John Little, author of Mike Mentzer: American Odysseus, Part One

21/08/2025 1h 3min
John Little, author of Mike Mentzer: American Odysseus, Part One

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Episode Synopsis

On this episode of the Bodybuilding Legends Podcast, author John Little talks about his new book Mike Mentzer: American Odysseus. In Part One of his interview, John talks about the reason he wanted to write a biography about his friend Mike Mentzer to fully explain his life and tragic ending. John also talks about Mike's early years in Bodybuilding including training as a teenager, his shoulder injury that almost ended his career and his many variations of the Heavy Duty system that he created from Arthur Jone's initial teachings. At the end of the podcast, host John Hansen reads the article "High Sets, Low Sets" which is an interview with Mike Mentzer conducted by writer Rick Wayne for the January, 1978 issue of Muscle Builder magazine.  Time Stamps: 4:20 - John's Competitions this year 8:15 - Start of interview with John Little 11:00 - The decline of Mike Mentzer 12:30 - The current popularity of Mentzer 19:40 - Going against the grain 25:00 - Why John wrote this book 30:30 - Mike Mentzer's destiny to be a bodybuilder 37:00 - Mike Mentzer's shoulder injury 44:15 - Mike's need for knowledge  46:50 - Why Mike didn't train after he stopped competing 49:35 - John reads the article "High Sets, Low Sets" written by Rick Wayne for the January, 1978 issue of Muscle Builder magazine.  Links: John's Online Training and Nutrition Programs Become a Bodybuilding Legends Member Bodybuilding Legends website John's YouTube Channel Mike Mentzer: American Odysseus on Amazon