Bashing of Bodybuilders: Why?

Training Bodybuilding
41

Also, not to say that there aren’t “extreme steroid users” out there, but out of the top level amateurs that I know and some pro bodybuilders that I’ve talked to about that subject, their doses may be slightly higher than the avg user, but they don’t go to the extreme that often.

Genetics plays a huge role in bodybuilding as we all know, especially when it comes to steroids. Do you guys think Brandon Curry looks the way he does because he has pumped himself full of massive amounts of steroids? I doubt it, I bet he uses the same doses that many of your avg users do.

this all my opinion + a few accounts of those I know that are competing at or above 240lbs stage weight.

DG

42

[quote]joburnet wrote:

Personally I think PRO bodybuilders are disgusting, freakish, and obsessive to the point of permanently hurting their bodies by taking massive amounts of steroids. Nothing against people just trying to look good or bodybuilding training.[/quote]

I can almost guarantee you that there are people on this very forum on higher dosages than people who will be on stage at the Olympia.

Take anyone on this thread(besides PX maybe lol) and put them on 2 grams of test and 750 mg of tren for 2 years cycling and see how they look on stage next to Phil Heath on 400 mg test… they will be EMBARRASSED.

43

[quote]Scott M wrote:
joburnet wrote:

Personally I think PRO bodybuilders are disgusting, freakish, and obsessive to the point of permanently hurting their bodies by taking massive amounts of steroids. Nothing against people just trying to look good or bodybuilding training.

I can almost guarantee you that there are people on this very forum on higher dosages than people who will be on stage at the Olympia.

Take anyone on this thread(besides PX maybe lol) and put them on 2 grams of test and 750 mg of tren for 2 years cycling and see how they look on stage next to Phil Heath on 400 mg test… they will be EMBARRASSED.[/quote]

and besides me of course you forgot to mention haha jk. People dont realize that almost every pro was huge before he took roids. Im sure cutler before he started to juice was more massive than most people around and im sure people still said he was on roids even when he wasnt

44

[quote]Scott M wrote:
Well first off bodybuilders themselves are some of the most insecure athletes on the planet… maybe fighters(MMA) being a distant second.

If you take an insecure person and put 50 lbs of muscle on him, it doesn’t make him a secure person automatically… those insecurities that drove him to bodybuilding in the first place are still in tact.

This isn’t everyone, but a large percentage of bodybuilders in my opinion. Of course guys like that are going to take things more personally and vent about it.

Secondly, no other hobby or sport do you “wear” around like bodybuilding 24/7 unless you count people that tattoo or pierce themselves dozens of times.

Grapplers that get mocked are only grapplers while they are training or in competition, the other 22 hours of the day they are Joe Average and nobody gives a crap what they do for fun 3 nights a week. Even in a sweat shirt you can’t hide 250 lbs of mostly lean muscle… the comments and the looks never stop.[/quote]

…and that is why we talk about it. I can’t “take off” bodybuilding. People know I lift seriously EVERY FUCKING PLACE I go. There is no break from it. Who the hell can tell you know martial arts just by looking at you unless you tell them?

No one is making fun of karate students when they are walking through the mall in regular clothes.

Why is this so hard to understand?

45

[quote]Bill Roberts wrote:

Anabolic steroids?!? Horror!!

High protein diet?!? Idiots!

Bodybuilding?? THEY HAVE SMALL DICKS!!

[/quote]

Its because THEY have small dicks (and shitty physiques).

46

[quote]Professor X wrote:
Scott M wrote:
Well first off bodybuilders themselves are some of the most insecure athletes on the planet… maybe fighters(MMA) being a distant second.

If you take an insecure person and put 50 lbs of muscle on him, it doesn’t make him a secure person automatically… those insecurities that drove him to bodybuilding in the first place are still in tact. This isn’t everyone, but a large percentage of bodybuilders in my opinion.

Of course guys like that are going to take things more personally and vent about it.

Secondly, no other hobby or sport do you “wear” around like bodybuilding 24/7 unless you count people that tattoo or pierce themselves dozens of times.

