This is for the VETS! Do you guys miss the old days of bodybuilding and the boards?

[Maverick]

I happened to be talking to a buddy of mine today and we got to talking about times gone by, basically reminicsing (sp) about the past. We talked about how bodybuilding was like and all about in the mid to late 90's when we were in out teens and growing up.

Do you guys remeber those days when you first started out in bodybuiling and you really didnt know much about steroids or IGF or GH and dieting or anything? I remember I used to go to GNC and load up on creatine and HMB and those types of supplements and thought I was gonna grow big and huge. I was naive then but still it was a more innocent time. It seemed to be more fun to go to the gym when I was younger. Even though I was skinny as a rail and not very strong, just the idea of going and lifting the weights and trying to get bigger everyday.

It seemed to me back then people were kinder, more apt to be friendlier and help you out. Even though I am more experienced now I just dont get the same feeling of happiness when I walk into the gym. The gym when I was younger was a genuinely good time and I looked forward to being there everyday.

Granted I still have my buddies but that feeling is gone. It has been replaced with a more professional attitude towards the gym and to be truthfully honest its not as satisfying as it was. Now I am not talking about the actual training. I still love that but the whole atmosphere just seems different.

Now granted the gym I worked out at as a teenager and younger 20 something guy is no longer around and alot of the people that used to lift and work out there have moved on, but it just seems as though the people in the gym these guys arent the same type or caliber of people as there used to be. It seems to me you have alot of these young guys who are either ignorant, stupid, or a combination of the both. The women that used to be in the gym working out used to be alot freindlier to. Granted that may be because I was only a teenager back then , but the women dont seem to be as friendly as they used to be, or maybe its just me. Maybe I have grown up.

As for the message boards, do some of you guys miss the days when there was only a few message boards out there and not the sea of boards we have out there today. Where you only had Elite, Bolex, homer's supplement board, got fina, and the UG and old gade.

It was like a true brotherhood back then. I used to be actually kinda excitied to sit down to the computer and log on and get to reading the newest threads because there was always something interesting going on. We really had some colorful characters back then.

Maybe becuase alot of us including myself have been at this for such a long time the luster has been lost a bit or maybe there has just been an infuson of jackasses all over the boards, not only posting but also owning boards, open source posting etc. I remember back in the day when you had to wait a minimum 6 months to even try to get the foot in with a source and now most of the boards you just click a thread and there ya go, instant source.

Kinda takes the credibility away if ya ask me. Am I just rambiling here or does any of this make sense to the older guys?

Just my thoughts for the day.

 

[xcelbeyond]

I transitioned from racing motorcycles (cross-country) to bodybuilding back in the early to mid 80's. Full bore in one, to full bore into the other. Back then, "everyone" that frequented the gym tended to be a relatively tight community.

In all honesty, I quit the gym scene shortly after recovering from my shoulder reconstructive surgery. I normally went into the gym at 4:30 AM - so only the hardcore (and NOT everyone in the gym at that time of day was into bodybuilding). I invested into my home gym around 1993/94 - probably around $600 total over the years. I think I've got my return-on-investment

The "biggest" gains (real amount of "muscle") was at home and CLEAN. So - the point is, I think I can focus well on my own

I'm really not bragging at all - but when I go onto a gym these days, it really seems like everyone is staring at me.

Maybe it would help if I put on some shorts over my jock strap

 

[JETHRO TULL]

I like to go in and have a good time at the Gym.

I smile alot and try to lift hard. It seems like I run across more folks with attitude in gyms lately. I make a lot of friends where ever I go....I don't know what the hell it is...but my girlfriend get irritated as hell by it! I have noticed there are less people I want to hang out with in general though.

I keep meeting cool folks here though, lots of nice people. I just get tired of the negativity sometimes. I used to go over and check out some of the other boards once in a while, like mayhem, but man every little bitch posts negative shit over there. I can't take it. I pretty much stick around here where I recognize all the names and such.

 

[MikeS]

Mav real nice post

But you lost me (and probably Xcel too) on this part:
"in the late 90's when we were in our teens and growing up"

Its kinda simple. The more people that become involved, the less of a brotherhood it becomes. That goes for the boards, and the gym.
And with the mainstream, comes alot of a-holes. The big fitness
'craze' seems to take something from what was special to us-the drive to
suceed in physical self improvment. Its now more of a fun and playful, less serious activity to most, and it contrasts with our outright intensity.
Still there is our group of hardcores in the gym, where we are at home with our fellow brothers (and ladies).

