Is the IDEAL BODY IMAGE ACTUALLY ATTAINABLE for those
who follow all the right protocols? Picture the image: Distinctly
noticeable, but not necessarily, gaudy muscle mass -Year round
ripped-to-near-ripped appearance. All six abbs in or almost in
sight at all times - B-F levels rarely exceeding 8% in men and
12% women. Plus the functional strength to match this IDEAL
physique. Yes! All WITHOUT major chemical assistance!?
None of this deals with the handicapped or the elderly, but
rather with the “average” person we see busting their hump at
the local gym, the guy with naturally low muscle-tone and a
poor-to-awful distribution of adrenoceptor sites -(basically just
tooooo many of those “G-DAMN” alpha-2 receptors!") Once
more I ask: Is this IDEAL BODY IMAGE actually attainable for
those who -“Do All the Right Things?”
I really just don’t know the answer! Joey Z. ::::----::::
i think its more attainable for guy than a girl. Some girls just dont have shape no matter whatand genetically i dont know if girls are really meant to be that skinny. Guys on the other hand, are supposed to be lean and muscular-maybe not look like cover models but can get close. Its my firm beleif that if you work hard enough for something you will get it in the end. all it takes is the drive and determination
Answer: It depends. In order to get the answer
you want, you need to ask better questions.
With regard to women, I’m not sure since I’m
not a woman. But with regard to men -
Questions:
What is the persons genetics?
How much effort is the person willing to
invest?
How much time is the person willing to
invest?
Obviously, it will significantly depend
on the amount of time and effort someone
wants to put into it. Taking into
consideration genetics and time/effort, I
would guess that the percentage of people that
can achieve that would consist of the front
half of a standard gaussian curve, depending
on all three factors. For the rest, no, not
without “assistance.”
Free Extropian, YOU are absolutely right. I should have
framed the question better! I left out the KEY word ALL!
Question: Can ALL people (most notably the ones with
average-to-below average genetics achieve this “ideal image?”
Now let’s say that they’re using the very best training
methods, while giving a 100% effort in the gym. And let’s
also assume that their diet is perfect and that they are
spending BIG bucks on all finest SUPPS! Now, can “this”
person ATTAIN “the ideal body image,” or is “image” just
a “bill of goods” sold to him or her by Corporate America?
Thanks for your response, Joey Z.
At least for men I think it’s certainly possible with perfect training, diet, and the right supplements to get that perfect body image that we desire. For some it could take longer than for others, several years perhaps - but in the end I believe it comes down to one question; How bad do you want it? ← and that really is the most important factor.
Um, does cosmetic surgery count? OK, here is
my opinion, and I could be wrong. A person in
the bottom half of the gausian curve - a
person with poor fat distribution and poor
muscle genes - using optimal training, optimal
nutrition/supplementation and optimal recovery
could probably acheive the “underwear model”
look in peak condition, but could probably
not maintain that condition for long. If a
person has a lot of fat cells it might require
some lipo. Getting much bigger than that, with
poor genetics and w/o gear will require
putting on a significant amount of fat, and
losing that fat to get cut will likely “eat”
the muscle back down to underwear model size.
Many people will say it is possible to acheive
that ideal physique naturally and that they
have done so. Well then they have the genetics
to do that, and not everyone does. I DOn’t
mean to piss on your hopes, I could be
wrong. Should people be limited to a physique
they are not satisfied with because they have
poor genetics? I think not. Now Biotest’s goal
is to bridge that gap between supplements and
drugs to allow those even with poor genetics
to achieve a decent physique. But as someone
who probably falls somewhere in the middle of
the curve, I have a lot of experience with
this. No matter how good my training,
nutrition, supplementation and recovery, I
found it essentially impossible to get above #200 with single digit body fat. And when I
dieted to get back down to acceptably low
bodyfat, I would lose all muscle beyond the #200 mark. So I figure my natural limit is
around #200 with 7% bf. After years of
frustration, I finally gave up and took the
“alternate route.” Oh well.
ANother thought I just had that is worthwhile
mentioning is that most people wont have all
“good” or all “bad” genes for bodybuilding.
Typically there will be some good points and
some bad points. So it’s worthwhile to try to
figure out where your physique goal
“bottlenecks” are and to work around them.