Grapplers that get mocked are only grapplers while they are training or in competition, the other 22 hours of the day they are Joe Average and nobody gives a crap what they do for fun 3 nights a week. Even in a sweat shirt you can’t hide 250 lbs of mostly lean muscle… the comments and the looks never stop.

…and that is why we talk about it. I can’t “take off” bodybuilding. People know I lift seriously EVERY FUCKING PLACE I go. There is no break from it. Who the hell can tell you know martial arts just by looking at you unless you tell them?

No one is making fun of karate students when they are walking through the mall in regular clothes.

Why is this so hard to understand?
[/quote]

But did you not realize this effect of successful bodybuilding before starting out? Would you prefer to have an option to “take off” bodybuilding?

47

[quote]skor wrote:
Professor X wrote:
Scott M wrote:
Well first off bodybuilders themselves are some of the most insecure athletes on the planet… maybe fighters(MMA) being a distant second.

If you take an insecure person and put 50 lbs of muscle on him, it doesn’t make him a secure person automatically…

those insecurities that drove him to bodybuilding in the first place are still in tact. This isn’t everyone, but a large percentage of bodybuilders in my opinion. Of course guys like that are going to take things more personally and vent about it.

Secondly, no other hobby or sport do you “wear” around like bodybuilding 24/7 unless you count people that tattoo or pierce themselves dozens of times.

Grapplers that get mocked are only grapplers while they are training or in competition, the other 22 hours of the day they are Joe Average and nobody gives a crap what they do for fun 3 nights a week. Even in a sweat shirt you can’t hide 250 lbs of mostly lean muscle… the comments and the looks never stop.

…and that is why we talk about it. I can’t “take off” bodybuilding. People know I lift seriously EVERY FUCKING PLACE I go. There is no break from it. Who the hell can tell you know martial arts just by looking at you unless you tell them?

No one is making fun of karate students when they are walking through the mall in regular clothes.

Why is this so hard to understand?

But did you not realize this effect of successful bodybuilding before starting out? Would you prefer to have an option to “take off” bodybuilding?[/quote]

I would prefer to not be labeled something negative because of an activity I am involved in for no other reason than public bias. I would prefer to make that known because acknowledging the problem is the first step to fixing it.

I would prefer to not be treated like this action makes someone “insecure” when much of it has to do with the sheer VOLUME of comments a larger lifter will get on a regular basis.

Unless you have an activity that you literally wear all day long you don’t have a clue what we are talking about. I do NOT care what the average person on the street thinks. I DO care that this one average person becomes hundreds of people and the comments are endless.

If this needs further explanation, maybe you are on the wrong site.

As has been stated several times before, the majority of the comments I get are positive. That doesn’t change the fact that I will notice the media or the general public’s attempt to label people like me as having mental disorders, especially since I work in the health field.

Any more questions?

48

And I have cauliflower ear from years of wrestling, bjj, and judo. The difference is, I never wanted cauliflower ears or the attention that comes with it. Many guys I know that are into bodybuilding are trying to get as big as possible and want the attention associated with being that big whether it’s from girls or guys.

49

[quote]chitown34 wrote:
And I have cauliflower ear from years of wrestling, bjj, and judo. I also routinely show up to work with scratches on my face. The difference is, I never wanted cauliflower ears or the attention that comes with it.

Many guys I know that are into bodybuilding are trying to get as big as possible and want the attention associated with being that big whether it’s from girls or guys.

As a little anecdote, I was at the gym this morning and see a guy flexing in the mirror. I was doing squats nearby so I was forced to listen to their conversation which went something like this…

BB 1: “I think my biceps are getting bigger.”
BB 2: “Yeah man, I can see you’ve added some size.”
BB 1 flexes some more
BB 1: “I wanna’ hit 19 inches by Spring. I gotta hit my legs hard this winter too.”
BB 1 continues to flex in mirror as he talks to BB 2.

The conversation went on like this for 5 minutes. Obviously guys like this are probably in the minority, but it’s this kind of stuff that makes people think that BBers are insecure/narcissistic/etc…[/quote]

no offense to you man, but because people talk about goals that happen to be with muscle size and their body they become insecure, narcissists?

