TOM PLATZ INTERVIEW 2016
"..Arnold was there too, and he knew this was the high point of my career and that I would remember it for the rest of my life...“
Some of the men who have been the most influential in bodybuilding never have one Mr. Olympia Title won. All know Flex Wheeler, Kevin Levrone und Shawn Ray - three of the best bodybuilders of the nineties who are as respected as Dorian Yater und Ronnie Coleman.
It was in the eighties Rich Gaspari und Lee Labradawho changed the sport and were bigger stars than those who won the title Mr. Olympia have won.
But none of these men had a greater impact on bodybuilding training than Tom place auch Golden Eagle named for his blond man. Before "The Golden Eagle" there was never a bodybuilder who could show more massive leg development.
Though Tom never won a pro show, Tom was one of the most popular guest posers of the 1980s and featured on more than 25 magazine covers. Since retiring more than twenty years ago, Tom has focused on teaching and writing books and articles.
I was happy to finally talk to the legendary Golden Eagle about his career, his current sport and much more.
Question: It's been more than 20 years since you left the stage. I haven't seen anyone with bigger legs than you had at your best times. I mean there are a lot of genetic freaks out there who train hard and a lot of exotic drugs that weren't even available in the 80s.
TOM SQUARE: I was on the last one Arnold Classic 2016 and i saw a couple of legs. Branch Warren has tremendous quadriceps and the quality and detail, the deep partings and the feathery horizontal stripes I haven't seen, and honestly can't say why that is. It is not my intention to blow my head by saying this, but occasionally in the world of the sport of business, certain things are done that are ahead of their time. Up to this point it is believed that this thing cannot be achieved, but once that barrier is broken everything changes. When I was on the bodybuilding scene at shows like the Mr. America, nobody had big legs. The status quo that everyone emulated at the time was Arnold. Back then, guys worked hard on their arms, chest, shoulders and back. Legs were something you can do, like the afternoon workout after your “real” workout where you did your chest and arms.
When I first came to California and the Gold’s-Gym exercised, all leg implements were almost hidden in a back corner and were hardly used. I was trained with weightlifters in Michigan in the early 1970s, and the squat was their altar. I was taught to worship the squat and work hard on it.
When I started training in the west they looked me at 405kg and said: "Do not do that!". They found it dangerous, or unnecessary, to squat your legs so hard and heavy. I still remember seeing the judges at the competitions drop their pencils when I came out and they saw my legs. It was easy to read her mind: "What the hell is that?" Over the next few years, all of the boys came on stage with bigger legs than before.
Question: How much of your incredible leg development was genetics and how much was a tough workout?
Tom place: I can't deny that there has to be some amount of genetics in my legs in order for them to look like they ultimately did. When I first started competing in bodybuilding when I was still in high school, I was known for having a tall upper body and average legs. I have to bend with 95kg. Eventually my legs became a dominant part of my body.
After this Mr. Olympia 1979 I reduced my leg training and only trained my legs twice a month. To my surprise, they continued to grow and became more detailed.
Arnold was able to train twice a day, six days a week with high volume and grow while I was shortening intense workouts with much more recovery time.
Question: How did you start bodybuilding? What were your influences
Tom place: As a kid I was very inspired by Dave Draper. I saw him in the Tony Curtis movie "Don't Make Waves" and on TV shows like The Beverly Hillbillies. I remember sitting at home watching TV and eating popcorn. To me, his body was amazing. What motivated me was a photo of Artie Zeller. There was Dave Draper on the beach with a beautiful girl in a bikini on each arm. I think I was only ten years old but I showed my dad the magazine and said: "That's what I want to do".
When I was eight years old, my father bought me a dumbbell and weights for Christmas. It was a Weider set and came with a manual my father would read to me so I could understand. I still remember doing bench presses without a bench, lying on the cold cement floor of our basement wondering why my elbows keep banging on the floor. When I was in high school, we lived in Kansas City. I met a boy named Mike Tankel who wanted to be a powerlifter and we trained together for a while. I was on the soccer team when I saw a Mr. World show on TV with Draper, Arnold and Reg Park one evening. The next day I quit football and told my coach I was going to be a professional bodybuilder.
Question: You went to Venice Beach when it was the absolute world mecca of bodybuilding. How were your early days in LA?
Tom place: I went to L.A. in 1978 with fifty dollars and lived in a one-room apartment with 25 other people - but I had the couch! They respected me because they knew I was with Arnold and these guys trained and I was determined to become a professional bodybuilder. I got a job at the Pritiken Center. My job was handing out beach towels and working on my tan. I loved the job because I could exercise twice a day and have plenty of time to rest and relax.
