Andreas Munzer / andreas munzer, “man without skin”

Excursion into childhood

Andreas (Andreas Munzer) was born in the fall of 1964 in an Austrian village into a farmer's family. Keeping cows brought good income, but taking care of the farm took up all the time. In his spare time, the teenager visited a local club, where he played the trumpet. In addition to music, there was another hobby - seasonal sports. In winter the boy skied from a springboard, in summer he kicked a ball. After school I went to study to become a mechanic. After classes, he had to wait 2 hours for the bus to get home. The guy didn’t want to wander the streets, so he signed up for a fitness club.

Accident

Herman did not live long. The fateful page in her life was a terrible accident in which she and her driver Renato got into in Italy. This unpleasant event happened in the summer of 1967. When she was returning after another concert, the driver fell asleep.

The impact threw Anna out of the car through the windshield. The condition was serious. The singer spent almost six months in the hospital and in a cast, and was almost completely immobilized. I had to forget about the stage and concerts for 3 years. After what happened to her, Anna learned to walk again and returned to the stage only in 1970. Photos before and after the accident make it clear that Herman’s appearance has changed, and for the worse.

Good start

Soon his fellow gym members noticed that Munzer’s muscle mass was growing faster than anyone else. They suggested that he intensify his training and compete in a junior competition. Second place came as a surprise to the young man. Since then, the athlete has become “sick” of bodybuilding. Ambition forced him to leave his father’s house and go to conquer the Olympic heights. Oddly enough, he succeeded in everything. In 1986, he became a co-owner of the club , which allowed him to reach a different level of life and practice as much as he wanted, which is what he did.

performances in competitive bodybuilding were not inspiring, but he understood that the path to glory lay through the podium. In 1987, the athlete rose to the 3rd place in the World Championships , and repeated the success the following year. At the last event, Albert Busek noticed him and offered to appear for the cover of the most popular magazine FLEX . Andreas was in seventh heaven. For him, this meant more than 1st place in a prestigious competition. Friendly relations developed with Busek, and he offered the guy a vacancy as the manager of a sports center in Munich. The bodybuilder understood that this position would be a springboard for a stellar career and agreed without hesitation. He moved and began to combine work with training.

What ruined the young athlete

The troubles began around the time the athlete crossed the thirty-year mark. He began complaining of stomach pain and underwent treatment, but according to friends, he always seemed depressed. In March 1996, Andreas' condition worsened and he was hospitalized. Doctors diagnosed intestinal bleeding, but were unable to stop it. Münzer fell into a coma and soon died from internal organ failure.

The truth was revealed after the death of the athlete. An autopsy revealed that his liver had been completely destroyed by anabolic steroids. Along with anabolic steroids and various supplements, Münzer took potassium-based diuretics. The result was increased levels of alkali metal in the body, electrolyte imbalance and increased blood viscosity.

In pursuit of ideal relief, the bodybuilder did not give himself any rest and took chemicals, including prohibited ones (doctors found about 20 different substances in his blood). The exhausted body, which has always been the pride and means of earning money for its owner, at a certain moment refused to serve him. Münzer’s partner and friend Albert Busek long denied the fact of taking prohibited supplements, and the bodybuilder’s wife, bodybuilder Sissy Schwartz, generally refused to talk about this topic with journalists. One of Andreas’ students spoke about the use of steroids, and his acquaintances claimed that despite his considerable earnings, he never had any money, which could be an indirect confirmation of the use of steroids, since they cost a lot.

The sad experience of Andreas Münzer teaches that in pursuit of a beautiful body and sculpted muscles, one should not forget about health. Anabolic steroids lead to accelerated weight gain, but cause irreversible damage to the liver, and neglect of rest and nutritional rules causes exhaustion and dehydration of the body. Accordingly, you need to create an optimal training schedule and strictly adhere to it, drink enough fluids and do not forget about taking vitamins and microelements.

The human body has limited resources, so unless you make money from performing, you shouldn't strive to look like the guys on the covers of advertising magazines. Good health and, albeit not too large, but independently gained muscle mass will bring more pleasure than artificial relief along with ruined health.

Subtle and “ringing” Andreas Münzer

In 1989, after winning the World Games, the athlete received the coveted IFBB professional card . With even greater persistence, he began to prepare for the upcoming competitions. The guy pursued the goal of getting closer to his idol in terms of parameters and fame. For the sake of his dream, he combined long work with a strict diet, and 10 days before the tournament he limited the amount of water and took diuretics. As a result, the fat percentage after drying was 4%.

No athlete in the entire history of bodybuilding had such indicators. Detailedly drawn muscles were covered with parchment-thin skin without the slightest hint of fat. Andreas’s figure was compared to an exhibit from an anatomical museum and was nicknamed “the man without skin.”
Despite the ideal terrain, the judges reduced points due to the lack of plasticity and artistry.

