Category Fitness History

The people, books, and ideas that shaped how we train, from ancient wrestlers to modern athletes, and what the research says about their methods today.

Vic Tanny, featured image for Vic Tanny's No Grunting Rule: Do You Need to Strain to Get Stronger?.

Fitness History

Vic Tanny’s No Grunting Rule: Do You Need to Strain to Get Stronger?

November 3, 2026
7 mins

Hippocrates, featured image for Hippocrates on Training and Eating by the Seasons.

Fitness History

Hippocrates on Training and Eating by the Seasons

November 2, 2026
6 mins

George F. Jowett, featured image for George Jowett's Mighty Grip Course: Where Grip Work Belongs.

Fitness History

George Jowett’s Mighty Grip Course: Where Grip Work Belongs

November 1, 2026
6 mins

Nguni stick fighting (Zulu/Xhosa tradition), featured image for Nguni Stick Fighting: How Herd Boys Sparred Their Way to Skill.

Fitness History

Nguni Stick Fighting: How Herd Boys Sparred Their Way to Skill

November 1, 2026
6 mins

Dio Lewis, featured image for Dio Lewis's 1861 School for Gym Teachers: Why Training Mattered.

Fitness History

Dio Lewis’s 1861 School for Gym Teachers: Why Training Mattered

November 1, 2026
6 mins

Archibald MacLaren, featured image for Archibald MacLaren's Before and After Records for Army Instructors.

Fitness History

Archibald MacLaren’s Before and After Records for Army Instructors

October 29, 2026
6 mins

Two men beside a barbell rack, one pointing toward a weight plate held by the other.

Fitness History

Novice Linear Progression: Programme Rules and Research Limits

October 29, 2026
8 mins

AI editorial illustration of a Renaissance-era man standing beside a horse; not a historical portrait of Leon Battista Alberti

Fitness History

Leon Battista Alberti’s Athletic Boasts: Renaissance All Around Fitness

October 28, 2026
6 mins

Man in a light tank top with his upper body raised from a gym floor.

Fitness History

Charles Atlas Said Strong Arms Mean Little Without Strong Abs

October 27, 2026
4 mins