DG

50

The saddest thing of all is that we bodybuilders have to explain this stuff on Testosterone Nation! That’s why this thread was started, not only is it common in everyday life, but common on a weightlifting website!

/RANT

DG

51

[quote]Dirty Gerdy wrote:
joburnet wrote:
Professor X wrote:
Scott M wrote:
Insecurty 100% in my opinion.

I agree. There is no other reason for it. If someone makes a comment about someone’s dick size whenever the topic of bodybuilding comes up, that says more about that person than the one they are trying to degrade.

It makes them feel better…until they look in the mirror.

Nobody makes fun of Reggie Bush who is ripped, so I doubt it’s insecurity.

Personally I think PRO bodybuilders are disgusting, freakish, and obsessive to the point of permanently hurting their bodies by taking massive amounts of steroids. Nothing against people just trying to look good or bodybuilding training.

personally I think your opinion sucks.

I want to be a bodybuilder, but I have nothing agains those who do. Maybe you should rethink your second paragraph, because what I got out of it is “bodybuilding is for extreme druggies, but those who want to train like a bodybuilder are cool as long as they don’t want to be one”. ?

Reggie bush is athletic, he doesn’t look like a bodybuilder. I have an athletic build, maybe slightly larger than your avg “athletic build” and I still have haters.

DG[/quote]

The question was why do people bash bodybuilders and I think my opinion is pretty common. I made sure to point out that I am talking about PRO bodybuilders which is what people think of when they hear bodybuilding.

My point is that if people bashed bodybuilders because they were insecure then they would also bash Reggie Bush as well because many people would consider him to have an ideal physique.

Sentoguy - I’m not against intelligent steroid use although I do not use myself nor do I plan to. From what I have read the large doses of steroids that PRO bodybuilders use cause your internal organs to grow abnormally and can permanently disable the body’s ability to regulate certain hormones.

52

[quote]tribunaldude wrote:
TBH “former geeks” actually BECOME recreational weight trainers and bodybuilders as they get older to avenge their former humiliation or being picked on when they were skinny and nerdy. whizzing through the posts on this and other sites (especially GAL forum) has convinced me about that.

I feel that current criticism of bbers actually comes from guys who were the “cool dudes” (think Fonz or any of the guys from Dawson’s creek) who used to get the chicks easily in high school but are now relegated to a lifetime of being ordinary and unremarkable, stuck with prematurely graying hair, average looking wives and a boring poorly paying job.

Bill Roberts wrote:
Personally I believe there’s a psychological phenomenon that for some people – and it seems only to be men that are vehement about it – comes into play whenever they consider things related to having a lot of muscle.

Anabolic steroids?!? Horror!!

High protein diet?!? Idiots!

Bodybuilding?? THEY HAVE SMALL DICKS!!

I don’t know whether it comes from having been geeks in high school and either beaten up by the football players and other athletes, or losing their girlfriends to them, or just never getting any girlfriends in their formative years while those with better builds did so much better than they, or perhaps some unrelated who-knows-what cause.

But it isn’t reason that is driving these emotional responses, of that I am pretty sure.

[/quote]

I cant speak for bodybuilders in general, but many of the most committed lifters I have met were not geeks, so much as “late bloomers”

They didn’t really peak until half way through college.

The late bloomer is an interesting person, they were “cute” or “decent looking” in highschool, but were of average popularity, they werent the studs and cheerleaders, they were the Girl/Boy next door types in other words.

Alot of these guys and girls WANT more than anything to be the “bodies” from highschool.

And due to the fact that they didnt peak physically at 17, they actually develop a personality, a hardcore training routine, and a near perfect diet.

By the time they are in their early twenties in college they are smart, have a great personality, and thanks to their hardwork also have an amazing body.

In other words a total package.

I think alot of lifters will fit into this category.

