‘Femme Flex Friday’ Looks Back at the History of Bodybuilding

Bodybuilding has been around in some shape and form for centuries, but the actual competition style dates back to before 1900. Many fans don’t know the foundation of the sport, which is why there may be a lack of appreciation for how far the industry has come.

Camile Periat, Wendy Fortino, Whitney Jones, and Lenda Murray decided to commit an episode of Femme Flex Friday to teaching a master class about bodybuilding because they feel the history of the IFBB Pro League and NPC should be shared.

“I think it’s important for any athlete getting in our sport when you understand the history you have more passion you have more appreciation for how long ago it started,” said Jones. The hosts then showed a film that documented the first published works for training, and even briefly covered the first weightlifting event at the Olympics in 1896.

The conversation eventually shifted to the impact of the Weider brothers, who are considered the godfathers of bodybuilding. Eight-time Ms. Olympia Lenda Murray knew Joe and Ben Weider very well. She credited them for helping her and many other athletes take their success beyond the stage.

“That’s where I learned business because of the opportunity to actually know them and hang out with them. It’s a business I realized I was part of a business I looked at it from a point of place of just being a competitor, but they turned it into a legitimate yeah business and we should all know about the Weiders.”

The recognized leader of the sport today would be IFBB Pro League and NPC President Jim Manion, who actually created the NPC in 1982. All four ladies acknowledged Manion for his contributions, including his own as a competitor himself.

“It shows his passion and absolutely, just the fact that how much he really loves this sport,” Murray said. To see this entire episode and learn more about the evolution of the sport as well as stay updated on the latest news and developments, subscribe to the Olympia TV YouTube channel and tune in every Friday for each new episodes of Femme Flex Friday.