And for the boards, yes those days were better IMO. Thats why I just stay here on Promuscle. I have no desire to meet every self proclaimed expert-vet,
who pop up like weeds on the hundreds of boards. Man in the old days, late 90s, it was a tight knit community. The oldtimers all knew each other in the brotherhood. Its nice to see alot of those guys in places like promuscle, but its SO watered down. Not that new people shouldnt be able to enjoy the boards and learn. But for the old brotherhood its not the same. All the new
people, or people who claim they have been around for years and havent posted; or havent been around in a LONG time but was on this or that old board-and I dont recall any of them, trying to get instant credibility. We oldtimers remember most all of our old friends, believe me. Yes its different.
But things change...oh well.

I just had a nice flashback!

 

[xcelbeyond]

I remember back in the day when you had to wait a minimum 6 months to even try to get the foot in with a source and now most of the boards you just click a thread and there ya go, instant source.

I was a regular back on the ol' Fina board (along with Ivan, Storm Shadow and Dragonfire) and it was FORBIDDEN to even insinuate source discussion. After being on the board for nearly a year, I was able to make a connection.

When I started venturing out, it seemed like "source" talking was much more accepted on other boards. I got somewhat outta hand trying to get some new sources. HELL - I believe I even e-mailed BBA from the Goheavy board about getting hooked up - of course, he ignored me - HAHAHAHAHA

I actually found a few good sources on "old" Tredia board.

I really started to participate late on the boards - around 2000-2001. I got a real bad taste in my mouth from EF back when it was a free board. Lots KNOWLEDGEABLE people but 3x as many dicks. Prior to EF - I spent quite a bit of time at misc.fitness.weights newsgroup. The newsgroup just moved issues too slow - could take a day or two to get a response or interaction.

 

[Mr Pickles]

mike, that made me wanna cry.

 

[Big A]

It's because we all grow up and get older, as such our tolerance levels get lower.

I believe in the late 80's, early 90's, I felt that way. By '94 or so, to me, all the luster dissapeared. Obviously because I was getting older.
Now, bodybuilding to me is a chore, something I have to do if I want to look good. Given the chance, I wouldn't do it, but I'd be lost without the muscles, but certainly there's no excitement about going to the gym anymore.

 

[BigBoyJ]

I've been working out for 16 years. I started at 15, 31 now. I still LOVE the gym. Just today, I had one of the best arm workouts I've ever had. I like it so much because no matter how much you know about your body, you WILL NEVER have it all figured out. There's always room for improvement and room to learn. After all this time, I'm still figuring things out about myself. I'm still getting better. Usually, people don't bother me at all. Maybe it's because I look like a serial killer, but I really don't have any problems with people. Of course staring is to be expected....I just take it as a compliment.

As far as the boards, I do miss the old UG....the original.

 

[Mr.Huge]

back in the early days...

I happened to be talking to a buddy of mine today and we got to talking about times gone by, basically reminicsing (sp) about the past. We talked about how bodybuilding was like and all about in the mid to late 90's when we were in out teens and growing up.

Do you guys remeber those days when you first started out in bodybuiling and you really didnt know much about steroids or IGF or GH and dieting or anything? I remember I used to go to GNC and load up on creatine and HMB and those types of supplements and thought I was gonna grow big and huge. I was naive then but still it was a more innocent time. It seemed to be more fun to go to the gym when I was younger. Even though I was skinny as a rail and not very strong, just the idea of going and lifting the weights and trying to get bigger everyday.

It seemed to me back then people were kinder, more apt to be friendlier and help you out. Even though I am more experienced now I just dont get the same feeling of happiness when I walk into the gym. The gym when I was younger was a genuinely good time and I looked forward to being there everyday.

Granted I still have my buddies but that feeling is gone. It has been replaced with a more professional attitude towards the gym and to be truthfully honest its not as satisfying as it was. Now I am not talking about the actual training. I still love that but the whole atmosphere just seems different.

Now granted the gym I worked out at as a teenager and younger 20 something guy is no longer around and alot of the people that used to lift and work out there have moved on, but it just seems as though the people in the gym these guys arent the same type or caliber of people as there used to be. It seems to me you have alot of these young guys who are either ignorant, stupid, or a combination of the both. The women that used to be in the gym working out used to be alot freindlier to. Granted that may be because I was only a teenager back then , but the women dont seem to be as friendly as they used to be, or maybe its just me. Maybe I have grown up.

