Why are the Lessons From the "First Fitness Influencer" So Important Now?

How can the first fitness influencer in history help us anticipate the future of influencer marketing? What’s happening today is not new, with most being remixed strategies and methods from years, decades, and even sometimes centuries past. Recently, I was reading an Economist article that made me ponder the trend of fitness influencers. If asked when did fitness influencers start, you might say person XYZ from Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, or Web 1.0 Internet forums or blogs. If you’re a bit older you might say Arnold Schwarzenegger, but what if I told you the “first fitness influencer” came to relevance in the late 1890s. For my bodybuilding fans, you will recognize the name as he’s immortalized with being the trophy given to the annual Mr. Olympia. Though other Victorian strongmen faded from memory, Eugen Sandow remains a household name in the fitness industry. Why are these lessons from Eugen Sandow so important now?