53

[quote]Westclock wrote:
tribunaldude wrote:
TBH “former geeks” actually BECOME recreational weight trainers and bodybuilders as they get older to avenge their former humiliation or being picked on when they were skinny and nerdy.

whizzing through the posts on this and other sites (especially GAL forum) has convinced me about that. I feel that current criticism of bbers actually comes from guys who were the “cool dudes” (think Fonz or any of the guys from Dawson’s creek)

who used to get the chicks easily in high school but are now relegated to a lifetime of being ordinary and unremarkable, stuck with prematurely graying hair, average looking wives and a boring poorly paying job.

Bill Roberts wrote:
Personally I believe there’s a psychological phenomenon that for some people – and it seems only to be men that are vehement about it – comes into play whenever they consider things related to having a lot of muscle.

Anabolic steroids?!? Horror!!

High protein diet?!? Idiots!

Bodybuilding?? THEY HAVE SMALL DICKS!!

I don’t know whether it comes from having been geeks in high school and either beaten up by the football players and other athletes, or losing their girlfriends to them, or just never getting any girlfriends in their formative years while those with better builds did so much better than they, or perhaps some unrelated who-knows-what cause.

But it isn’t reason that is driving these emotional responses, of that I am pretty sure.

I cant speak for bodybuilders in general, but many of the most committed lifters I have met were not geeks, so much as “late bloomers”

They didn’t really peak until half way through college.

The late bloomer is an interesting person, they were “cute” or “decent looking” in highschool, but were of average popularity, they werent the studs and cheerleaders, they were the Girl/Boy next door types in other words.

Alot of these guys and girls WANT more than anything to be the “bodies” from highschool.

And due to the fact that they didnt peak physically at 17, they actually develop a personality, a hardcore training routine, and a near perfect diet.

By the time they are in their early twenties in college they are smart, have a great personality, and thanks to their hardwork also have an amazing body.

In other words a total package.

I think alot of lifters will fit into this category.[/quote]

although my athleticism was above average as a freshman in high school being on varsity…my physique didn’t develop until my late jr year, and then my sr year I was a god on campus dating the head cheerleader and all that b.s.

Some of my friends who “bloomed” sooner are still there if you know what I mean. They haven’t strived to become anything outside of high school. I wanted to play college sports, pursue bodybuilding, and an education outside of my small town life so I busted ass in high school. I think if I was an “early” bloomer that things would be different.

I can see what you mean definitely.

DG

54

[quote]joburnet wrote:
Dirty Gerdy wrote:
joburnet wrote:
Professor X wrote:
Scott M wrote:
Insecurty 100% in my opinion.

I agree. There is no other reason for it. If someone makes a comment about someone’s dick size whenever the topic of bodybuilding comes up, that says more about that person than the one they are trying to degrade.

It makes them feel better…until they look in the mirror.

Nobody makes fun of Reggie Bush who is ripped, so I doubt it’s insecurity.

Personally I think PRO bodybuilders are disgusting, freakish, and obsessive to the point of permanently hurting their bodies by taking massive amounts of steroids. Nothing against people just trying to look good or bodybuilding training.

personally I think your opinion sucks.

I want to be a bodybuilder, but I have nothing agains those who do. Maybe you should rethink your second paragraph, because what I got out of it is “bodybuilding is for extreme druggies, but those who want to train like a bodybuilder are cool as long as they don’t want to be one”. ?

Reggie bush is athletic, he doesn’t look like a bodybuilder. I have an athletic build, maybe slightly larger than your avg “athletic build” and I still have haters.

DG

The question was why do people bash bodybuilders and I think my opinion is pretty common. I made sure to point out that I am talking about PRO bodybuilders which is what people think of when they hear bodybuilding.

My point is that if people bashed bodybuilders because they were insecure then they would also bash Reggie Bush as well because many people would consider him to have an ideal physique.

Sentoguy - I’m not against intelligent steroid use although I do not use myself nor do I plan to. From what I have read the large doses of steroids that PRO bodybuilders use cause your internal organs to grow abnormally and can permanently disable the body’s ability to regulate certain hormones. [/quote]

Well the way I read your previous quote is that anybody aspiring to be or is a PRO bodybuilder is using huge amounts of steroids and are disgusting freaks. I take offense to that.