As for the message boards, do some of you guys miss the days when there was only a few message boards out there and not the sea of boards we have out there today. Where you only had Elite, Bolex, homer's supplement board, got fina, and the UG and old gade.

It was like a true brotherhood back then. I used to be actually kinda excitied to sit down to the computer and log on and get to reading the newest threads because there was always something interesting going on. We really had some colorful characters back then.

Maybe becuase alot of us including myself have been at this for such a long time the luster has been lost a bit or maybe there has just been an infuson of jackasses all over the boards, not only posting but also owning boards, open source posting etc. I remember back in the day when you had to wait a minimum 6 months to even try to get the foot in with a source and now most of the boards you just click a thread and there ya go, instant source.

Kinda takes the credibility away if ya ask me. Am I just rambiling here or does any of this make sense to the older guys?

Just my thoughts for the day.

Umm I guess when you were a teen I was already surfing the boards from the sounds of it.. damn I feel old. lol... I been on these boards since 1995 or 1996. Mesomorphosis.com, Goheavy.com, UG, and BigSport, Anabolex. Those were the only boards that were in exhistance when I first logged on to them. Mesomorphosis now known as meso-rx was my first board ever.

A year or two later came Californiamuscle.com (old Source Esco aka pablo excobars board), Renegadebodybuilding, and my first version of Mesomorph.net I put up in 1997.


Now if you remember these names you are old school, Leighton, BicepBoy, Viper, CapnMike, Pipper, MardisGras, Esco, Diablo, Bilbo, Plates77, Raver, Haldun, and I am sure i can think of several more. Hulksters old newsletter, Duchaines Dirty Dieting etc...


Mr.Huge

 

[Ivan]

gee

1998 I believe was when I found Elite... I did not learn much there so did not go there much....Then (like xcel mentioned) I found the fina board... That is when school began lol. Hey X or Dragon, you guys remember Zyglamail? Or Swolecat? Looks like Iron Addict did well for himself. I remember when he was kinda just scootin by in life in Oregon.

Anyhow, times have changed... If I was to measure my board time on a scale of 1-10 --- 10 being just joined member, and 1 being like Mr. Huge, I would say I am a 4.

I still say here at PM we can facilitate this brotherhood by creating a VIP room only for the selected few vets here. whaddya think?

 

[Maverick]

I agree a VIP forum would be a good addition for the select few.



Mav

 

[xcelbeyond]

Hey X or Dragon, you guys remember Zyglamail? Or Swolecat? Looks like Iron Addict did well for himself.

IMHO, Zyg made that board - always willing to help others. After I quit frequenting the new Got Fina board (didn't seem like Zyg was around much at the new board) I'd run into him at different boards, but I don't get out much these days and haven't seen him around any.

Swolecat joined here but immediately got into a pissing match with Wylde and hasn't been back since. Even Animal's a member here!

I run into Iron Addict occaisionaly as he has many forums on different boards. I think about him whenever I drive by his town - just that it's in the middle of nowhere and I'm always in a hurry to get to where I'm going to stop

 

[MAINEVENT]

Not that Im an old,old member but been around a while. Renegade was the first board I visited and Big A the first people I became friends with....Im not sure when that was....98' I believe. Then I found UG. I was just a student for a couple years and I learned a ton. I do miss the old days, but thats why I stay here.....it reminds me of those boards and the youth (about this sport) I once had.

As far as the gym goes I just believe maybe we were the little punks that bother us now, who knows? I go to the gym twice a week and train at home twice a week, its nice to get out of the house every once in a while LOL!

 

[Maverick]

Yeah thats why i tried to bring back the gade becuase I just missed the old days. I loved the old renegade board before all the BS drama went down. I remeber BigA, and MikeS, and Hyper and raver all had thier names up there in the right hand corner in that red spray paint font and youo could get advice from Big A.

Shit I remember ol' Nikki Neff's nude pics being up there ( LOL king kong knows what I am talking about right king!!! ). The place and the UG were just good boards. I agree with MikeS, its good to see alot of those guys here on promuscle.

What I dont remember is why probodybuilding went down? i know this board replaced it but that board was pretty good, the black background and such. I liked that board. I remember phil hernon was first on that board.

Why did that board go down? I never got the story on that?


Mav

 

[Mr.Huge]

umm...

Yeah thats why i tried to bring back the gade becuase I just missed the old days. I loved the old renegade board before all the BS drama went down. I remeber BigA, and MikeS, and Hyper and raver all had thier names up there in the right hand corner in that red spray paint font and youo could get advice from Big A.

