The Future of Testosterone Nation?

Off Topic
21

The forum has gone through several of these stages over the years. I remember at least 2 threads talking about the exact same thing. Seems like more of a “back in my day…” kind of thing.

If you think there’s a problem, and want a solution, go look in the mirror. A forum is just another community, and you get what you (collectively) put in.

The thing is, you can’t just sit back and wait for others to make all the effort. If you rely on others, they will steer it the direction they want, which may differ from yours.

Start busting your ass, email the editors, and up your 120 post count by a factor of 50. This should lead to the changes you want, and inspire others to contribute.

Or, do nothing, I don’t really care. Afterall, the internet is serious business.

22

emo

23

[quote]Vir wrote:

[quote]polo77j wrote:
“vir
level 0”

What’s your point Vir? Cuz the guy’s a level 0 he shouldn’t have an opinion? Pot meet kettle…[/quote]

Everyone’s free to have an opinion, I just don’t see why this guy is getting so annoyed about a website/company he has never even bought from - unless he gets his Biotest stuff from another supplier. Although I suppose he is entitled to have his say about the forum members. I wouldn’t complain about articles that I have never put any money towards, that’s all.

RE: my level - I’ll be buying eventually when I have the money, FWIW. But anyway the point is I just found it strange that bundy has been here for 6 years and never bought anything but still felt like ranting about the quality of the articles. There’s lots of great stuff in the archives anyway![/quote]

I have bought a number of Biotest products here in Australia. If you would like to pay the absurd shipping fees for me then I would be more than happy to increase my ‘level’ and purchase some from the store.

24

This website initially drew me in a few years back with the articles. That’s when I didn’t know a whole lot about weight lifting. Curious about a lot of the super “technical” terminology presented in articles and the seemingly abundance of contradictory information in said articles, I made my way to the forums.

What I found there were hundreds, if not thousands of clowns that worship the authors and training techniques presented by them, but none of them looked like they lifted. My goal is bodybuilding. 99% of the articles posted on this site have no relevence to actual bodybuilding, and aren’t really helpful in any endeavors to ME. Thus, I don’t bitch about them (with this exception.)

What I’m getting at is that this “community” here is for shit, mostly. Guys inhabiting the “bodybuilding” forum who have no interest in bodybuilding whatsoever. Regulars on the website who all apparently are best friends, but I’ve never actually seen any of them posting anything related to training or lifting. People who want to know the ins-and-the-outs of every facet of every training programming who don’t even know what it’s like to be intense when lifting.

I have it on very good authority that there are a lot of guys who left this site because of this stuff, whether it’s posting primarily on other lifting sites or just leaving all together. I also know they come back mostly just to troll. These are big, strong, and smart fellows who actually live the lifestyle accordingly.

And I hate to sound like a prick, but I can’t figure out if this forum is unmoderated or not. I post a video in the bodybuilding forum about a HUGE guy moving a LOT of weight and it gets taken down because it’s ‘basically just a praise video’ (not exact words,) but we have guys like Dankid and other ignoramuses who run around and give out information that is extremely stupid and in existence just to rile people up.

So, the future of T-Nation (forums?) It’s going to be like the class of '09, x a billion.

25

[quote]chuckaboo86 wrote:
emo[/quote]

That’s a really fat baby dressed up to look like an adult lol.

26

[quote]SSC wrote:
And I hate to sound like a prick, but I can’t figure out if this forum is unmoderated or not.[/quote]

Every post on this site is moderated.

27

[quote]SSC wrote:
This website initially drew me in a few years back with the articles. That’s when I didn’t know a whole lot about weight lifting. Curious about a lot of the super “technical” terminology presented in articles and the seemingly abundance of contradictory information in said articles, I made my way to the forums.

What I found there were hundreds, if not thousands of clowns that worship the authors and training techniques presented by them, but none of them looked like they lifted. My goal is bodybuilding. 99% of the articles posted on this site have no relevence to actual bodybuilding, and aren’t really helpful in any endeavors to ME. Thus, I don’t bitch about them (with this exception.)

What I’m getting at is that this “community” here is for shit, mostly. Guys inhabiting the “bodybuilding” forum who have no interest in bodybuilding whatsoever. Regulars on the website who all apparently are best friends, but I’ve never actually seen any of them posting anything related to training or lifting. People who want to know the ins-and-the-outs of every facet of every training programming who don’t even know what it’s like to be intense when lifting.

I have it on very good authority that there are a lot of guys who left this site because of this stuff, whether it’s posting primarily on other lifting sites or just leaving all together. I also know they come back mostly just to troll. These are big, strong, and smart fellows who actually live the lifestyle accordingly.