Anna German's husband and son today

The fate of the beloved men turned out sadly. After the singer’s death, the husband never married and raised his son himself. Today he lives in poverty, surviving on one pension. He also supports an unsociable son.

Zbyszek is not married. I received a good education, but work didn’t work out for a long time. The guy was in a creative search for himself, lived with his father, spent money from renting out Anna’s apartment, where her father nursed her after the accident.

Now he works at the Academy of Sciences, but he doesn’t particularly strive to help his father. Single, but not long ago there were rumors that he had a girlfriend, whom his father even blessed. Photos of the chosen one never appeared on the Internet; the information remained unverified.

At the limit of possibilities

To achieve champion results, he doped , absorbing huge doses of anabolic steroids (50 pieces each) and packs of urinary tablets. The list of drugs includes: thyroid hormone, parabolan, growth hormone, Valius, Stromba and a number of others, except synthol. To restore the mineral balance, I dissolved magnesium and zinc in water and took vitamin tablets.

To train for 6 hours every day, you need strength, but where can you get it from, if not from jars and pharmaceutical packages? But large doses required material costs, and the athlete had to perform 40 times a year. He worked hard, adhered to a diet and did not give his body the slightest break.

The tragedy would not have happened if the bodybuilder took last place - over time, the hope of entering the top three disappeared. But he always made it to the top of the strongest and was two steps away from victory.

“Some people call me crazy and say that I torture myself with harsh discipline. They may be right, but I voluntarily chose this path of self-improvement.”

• In 1990, he took bronze at the Grand Prix in Europe and the Arnold Classic, and showed the 9th result at Olympia.
• In 1993 - silver at the “Night of Champions” and 9th at Olympia.
• In ’94 – 5th position at the Arnold Classic and the same result at the Night of Champions.
• In 95 - 96 - 4 and 5 indicators, getting into the top 10 at San Jose, San Francisco.

Early years of bodybuilding career

The Austrian bodybuilder grew up and was raised in an ordinary peasant family. His parents had their own dairy farm, thanks to which the family could afford a comfortable existence. Since childhood, Andreas was not afraid of work and helped his parents in every possible way in “dairy matters.” And in his free time from work, he devoted himself to sports and playing a musical instrument.

Sports were the undoubted passion of the future bodybuilder; in the summer, he preferred football, and in the winter, skiing. Besides everything, the teenager’s hands grew from the right place, and when he was tired of the mountain slopes, he personally began building a springboard.

Münzer’s acquaintance with bodybuilding happened completely by accident. Andreas began to learn the basics of the locksmith profession, and his educational institution was ten kilometers from home, and in order not to waste time waiting for a bus for two hours in vain, he begins to work out in the gym.

The effectiveness of the training bore fruit, and the athlete’s muscle mass grew faster than that of his training partners. They were the ones who insisted on participating in the competition. A surprise for everyone was Münzer’s second place in the middleweight category in junior competitions. The victory only adds passion and incredible desire for bodybuilding.

In 1986, in order to provide themselves with constant training and earn a living, Andreas and a friend became the owners of their own gym.

In 1987, the bodybuilder first appeared on the podium at the Amateur World Championship and won bronze in the light heavyweight category.

The next year again brings third place in the Championship and the famous journalist and figure in European bodybuilding Albert Busieka draws attention to it. Münzer appears on the cover of the then popular FLEX magazine. According to the athlete’s recollections, this event became much more important for him than the failed victory at the Championship

Soon Albert makes an offer to Münzer to head a sports center in Munich, where he could work part-time as a coach. The bodybuilder could not refuse such a promising offer, believing that this step would bring him closer to the beginning of his professional career and to his idol - Arnold Schwarzenegger

According to the athlete’s recollections, this event became much more important to him than the failed victory at the Championship. Soon Albert makes an offer to Münzer to head a sports center in Munich, where he could work part-time as a coach. The bodybuilder could not refuse such a promising offer, believing that this step would bring him closer to the beginning of his professional career and to his idol, Arnold Schwarzenegger.

From this point on, the successful bodybuilder becomes part of the system, exhausting himself with two-hour training sessions over six days a week. He scrupulously begins to work on the quality of his body and monitors his diet.

Francois Gay, Andreas Munzer, Wayne Grady. World Games 1989

In 1989, the bodybuilder finally received the coveted International Federation of BodyBuilding professional card, having won the World Games. But the career of a professional turned out to be not so easy; the competition and thirst for victory were too high. Day after day, Münzer exhausts himself with long hours of training and cruel diets, plus the use of diuretics.

A bodybuilder achieves an impossible result, the body fat level is no more than 4%, a result that no bodybuilder could achieve. Due to the incredible dryness and definition of his body, Andreas is given the nickname “The Man Without Skin”. In the same year, the bodybuilder tries his hand at Mr. Olympia, but ends up in thirteenth position.