I don’t disagree with you about people criticizing an ideal physique, I do think that people will “hate” if they can’t achieve what that person can.

like X said, the biggest problem is the bandwagoners who don’t have an opinion for themselves, the people that know nothing about steroids but blurt out what the media says about them.

As to your steroid comments, it is totally fine if you never want to, nor never have used them. I do feel that steroids as a topic should only be discussed by people who know what they are talking about.

You obviously don’t, that’s not a bash or attack on you, why would you care to know about them. Don’t make comments or remarks about them if you have no knowledge of them. (not bashing you just saying)

DG

55

[quote]Professor X wrote:
skor wrote:
But did you not realize this effect of successful bodybuilding before starting out? Would you prefer to have an option to “take off” bodybuilding?

I would prefer to not be labeled something negative because of an activity I am involved in for no other reason than public bias. I would prefer to make that known because acknowledging the problem is the first step to fixing it.

I would prefer to not be treated like this action makes someone “insecure” when much of it has to do with the sheer VOLUME of comments a larger lifter will get on a regular basis.

Unless you have an activity that you literally wear all day long you don’t have a clue what we are talking about. I do NOT care what the average person on the street thinks. I DO care that this one average person becomes hundreds of people and the comments are endless.

If this needs further explanation, maybe you are on the wrong site.

As has been stated several times before, the majority of the comments I get are positive. That doesn’t change the fact that I will notice the media or the general public’s attempt to label people like me as having mental disorders, especially since I work in the health field.
[/quote]

You are contradicting yourself. On the one hand you claim that most likely I have no clue about what your are talking about. On the other hand, you are surprised that your feeling of being overwhelmed with sheer number of negative comments and media labeling needs explanation on the forum on which, as you know, most people are not getting tons of comments in public.

Yes, both of the initial questions. Your speech, while informative, doesn’t answer my two questions.

56

[quote]skor wrote:

You are contradicting yourself. On the one hand you claim that most likely I have no clue about what your are talking about.

On the other hand, you are surprised that your feeling of being overwhelmed with sheer number of negative comments and media labeling needs explanation on the forum on which, as you know, most people are not getting tons of comments in public.

Any more questions?

Yes, both of the initial questions. Your speech, while informative, doesn’t answer my two questions. [/quote]

Your two questions are irrelevant. Unless you are about to claim that any time someone voices an opinion about how they are being treated this points to INSECURITY, then you have no point.

I can very well be secure with myself and my actions AND STILL voice an opinion if I feel that people like me are being mistreated in some way.

Are you saying this is impossible? That unless someone is completely apathetic to how they and those like them are being treated that this makes them INSECURE?

57

[quote]Dirty Gerdy wrote:
The saddest thing of all is that we bodybuilders have to explain this stuff on Testosterone Nation! That’s why this thread was started, not only is it common in everyday life, but common on a weightlifting website!

/RANT

DG[/quote]

…and it shouldn’t be. There are way too many people on this board who aren’t serious at all.

58

[quote]joburnet wrote:

My point is that if people bashed bodybuilders because they were insecure then they would also bash Reggie Bush as well because many people would consider him to have an ideal physique.
[/quote]

Not true. There is obviously a double standard with regards to sports, especially anything that gets shown on ESPN regularly. David Boston caught much of the same negative stereotypes in spite of being a pro football player.

Reggie Bush may be well developed for the average couch potato, but he is not as big as David Boston was at his heaviest nor is he in the same ball park as many super-heavy weight bodybuilders.

So why use him as an example?

Deep down, most people really do want to be well developed. That is WHY we are having this discussion. By throwing negative comments at those who they really would rather look more like, they point to insecurity.

59

[quote]Dirty Gerdy wrote:

no offense to you man, but because people talk about goals that happen to be with muscle size and their body they become insecure, narcissists?

DG[/quote]

It was one of those “you had to be there” moments. These guys were staring at each other and themselves in the mirror for about 5 minutes and asking what they thought of their various body parts. I’ll have to take video next time =)

60

[quote]
I’ll have to take video next time =)[/quote]

Or stop watching what other people do for five minutes in the gym and train.