Scotocus: What is a Bodybuilder?

Training Bodybuilding
141

[quote]slimthugger wrote:
TRAJJ wrote:
Examples from the recent 2008 Natural Olympia in Ca. We need to remember that BB is a subjective sport. What appeals to one may not appeal to another. Also, many of us have areas that grow better/bigger than other areas. The point of BB is to be the best that ‘you’ can be.

The great part of BB, be it natural or otherwise is that no matter how short or tall, no matter what strength or weakness you may have to overcome, through dedication, consitency, diet and a sound program you can be better than you were before.

Each of these men look better than a high % of men walking around these days. That is unfortunate. So instead of saying things like, ‘well he has small pecs’ or ‘he isn’t as big as I think he should be’ etc…maybe we should give some credit and respect for them doing what many of us here haven’t.

Just a thought.

agreed. cheaters are whack[/quote]

What cheaters?

142

[quote]zephead4747 wrote:
tribunaldude wrote:
how does it matter if your workout meets his standards or not, zep?

The question is, are you seeing results from it, and are you satisfied with them?

The ammount of time I’ve been lifting is far too short (2 years) to be truly satisfied with anything. I need more weight on the bar, and more mass everywhere.[/quote]

That’s ok man.

Not being satisfied = setting goals = motivation to reach those goals.

Think about this for a moment; our society tends to be ‘fast food’ and ‘instant gratification’. Think how unique a serious BB is in light of that.

The progress isn’t measured in days or perhaps even weeks but more like months and years. Yet we train. It isn’t easy. In fact for a serious BB it is downright hard and painful. Yet we train. There are obstacles like ‘life’, illness and injury to overcome.

Yet we train. It takes commitment and dedication. It takes focus and the proper goal setting. And for those that are truly serious, it is akin to an Alpha Male-testosterone-warrior mind set. Joe couch potato can’t fathom what it is we do…or why. Too bad for Joe.

Body building is a journey so enjoy the trip.

143

crack is whack, mack…

[quote]Makavali wrote:
slimthugger wrote:

agreed. cheaters are whack

What cheaters?[/quote]

144

[quote]TRAJJ wrote:

Body building is a journey so enjoy the trip.

[/quote]

But surely when it comes to bodybuilding, the results are more important than the journey.

What is the point of a journey if you haven’t gotten anywhere at the end of it?

Given the choice, I would prefer to make the bulk of my progress in ten years rather than enjoy the journey and do it in twenty.

I would much rather ‘hit my mark’ early and spend those extra years with a better physique.

The whole point of bodybuilding is to look, think and feel differently from when you began.

Perseverance, focus, commitment and dedication are admirable traits, but unless you have progress to justify all of the training and sacrifice, it’s all really for nothing.

I’m still not convinced that having good character or admirable intentions is enough to qualify someone as a successful bodybuilder.

145

Edit: duplicate post.

Here is my definition of a bodybuilder, for what it’s worth:

To me, bodybuilding is the pursuit of physical perfection, always has been, always will be. It is the one thing bodybuilders have in common, from Sandow to Schwarzenegger.

You look at a bodybuilder to be astounded by a spectacular, out of the ordinary physique, not a mediocre one.The journey never ends for the genuine bodybuilder: it is a lifelong pursuit.
The regular trainee will see a physique they aspire to, and are happy to reach that ideal. A true bodybuilder would reach it, then want to surpass it.

The real bodybuilder strives for the extraordinary and is prepared to make whatever sacrifices it takes to get there. That’s the difference.

146

When referring to natty bb = fitness comp I did indeed mean mostly the natty shows which I am seeing over here in Germany (which have a lot of people who are way too skinny for their height to be dieting down) and the untold thousands of male human beings who use “natural” as a fucking excuse for why they are still sitting at a 400 lbs total after 10 years of training.

I’m glad that at least the champions you posted (which I have never seen competing) would be recognizable as bodybuilders.

Gotta say though, the guys in the “Examples from the recent 2008 Natural Olympia in Ca” picture are imo still too light for their height… And more is definitely possible drug-free.

I assume the guy you posted before competes in the masters?

147

[quote]Makavali wrote:
slimthugger wrote:
TRAJJ wrote:
Examples from the recent 2008 Natural Olympia in Ca. We need to remember that BB is a subjective sport. What appeals to one may not appeal to another. Also, many of us have areas that grow better/bigger than other areas. The point of BB is to be the best that ‘you’ can be.

The great part of BB, be it natural or otherwise is that no matter how short or tall, no matter what strength or weakness you may have to overcome, through dedication, consitency, diet and a sound program you can be better than you were before.

Each of these men look better than a high % of men walking around these days. That is unfortunate. So instead of saying things like, ‘well he has small pecs’ or ‘he isn’t as big as I think he should be’ etc…maybe we should give some credit and respect for them doing what many of us here haven’t.

Just a thought.

agreed. cheaters are whack

What cheaters?[/quote]

I think he’s talking about steroid users. Whatever helps him sleep better at night.

