The physical culture of muscle-building has attracted followers for many years well before the advent of competitive bodybuilding as we know it today.Followers of the iron game will know that bodybuilding in its popular form began in the early 1890’s with the arrival of Mr. Eugene Sandow, whom the Mr. Olympia statue is modeled on. However weight training as a general athletic activity was initially practiced as a means to gain strength and measure power in ancient Egyptian and Greek societies. These societies would primarily use stones of various sizes and weights a practice that would occur in one form or another throughout history in their quest for body transformation.

The celebration of the human body through muscular development was, in fact, one of the Greek ideals. Physical culture distinguishable from bodybuilding  due to the lack of specific physical display as an end goal can be traced back to 11th century India where stone dumbbell weights, known as Nals, were lifted by those wanting to develop their bodies to enhance health and stamina to help overcome the challenges of daily life. Gyms were commonplace in India during this period, and by the 16th century, weight training is thought to have been India’s national pastime.

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