People love reading – particularly about things that interest them, so I’m perhaps treading on very thin ice when I say that muscle magazines suck. But truly, they do.
Why do I say such blasphemous things? Well, the answer is simple: because they contain so little information of any use to the average Joe trainee.
They are interesting, though. True enough – it’s interesting to see what Ronnie does, or Jay does, and why, but, this information is seldom applicable to you – but, is often marketed in such a way that leads you to believe if you begin copying these genetic and chemically assisted freaks of nature you’ll turn out just like them!
And the truth, of course, is the opposite. The things these guys do, generally, is so far out of the scope of what is useful to the average bodybuilder – even those who are fairly advanced – that it’s damn near useless as practical information, and should be viewed as nothing more than intrigue.
Another thing that I dislike intensely about these magazines is the glossy, fawning reviews many of these so-called ‘impartial’ magazines have about particular miracle supplements. Firstly, the guys who are plastered on the sides are nearly always steroid takers, yet the implication of them being on the packaging is that they got big by taking this product. There is no “P.S. Steroids needed, too.” No, never.
We’d be very naive to think many of these reviews are indeed impartial. What goes on behind the scenes of many of these magazines is oodles of money changing hands – it’s widely known that many magazines take cash from supplement companies to write favourable reviews, which does you, the readers holding onto their hard earned cash eager to boost your gains, no favours at all – because you’ve just been hoodwinked into possibly buying a product which isn’t as good as you are led to believe.
Overall, I think the magazine industry is a bit of a dirty industry. From time to time there is useful information, but you should always take what you see in these magazines with a generous pinch of salt.
So, if you are looking at muscle magazines for useful information to help boost your gains… be wary of what they’re trying to sell you.