Question: I remember your leg training rituals. How did it help you build your legs.
Tom place: It was actually a full article in Musclemag that my wife wrote "Squat Day Prep" a few years ago. Mentally I rehearsed and visualized what I would do for a week before training. I ate pasta or pizza the night before, both for the carbohydrates and to increase the water retention around the intestines. I had my sweatpants, socks, and sturdy weightlifting shoes. The colors red and yellow were my favorites because I felt stronger. But I would say that the most important aspect was mental preparation. I had visualized these sets of squats over and over before I started the squat.
Question: How is your training today?
Tom place: I am over 50 years old and my goals are no longer the same. I now exercise three times a week, and my top weights would have been warm-ups in my competitive years. My main focus now is to live a long and healthy healthy life.
Question: If you only knew then what you know now, what would you have changed in your training and diet?
Tom place: Well, I made a comeback in 1995, again in great shape again for photoshoots and appearances, and I realized that by eating more healthy fats and not exercising as hard, I was getting better results than I had before . Too much of anything is counterproductive.
Question: Some of the men from the 70s and 80s complain that today's professionals just don't train as hard as they do. Do you think this is true
Tom place: Since I haven't really seen a lot of these guys train, I can't really judge. I heard that Ronnie Coleman Bowed 800 or 900 pounds just before the Olympics in one of his DVDs. Some of these guys weigh 130 kg on stage today. Back in my day the athletes over 100 kg were named as a pretty big guy. I know the drugs have something to do with it, but these men have to train very hard to show shape and muscle. Drugs don't create superhuman mass out of thin air.
Frage: Über deine Kniebeugen spricht mal heute noch mit Bewunderung und Ehrfurcht . (200 Kg für 50 Wiederholungen)
Tom place: That was when I was in college in Michigan. We had a lot of athletes and every year there would be a "squat" competition on weight and repetitions. Winning was a matter of pride, and I didn't always win. There I learned how to work harder and how to block pain. Really, I cannot say enough about the importance of spiritual preparation. When you see something in your head and you believe you can, nothing can stop you.
At the beginning of my professional career I said Frank Zane to me: I have to concentrate on my legs like a freak. He said that it sets me apart from everyone else and makes me unique. Frank was always a smart man, and he was right about that advice.
Question: Who were your best friends and who are you still in with?
Tom place: I'm still talking to Aaron Baker Gary Strydom, Ed Corney, Frank Zane und Shawn Ray und Flex Wheeler. We have parted ways with many others from earlier days.
Question: Who do you think are the best athletes of all time?
Tom place: Arnold, Draper, Franco und Robby Robinson were all excellent. In later years I would say Shawn Ray and Flex Wheeler.
Question: How do you like bodybuilding today?
Tom place: I know. Don't get me wrong, I'm for the crowd. It's only when it bothers you, with all the weird lumps and loss of proportion and definition. It's no longer attractive in any way. Another thing to note is there is bodybuilding and ’natural’ bodybuilding. There is no such thing as “natural” football or “natural” basketball. Sure, while steroids are a part of most professional sports, it's most obvious in bodybuilding and we have the worst reputation.
Question: Who or what do you think is responsible for the change from the body of the 80s to what we see now?
Tom place: I would say Dorian Yates changed it. When he started winning Mr. Olympia, he changed the scene from symmetry to massive muscle. I remember when I was with the WBF (World Bodybuilding Federation) we flew him over and offered him a contract. Dorian said he wanted to be Mr. Olympia and he believed and a few months later he was Mr. Olympia. I sent him a telegram to congratulate him and he put it on his studio wall.
Question: Which victory in your career were you most proud of?
Tom place: That sounds crazy because people always expect me to say the universe, but it wasn't a major victory. It was actually the 1981 Mr. Olympia where Franco Colombo won and I finished in third place. This competition established me as a top professional and took my career to the next level. The moment I stepped off the stage, I had promoters from a dozen different countries to book me to perform.
Question: Which competition do you think you looked your best at?
Tom place: I think about that Mr. Olympia 1981. My fiancée had left me that year for my then training partner, and I was charged with a tremendous amount of anger and disappointment. I took all of this aggression to the gym and had the most incredible workouts in my life. I could grab a dumbbell and pump it. The studio was my outlet for all the anger, all the pain, and my body responded very quickly.
Question: What moment on stage will you always remember?
Tom place: It was the last Mr. Olympia 1986. I had my biceps torn and wasn't even in the top ten so it was my worst show ever. But I got four or five encores after my posing. The crowd just couldn't get enough of me. They stood on their seats and screamed their lungs out. Arnold was there too, and he knew this was the height of my career and that I would remember it for the rest of my life.
Thanks Tom for the interview.
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