Mehmet Yildirim, Andreas Munzer

In 1990, he took bronze at the German Grand Prix and Arnold Classic tournaments; the Olympia podium again defied him and he took ninth place.

In 1993, he again tried himself at Mr. Olympia and repeated the result of 1990, taking ninth position, but took second place in the Night of Champions competition.

In 1994, he also could not boast of performance - fifth places in the Arnold Classic and Grand Prix Germany tournaments, eighth place in the Grand Prix of England and ninth place in the Olympia.

The years 95-96 again did not bring the bodybuilder cherished victories; he was among the top five bodybuilders at the Arnold Classic 95, taking fourth place, and in San Jose Pro 96, San Francisco Pro 96 he only made it into the top ten .

Workout

According to the athlete, only concentration on one group ensures results. The six-day classes were structured according to the following scheme:

1. Monday: in 3 approaches in the morning, afternoon and evening I pumped up the chest, back, and abs.
2. On Tuesday, according to the plan - cardio, biceps, deltoids, calves.
3. Wednesday – legs and triceps.
4. From Thursday to Saturday I repeated everything in a circle.

Basic postulates:

• Münzer trained with moderate weights .
• The main thing is to use your last strength to perform a couple of extra repetitions until muscle failure . Worked with small groups of up to 16 accounts.
• The number of repetitions for large muscles reached 24-28.

How to cope with the death of your favorite athlete?

In connection with the death of a beloved athlete, we bring to your attention a short checklist on how to cope morally and psychologically with this sad news.

1. You shouldn’t make an athlete you root for and worry about into an idol that you are ready to worship and glorify (a psychological mistake that hooks you, you become literally dependent, obsessed with the athlete, it gets to the point where your mood becomes so just like a celebrity, he is sad - you are sad, he feels good - and you feel good)
2. Switch your thinking to a different way, find yourself a hobby, watch a movie, listen to music, do work
3. Treat the death of a person as a process that will overtake each of us, some earlier, some later
4. Believe in fate, and in the correctness of the judgment, which says that death overtakes a person when it is best for the person himself, his soul (associated with the concept of religion, faith in God)
5. Always remain sane and clear in your memory (do not drink alcohol, nicotine or drugs)

How to cope with the death of an athlete?

These five points are extremely important for each of us to learn to firmly cope with thoughts of the death of a particular athlete.

Eternal memory, they will forever remain in our hearts.

Tragedy

The athlete did not attach any importance to poor health. In March 1996, acute pain began in the stomach and bleeding began . At the age of 31, he died from hemorrhoidal pathology in the abdominal cavity. The surgeon diagnosed drug-induced cirrhosis , the pathologist found almost 200 different hormones in the blood. The idol sent a wreath to the funeral. But Andreas made plans - he wanted to get the championship title and marry a bodybuilder named Elizabeth.

There is strength - no need for intelligence

It’s very disappointing to hear when bodybuilders are called stupid animals with the outlook of a Neanderthal man, whose whole life fits into the “eat-train-sleep” scheme. I agree, there are individual “specimens” that have not gone too far in their development from ruminants, and it is a pity that it is by them that ordinary people judge the “Kachkovo brethren” as a whole. I assure you that among us there are a lot of truly smart, educated, I would even say intelligent, people. Do you need examples? Please. If you start from the heights of the athletic Olympus, then the name of the same Schwarzenegger immediately appears on the tongue. In his life, the “Austrian Oak” not only managed to win seven Mr. Olympia titles, but also received an economics education, became an avid art collector, worked as a presidential adviser on physical education and sports, and made a career in Hollywood. What about Western celebrities! Many of our Russian athletes - Stas Bobin, Yuri Melnikov, Yuri Panov, and many others - are very erudite, comprehensively developed people, not at all fixated on bodybuilding alone. Communicate with them is a pleasure. And in general, truly strong athletes are real experts in such sciences as anatomy, physiology, chemistry, pharmacology, and nutrition. By the way, it has been noticed that when an athlete is too “stuck” in sports, he, as a rule, does not become a big champion.

Diet and training from Münzeredit edit code

Andreas Münzer: “Since 1987, even in the off-season, I train twice a day, 6 times a week. Here is my double split diagram:

Example of a set diagram (approaches per muscle group)edit | edit code

Large muscle groups

- chest, back, legs:

• Off-season - 20 sets.
• Pre-competition period - 24-28 sets.

Small muscle groups

- biceps, triceps, deltoids, calves:

• Off-season -16 sets.
• The pre-competition period is 20-24 sets.

I prefer to work on one muscle group during training - this allows me to concentrate on it 100 percent

This is impossible if attention has to be divided into several muscle groups. It’s better for me to work on one group in the morning, and in the evening I’ll come back to the gym and work on another with the same concentration.

