Ever notice that the fitness world is getting a little too user-friendly these days?

I train at a gym that calls itself a "Judgment-Free Zone." This is very true, because whoever decided to paint the walls Urine Yellow and Barney-the-Dinosaur Purple displayed no sense of judgement at all.

On the other hand, I think they're being judgmental as hell. For instance, one day the dumbbells started disappearing. The staff tells me that "free weights intimidate people." Which is, of course, staff-speak for "the few people who actually use free weights make the wimps feel inadequate."

In a gym (and a world) that was truly non-judgmental, everyone would be allowed to do their own thing. I wouldn't make fun of you for grunting and grimacing through your three sets of fifty reps on the triceps machine, and you wouldn't feel uncomfortable when I do my squats.

Wishful thinking, I know. I tell you, if my grandfather were to come back to life and see the sad state of the fitness world today, he'd probably turn around an climb right back into his coffin.

The Evolution — and Devolution — of Strength Training

"Having a pump is like having sex. I train two, sometimes three times a day. Each time I get a pump. It's great. I feel like I'm coming all day..." —Arnold Schwarzenegger

Ancient Times

Strength training is nothing new. Egyptian temple paintings dating back over 4,200 years show bronze-age strength athletes pumping stone. No lie: the pictures clearly depict these men lifting, swinging, and pressing bags filled with sand and limestone. Not quite as sophisticated as the equipment we have today, but it evidently got the job done.

Eighteenth Century

In the early 1700s, the dumbbell was invented. Two church bells were attached together with a rod. Because their clappers had been removed, they were silent, or "dumb." Dumb bells. Get it?

Nineteenth Century

By 1800, the most popular training equipment consisted of the Indian clubs (which looked like long, skinny bowling pins), and kettle bells (which looked like cast iron basketballs with handles). Barbells were invented around this time, but they weren't like the ones we use today. They had hollow globes that could be filled with sand or lead shot.

At first, the people who used this type of equipment were "strongmen" who performed at contests and exhibitions. Strongmen made their living entertaining people at traveling circus sideshows and carnivals in the mid- to late 1800s.

These shows included pulling carts and lifting animals. The public loved to watch these men compete and they quickly gained popularity. The performers cared only about how strong they were, not how their physiques appeared. In other words, they were more like modern powerlifters than bodybuilders.

The Birth of Bodybuilding

The first true bodybuilder has got to be Eugene Sandow of Prussia. Sandow believed that the classical Greek and Roman statues represented the ideal in human proportions, and he took great pains to develop his physique to match.

Eugene Sandow, the father of modern bodybuilding.

As a tribute to him and his early influence in the world of bodybuilding, the Mr. Olympia trophy is actually a gold statue of him!

Twentieth Century

In the 1900s, the adjustable plate-loaded barbell was developed. Weight training became more popular at this time, because it was much easier to adjust the weight. Sports coaches began to see that it was an excellent addition to athletic performance.

By the end of the 1920s, the general public began to acknowledge the importance of becoming fit and strong, and envied the physiques of famous bodybuilders.

By the 1930s, a schism developed between aesthetic and functional weight training, which still continues today. Athletes used weights to improve their performance, without worrying about how they looked, whereas bodybuilders used weight training to improve their physiques, without worrying about their athletic performance.

The "Golden Age" of Bodybuilding

As the bodybuilding movement progressed into the 1930s, adherents were becoming more interested in developing balanced physiques and losing body-fat as training techniques and new developments in exercise equipment advanced.

The 1930s were the beginning of the "golden age" of bodybuilding and the birth of Muscle Beach in Venice, California. Here, the public could watch bodybuilders pumping in the sun, or performing in physique shows, weightlifting competitions, and acrobatic demonstrations.

The "golden age" continued into the 40s and 50s, as men like John Grimek, Clancy Ross, Reg Park and Steve Reeves made their mark. Steve Reeves further popularized bodybuilding due to his movie star looks and perfectly proportioned physique.

Reeves eventually became revered as the greatest bodybuilder of all time after winning the Mr. America and the Mr. Universe. He further popularized the sport of bodybuilding when he went on to become one of the first heroic movie stars, playing in "Hercules", "Morgan the Pirate" and "The Thief of Baghdad." He quickly gained a fan base of thousands.

Steve Reeves as Hercules.

Arnold Schwarzenegger entered the scene in 1966 to join the ranks of other immortals like Frank Zane, Lou Ferrigno, Sergio Oliva, Bill Pearl, Dave Drape, and Franco Columbu.

One of the greatest influences on bodybuilding "Pumping Iron", starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, in 1977. This was the first time that anyone had given the general public insight into what bodybuilding was all about, and what bodybuilders were really like. Guys flocked to the gym, wanting to be just like Arnold!

Women's Bodybuilding

Women became involved in bodybuilding around the 1940s, after watching the men at Muscle Beach. Then, as now, there was a lot of fear among some women that they might end up developing big bulky muscles like a man.

Women's physique competitions began in the 1960s, but were little more than bikini competitions. The first true women's bodybuilding contest, in which contestants were judged solely on their muscularity, was held in 1978 by the National Physique Committee.

The first Ms. Olympia contest was in 1980, and the competitors closely resembled what we would see at a figure competition today. Rachel McLish took the trophy home.

In 1984, a new force emerged in women's bodybuilding, in the form of Cory Everson.

Cory Everson even makes this author want to take a shower!

Cory was a big influence in the women's world of bodybuilding. She won the NPC Nationals, then defeated Rachel McLish to win the 1984 Ms. Olympia. At 5'9" and 150 pounds, Everson's physique set a new standard.

