History Unplugged Podcast · History Unplugged
The Original Body Builders: How Greek Halteres and Celtic Gabal Stone Lifts Built the World's First Strongmen
·48 min·5 clips
Superman's iconic costume is directly borrowed from the uniform of Victorian strongmen like Eugene Sandow.
As heard by us
19th-century strongmen made the trained body into spectacle, status, and celebrity.
The episode treats 19th-century strongmen as more than novelty acts. It follows Eugene Sandow closely and shows how strength became a form of display, work ethic, and self-made identity in a culture shaped by cities, print, and spectacle.
Why you'd press play
You get the backstory of fitness as spectacle, status, and salesmanship.
Listen to the show on