mr. Olympia competition was in 1997, where he placed 2nd. Nasser is known for being the bodybuilder who poses and bodybuilds wearing spectacles, for having the ability to speak seven languages, as well as being able to weigh over 300 pounds in the offseason and still show his full abdominal muscles.
Nasser has been featured in many fitness and magazine articles, as well as being pictured on the cover of FLEX magazine. He currently resides in San Diego, California.
Also, he can speak 7 languages!
Here are his stats :
Height: 5 ft 11 in
Off season weight: 325-335 lb.
Competition weight: 275-285 lb.
He has been first on many occasions, such as - 1995 Houston Pro Invitational, 1995 Night of Champions, 1996 Grand Prix Czech Republic, 1996 Grand Prix Russia, 1996 Grand Prix Switzerland and 1999 Arnold Classic.
Truly, an outstanding bodybuilder.
Ronnie Coleman
April 11th, 2008
Kiko clik fitness
Ronald Dean Coleman (Born:May 13, 1964 in Bastrop, Louisiana, U.S.) is an American professional bodybuilder and an eight-time Mr. Olympia title winner. He was also involved in mixed martial arts from a young age. He is known mainly as "Ronnie Coleman", and he won the Mr. Olympia contest from 1998 to 2005. Coleman is an affiliate of the International Federation of Bodybuilders (IFBB) and is signed to an endorsement contract with BSN.
Alongside his eight Olympia wins as a professional bodybuilder, Coleman holds the record for most wins as an IFBB professional with 25 wins. He broke the previous record (held by Vince Taylor at 22 wins) in Moscow on November 5, 2004.
Coleman graduated Cum Laude from Grambling State University (GSU) in 1989 with a degree in accounting. While attending Coleman also played football with the GSU Tigers under famous coach Eddie Robinson. After graduation, Coleman became a police officer.
Coleman supports the Inner City Games, an organization that California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger co-founded in 1991. He was the recipient of the 2001 Admiral in the Texas Navy Certificate Award from Texas Governor Rick Perry for outstanding achievements in bodybuilding and the promotion of physical fitness.
Coleman entered the 2006 Mr. Olympia on September 30, 2006 with the purpose of breaking the record of eight consecutive Mr. Olympia titles he shares with Lee Haney, but finished second to Jay Cutler. He placed 4th in 2007 and announced his retirement from further Mr. Olympia competitions.
Coleman's training consists of simple compound movements with mostly free weights and some powerlifting; he rarely uses machines. He typically trains 6 days a week in the on-season.
Coleman has been mentioned in investigations involving such drugs. In 2003, during the BALCO track star Tim Montgomery testified under oath to a federal grand jury that Victor Conte had bragged about getting Coleman to use Winstrol, a controlled substance. An ongoing investigation by a New York State grand jury into online pharmacies indicates that Coleman allegedly received fraudulent prescriptions for steroids.
His current stats are -
Height: 180 cm (5 foot 11 inches)
Weight: 135 kg (296 lbs) (contest) | 147.5 kg (325 lbs) (off-season)
Arms: 61 cm (24")
Chest: 147 cm (58")
Thighs: 86 cm (34")
Bodybuilding Itself
March 6th, 2008
Later, we will see through many of those famous bodybuilders. We will check on their results, try to understand how they got to where they are. I am sure, that many of you will find good information that might help you.
The "Early Years" of Bodybuilding are considered to be the period between 1880 and 1930.
Bodybuilding (the art of displaying the muscles) did not really exist prior to the late 19th century, when it was promoted by a man from Prussia named Eugen Sandow, who is now generally referred to as "The Father of Modern Bodybuilding". He is credited as being a pioneer of the sport because he allowed an audience to enjoy viewing his physique in "muscle display performances". Although audiences were thrilled to see a well-developed physique, those men simply displayed their bodies as part of strength demonstrations or wrestling matches. Sandow had a stage show built around these displays through his manager, Florenz Ziegfeld. He became so successful at it, he later created several businesses around his fame and was among the first to market products branded with his name alone. As he became more popular, he was credited with inventing and selling the first exercise equipment for the masses (machined dumbbells, spring pulleys and tension bands).
Sandow was a strong advocate of "the Grecian Ideal" (this was a standard where a mathematical "ideal" was set up and the "perfect physique" was close to the proportions of ancient Greek and Roman statues from classical times). This is how Sandow built his own physique and in the early years, men were judged by how closely they matched these "ideal" proportions. Sandow organised the first bodybuilding contest on 14 September 1901 called the "Great Competition" and held in the Royal Albert Hall, London, UK. Judged by himself, Sir Charles Lawes, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the contest was a huge success and was sold out and hundreds of physical culture enthusiasts were turned away. The trophy presented to the winner was a bronze statue of Sandow himself sculpted by Frederick Pomeroy. The winner was William L. Murray of Nottingham, England. The most prestigious bodybuilding contest today is the Mr. Olympia, and since 1977, the winner has been presented with the same bronze statue of Sandow that he himself presented to the winner at the first contest.
On 16 January 1904, the first large-scale bodybuilding competition in America took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The winner was Al Treloar and he was declared "The Most Perfectly Developed Man in the World". Treloar won a $1,000 cash prize, a substantial sum at that time. Two weeks later, Thomas Edison made a film of Al Treloar's posing routine. Edison also made two films of Sandow a few years before, making him the man who made the first three motion pictures featuring a bodybuilder. In the early 20th century, Bernarr Macfadden and Charles Atlas, continued to promote bodybuilding across the world. Alois P. Swoboda was an early pioneer in America and the man whom Charles Atlas credited with his success in his statement: "Everything that I know I learned from A. P. (Alois) Swoboda."
