The Original Body Builders: How Greek Halteres and Celtic Gabal Stone Lifts Built the World's First Strongmen

The Original Body Builders: How Greek Halteres and Celtic Gabal Stone Lifts Built the World's First Strongmen

Fad workouts have been with us for decades, but they go back much further than we realize. Long before CrossFit, Zumba, P90X, Tae Box, Jazzercise or Jack LaLanne, we had 19th century strongmen. These mustachioed showmen were the first global fitness influencers. They hauled trunks of weights onto steamships, toured the world, then sold exercise equipment through the mail. The most famous was Eugene Sandow, who broke chains, and created with his own body a "manned cavalry bridge" where he would lie down while men, horses, and a carriage were driven over his body. He even fought a lion in front of an auditorium and won, although the lion was almost definitely sedated.

Today’s guest is Connor Heffernan, author of “When Fitness Went Global: The Rise of Physical Culture in the Nineteenth Century.” In this episode, we discuss:

  • Ancient Egyptians were basically doing CrossFit thousands of years ago. They trained with swinging sandbags that look exactly like modern kettlebell flows.
  • One of the first exercise practices to experience globalization was Indian club-swinging. Indian club-swinging, originating from the heavy training clubs used by Indian wrestlers and soldiers for centuries, was observed and adopted by British military officers stationed in India during the early 1800s.
  • Early diet culture was a carnival of quack science. Victorian fitness magazines were filled with miracle tonics, starvation cures and pseudoscientific meal plans. Many of our “new” diet trends are rebranded versions of schemes first marketed with sepia portraits and dubious testimonials.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jaksot(1073)

History of the Civil War in 10 Battles, Part 15: Chattanooga

History of the Civil War in 10 Battles, Part 15: Chattanooga

Following Union defeat at the Battle of Chickamauga, Union forces retreated to the railroad junction of Chattanooga, Tennessee. From November 23-25, 1863, Union troops routed the Confederates at the b...

15 Marras 201843min

History of the Civil War in 10 Battles, Part 14: Chickamauga

History of the Civil War in 10 Battles, Part 14: Chickamauga

The Battle of Chickamauga marked the end of Union Maj. Gen. William Rosencran's offensive into southwestern Tennessee and northwestern Georgia and the most significant Union defeat in the Western Thea...

13 Marras 201838min

History of the Civil War in 10 Battles, Part 13: The Battle of Gettysburg

History of the Civil War in 10 Battles, Part 13: The Battle of Gettysburg

The 1863 Battle of Gettysburg stopped Robert E. Lee's second invasion of the North. It was the deadliest battle of the Civil War, with over 50,000 casualties during the three day battle, a scale of su...

8 Marras 20181h 24min

September 1918: War, Plague, and The World Series

September 1918: War, Plague, and The World Series

In the late summer of 1918, a division of Massachusetts militia volunteers led the first unified American fighting force into battle in France, turning the tide of World War I. Meanwhile, the world’s ...

6 Marras 201858min

Teaser: Ottoman Lives, Part 3—The Eunuch

Teaser: Ottoman Lives, Part 3—The Eunuch

Subscribe today for access to all premium episodes! https://patreon.com/unpluggedSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

3 Marras 20184min

6 Historical Figures Who Deserve Their Own Movie—History Unplugged Meets 1001 Stories

6 Historical Figures Who Deserve Their Own Movie—History Unplugged Meets 1001 Stories

Historical biopics perform a great service. These movies remind the world of people that would have otherwise fallen into obscurity: Oscar Schindler (Schindler's List), John Nash (A Beautiful Mind), a...

1 Marras 20181h 7min

The Story of Bravo, The Greatest Rescue Mission in Navy SEAL History

The Story of Bravo, The Greatest Rescue Mission in Navy SEAL History

Today's guest is Stephan Talty, author of the new book, SAVING BRAVO, which comes out October 30. Talty tells the never-before-told story of one of the greatest rescue missions not just of the Vietnam...

30 Loka 201852min

History of the Civil War in 10 Battles, Part 12: (Vicksburg 2 of 2)

History of the Civil War in 10 Battles, Part 12: (Vicksburg 2 of 2)

Welcome to the second part in our episodes on the Vicksburg Campaign, one of the most consequential Civil War battles in the Western theatre and what many historians consider to be the turning point o...

25 Loka 201843min

Suosittua kategoriassa Yhteiskunta

olipa-kerran-otsikko
i-dont-like-mondays
sita
kaksi-aitia
siita-on-vaikea-puhua
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
uutiscast
poks
antin-palautepalvelu
kolme-kaannekohtaa
rss-nikotellen
mamma-mia
yopuolen-tarinoita-2
aikalisa
rss-murhan-anatomia
rss-haudattu
meidan-pitais-puhua
rss-palmujen-varjoissa
taskula-trishin
isani-on-terapeuttiville