Essentially take advantage of what strengths
your physique has and work around your weak
points. In my case for example, my thyroid
function, insulin sensitivity, muscle
insertion points and muscle bellies are all
reasonably good (not great, but ok). But my
natural androgen levels and adrenal function
basically suck. And I was pretty successful at
achieving adipose cell hyperplasia as a child.
So my “workarounds” might be to use androgens,
take DHEA and lots of caffeine, and get lipo.
Someone else might have poor thyroid function
or poor insulin sensitivity, so they might
use T3 and metformin for their “workarounds.”
Basically, you have to know what you’ve got
to work work with in order to acheive your
physique goals. Or to state it more
artistically, you have to know where your
limitations are in order to transcend them.
Hope that helps.
Free Extropian, BOY, Don’t I know, all too well, about
“achieving adipose cell hyperplasia as a child!” I think
Chris Shugart made mention of it as being a real obstacle.
Personally, I’m just a mixed bag of genetics : Extremely ripped
lower half, unrelenting fat storage on the waistline and
love-handle area, and an impressive lat spread that looks
like it belongs on someone else’s body! Androgen levels
used to be high, but have off dropped significantly over the
last three years. Thyroid levels have always been below average.
Fortunately for you, it sounds like your genetics are slightly
better than mine (FAT STORAGE WISE).You lose muscle when
you go below 7%, and I start shedding muscle big time when I
drop below 10%! Maybe, KingProtein, was right when he
mentioned not wanting it “bad enough?!”
I’m all for pushing yourself with sheer will,
intense training and intelligent nutrition
and recovery - as far as possible to achieve
your goals. Mind over matter and all that.
But there are limits to physical reality -
regardless of “how bad you want it.” I may
“want” to have smaller hip bone structure
than I do, but short of major surgery that’s
not possible no matter how hard work to make
it so. There are “rules” that physics,
chemistry and biology operate under, and in
order to produce the results you want you have
to work within those rules. And sometimes just
training harder & smarter, getting good
nutrition and recovery just aren’t enough
to produce the results you want while still
operating within the rules of reality.
Agree with Free…attainable…but within the bounds of “What God gave 'ya…” I think we PROBABLY get into a lot of trouble not because we want a certain look, but because we want a CERTAIN certain look! Let me explain (and Free alluded to this also). I may look in the mirror and “dream” of having the symmetry, full muscle bellies, “ideal” insertions, hardness, etc., etc., of Flex, Ray, Bennefato or Paris; or the “babe magnet” hardness and ripping of that “Men’s Fitness” coverguy; when in reality I may have a short torso to leg ratio; wider hips; and muscles not so full with high insertions, etc. SO WHAT DO I DO?
I do what a Larry Scott or Lee Labrada did. I hunker down, work hard and smart, FORGET what another guys “ideal” is and bring out MY best physique possible…and that IS attainable…
Wow…another thought, guys. If you think we have to put up with the “Men’s Fitness Coverguy” look, look at the image thrown out there for girls and women…slender long legs and hips that can wear belly revealing “hip huggers”…tight, small waist and abs (that can look sexy with a navel ring)…small feet that can show off toe revealing footwear(gotta have that sexy toe ring!)…the image is EVERYWHERE…and study after study has shown that this is FAR from the average American woman…tough stuff…but again…what we should concern ourselves with is being the best that we can be with the body type we have.
The answer to your questions is a resounding “no”. Case in point; I recently attended the Canadian Bodybuilding Championships held here in Halifax, NS. I witnessed some of the most dedicated and genetically gifted physique athletes our country has to offer (not to mention chemically enhanced).
Were they pleasing to the eye? Were they perfectly proportioned? For the most part no. Some had large arms and bulging tummys, others had weak delts and huge chests. There were only a handful, including the overall winner, who could actually be considered as having a near perfect physique - though he was rather on the upper end of muscularity.
If these guys can’t achieve perfection, how can a recreational lifter be expected to? Well, they can’t. The philosophy behind my website is to promote “when average isn’t good enough”. That is, try to become the best you can be. Instead of comparing yourself to the elite, compare yourself to the average joe (or jo-anne) on the street. Chances are if you’ve been lifting for a while and pay attention to your diet, you’ve already got a better body than most. After that it becomes an internal challenge to become the best you can be.