The Menace Podcast: Recent Episodes
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Dennis James is a former pro bodybuilder and eight-time Mr. Olympia competitor who has built a new career as a coach and outspoken pundit in the IFBB Pro League. Here, DJ invites guests from all divisions and status within the bodybuilding world to talk shop and get the inside scoop.
Every person that has been backstage or onstage at a bodybuilding show will tell that competitive spirits can get high. While many athletes consider making it to the posedown a win in itself, the greatest in the sport are there for one reason; to win.
One shining example of this is Bryan Jones in the Classic Physique division. As he told Dennis James on this week’s episode of “The Menace Podcast”, Jones isn’t only showing up to have a good time. That even applied at the 2020 Olympia, his first year on that stage.
Andrea Shaw is best known in the sport of bodybuilding as the reigning Ms. Olympia. Shaw became the champion after the return of the legendary contest at the 2020 Olympia in Orlando, Florida. Her physique is considered the standard in the Women’s Bodybuilding division, and she has plans on retaining that position in the future as well.
Shaw shared a retrospective of her career as the featured guest on this week’s episode of “The Menace Podcast” with bodybuilding legend Dennis James. She told James that after learning how to train from her mother, her competitive career actually started in the Figure division. She placed third in her first and second shows. She then decided to take a break because of something she observed when competing.
“I was the freaking mass monster onstage with these Figure girls. My legs, it was apparent looking at the photos. I was definitely starving. Doing cardio twice a day, working out once a day, so I was training three times a day, and I was still getting onstage at 140 (pounds), and these girls are like 120, you know, 110.”
After her extended time away from the stage, the Women’s Physique division was born. Shaw would turn pro after six amateur shows. However, it didn’t take long for her to figure out that it wasn’t the division for her either. The size of her quads was what made her next decision for her.
“I said ‘I’m not going to fight my body anymore.’ So I just told Lenda (Murray), ‘Yeah, I’ve been down this road before. So what do you think, what you got in mind?’ And she was like, ‘you know, the very next show, female bodybuilding, just jump in.’”
With the guidance of Murray and Alina Popa, Shaw made the switch and the rest is history. She went on to win the 2020 Rising Phoenix World Championship, and followed that up with the historic Ms. Olympia win ten days later. Now, she embraces the role as the ambassador of her division, and she wants to follow in Murray’s footsteps, who she called her “inspiration”.
“She has been a source for us when we needed it, and that’s what I hope to be for more young ladies or women who want to ask questions. That’s why I tell them ‘you got questions? Inbox me, I’ll answer them. You may not like some of the answers, but that’s okay. Sometimes you gotta grow.”
Shaw and James talk about her childhood, the business of bodybuilding, her love for apple pie, and a lot more. Catch the episode in its entirety over at the Muscle & Fitness YouTube channel.
0:57 – Gymnastics and Cheerleading
2:45 Taught to Train by her Mom
3:55 – Thoughts About Competing and College
8:11 – Break from Competing
11:38 – Women’s Physique
13:41 – Turning Pro
16:35 – Decision to Switch to Women’s Bodybuilding
18:00 – Strategy for 2020
18:50 – Winning the Rising Phoenix/Working with Her Coach
21:17 – Mentors
23:46 –Iris Kyle and the Olympia
28:33 –2021 Rising Phoenix/Ambassador for the Sport
30:38 – Inspiration
32:15 – Life as a Female Bodybuilder
36:30 – Choosing Clothes/Interacting with People
39:00 – What Does She Have to do to Repeat?
40:45 – Biggest Competition and Comradery
43:00 – Apple Pie
44:52 – Other Hobbies
NY Pro winner Nick Walker sat down with Dennis James on this week’s episode of “The Menace Podcast” to discuss his background, thoughts on his victory, and more, including an experience in childhood that could’ve taken his life in a completely different direction.
Dana Linn Bailey was the guest on this week’s episode of “The Menace Podcast”, and host Dennis James wasted no time in asking about Bailey’s life and career. She revealed that her athletic background goes back way before her days in bodybuilding
1:55 – DLB Before Bodybuilding
5:13 – High School and College
7:50 – Meeting Rob Bailey
10:07 – Catching the Bodybuilding Bug
15:00 – Her First Competition
18:44 – Turning Pro and Gaining Traction
25:25 – Happy Lifter and Her Impact on Others
27:57 – Dana and Rob’s Grind
32:02 – Competing, Winning, and Second Place
38:10 – Why She Walked Away
45:10 – Family Plans and Moving to Montana
55:40 – Bailey’s Businesses
This week’s episode of “The Menace Podcast” featured a guest that host Dennis James called “the breakthrough star of last year’s Olympia.” 2020 New York Pro champion Iain Valliere joined DJ, who placed 7th on the biggest stage of 2020 in Orlando, Florida. Their conversation shed a lot of light on the Canadian superstar, including a glimpse of his athletic background before he got into bodybuilding.
When Dexter Jackson accepted his ninth-place finish at the 2020 Olympia, it was the conclusion of a 22-year bodybuilding career that many consider one of the greatest ever. The 2008 Mr. Olympia, five-time Arnold Classic winner, and all-time record holder for pro wins (29), joined Dennis James for this week’s episode of “The Menace Podcast.”
Natalia Coelho could be considered much more than one of the most popular athletes in the Women’s Physique division. The Brazilian’s popularity could rank up among the best in the entire IFBB Pro League. The two-time Arnold winner and Olympia runner-up joined Dennis James on this week’s episode of “The Menace Podcast.”
Very few modern athletes had reached the heights of popularity that Sadik Hadzovic had. Whether he was competing onstage, training in the gym, or posting on social media, everything he does is watched by many of his loyal fans and supporters. The former Arnold Classic Men’s Physique winner was the featured guest on this week’s episode of “The Menace Podcast.” Host Dennis James spoke to the New Yorker by way of Yugoslavia about fatherhood, his family roots, and a lot about his career.
The May 2nd episode of “The Menace Podcast” was a first for host Dennis James. He had talked to featured guest Dennis Wolf many times, but James said this will be the first time that he had a full conversation with the 2014 Arnold Classic Champion in English. Wolf and James both grew up in Germany, so their conversations had always been in that language. Another language they both know is the language of bodybuilding, and the old friends talked plenty about that.
The fourth episode of “The Menace Podcast” had a fitting guest — four-time Men’s Physique Olympia Champion Jeremy Buendia, who was the face of his division for several years.
Episode number three of “The Menace” Podcast was a special one for the fans as well as the hose. Dennis James’ guest was none other than four-time Arnold Classic Champion Flex Wheeler. Recognized as one of the greatest bodybuilders of all-time, the former Mr. Olympia runner-up dove into several discussions with the host about his career and life.
14:03 – His Lack of Self-Confidence
20:50 – His Approach to the 1998 Mr. Olympia
33:14- His Kidney Disease Diagnosis
1:10:10 – His Personal Ambition to Inspire People
2:08:37 – How His Mindset is Now After His Leg Amputation
The Menace Podcast - Episode 2
Host Dennis James and six-time Mr. Olympia winner Dorian Yates discuss …
The Limelight That Comes with Being Mr. Olympia - 2:01
Dorian’s First Contest Experience – 4:10
Who did Yates Look Up To? – 10:00
The Importance of Bodybuilding Magazines – 17:16
Filming His “Blood and Guts” Training Video – 34:00
Dennis James and Big Ramy talk at length about Ramy’s 2020 Mr. Olympia win and who the reigning champ sees as his top challenger in 2021. In addition, James presses Ramy on why he nearly quit professional bodybuilding prior to winning the Sandow at least year’s O.