And I hate to sound like a prick, but I can’t figure out if this forum is unmoderated or not. I post a video in the bodybuilding forum about a HUGE guy moving a LOT of weight and it gets taken down because it’s ‘basically just a praise video’ (not exact words,) but we have guys like Dankid and other ignoramuses who run around and give out information that is extremely stupid and in existence just to rile people up.

So, the future of T-Nation (forums?) It’s going to be like the class of '09, x a billion.[/quote]

Good post.

If I may ask, what video was taken down?

I agree that there sometimes seems to be some effort to limit actual discussion or praise of BODYBUILDING while we let idiots like dankid post endlessly, but up to this point I thought it was mostly limited to connecting other business sites with this one.

28

The future is easily predicted by simply looking at which threads have multiple pages labeled “.0”

29

  1. Berardi is great, Poliquin is OK, but a lot of his stuff is hype, Waterury stuff isnt for bodybuilders.

  2. Negative responses to articles are going to happen. Waterbury got shit on for awhile because some of his articles were just that - shit. He wrote this thing on calf grown that said to do 1 leg dumbell calf hops for the best calf growth, because thats what sprinters do, and “sprinters have the best calves”. I rest my case.

  3. I cannot tell you how many times the “senior members” like Stu and ACTrain Have helped me, and replied to PM’s within the same day, let alone the same hour. Prof X gets shit from everyone, mostly because he’s quite possible the biggest motherfucker on here, and has a lot of experience. I cannot speak for him, but i know He doesn’t like Waterbury’s articles either.

  4. Pics ARE everything on here. For instance, if you read a generic article on BB.com, youll often see that the author is a 16 year old kid who has no credability and is not big at all. That is why pics matter. They matter for the opposte scenario as well. A lot of people on here are like “Dude, i know what to do, im 6 foot 3 and 260 pounds bro”. This guy who used to post on here alot would say that the best way to bulk up is to eat as much as you can from fast food places, and that was the fastest way he got to 260 lbs. He posted pics later on, and he was indeed a fat fuck with a massive gut and bitch tits. I rest my case.

Overall dude, Im happy with a lot of the articles on here by some of the not as “popular” guys like Nick Tumminello, John Romaniello, Brian Krahn, and Clay Hyght.

Just beacuse you have a book on the shelves at barnes and noble, does not make you a credable source of info.

30

yay T-Nation!

31

I love this site…

The only problem I really have is that whenever I make a critical post of Biotest or one of their products that it gets filtered out by the moderators. I praise almost all of their stuff, I’m level 5 super saiyan what not having spent more than $10K on this site but when I have a bit of criticism it is always removed. That’s not how a community should work.

32

[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]SSC wrote:
This website initially drew me in a few years back with the articles. That’s when I didn’t know a whole lot about weight lifting. Curious about a lot of the super “technical” terminology presented in articles and the seemingly abundance of contradictory information in said articles, I made my way to the forums.

What I found there were hundreds, if not thousands of clowns that worship the authors and training techniques presented by them, but none of them looked like they lifted. My goal is bodybuilding. 99% of the articles posted on this site have no relevence to actual bodybuilding, and aren’t really helpful in any endeavors to ME. Thus, I don’t bitch about them (with this exception.)

What I’m getting at is that this “community” here is for shit, mostly. Guys inhabiting the “bodybuilding” forum who have no interest in bodybuilding whatsoever. Regulars on the website who all apparently are best friends, but I’ve never actually seen any of them posting anything related to training or lifting. People who want to know the ins-and-the-outs of every facet of every training programming who don’t even know what it’s like to be intense when lifting.

I have it on very good authority that there are a lot of guys who left this site because of this stuff, whether it’s posting primarily on other lifting sites or just leaving all together. I also know they come back mostly just to troll. These are big, strong, and smart fellows who actually live the lifestyle accordingly.

And I hate to sound like a prick, but I can’t figure out if this forum is unmoderated or not. I post a video in the bodybuilding forum about a HUGE guy moving a LOT of weight and it gets taken down because it’s ‘basically just a praise video’ (not exact words,) but we have guys like Dankid and other ignoramuses who run around and give out information that is extremely stupid and in existence just to rile people up.

So, the future of T-Nation (forums?) It’s going to be like the class of '09, x a billion.[/quote]

Good post.

If I may ask, what video was taken down?

