The post Arnold Schwarzenegger shared on Instagram after Charles Gaines's passing reads more like an eulogy than a tribute. Gaines, the author of the 1974 book Pumping Iron, which reshaped Schwarzenegger's career, died at the age of 84.

Gaines died July 21, according to the Associated Press, which reported that his daughter Greta confirmed the death on Tuesday. The cause has not been made public.

"There was no adventure too big for Charles Gaines. He climbed mountains, trekked across ice, fished, and hunted on almost every continent, writing about every adventure in a way that captured people’s hearts and minds," wrote Schwarzenegger.

In the post, Schwarzenegger sounded deeply emotional and wrote something impactful that gives us more than an author's picture to remember Gaines by. He credited him as one of the huge reasons behind his success.

Schwarzenegger ended the post with exactly how he felt about Gaines, on a friendly and positive note. "No, he isn’t gone. He’s just off on his next adventure."

Charles Gaines: The Life Beyond Arnold Schwarzenegger and Pumping Iron

It is not only Arnold Schwarzenegger whose life Charles Gaines has impacted. Gaines co-wrote Pumping Iron: The Art and Sport of Bodybuilding with photographer George Butler in 1974, a book that turned bodybuilding from a niche subculture into a cultural phenomenon.

He went on to publish 25 more books throughout his career, including his fishing memoirs and works of sports journalism. He was also a co-developer of paintball.

But for the bodybuilding community, Pumping Iron remains the most treasured book, later adapted into a documentary that made Schwarzenegger a household name before he ever set foot on a film set outside it.

Gaines also wrote 1972's Stay Hungry, later translating it into the 1976 film that gave Schwarzenegger his first Hollywood role alongside Jeff Bridges and Sally Field.

What do you think Charles Gaines's Pumping Iron meant for the sport of bodybuilding?

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Written by

Proma Chatterjee

Edited by

Ashvinkumar Patil