Shit I remember ol' Nikki Neff's nude pics being up there ( LOL king kong knows what I am talking about right king!!! ). The place and the UG were just good boards. I agree with MikeS, its good to see alot of those guys here on promuscle.

What I dont remember is why probodybuilding went down? i know this board replaced it but that board was pretty good, the black background and such. I liked that board. I remember phil hernon was first on that board.

Why did that board go down? I never got the story on that?


Mav

I won't go into detail why maybe BigA will maybe he rather not talk about the piece of shit but all I will say is does: ColdFusion & CelstialMyst ring a bell....ys it was a great board. I believe when he put this site up the moved some of the posts from it here though if i remember correctly. Not sure if they salvaged all of em or not but I am pretty sure that BigA did have em saved elsewhere and moved em here.

haha yes i remember the girl from sprinfield Rags got to pose in the nude for the site with renegade t-shirts etc on the site. Rags was running around your gym in springfied handing out his business cards telling people at your gym he ran the net. That was back when crypto aka luke grabbed him by his pony tail in the gym and about made him shit himself. lol.. those were the days..



Mr.Huge

 

[Maverick]

Ahhhh now I remember. Cold fusion and his wife. They were mods on your board huge and over at ripped mass if I remember. Yeah I dont know the story but I remember hearing about the falling out between the parties. Those are names from the past. Hey huge what ever happened to your bed buddy Big Kraut and little konkubine Ironman from mesomorph?



Mav

 

[MAINEVENT]

I won't go into detail why maybe BigA will maybe he rather not talk about the piece of shit but all I will say is does: ColdFusion & CelstialMyst ring a bell....ys it was a great board. I believe when he put this site up the moved some of the posts from it here though if i remember correctly. Not sure if they salvaged all of em or not but I am pretty sure that BigA did have em saved elsewhere and moved em here.

haha yes i remember the slut from sprinfield Rags got to pose in the nude for the site with renegade t-shirts etc on the site. Rags was running around your gym in springfied handing out his business cards telling people at your gym he ran the net. That was back when crypto aka luke grabbed him by his pony tail in the gym and about made him shit himself. lol.. those were the days..



Mr.Huge

What ever happened to Cryto? I went to the board he use to be on but the shit already went down and no one was talking. He had a fantastic physique!

 

[Maverick]

Well he got cancer in his quad after he won the missouri in 2001 and went downhill from there. Got into some drugs and really just became a different person. Last I heard he lost all his weight, quit lifting, lost his job, and got busted with 40 pounds of marajuana.

Damn i feel for him. He had a great physique. A good buddy too. I know him and Big A had a falling out a while back but based on just his physique he coulda been one hell of a bodybuilder. Too bad it had to go out like that for him. If anybody ever talks to him tell him Mav wished him the best.



Mav

 

[Mr.Huge]

Crypto...

What ever happened to Cryto? I went to the board he use to be on but the shit already went down and no one was talking. He had a fantastic physique!

Stopped competing had some family problems, things started going down hill for him. Heard he's not doing to well does'nt train anymore but wish him the best. The board you are talking about that he moderatoed on was my website. I shut it down over 2.5 years ago when i was arrested for A/S that is the site i have just reopened under the new name www.meso-morph.com

Saved a few years of posts on it but lost a few years as well. When we shut it down years ago we didnt have a back up. Well lost a lot of files but as you can see it looks much nicer now and am just getting it up and going again. Still in the baby stages but lots of good info there still. Lots of the same posts, some old members, and well lots of new ones too.


Mr.Huge

 

[MikeS]

Alot of guys bringing up the old board and names of guys...Haldun...ahhh what a relentless butthole scammer.
I started in about 96 when Anabolex, Meso, and UG were about all that existed. Then Gade spun off the UG. And EF popped up...

MardiGras was maybe my best bud, the first guy who got popped in the
net crew (the start of the Inner Circle). Then I was next. Using Rick Collins
as my attorney, I was his first recognizable net guy to use him-I believe.
It also started a friendship which I will cherish between us. As we know Rick took off from there. His name was already out a bit-or Id have never known to retain him. They had cash funds for guys back then to help with legal fees. Then Marc from Germany (Swiss Watch) in an international bust. Poor Marc really went down hard.

Ive gotta say, Im still loving BBing after 25yrs lifting. Of course it take sacrifice. But it could be something worse Id be obsessing on instead.