---
product_id: 14763083
title: "The Perfect Man: The Muscular Life and Times of Eugen Sandow, Victorian Strongman"
price: "€ 46.11"
currency: EUR
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 9
url: https://www.desertcart.sk/products/14763083-the-perfect-man-the-muscular-life-and-times-of-eugen
store_origin: SK
region: Slovakia
---

# The Perfect Man: The Muscular Life and Times of Eugen Sandow, Victorian Strongman

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## Description

The Perfect Man: The Muscular Life and Times of Eugen Sandow, Victorian Strongman [Waller, David] on desertcart.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Perfect Man: The Muscular Life and Times of Eugen Sandow, Victorian Strongman

Review: Perfect biography of the Man and His Times - One of the most interesting biographies I have ever read. It gives a wonderful picture of the Victorian/Edwardian era, e.g. how society dealt with sexuality, racism, health issues, war, and entertainment. Sandow was truly one of those wonders of the modern world, like we have had Ghandi of Einstein or Elvis since. His story is the classical Shakespearean tale of how both his physical magnificence and his flawed personality were a model of how an individual can shine. Like any great man, he put his stamp on time as well as being part of it. Being the master of the moment, like Churchill was, it seemed tailor made for him to shape it to his needs just like he shaped his body. He built his empire, but as in a Greek tragedy, the force of time was ultimately against him, causing the reversal of his fortune. Wonderfully researched, well-balanced and eloquent, this book will hopefully become the definite story of the Godfather of Body Building that will cherish not only the fact that his iconic body really once existed, but also save his transient life story from the obscurity in which it undeservedly ended.
Review: Good Read - A good and informative piece about the life of Eugen Sandow, the father of bodybuilding. Most of us have heard of the Mr. Olympia title, but personally, I didn't know much about Sandow, the man whom the Olympian trophy is modeled after. For any fans of bodybuilding, this is a good read and highly recommended.

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #3,928,303 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #3,167 in Weight Training (Books) #4,123 in Sports History (Books) #12,895 in Sports Biographies (Books) |
| Customer Reviews | 4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars (58) |
| Dimensions  | 6 x 0.61 x 9 inches |
| ISBN-10  | 1906469253 |
| ISBN-13  | 978-1906469252 |
| Item Weight  | 13.8 ounces |
| Language  | English |
| Print length  | 290 pages |
| Publication date  | December 8, 2011 |
| Publisher  | Victorian Secrets |

## Images

![The Perfect Man: The Muscular Life and Times of Eugen Sandow, Victorian Strongman - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71O1w1gWe2L.jpg)
![The Perfect Man: The Muscular Life and Times of Eugen Sandow, Victorian Strongman - Image 2](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71qyG06UCcL.jpg)
![The Perfect Man: The Muscular Life and Times of Eugen Sandow, Victorian Strongman - Image 3](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/31MwL2YM5JL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Perfect biography of the Man and His Times
*by M***0 on December 10, 2017*

One of the most interesting biographies I have ever read. It gives a wonderful picture of the Victorian/Edwardian era, e.g. how society dealt with sexuality, racism, health issues, war, and entertainment. Sandow was truly one of those wonders of the modern world, like we have had Ghandi of Einstein or Elvis since. His story is the classical Shakespearean tale of how both his physical magnificence and his flawed personality were a model of how an individual can shine. Like any great man, he put his stamp on time as well as being part of it. Being the master of the moment, like Churchill was, it seemed tailor made for him to shape it to his needs just like he shaped his body. He built his empire, but as in a Greek tragedy, the force of time was ultimately against him, causing the reversal of his fortune. Wonderfully researched, well-balanced and eloquent, this book will hopefully become the definite story of the Godfather of Body Building that will cherish not only the fact that his iconic body really once existed, but also save his transient life story from the obscurity in which it undeservedly ended.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Good Read
*by G***. on October 1, 2014*

A good and informative piece about the life of Eugen Sandow, the father of bodybuilding. Most of us have heard of the Mr. Olympia title, but personally, I didn't know much about Sandow, the man whom the Olympian trophy is modeled after. For any fans of bodybuilding, this is a good read and highly recommended.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Athlete, Celebrity, and Social Revolutionary
*by S***R on September 21, 2012*

In 1904 Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, rolled his car and remained pinned under it unable to move or make a sound until a group of people were able to lift the car off of him and free him. He credited his ability to survive the incident with muscle building training that he had taken from Eugen Sandow, the world famous strongman and music hall performer, at his London based Institute of Physical Culture. Arnold Schwarzenegger is quoted as saying. "Before Sandow no one did more than two [lifting] repetitions of anything. The idea of developing strength was to take the heaviest weight you can lift,lift it one time, put it down,wait three or four minutes until you get your breath back. Sandow was the first one to do 50 repetitions. He would use a lighter weight. He was the first to shape his body with his muscles." Just imagine what a threat he was and is to exercise equipment manufacturers and gym owners when all of the equipment that you need to exercise with his system is a pair of 5 pound dumbells that you can buy for $10.00. I believe Sandow was influenced during his first trip to America by Alois P. Swoboda who developed and promoted a system that he called Conscious Evolution in the 1800s. Sandow and Swoboda corresponded with each other for years. Swoboda coined the term "muscle control" to describe his method of exercise and invented the mail order bodybuilding course to promote it. Swoboda suggested performing exercises stripped to the waist and exercising in front of a mirror which was a technique that Sandow added to his basic dumbell routine in his second book. Prior to Sandow performing strongmen tended to be of the 300 pound mastodon variety many of which were recuited from the German Beer Halls and given signing bonuses by the circuses who hired them of unlimited amounts of free beer. Sandow was more moderate saying,"I eat,drink,smoke and sleep quite in the ordinary way". In addition to his outstanding development Sandow also was a very gifted personal promoter which was an ability that he learned from his American Promoter the legendary Flo Ziegfeld. A number of circumstances helped to develop Sandow's career and his celebrity: 1. The industrial revolution and the end of the American Frontier threatened the self image of men and their definition of their own masculinity. 2. The movement of the population from farm to city concentrated the population and made the theater an increasingly popular and accessible form of entertainment. 3. Sandow's physique fit right in with the fad of increasing interest in Ancient Greek Culture During his era Sandow was accused of being both a philanderer and a homosexual and the author simply says that there is no proof of either allegation,but that he can neither prove them or disprove them. The fact that Sandow was a German living in England during World War 1 played a significant part in the failure of his business interests and had to be a contributing factor in his overall demise and possibly was even a factor in his death and his ultimate rejection by his family. This book has really expanded my understanding of Sandow and the world that he lived in. When someone gets famous like Sandow they lose control of their lives and people seek them out for their celebrity and little else and such relationships tend to be very temporary. I have come to believe that Sandow was basicly well intentioned and believed in his methods and to a large extent was on a mission to help the world. What he represented to some people though posed a threat to them and their Victorian era belief structure with its total denial of the human body and as a result they demonized him. I think that the following quote from "The Perfect Man" illustrates the source of those attitudes: "London was full of thousands of prostitutes,yet it was only in 1895 that a woman's bare feet were seen on the West End stage for the first time" This is a very interesting and well written book about a very interesting man. Let's not forget that Sandow was totally natural and represents human potential prior to the advent of steroids.

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*Product available on Desertcart Slovakia*
*Store origin: SK*
*Last updated: 2026-02-17*