By JOHN C. GRIMEK

Acquiring

Bodybuilding

NUMBER 7 OF A SERIES

Shaplier Biceps

124

HE ARM, particularly the biceps muscle, is the best known of all muscles and incites more interest and controversy than any other group of muscles. Both old and young are, for some inexplicable reason, fascinated by strong, muscular looking arms. The very young are always intrigued and will hound anyone with a fine pair of arms to "show me your muscle!" Youngsters don't realize that almost 700 muscles comprise the muscular makeup of the body, but to them only the biceps are muscles because they knot up to a peak when the arm is flexed.

And, speaking of older people, on a return trip from Canada a couple years ago, Jake Hitchins and I stopped for gas in an upper New York state AND

STRENGTH

HEALTH

town. It was hot and sticky that day, and my shirt, a short sleeve cotton one, clung tightly to me, especially around my arms. After telling the attendant to "fill 'er up" I went to the men's room to freshen up and didn't notice an older lady rocking in the shade. As I went by she called to my companion asking him the nature of my vocation. Jake merely answered I was a writer. A pause followed in apparent contemplation, then she added, "My, what a wonderful pair of arms that young man has!"

When I was told this incident after we got under way I was pretty sure that old gal hasn't seen many lifters or bodybuilders, and calling me a young man was proof enough her vision wasn't 20-20. She must have been 80-plus if she was a day, and people that age consider anyone younger a mere kid!

I mention this because it bears out my conviction that arms for reasons unknown attract more attention than any other muscle, from the very young to the extremely old. At practically every stop we made, some comments were made regarding my arms, primarily because my sleeves seemed to be strangling them. However, this was not the first time such incidents occurred. On every trip I ever made comments were made towards other muscles but it was always the arms that received the most. For this reason I often wear long sleeve shirts or jackets for such comments can sometimes be embarrassing and annoying. But a man doesn't have to have large arms to create attention. Frequently a well developed arm of 15 or 16 inches causes quite a stir among the neighborhood small-fry who incessantly request the owner to "show your muscle!"

Perhaps all this interest for arms is the result of many romantic tales relative to arm strength which come down to us through generations. Even Longfellow's poem about the Village Blacksmith did much to popularize "the brawny arms" conception from which "muscles stood out like iron bands." Although today the village smithy is as obsolete as the horse and buggy, the "brawny arms" conception is still with us. Frequently large arms are associated with strength, and while this may be true in many cases, it does not reflect the truth for the majority. Arm size does not

NOVEMBER,

1957

indicate exceptional strength, although the two make an impressive combination. However, when a good sized arm is capped by well-rounded deltoids and massive forearms they make an even better striking appearance, and certainly any man with this combination is bound to be fairly strong, especially if these muscles were developed through coordinated, sensible exercise.

I find another odd incident regarding the biceps. Many muscle culturists consider the biceps as a single muscle and assume all biceps have the same general shape in all individuals. The biceps, meaning two-heads, vary (Continued on page 37)

Visitors to the York Gym who watch Steve Stanko work out often remark that his arms look like legs! He has huge wellrounded biceps, as this recent picture shows.