“Just Gotten Tagged With the Steroid Image”: Frank Zane on Why He Loaths Modern Bodybuilding.

Three-time Mr. Olympia Frank Zane was the epitome of an aesthetic body. He revolutionized the perspective towards bodybuilding. Zane’s bodybuilding regime was different because he prioritized proportion and symmetry. He carefully measured his meals and combined them with reasonable amounts of amino acids and specific supplements. This got him the nickname ‘The Chemist’. However, Frank had a brutally honest view of today’s bodybuilding fashion.

Frank Zane started bodybuilding at the age of 14. Muscle Magazine highly fascinated him. By the age of 17, he started weight training. In 1977, he won his first Mr.Olympia title. Zane’s popularity in the bodybuilding industry brought attention to aesthetics rather than body mass. Moreover, the bodybuilder had the second-thinnest waistline in the history of Mr.Olympias.

What does Frank Zane think of today’s bodybuilding?

Apart from winning Mr.Olympia, Frank Zane also won Mr. America, Mr. Universe, and Mr. World. With a small body type, Zane dared to compete among champion bodybuilders. However, he stood out by portraying an aesthetic body and graceful posing. In one of the bodybuilding championships, he defeated the legend, Arnold Schwarzenegger. In 1983, after winning his third Mr.Olympia, Zane retired from bodybuilding. He still does train in the gym and is in great shape and health.

However, when asked about today’s bodybuilding, Frank is not flattered by it. In an interview with Bodybuilding.com in 2019, Frank revealed;

“But I don’t prefer the way they look. I don’t think that it has helped bodybuilding. Bodybuilding hasn’t become any more popular. It has just gotten tagged with the steroid image, that’s all. You look at bodybuilding today and you say, ‘steroids.’ It’s automatic.”

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Bodybuilders today indeed use steroids for faster results. However, they are not great for long-term benefits. Zane helps people to follow the right path to bodybuilding by consulting them through his company, The Zane Experience.

How many times does Zane train today?

Zane works out with his clients. He follows a three-day workout and rests for one or two days. Moreover, prefers training every other day or weight-training three days in a row. Frank also stated as the body gets older, it is not possible to train frequently. The focus must be on training hard regularly. He stated, in the interview,

“I still train hard but I don’t do as many sets. On upper-body days I might do 20 to 24 total sets. On leg days I do about half of that.”

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At 80, he continues to prioritize bodybuilding in different ways. Apart from bodybuilding consultation, he also sells supplements and equipments online.