Other important bodybuilders in the early history of bodybuilding prior to 1930 include: Earle Liederman (writer of some of the earliest bodybuilding instruction books), Seigmund Breitbart (famous Jewish bodybuilder), Georg Hackenschmidt, George F. Jowett, Maxick (a pioneer in the art of posing), Monte Saldo, Launceston Elliot, Sig Klein, Sgt. Alfred Moss, Joe Nordquist, Lionel Strongfort (Strongfortism), Gustav Fristensky (the Czech champion), and Alan C. Mead, who became an impressive muscle champion despite the fact that he lost a leg in World War I.
The period of around 1940 to 1970 is often referred to as the "Golden Age" of bodybuilding because of changes in the aesthetic for more mass, as well as muscular symmetry and definition, which characterised the "early years". This was due in large part to the advent of World War II, which inspired many young men to be bigger, stronger and more aggressive in their attitudes. This was accomplished by improved training techniques, better nutrition and more effective equipment. Several important publications came into being, as well, and new contests emerged as the popularity of the sport grew.
This period of bodybuilding was typified at Muscle Beach in Venice, California. Famous names in bodybuilding from this period included Steve Reeves (notable in his day for portraying Hercules and other sword-and-sandal heroes), Clancy Ross, Reg Park, John Grimek, Larry Scott, Bill Pearl, and Irvin "Zabo" Koszewski.
The rise in popularity of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) added a bodybuilding competition to their existing weightlifting contest in 1939 - and the following year this competition was named AAU Mr. America. Around the mid-1940s most bodybuilders became disgruntled with the AAU since they only allowed amateur competitors and they placed more focus on the Olympic sport of weightlifting. This caused brothers Ben and Joe Weider to form the International Federation of BodyBuilders (IFBB) - which organized their competition IFBB Mr. America, which was open to professional athletes.
In 1950, another organization, the National Amateur Bodybuilders Association (NABBA) started their NABBA Mr. Universe contest in the UK. Another major contest, Mr. Olympia was first held in 1965 - and this is currently the most prestigious title in bodybuilding.
Initially contests were only for men, but the NABBA added Miss Universe in 1965 and Ms. Olympia was started in 1980.
The general strategy adopted by most present-day competitive bodybuilders is to make muscle gains for most of the year (known as the "off-season") and approximately 3-4 months from competition attempt to lose body fat (referred to as "cutting"). In doing this some muscle will be lost but the aim is to keep this to a minimum. There are many approaches used but most involve reducing calorie intake and increasing cardio, while monitoring body fat percentage.
In the week leading up to a contest, bodybuilders will begin increasing their water intake so as to deregulate the systems in the body associated with water flushing. They will also increase their sodium intake. At the same time they will decrease their carbohydrate consumption in an attempt to "carb deplete". The goal during this week is to deplete the muscles of glycogen. Two days before the show, sodium intake is reduced by half, and then eliminated completely. The day before the show, water is removed from the diet, and diuretics may be introduced. At the same time carbohydrates are re-introduced into the diet to expand the muscles. This is typically known as "carb-loading." The end result is an ultra-lean bodybuilder with full hard muscles and a dry, vascular appearance.
Prior to performing on stage, bodybuilders will apply various products to their skin to improve their muscle definition - these include fake tan commonly called "pro tan" (to make the skin darker) and various oils (to make the skin shiny). They will also use weights to "pump up" by forcing blood to their muscles to improve size and vascularity. Some may also gorge on sugar-rich candies to enhance the visibility of their veins, often considered a sign of high muscle-definition.
Although muscle stimulation occurs in the gym lifting weights, muscle growth occurs afterward during rest. Without adequate rest and sleep, muscles do not have an opportunity to recover and build. About eight hours of sleep a night is desirable for the bodybuilder to be refreshed, although this varies from person to person. Additionally, many athletes find a daytime nap further increases their body's ability to build muscle. Some bodybuilders take several naps per day, during peak anabolic phases.
Overtraining refers to when a bodybuilder has trained to the point where his workload exceeds his recovery capacity. There are many reasons that overtraining occurs, including lack of adequate nutrition, lack of recovery time between workouts, insufficient sleep, and training at a high intensity for too long (a lack of splitting apart workouts). Training at a high intensity too frequently also stimulates the central nervous system (CNS) and can result in a hyper-adrenergic state that interferes with sleep patterns. To avoid overtraining, intense frequent training must be met with at least an equal amount of purposeful recovery. Timely provision of carbohydrates, proteins, and various micronutrients such as vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, even nutritional supplements are acutely critical.
It has been argued that overtraining can be beneficial. One article published by Muscle & Fitness magazine stated that you can "Overtrain for Big Gains". It suggested that if one is planning a restful holiday and they do not wish to inhibit their bodybuilding lifestyle too much, they should overtrain before taking the holiday, so the body can rest easily and recuperate and grow. Overtraining can be used advantageously, as when a bodybuilder is purposely overtrained for a brief period of time to super compensate during a regeneration phase. These are known as "shock micro-cycles" and were a key training technique used by Soviet athletes. However, the vast majority of overtraining that occurs in average bodybuilders is generally unplanned and completely unnecessary.
