Oh boy, fasten your seatbelts! It's going to be a bumpy post.
Oxygen seems to change editors every couple of years. The quality comes and goes, depending on the editor. And to be quite honest, the definition of quality changes by what your goals are. While some are "sick to the back teeth" of hearing about competition coverage, I'm "starving" for more coverage of women's competition. But competition is my goal, so that's why. I know not everyone has that goal.
I had an original subscription when it first came out. Soon after, there were too many sex articles. It basically became Cosmo, with some workouts. I cancelled the subs. My reason for not subscribing now, is all the Hydroxycut ads. Hydroxycut, MuscleTech really, in my opinion, has purchased that magazine in the form of advertising. The "Special Reports" that are sponsored by MuscleTech are nothing more than printed infomercials, with paid representatives.
I take exception to the statement that the competitors starve themselves to the final weeks of competition. You can't do that...that's a recipe for fat gain. Those competitors are still eating about 1400 calories a day at that point (I'm at 1550 normally, to grow muscle), and eating every 3 hours. Yes, you cut carbs. But you are talking about the final 7 days pre-contest. When you cut the carbs, you up the EFAs in omega 3's and 6's. Fat, at that point, hardens you up and makes you look buff. There are so many tricks that are employed that final week. They are not lifelong, they are for a purpose. A temporary purpose. Could a person live a healthy life on that diet year round? In general no....but I bet it would still be healthier than the typical obese American who is content to waste their lives and youth deteriorating on the couch, doing nothing. But that's beside the point, because competitors don't choose to follow that diet year round. Unless they have a modeling contract, and get paid to stay photo shoot lean year round. And photo shoot lean still isn't competition lean.
Does cutting carbs make you bitchy? YOU BETCHA!!! LOL That's why so many acceptance speeches thank their spouses for supporting them. (Male competitors do this too.) Again, it's temporary.
But I digress. For me, a subscription to Oxygen isn't worth it. I do buy the occasional newsstand issue. For example, the copy with Jelena on the cover (May issue? April?) I "had" to buy that one, because she has the same e-consultant I do, MsFit. That was just too cool for me! But there's still not enough competition coverage for me, so I opt for Iron Man mag, for the training articles, and continue on with a void in my life for female competition coverage. I just have to get that info online.
I'm not looking for info on competitive fitness, though, so if that is mainly the focus (and it's not clear from the answers here that it is...), it won't be for me. But yeah, I'll check out a few issues first.