Author's Note: A publisher assigned and paid me to write the following article for a new magazine that was going on the market. However, the concept of the magazine changed; consequently, this article was never published. But through the magic of the Internet, my article is now available for all bodybuilding and Ric Drasin fans to read.

"I think bodybuilding for women is great! Who doesn't appreciate a good, firm body? I don't like to see women flabby and out of shape and all they're thinking about is having their hair done and slapping on a pile of makeup. A woman who takes care of herself with weight training develops a healthy pride rather than the vanity which preoccupation with cosmetics and clothes creates. Just because all women don't have figures like Bo Derek doesn't mean they can't have firm, well-toned bodies."

That's Ric Drasin speaking, the 36-year-old actor whose dazzling good looks are currently hidden behind a mask for his role as the Demi-Hulk on television's The Incredible Hulk. Ric is delighted to see more and more women getting into weight training, both as competitive bodybuilders and as those simply interested in optimum physical fitness.

"Weight training is the fastest, most efficient method to tone every muscle group directly," says Ric. "Things like running and tennis are fine for endurance, but for shape and muscle tone, nothing compares to weight training because you can isolate the muscle groups and work extra hard on problem areas."

Fitness is a way of life for the former competitive bodybuilder. "I started working out in 1960, but it wasn't until I moved to the Los Angeles area in 1969 and began training at Bill Pearl's gym that I really started getting in shape. At Pearl's I worked out with guys who were training very hard, who knew more about it, and I started competing throughout California. Although I was coming in first or second in all the physique contests I entered, I switched to professional wrestling. At that time it was one of the very limited choices available as a way to turn muscles into a money-making profession."

During his ten years as a professional wrestler, the six-foot actor dropped 30 pounds to enhance his acting career, but he is still very muscular at his present weight of 195. "I work out in the gym four times a week, and I also run four times a week. My workouts take an hour and a half exactly, so I still have time to go about my business."

Before a woman joins a gym, Ric suggests that she be sure it has a Universal machine, free weights-dumbbells and barbells-, and a pulley machine. "That way she will get a variety of everything. Even Nautilus equipment alone would be good choice." He feels that such extras as pools, Jacuzzis, steam rooms, and saunas are not really necessary if your aim is weight training. "But I'll admit that Jacuzzis soothe sore muscles if you're sometimes inclined to overdo your workouts, and steam rooms are great if you have sinus problems."

Ric also uses the gym to lessen the occasional pain from an old back injury. "I have some gravity inversion boots which allow me to hang upside down from the chinning bar. The stretching has been very beneficial for my spine!"

"Most gyms and spas, with the exception of heavy duty gyms where advanced bodybuilders train, offer some type of instruction, which is essential for the woman who has no prior knowledge of weight training. But even then she should use common sense because some gyms hire people off the street, and these untrained people will give everybody the same routine, regardless of their individual needs. One woman I know told an instructor that she was under doctor's orders not to do a specific weight exercise, and the instructor foolishly said, 'But everybody can do that simple exercise!' Well, everybody can't do every exercise, so if something really hurts, don't do it!"

For men and women who want to train together, coed gyms are the logical choice. Ric cautions women to be aware that if they choose a hardcore gym where male competitive bodybuilders train, a few of the guys might not want them around. "The men want to swear, spit, train hard, and drop weights. But if women accept that, then there's no problem. The men don't want to feel inhibited for what they're doing or saying. That could hurt their training a little."

"But women in the gym can be an advantage," Ric adds. "When there is a woman in the gym, men are a little more aware of how they're training and subconsciously it makes them want to train harder. No man wants to look bad in the eyes of a woman, right? And men, because most of them have been training longer than women, know all the little ins and outs of exercises that can help women get the most from their workouts. Women have to remember, though, that if they aren't serious about it, it won't work. If they're lazy, would rather eat French fries, smoke cigarettes, and go out to a disco night after night, it just won't work!"

"Joe Weider has done a tremendous job of promoting women's bodybuilding through Muscle and Fitness. The layout of the magazine is dynamite, showing all the poses and the people involved, and it's done in good taste." Because women's competitive bodybuilding is so new and different, it's getting a lot of media attention, and Ric thinks that Lisa Lyon has helped tremendously in giving bodybuilding a positive image. "Her natural good looks and ability to present herself effectively have done a lot to advance bodybuilding in the eyes of the public," notes Ric.

"People might think bodybuilding would make a woman very self-centered, but I think women are more levelheaded about the whole thing than men. Men are always going for size and shape, and the arms have to have veins here and there, then they have to have a shirt that is going to show off their arms and chest to the best advantage, and not wear socks that are too high or too low, or pants that are too tight or too loose. I mean, the wardrobe has got to fit! If it doesn't fit just right, it goes out in the trash!"

"My only fear about women's competitive bodybuilding is that someday the judges may want to see something outrageous, maybe a woman built like Arnold Schwarzenegger. A nice shapely body with everything in the right spot, with shape, firmness, proportion, and some definition is what I think women's bodybuilding should be all about. Poses should remain graceful and feminine. I don't like to see a woman pose like a man and try to show her biceps."

It was bodybuilding that got Ric into show business, quite by accident. "I was walking along the sand at Muscle Beach one day about ten years ago, and some people came up to me and said, 'We need somebody just like you to lift a car for a Chevrolet commercial.' And I said, 'Fine! Where do I go?'" Since then, Ric's handsome face has decorated numerous billboards and magazine ads, and he has appeared on several TV variety shows and has had roles in such divergent movies as Ben and Mae West's Sextette.

"When I heard that the producers of The Incredible Hulk were casting the role of the Demi-Hulk, a new character who is a cross between Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno, I went in for an interview. And they had already interviewed quite a few people. They liked the fact that with the makeup I really looked the part, so they said, 'He's our man!' I knew that all along. I just had to convince them!"

"I don't like the long, boring hours of just sitting around on the set, but I get a real sense of satisfaction when they call me to do something and I can do it well. And I perform my own stunts. I learned to fall without getting hurt when I was wrestling and, besides, I've always wanted to do stunt work."

As busy as Ric is with his role as the Demi-Hulk, he also owns and manages a highly successful T-shirt printing company, Expressions. He is currently designing a line of T-shirts that promote women's bodybuilding. "Acting and working out aren't everything," Ric says philosophically. "Neither is making a lot of money. There's more to life than that. You've got to have a little bit of everything in life to be well-rounded. You can't have just one certain thing. I like security, and money provides a certain amount of security, but I don't need every little toy that comes along. You have to have a good sense of yourself, you have to have love, and you have to be able to work and not mind working. All those things put together with an open mind make a person well-rounded."