How Bodybuilding started

Bodybuilding goes all the way back to ancient Greece. "Gymnasium" actually means naked place in greek. they did not use resistance training as a form of body modification but rather a means to improve at the sport they participated in. The most notable of such athletes was Olympic wrestling champion Milo of Croton who reportedly would carry a calf on his back every day until it became a bull.

In the 11th century bodybuilding as we know it appeared in India. The Indians would use primitive dumbbell weights carved from stone to get bigger and stronger, it is also reported that by the 16th century weight lifting spread widely in India.

In the 19th century weight training became a way of improving health and increasing strength, and its popularity increased rapidly. People began to be exposed, to the physical culture.

"The Father of Modern Bodybuilding"; Friedrich Muller aka Eugene Sandow was born in 1867 in Prussia.

Not only was Sandow incredibly strong, he also had a muscle quality and an aesthetic comparable to that of a modern day bodybuilder. He was billed as the "world's strongest man". When he travelled to America.

It soon became apparent that as well as his feats of strength the audiences were just as interested in the physical appearance of Sandow. This led to the development of what is now referred to by modern day bodybuilders as a posing routine. Previously being called "muscle display performances."

And that's how bodybuilding started.