148

[quote]zephead4747 wrote:
Professor X wrote:
spend in excess of 4 hours a week in the gym.

forgot to add this in the last post:

My sessions last ~ 75-90 minutes at a time. I’m usually a bit delerious at the end of a heavy session. I’ll sit in the locker room for a few minutes and walk out to my car and sit there for a few minutes and drink a protein shake.

On any given back or leg day I’m seeing silver or red spots on the walls after whatever squat/dl,row,leg press, whatever I’m doing that day. The information is in my log, you can decide if that meets your standards.[/quote]

I’m guessing it makes no difference whether you’re delirious or see spots (whichever color) after your workouts; but how much actual visual progress you’ve made.

Yes, you’ve only been at it for 2 years so it’s obvious you’re not happy with your overall progress; but if you were to compare a picture of yourself to back then - would you see a difference? How about if you compared it to last year? Or 6 months ago? THAT’S WHAT MATTERS! All other things like “perceived” effort in the gym or kitchen, soreness, number of articles someone has read, etc… matter little.

BTW: I don’t mean to pick on you, it’s just you asked for feedback (granted not mine, but it is a public forum).

149

[quote]roybot wrote:
TRAJJ wrote:

Body building is a journey so enjoy the trip.

But surely when it comes to bodybuilding, the results are more important than the journey.

What is the point of a journey if you haven’t gotten anywhere at the end of it?

Given the choice, I would prefer to make the bulk of my progress in ten years rather than enjoy the journey and do it in twenty.

I would much rather ‘hit my mark’ early and spend those extra years with a better physique.

The whole point of bodybuilding is to look, think and feel differently from when you began.

Perseverance, focus, commitment and dedication are admirable traits, but unless you have progress to justify all of the training and sacrifice, it’s all really for nothing.

I’m still not convinced that having good character or admirable intentions is enough to qualify someone as a successful bodybuilder.
[/quote]

Good post. People who do this “for the fun of it” at the expense of significant progress are simply weekend warriors who wish they were more than they are.

Your journey will be judged by your progress made at the end of it. Otherwise, you could have stayed home.

150

[quote]tribunaldude wrote:
crack is whack, mack…

Makavali wrote:
slimthugger wrote:

agreed. cheaters are whack

What cheaters?
[/quote]

Seriously, all this douche does is bash steroid use. What the hell does he mean by “cheaters”?

151

[quote]Android_Impostor wrote:
I think he’s talking about steroid users.[/quote]

And how is steroids cheating, pray tell?

152

[quote]Makavali wrote:
Android_Impostor wrote:
I think he’s talking about steroid users.

And how is steroids cheating, pray tell?[/quote]

Probably makes him feel better about his lack of results by saying steroids are cheating.

153

[quote]roybot wrote:
TRAJJ wrote:

Body building is a journey so enjoy the trip.

But surely when it comes to bodybuilding, the results are more important than the journey.

What is the point of a journey if you haven’t gotten anywhere at the end of it?

Given the choice, I would prefer to make the bulk of my progress in ten years rather than enjoy the journey and do it in twenty.

I would much rather ‘hit my mark’ early and spend those extra years with a better physique.

The whole point of bodybuilding is to look, think and feel differently from when you began.

Perseverance, focus, commitment and dedication are admirable traits, but unless you have progress to justify all of the training and sacrifice, it’s all really for nothing.

I’m still not convinced that having good character or admirable intentions is enough to qualify someone as a successful bodybuilder.
[/quote]

Good post. People who do this “for the fun of it” at the expense of significant progress are simply weekend warriors who wish they were more than they are.

Your journey will be judged by your progress made at the end of it. Otherwise, you could have stayed home.

154

[quote]Professor X wrote:
roybot wrote:
TRAJJ wrote:

Body building is a journey so enjoy the trip.

But surely when it comes to bodybuilding, the results are more important than the journey.

What is the point of a journey if you haven’t gotten anywhere at the end of it?

Given the choice, I would prefer to make the bulk of my progress in ten years rather than enjoy the journey and do it in twenty.

I would much rather ‘hit my mark’ early and spend those extra years with a better physique.

The whole point of bodybuilding is to look, think and feel differently from when you began.

Perseverance, focus, commitment and dedication are admirable traits, but unless you have progress to justify all of the training and sacrifice, it’s all really for nothing.

I’m still not convinced that having good character or admirable intentions is enough to qualify someone as a successful bodybuilder.

Good post. People who do this “for the fun of it” at the expense of significant progress are simply weekend warriors who wish they were more than they are.

Your journey will be judged by your progress made at the end of it. Otherwise, you could have stayed home.[/quote]

Very true. Someone could tell you that they are trying their absolute best to build muscle, but if they don’t have the results to show for it, they are obviously doing something wrong.

The usual explanation for poor results is the fact that the person who says they are trying hard usually isn’t putting much effort in at all, not because they have some insurmountable obstacle to overcome.

There are countless threads about people complaining about their lack of progress despite years of training, and they usually begin with a statement like “I know I can succeed” or “I have the heart and determination to win”.

It’s easy to say that, but those people are missing the irony: if they truly had put in as much effort as they claimed, then they would have at least some visible progress and would not need to start a thread lamenting their poor results in the first place.

