This article was extracted from¬† one of the Bodybuilding magazines back in 1976 just around the time I first started training at Tony’s gym. I remember being inspired by all the guys mentioned in the article. I now realize just how fortunate I was to have fallen into such a bee hive of great athletes. I will never forget those days at Future Man Gym and the tutelage Tony gave to some dumb kid from down the road.

Tom

Most writers, when writing about an individual tend to exercise their poetic license in attempting to make the subject appear larger than life; thereby giving the person an almost demigod aura about him. In this sense, this article will be unique, for no literary liberties need be taken nor will be taken in describing Tony Pandolfo.

Tony who? Tony Pandolfo, a man known throughout bodybuilding circles by only the most avid and dedicated bombers and blitzers.
Tony is the 35-year-old manager of Future Man Health Spa in Amityville, New York. He has taken a dull, ordinary, off the beaten path gym and rapidly transformed it into the East Coast mecca of bodybuilding. Steve Michalik, Joe Nazarro and Tony’s life-long friend, Dennis Tinerino (when in town), are only a select few of today’s top stars who frequent Ton’s torture chamber. On any given day, a number of up-and-coming young stars can be seen training under Tony’s tutelage right alongside the champs.

The success of Future Man Gym can be directly traced to the personality and philosophy of Tony. He is a quiet, intelligent, soft-spoken person with a warm and almost disarming personality who unselfishly gives out his training expertise “to all who are truly desirous of learning about perfecting their bodies.” When Tony speaks of physical perfection, he means it literally.

He emphasizes hard, rapid-pace workouts, proper nutrition and the avoidance of steroid catalysts which many athletes today rely on to help them achieve the physical appearance they anxiously seek.”Bodybuilders today,” says Tony, “have simply forgotten their priorities. Ideally inherent, is to strive for a massive symmetrical physique . If bodybuilders seek short-cuts to a prize-winning physique through the utilization of drugs and other unnatural stimulants, they are doing two things. First, they are ruining their health for the sake of a good appearance and secondly, they are diminishing the sport of bodybuilding in the eyes of spectators who are beginning to refer to bodybuilders as “Hypodermic Athletes, “With the current widespread notoriety of many top stars relying on drugs to bolster their training, they are setting back bodybuilders’ development over 50 years to the days when bodybuilders were merely thought of as narcissists, and muscle-bound oafs. Tony emphasizes that we have worked hard and long exploding those myths and stereotypes to jeopardize its growth now through the continued use of drugs.

Turning his attention to training, Tony is quick to point out that although it is imperative to employ a well-planned routine, there actually is no secret workout which will perform miracles; rather he believes that any well-organized program done in good form, utilizing 100% effort and that produces a sweat, is the key to success. He cautions all iron pushers, both veterans and neophytes “not to be afraid to experiment with different exercises and routines.” What produces results for one individual may not work for another and vice-versa. Furthermore, citing his own experience, Tony notes that if you vary your routine and training partners, your bodybuilding storehouse of knowledge will vastly increase.

Always modest, Tony credits his ability to pump iron no matter how badly he feels, to gym-mate Joe Nazarro, his non-stop, dynamo-like workouts to his current training partner, John Girolamo; and the realization of the significance of using heavy weights to his good friend, Don Modzelewski. As the pictures on these pages will attest, Tony has learned his lesson well at 35 years young, Tony is only now starting to reach his maximum potential. His list of finishing’s in 1975 — 2nd place, Mr. Colonial America height class winner, Mr. East Coast; overall winner, Senior Metropolitans; overall winner, Passaic, Clifton Seniors, top-ten, Jr. Mr. America and overall winner, Mr. Apollo bear out the fact that amazing Tony is “no slouch in a pouch” and don’t doubt for one minute that Tony is without power…he has totaled in excess of 1350 in various powerlifting meets in the 165-pound class. Moreover, Tony has taken it upon himself to act as a goodwill ambassador to the sport he devotes his life to. It is not uncommon for Tony to speak at all types of charitable functions and extol the virtues of weight training. His well-organized presentation and smooth delivery have ignited a training spark in many people. In fact; I dare say Tony has converted more people to bodybuilding than the Rev. Billy Graham to religion.

However, Tony is not perfect, I am afraid that in order to dispel the rumor that he is, I will have to reveal one of Tony’s major fetishes,…neatness. Heaven forbid any weight trainer should fail to replace his dumbbells, leave sweaty clothes in a locker or leave fruit juice cans about the gym. Suddenly, upon seeing disorder, Tony-the-mild becomes Tony-the-tyrant. Hell hath no fury as Tony when people don’t put back their weights. People often jokingly refer to Tony as their “surrogate mother”, after all, he insists they be neat about the gym, eat properly and stand up straight. However, everyone realizes that what Tony does is in their own true best interests. They realize that Tony actually worries about each of “his boys.”

All of Tony’s antics, his undying devotion to his sport, family, and friends, have made the Future Man Gym “the place to train” and have earned Tony the most cherished value in the work — “Respect.” I predict that in the near future, Tony will gain the national recognition he so richly deserves.

Side Note:  My dear friend and Mentor Tony Pandolfo Passed away just weeks after posting this article.  He was a great man РRIP  Tony