Becoming a serious bodybuilder is difficult. Not everyone has time for two workouts a day, six times a week. But don’t be upset: experience shows that you can achieve good results with one workout a day, 4-5 times a week.

The most important thing in bodybuilding is consistency in training. Nothing can replace the regularity of exercise, since only regular exercise transfers the entire physiology of the body to maximum anabolism mode

At the same time, it doesn’t matter at all whether you can bench press 150-180 kg. The whole point is to pump up the muscle efficiently, without giving any concessions

The training weight may be relatively small, but to the last repetition you must add 2-3 repetitions through force, stepping behind the so-called. "refusal". If you are capable of this, you are simply doomed to progress.

But you need to eat at least 5 times a day - this is fundamentally important. The body must replenish nutrients, especially proteins

For me, the ideal ratio is 7 g of protein per day per 1 kg of body weight. Protein sources include egg whites, chicken and turkey breasts, low-fat cheese and protein powders. Carbohydrates include potatoes, rice, oatmeal and some types of vegetables. I eat little fruit and no sugar at all. I drink 8-10 liters of water a day. I add magnesium to the water to ensure a balance of minerals. As supplements, I prefer multiminerals and multivitamins with amino acids. In addition, I additionally take vitamin A and zinc.”

Deep muscle division from Münzeredit | edit code

Andreas Münzer: “It is very important to work with a weight that allows you to do only 8 full repetitions. Then, with the help of a partner, do 2-3 more repetitions and bring their total number to 10-11

The main thing is for the muscles to work with maximum tension.”

Relief quality from Münzeredit | edit code

Andreas Münzer: “My relief is not a natural gift, as many people think. This is the result of strict diets and hard training. At first, just like others, I made “quality,” as they say, for show. I started to “dry” a couple of months before the next tournament. But then I tried to stay in shape, first for a month, then for two, then I learned to be at the peak of my relief all year round. By the way, many of my friends tried my system and got the same result.

Many people believe that squats, bench presses and leg presses are exercises only for mass, and, say, bench presses are only for detail. I disagree. Each exercise in itself does not mean anything. It all depends on HOW you do it.”

Bodybuilding philosophy from Münzeredit | edit code

Andreas Münzer: “I just can’t agree with what’s happening in professional bodybuilding today. For some reason, the judges took maximum muscle mass as the starting point. In my opinion, this is pushing our entire sport down the wrong path. Harmony, symmetry, muscle quality and artistry are all forgotten. Quantity has prevailed over quality. But is overall muscle mass really that important? Doesn't it make a bodybuilder an anti-athlete - heavy and clumsy? Personally, I have never prioritized my body weight. The main thing for me has always been perfection of proportions. In this sense, I was my own judge. I consciously refused to blindly follow newfangled market trends. I had my own ideal, which I sought to embody in my muscles.”

Most bodybuilders are impotent

This myth is to a certain extent related to the previous one, since when you hear the word “steroids” the word “impotence” almost immediately comes to mind. I would like to note that, although prolonged abuse of steroids actually reduces the body’s production of its own testosterone, this process is reversible in almost 100% of cases, and some time after stopping the drugs, the endocrine system returns to normal. As for those practitioners who do not use any steroids, and they are the absolute majority, their sexual capabilities are sometimes even higher than those of the average man! This is due, for example, to the fact that bodybuilders have a better developed circulatory system, which has a beneficial effect on potency. In addition, training with “iron” spurs the body’s production of its own testosterone! Of course, it happens that having pumped up this or that muscle group, a guy barely crawls home and has no time for sex, but you must admit, this happens after any hard work.

Bodybuilding makes women more masculine

If men often complain that they can’t gain the coveted “mass,” then lovely ladies for some reason are afraid like fire to “get healthy.” The funny thing is that the female body is much less predisposed to building muscle, since it produces an insignificant amount of testosterone, compared to the male, - the hormone responsible for male development, including muscle growth. So, dear girls and women, you still won’t be able to outdo men in this regard. But making your figure fit, slim, trimming a little in some places, and building up a little in others is quite possible. And don’t be confused by the photographs of bodybuilding champions - they were taken when the athletes, with the help of a special diet and training, reduced the fat layer to a minimum and removed water from under the skin. I assure you that this is done only to win competitions - these are the laws of the genre. For most of the year, these beautiful women look feminine and attractive, if only a little big. After reading this article, carefully weigh the pros and cons and draw your own conclusions. Bodybuilding is an integral attribute of body culture, without which a harmoniously developed personality is unthinkable, and not at all an invention of the devil, as someone would like to imagine. And if now you are not yet mature enough to pick up dumbbells, I would like to believe that now the army of supporters of a healthy lifestyle has become a little larger.