Does someone that sleepwalks through years of workouts and eats like shit really deserve credit for looking pretty much the same as on the day they started training? There is far, far more to it than that.

As I said, good character or admirable intentions is not enough for someone to qualify as a bodybuilder.

The real character of a person will always be reflected in their results. This is especially true of bodybuilding.

155

[quote]Protoculture wrote:
zephead4747 wrote:
Professor X wrote:
spend in excess of 4 hours a week in the gym.

forgot to add this in the last post:

My sessions last ~ 75-90 minutes at a time. I’m usually a bit delerious at the end of a heavy session. I’ll sit in the locker room for a few minutes and walk out to my car and sit there for a few minutes and drink a protein shake.

On any given back or leg day I’m seeing silver or red spots on the walls after whatever squat/dl,row,leg press, whatever I’m doing that day. The information is in my log, you can decide if that meets your standards.

I’m guessing it makes no difference whether you’re delirious or see spots (whichever color) after your workouts; but how much actual visual progress you’ve made.

Yes, you’ve only been at it for 2 years so it’s obvious you’re not happy with your overall progress; but if you were to compare a picture of yourself to back then - would you see a difference? How about if you compared it to last year? Or 6 months ago? THAT’S WHAT MATTERS! All other things like “perceived” effort in the gym or kitchen, soreness, number of articles someone has read, etc… matter little.

BTW: I don’t mean to pick on you, it’s just you asked for feedback (granted not mine, but it is a public forum).[/quote]

I went from 120 to 200 pounds in those two years. In this past year I’ve added over 100 pounds to my raw sq/dl. I’m very happy with the strength end, but I’m not large enough yet at 5’8"-9" to look even somewhat good dieted down. My immediate goals in bb are to get to around 230+pounds and look for a localish show to compete while I’m still a teen.

156

[quote]Android_Impostor wrote:
Makavali wrote:
Android_Impostor wrote:
I think he’s talking about steroid users.

And how is steroids cheating, pray tell?

Probably makes him feel better about his lack of results by saying steroids are cheating.

[/quote]

It all makes perfect sense. People like Slimthugger that claim the use of steroids is cheating are providing themselves with the perfect escape plan:

If someone tells him he has made shit progress, he can seek comfort in the thought that, although he did made shit progress, he never cheated to do it.

He is, in a nutshell, naturally shit, and proud of it. No chemical assistance required. How many of us can claim that?

157

He’s a kid. Pay no heed.

[quote]Makavali wrote:
tribunaldude wrote:
crack is whack, mack…

Makavali wrote:
slimthugger wrote:

agreed. cheaters are whack

What cheaters?

Seriously, all this douche does is bash steroid use. What the hell does he mean by “cheaters”?[/quote]

158

[quote]Android_Impostor wrote:
Makavali wrote:
Android_Impostor wrote:
I think he’s talking about steroid users.

And how is steroids cheating, pray tell?

Probably makes him feel better about his lack of results by saying steroids are cheating.

[/quote]

Funny,I have made better gains that most juice heads I know. Not sure if you recall Ben Johnson or Marion Jones. They had their medals taken because their drug use gave them an unfair advantage. Period. Same goes with any sport. Look,Listen and Learn.

159

[quote]slimthugger wrote:
TRAJJ wrote:
Examples from the recent 2008 Natural Olympia in Ca. We need to remember that BB is a subjective sport. What appeals to one may not appeal to another. Also, many of us have areas that grow better/bigger than other areas. The point of BB is to be the best that ‘you’ can be.

The great part of BB, be it natural or otherwise is that no matter how short or tall, no matter what strength or weakness you may have to overcome, through dedication, consitency, diet and a sound program you can be better than you were before.

Each of these men look better than a high % of men walking around these days. That is unfortunate. So instead of saying things like, ‘well he has small pecs’ or ‘he isn’t as big as I think he should be’ etc…maybe we should give some credit and respect for them doing what many of us here haven’t.

Just a thought.

agreed. cheaters are whack[/quote]

It’s a personal choice. I assume you’re calling it cheating because it’s illegal to use them for sport. Nonetheless it’s a personal decision- to each his own.

160

[quote]slimthugger wrote:
Funny,I have made better gains that most juice heads I know. Not sure if you recall Ben Johnson or Marion Jones. They had their medals taken because their drug use gave them an unfair advantage. Period. Same goes with any sport. Look,Listen and Learn.[/quote]

And yet magically, that has nothing to do with this thread. Steroid use is a big part of bodybuilding, whether you like it or not.

I think by your logic, protein powders should be banned, because not everyone has access to the same ratio of casein to whey. That’s an unfair advantage. They should take away fish oil too, you can just eat fish. Surge is a no no because you can get it all from food. In fact lifting weights is banned too, because they’re going against their natural physique.

Steroids are part of bodybuilding and sports. The sooner the sheeple accept this the better.

EDIT: Funny you would mention Ben Johnson. You should take a closer look at the person who took the gold in his stead. Ephedrine, Pseudoephedrine… accidental use my fucking ass.