I agree that there sometimes seems to be some effort to limit actual discussion or praise of BODYBUILDING while we let idiots like dankid post endlessly, but up to this point I thought it was mostly limited to connecting other business sites with this one. [/quote]

It was the James Henderson “10 minutes to 6” video on youtube. JAMES HENDERSON 10 MINUTES TO 6 - YouTube

Granted, I think I only made a quick post because I had to go to work or something and it’s not strictly about a “bodybuilder” (in a competes-type of sense.) I got home and planned to start a discussion about it but had found it was taken down.

To be fair, I’ve seen Mods take the helm on some issues every so often. I’m pretty sure they straightened out that Opetheta character, and I’ve seen it here and there.

Most of the time I’m pretty reserved about the way things are done here because I know I’m in no position to critique the running of someone’s business.

In regards to the thread, I just feel the community itself would be better off with less people scattered about, but Bioteset is trying to attract as many potential customers as possible, something I understand. The issue is that the forums here are most lively in sections that don’t pertain to lifting or “fitness” in general. Let’s be honest, GAL and SAMA are pretty much the equivalents to 4chan.

33

[quote]bundy wrote:

[quote]Vir wrote:

[quote]polo77j wrote:
“vir
level 0”

What’s your point Vir? Cuz the guy’s a level 0 he shouldn’t have an opinion? Pot meet kettle…[/quote]

Everyone’s free to have an opinion, I just don’t see why this guy is getting so annoyed about a website/company he has never even bought from - unless he gets his Biotest stuff from another supplier. Although I suppose he is entitled to have his say about the forum members. I wouldn’t complain about articles that I have never put any money towards, that’s all.

RE: my level - I’ll be buying eventually when I have the money, FWIW. But anyway the point is I just found it strange that bundy has been here for 6 years and never bought anything but still felt like ranting about the quality of the articles. There’s lots of great stuff in the archives anyway![/quote]

I have bought a number of Biotest products here in Australia. If you would like to pay the absurd shipping fees for me then I would be more than happy to increase my ‘level’ and purchase some from the store. [/quote]

Yeah I live in the UK so I know what you are saying. Anyway my original post was just a throwaway comment, I wish I never made it in the first place.

34

[quote]pradaboy wrote:
I love this site…

The only problem I really have is that whenever I make a critical post of Biotest or one of their products that it gets filtered out by the moderators. I praise almost all of their stuff, I’m level 5 super saiyan what not having spent more than $10K on this site but when I have a bit of criticism it is always removed. That’s not how a community should work.[/quote]

Respectful criticism on Biotest supplements is welcome and posted every day.

I think I’m aware of the instance to which you’re referring and the post was only removed because you had already made the same comment about not liking the taste of something several times in the same thread (in the Anaconda forum) if I recall correctly.

I apologize if I have you confused with another member.

35

[quote]Mod Brian wrote:

[quote]pradaboy wrote:
I love this site…

The only problem I really have is that whenever I make a critical post of Biotest or one of their products that it gets filtered out by the moderators. I praise almost all of their stuff, I’m level 5 super saiyan what not having spent more than $10K on this site but when I have a bit of criticism it is always removed. That’s not how a community should work.[/quote]

Respectful criticism on Biotest supplements is welcome and posted every day.

I think I’m aware of the instance to which you’re referring and the post was only removed because you had already made the same comment about not liking the taste of something several times in the same thread (in the Anaconda forum) if I recall correctly.

I apologize if I have you confused with another member.

[/quote]

Wasn’t about the taste of Anaconda. I never criticed Anaconda because I think it is a revolutionary product. I’m simply sensitive to one of the ingredients, so instead I double dose MAG-10 which I like very much.

36

[quote]pradaboy wrote:

[quote]Mod Brian wrote:

[quote]pradaboy wrote:
I love this site…

The only problem I really have is that whenever I make a critical post of Biotest or one of their products that it gets filtered out by the moderators. I praise almost all of their stuff, I’m level 5 super saiyan what not having spent more than $10K on this site but when I have a bit of criticism it is always removed. That’s not how a community should work.[/quote]

Respectful criticism on Biotest supplements is welcome and posted every day.

I think I’m aware of the instance to which you’re referring and the post was only removed because you had already made the same comment about not liking the taste of something several times in the same thread (in the Anaconda forum) if I recall correctly.

I apologize if I have you confused with another member.

[/quote]

Wasn’t about the taste of Anaconda. I never criticed Anaconda because I think it is a revolutionary product. I’m simply sensitive to one of the ingredients, so instead I double dose MAG-10 which I like very much.[/quote]

I just checked and the post to which you refer is still there.

