What is The Barbell?
The Barbell is a bodybuilding, strength and fitness site published and edited by Greg Merritt, who wrote for Flex and Muscle & Fitness from 1998 to 2018, the last fifteen years as senior writer. It has a small named staff — writers Robert Rafton and Jennifer Normand, chief photographer Kevin Horton, videographer Joel Barham — and no corporate owner.[1]
What does it cover?
“Bodybuilding, strength, and fitness news, advice, and culture”: contest news and results, athlete profiles, training and nutrition, research summaries and the history of the sport. Merritt has written more than 200 of its pieces himself.[1] [2]
What is its reach and standing?
No audience figure, audit or award is published. What the site does state is its editorial line: “We do not accept guest posts, sponsored posts, link requests, or any similar opportunities” — rare in a field where most outlets are supplement-funded — and no advertising or affiliate disclosures appear on its pages.[1] [3]
Since when?
The outlet's own site does not state a founding date. The oldest dated piece visible in its archive is Merritt’s obituary of Peter McGough, 31 December 2020.[2]
Why does it matter in bodybuilding?
Because bodybuilding’s trade press is almost entirely owned by supplement companies or federations, and a profile here is written by a journalist with twenty years at the sport’s leading magazines and no commercial line to the athlete. It is small, but it is the closest the sport has to an independent journal.[1]
References
- The Barbell — About. Accessed September 2026.
- The Barbell — author archive (Greg Merritt). Accessed September 2026.
- The Barbell — home. Accessed September 2026.