She would go on to win six consecutive Ms. Olympia titles before retiring undefeated as a professional. She's the only woman to ever accomplish this.

The Birth of Machine Training

In the late 1950s, a man named Harold Zinkin invented the first Universal machine, which was a four-station unit with weight stacks. His goal was to make weightlifting appeal to the masses.

It worked. The "easy" appeal of machines got more people into the gym, and expanded the scope of weight training. Suddenly, older adults, people with limitations and disabilities, and beginners, could lift weights "more easily" and with less chance of injury.

The appeal of machines was the same then as now. Because the movement of the weight was confined to a single plane, it was easier to lift a heavier weight than would be possible if the weight was moving freely. It was less intimidating, and people felt stronger. Everyone was a winner!

It was then that Arthur Jones and his Nautilus machines arrived on the scene. The Nautilus machines inspired a fitness revolution, and many different companies came on the market with their own resistance machines. An offshoot of these was the plate-loaded machine, introduced in the later 1980s. Hammer Strength was the first of these.

This influx of machine training and its "non-intimidating" appeal is when women started going to the gym in significant numbers. They were also lured by another new addition to the fitness world: aerobics.

Aerobics and Cardio

Cardiovascular training has been around for a long time. The Greek runner Pheidippides must have done plenty of cardio training to prepare for that first marathon back in 490 BC. It wasn't until 1968, however, that Dr. Kenneth Cooper gave cardio a cool new name ("aerobics"), and put together a complete exercise program of walking, running, cycling, and swimming, to help prevent coronary artery disease.

Dr. Cooper originally formulated aerobic exercises specifically for astronauts, but soon realized that the same set of exercises are useful for the general public as well, especially those suffering from obesity, who are more likely to develop various heart diseases.

In 1972, aerobic dance had its own professional association for instructors, the International Dance Exercise Association (IDEA). And by 1980, aerobics was rapidly becoming a national trend. Women were moving out of the dance studios, and hitting the gym!

"I feel good! Except my knees hurt and I'm still fat!"

The 21st Century: User Friendly Fitness

That brings us back to the present day. And look where we are.

There's so much "fitness" available to us now. Aerobics classes, step classes, Pilates classes, cardio machines, weight machines, and free weights — it's a fitness smorgasbord, and everyone's invited. That's a good thing, overall; as long as people are in there dong something, it's better than sitting on their fat asses eating pork rinds in front of the TV.

But there's a dark side to this new, user-friendly world of fitness.

The gym I've been at for years was recently "acquired" by another chain. The changes were cosmetic at first. The name changed, of course. The logo, which had always been a gorilla lifting a massive stack of weights, now changed to a big purple and yellow "thumbs up," along with the reassurance that the gym was a "judgement-free zone."

The next reforms went deeper, and were more painful. The cardio area doubled. The squat rack, the benches and the barbells got moved off to the back of the gym, and in their place went a plethora of colorful machines.

Even the dumbbells got shunted off into a corner, removing all of them heavier than 65 pounds. Wouldn't want any of the fat rabbit people to be frightened by a meathead lifting heavy, you know.

There are also signs up all over the gym: No chalk. No grunting. No dropping weights. Actually, if they hear or see any of that, an alarm will sound and you'll be asked to leave.

You think I'm kidding? I'm not kidding.

Judgment free, huh? Bullshit! Some of us are feeling extremely judged, and we don't like it.

More evidence of the insanity: My gym has a "pizza night."

The first Monday of every month, the staff orders pizzas and the members sit up front, talk and eat, or grab a slice or two to go. They also have bagel and coffee morning the second Tuesday of every month.

I can't chalk my hands and grunt in the squat rack, but a bunch of chubby weaklings can gobble pizza and bagels, and everyone is okay with this. Why, God, why?!

I'll tell you why: Because if I'm fat and weak and you're fat and weak, we don't intimidate each other. But if you can lift that bar, and build those muscles, and look that good, then I'm gonna tell the front desk on you because you make me feel insecure!

It makes me sick to think that up until the early 1970s, gyms were entirely free weights, and people were in much better shape then than now.

In fact, it's interesting to note that the national rise in obesity corresponds roughly with the advent of cardio machines aerobics classes, and weight training machines. Coincidence?

The Future of Fitness: In Our Callused Hands

And it's only going to get worse, as gym salespeople peddle ignorance and falsehood in order to get that membership form signed.

The other day I overheard a sales kid giving a tour to a potential member. He stood at the entrance of the free weight area, pointed, and said, "This is the free weight area. It's for people who are really into it, and lift heavy. Most people just stay out front."

It made me mad. Of course that new member isn't going to use the free weights now.

The more machines, variations, devices, pills, diets, etc. are certainly confusing. The old stuff (weight training and a sensible diet) worked fine, but people continue to search for the magic pill, fall for the latest fad, and do whatever feels and sounds easy.

I do see some hope in the future though; with new technologies, trial and errors, and the shared experiences of our mentors, I think the good old stuff will always be out there — if only in our private weight rooms and garages.

Yet for the mainstream, it looks like free weights are on the way out. And that would be a sorry footnote in the history of fitness.

But as they said in the Terminator, the future's not yet set. There's still time to turn the tide!

Do me a favor: Take a minute to share in the discussion thread the current state of your gym. Then let's discuss just what the hell we're gonna do about it.

*I'd like to thank a special friend (you know who you are) for being "old" enough to have had the books I needed to write this article sitting on your book shelves. And also, for taking the time to teach me years ago, what you already knew about fitness. You're the best!