Jay Cutler: Honoring an Icon

Jay Cutler’s accomplishments on the stage are only a small fraction of what makes him a living legend and one of bodybuilding’s greatest ambassadors.

By Steve Blechman

The word “icon” is often thrown out casually these days, but the few who truly embody that label have earned it. Jay Cutler is most definitely an icon in the bodybuilding industry. His competitive record speaks for itself with four Mr. Olympia titles and three consecutive wins at the Arnold Classic from 2002 to 2004. He also remains the only man to have ever lost his Mr. Olympia title and get it back. But Jay Cutler’s accomplishments on the stage are only a small fraction of what makes him a living legend and one of bodybuilding’s greatest ambassadors, and we are honored to feature this timeless champion on the cover of this month’s Muscular Development.

As Jay points out, most of his success has come after the stage. Jay has gone on to own his own supplement and apparel companies and branched off into NPC contest promotion. He is also a force on social media, with 4.2 million followers on Instagram, well over 6 million on Facebook, and 548,000 subscribers to his YouTube channel, Jay Cutler TV. “Everything I have I owe to bodybuilding, so you can be sure I will always be deeply involved in the industry,” Jay tells MD’s Ron Harris.

Jay discusses a wide variety of topics ranging from his past PED use, why he sat out the 2002 Mr. Olympia, and his opinions on the current states of both Classic Physique and Open bodybuilding in “Jay Cutler: Reflections of an Icon.”

James “Flex” Lewis, known as “The Welsh Dragon,” is another iconic bodybuilder that MD is honoring this month. Flex was a phenom who burst on to the pro bodybuilding scene 14 years ago in a new division called 202, which eventually became the 212. Flex dominated the Olympia stage from 2012 until walking away with seven consecutive titles in 2018, with plans to compete in the Open ranks to vie for the Mr. Olympia title. Flex later shocked the bodybuilding world when he announced he was retiring and would not be pursuing the Mr. Olympia title. Ron Harris talks to Flex about his difficult decision and the current state of the 212 division in “Flex Lewis:The Greatest 212 Pro of All Time.”

All bodybuilders know the value of healthy testosterone levels, but what you might not realize is that testosterone levels are dropping as you read this. There’s a mysterious generational decline going on. Men of the 1980s had higher average T levels than the men of the ‘90s, and the men of the new century have on average the least T of all.  A 2017 study found that average sperm counts in Western countries had nosedived by 59% between 1973 and 2011, making low T and plummeting sperm counts a major public health issue. Continuing lower testosterone levels, and associated declining sperm health, if unchecked, may have detrimental effects on the long-term survival of our species. Rick Collins examines the situation in “The Testosterone Crisis! 5 Reasons It's Happening and 5 Ways to Fight It.”      

Training the chest, shoulders and arms isn’t that tough – at least not compared to heavy, demanding exercises for the back like deadlifts, weighted chins and barbell rows. That’s why so many guys have very decent arms, chest and shoulders, but their back development lags by comparison. If you ignore your back, you will not only be missing out on a potentially enormous amount of sheer muscle mass (as the back is the largest muscle group of the upper body), but you will also be condemning yourself to having an underdeveloped upper body. If you want to have a complete upper body that looks thick and powerful from all angles, MD has the workouts and exercises to get the job done in “Ultimate Back in 8 Weeks! Your Keys to Building It Thick and Wide.”    

The supplement industry is known to be exceedingly competitive and often ruthless. It’s one of the most challenging businesses to succeed in, which is why companies come and go all the time. For one to stay on top of the market for more than a year or two is atypical, which is why it’s astonishing that MHP has been on the forefront of the sports supplement industry for as long as it has. MHP recently celebrated its 25-year anniversary, and Ron Harris sat down with owner and CEO Gerard Dente to learn how he has stayed on top of his game for a quarter century in “MHP Strong!Gerard Dente Celebrates 25 Years of MHP.”     

Muscular Development is your number one source for building muscle, and for the latest research and best science to enable you to train smart and effectively. Our team of physicians, industry experts and research scientists has these reports on improving performance this month:

“GH Decreases Abdominal Fat and Increases Lean Mass”Fat Attack

“mTOR: Beyond Leucine?” Nutrition Performance

“The Facts on Agmatine Sulfate: A Scientific Review” Supplement Performance

“Carve Unreal Quad Separation With Barbell Lunges” Muscle Growth Update

“The Pharmacology of Anabolic Steroids” Testosterone

“Rest Periods Between Sets to Increase 1RM Squat” Bodybuilding Science

The rest of the book is packed to the binder as usual – making MD your one-stop, most authoritative source for optimizing muscular development with the latest cutting-edge research on training, nutrition, fat loss, performance-enhancing drugs, muscle growth and bodybuilding science – and exclusive information from the industry experts, insiders and bodybuilding legends who make it all happen. See you next month!

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