Dorian Yates shared a post on Nov. 15 and talked about the influential Mike Mentzer had on him.
Mike Mentzer remains one of the most influential figures in bodybuilding decades after his career on stage. Despite never winning the Mr. Olympia title, Mentzer is known as one of the greatest competitors from the Golden Era of bodybuilding and many of his methods are still used today. Mentzer’s birthday passed on Nov. 15 and bodybuilding legend Dorian Yates shared a post in tribute.
Famed for his feud with Arnold Schwarzenegger at the 1980 Mr. Olympiacontest, Mike Mentzer was considered to be one of the best bodybuilders of the golden era. It was even argued that Mentzer should have won the 1980 Olympia. Apart from being a top-level competitive bodybuilder, Mentzer was a straight-A student in school. As a pre-med student at the University of Maryland, Mentzer spent his time away from the gym studying genetics, physical and organic chemistry.
| Full Name: Mike Mentzer (Golden Era Bodybuilder) | ||
| Weight | Height | Date Of Birth |
| 225-235 lbs | 5’8″ | 15/11/1951 |
| Division | Era | Nationality |
| Men’s Open | 1970’s, ’80s | American |
Mentzer passed away at 49 years old but made a hug impact on the bodybuilding world at a young age. This includes working with Yates during the heights of his career. Yates is a six-time Olympia champion that created one of the all-time great physiques.
Dorian Yates Shares Tribute To Mike Mentzer
Dorian Yates took to Instagram on Nov. 15 to share memories about his relationship with Mike Mentzer. Yates explains how he first encountered Mentzer when he was a writer for Weider Magazine.
“Mike was the most influential for me. The stuff I read from him resonated and although I wasn’t into philosophy back then, I would love to have conversations with him now as I’ve matured mentally, physically and philosophically.”
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Yates continued on to explain how he met Mentzer and began training with him at Gold’s Gym:
“I got to meet him in the flesh in ‘91 where we had a conversation. And over the next 2 years I got to train with him in Golds Gym. We trained 5-6 times in total and it was Mike who believed I would benefit from cutting back to just 1 working set.
He wasn’t my coach just to be clear, we didn’t talk nutrition or PEDs as I thought I was confident enough in that so we only talked training mainly.”
Dorian Yates resonated with Mentzer and his methods because they pushed him to both mental and physical limits. Yates believed in this type of training and it led to a successful career in bodybuilding.
It is clear that the positive effect that Mentzer had on Yates will continue on for years to come. This is the same for the sport of bodybuilding as a whole.
“Like I said he had a big influence on me even though it was originally just through words and pictures, he probably didn’t know just how much he was influencing people worldwide but hopefully I can pass that on.
I think that’s the main thing, regardless of trophies and material possessions, it’s about what impact you had on people and to hopefully do something positive.”
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