37

[quote]SSC wrote:

[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]SSC wrote:
This website initially drew me in a few years back with the articles. That’s when I didn’t know a whole lot about weight lifting. Curious about a lot of the super “technical” terminology presented in articles and the seemingly abundance of contradictory information in said articles, I made my way to the forums.

What I found there were hundreds, if not thousands of clowns that worship the authors and training techniques presented by them, but none of them looked like they lifted. My goal is bodybuilding. 99% of the articles posted on this site have no relevence to actual bodybuilding, and aren’t really helpful in any endeavors to ME. Thus, I don’t bitch about them (with this exception.)

What I’m getting at is that this “community” here is for shit, mostly. Guys inhabiting the “bodybuilding” forum who have no interest in bodybuilding whatsoever. Regulars on the website who all apparently are best friends, but I’ve never actually seen any of them posting anything related to training or lifting. People who want to know the ins-and-the-outs of every facet of every training programming who don’t even know what it’s like to be intense when lifting.

I have it on very good authority that there are a lot of guys who left this site because of this stuff, whether it’s posting primarily on other lifting sites or just leaving all together. I also know they come back mostly just to troll. These are big, strong, and smart fellows who actually live the lifestyle accordingly.

And I hate to sound like a prick, but I can’t figure out if this forum is unmoderated or not. I post a video in the bodybuilding forum about a HUGE guy moving a LOT of weight and it gets taken down because it’s ‘basically just a praise video’ (not exact words,) but we have guys like Dankid and other ignoramuses who run around and give out information that is extremely stupid and in existence just to rile people up.

So, the future of T-Nation (forums?) It’s going to be like the class of '09, x a billion.[/quote]

Good post.

If I may ask, what video was taken down?

I agree that there sometimes seems to be some effort to limit actual discussion or praise of BODYBUILDING while we let idiots like dankid post endlessly, but up to this point I thought it was mostly limited to connecting other business sites with this one. [/quote]

It was the James Henderson “10 minutes to 6” video on youtube. JAMES HENDERSON 10 MINUTES TO 6 - YouTube

Granted, I think I only made a quick post because I had to go to work or something and it’s not strictly about a “bodybuilder” (in a competes-type of sense.) I got home and planned to start a discussion about it but had found it was taken down.[/quote]

The mod that handled the video post you referenced just forwarded me the PM that he sent to you about it.

"Sorry, but we had to delete your recent new thread about James Henderson.

The Bodybuilding Training forum is getting cluttered with threads about pictures, rather than discussions about actual bodybuilding training, so we’re trying to manage any further threads.

It would be better if you post your message either in the “Motivational Pics and Quotes” thread:

Or possibly in the Performance Photos thread."

This looks like it was handled properly.

38

Seems like legit moderating, not censorship. ^^^^

39

I would like to see more of Eric Cressey on here. I personally think the articles he wrote on T-Nation…the responeses by him Ive read on his thread, and his book are some of the best information that has helped me. NOt as a “bodybuiler” per say…but just as a man who has imbalances.

MOD BRIAN…CAN WE GET CRESSEY BACK ON HERE…PLEASE?

40

I think T-Nation is the best site for learning about building muscle and strength, period. But, we could improve it.

I was shocked the first time I posted something that was “censored” for business reasons (alas, I referenced an article on a “competing website”). I personally subscribe to the world-view of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who said, “I still believe the way to fight bad speech is not to ban it, but to fight it with true speech.” The real value of the internet comes from its inter-connectedness. With moderators suppressing casual references to certain websites or competing products, our discussions here are less robust and certainly less honest than they would be in person.

I did not read George Orwell’s “1984” until last year, after I had been a fan of T-Nation for years. When I got that first PM telling me that one of my posts had been eliminated for supposedly undermining the business model, my first thought was of T-Nation mirroring the Ministry of Truth (or Minitrue in Newspeak) Ministries of Nineteen Eighty-Four - Wikipedia

I don’t get many such messages anymore because I have stopped linking to other sites with valuable insight on topics we are discussing here–and that’s a shame. I hardly think T-Nation members are unaware of the landscape of internet bodybuilding websites. It’s as if there is a fear they will leave T-Nation never to return if they ever experience anything valuable elsewhere. I believe East Germany subscribed to this Weltanschauung back in the day, but alas, it didn’t work.

More to the point of the original post here, I disagree that the content of the site as gone to shit. I still think T-Nation has the best information, organized in the best fashion of any other muscle media on the planet. And I believe despite our well-meaning moderators, that our community here is the most robust, well-behaved, informed, helpful online communities around. We’ve evolved from 2004 (I was a lurker then, though not a member), but that doesn’t mean we’re shit now–we’re just different (better, in my view).