[quote]joe shumsky wrote:
all of the shenanigans and tomfoolery i’ve been reading in some of these threads lately (and i’m not gonna mention which ones) has gotten me thinking. i’m now going to pose, to anyone who’s listening, a very simple question for your review:
do you think it’s possible that the fundamental premise of bodybuilding has somehow fallen upon deaf ears, or been lost to the sands of time, somehow?
you see, i thought that this whole thing (bodybuilding) was about a guy (preferably you) creating a situation in which he was carrying the most muscle possible while simultaneously carrying the least amount of fat possible. and, please note, the two key words here are “possible” and “simultaneously”.
the word “possible” seems to need to be highlighted because these physical quantities of muscle and fat tissue we’re talking about are obviously going to vary between individuals… and even within the same individual depending on his circumstances.
the word “simultaneously” also seems to need to be highlighted because it’s not only muscular development that makes a person look impressive, or good, or what have you… nor is it only minimal levels of bodyfat. but it is when both of these conditions are met, at the same time, that the whole does become greater than the sum of its parts.
i bring up these points for two reasons.
1.) despite what many of the macho-bullshit-attitude-types i’ve been seeing on here would have you believe, and it’s so completely absurd i should have to point this out that i’m actually embarassed, NOT EVERYONE IS CAPABLE OF ATTAINING THE AMOUNT OF MUSCLE MASS, AND/OR THE LACK OF BODYFAT, NECESSARY TO BE, OR LOOK LIKE, A PROFESSIONAL BODYBUILDER. and i’m guessing many of you, like me, haven’t, either… if you had, you would most likely be out engaging in pro-bodybuilder style recreational activities and not screwing around on the internet.
2.) IT DOESN’T FUCKING MATTER HOW “BIG” YOU ARE (OR THINK YOU ARE) ANYWAY… WHAT MATTERS IS HOW GOOD YOU LOOK. and if you don’t believe me, ask arnold how he feels about suffering his only american competition loss at the hands of one frank zane (a guy who arnold dwarfed in “size”, but certainly not in “shape”… on that particular day, anyway.)
just thinkin’ out loud.
happy thanksgiving. [/quote]
The fundamental premises of bodybuilding has not fallen on deaf ears at all. Your theory here might seem logical at first glance on paper, but you are placing far too many assumptions:
- Firstly, you seem to assume that all bodybuilders after the golden age of bodybuilding has followed blindly the method of gaining mass, which is to bulk. You assume that these bodybuilders do not have a mind of their own, and do not have the necessary basic intellect that years of hard training and common sense would teach them to know what works best for themselves at their level.
You assume that these bodybuilders somehow follow spilts training and bulking just so because people have done so, and neglecting the fact that these bodybuilders have also experimented with such training styles and find it highly effective for themselves.
- Understand that pro bodybuilders you often see on magazines and videos are already well developed and at their peak. They dont often show you how these bodybuilders themselves rise from a 150lb kid to a 300lb mass monster, which im willing to bet, requires them to bulk at some point in time. Just because you see top level bodybuilders, who are already at a physical peak in their life being lean and muscular in magazines, does not mean that they went above a certain level of bodyfat earlier in their training stage. Besides, the off-season photos of bodybuilders are proof enough that those same bodybuilders do not remain skin tight lean year round.
and to rebutt on your points above:
- Frankly, I dont understand thg is point. Its true that most of us do not have the genetics to develop such physiques as IFBB pro bodybuilders, but then again, we dont really care. Being a bodybuilder doesnt mean adding 10lbs of lean muscle every half a year; It means breaking your limits and going to extremes in terms of muscle, diet etc. There is no place for weight limits or barriers and stuff like that.
Besides, its sure as hell normal for a 5’6 guy to hit 200lbs natural. And you are so wrong about people who dont compete having lousier physiques. People like CC and Prof X are close to 300lbs, which im sure is hell enough to compete at the PRO level. Whether or not they want to compete is up to them, there is more to life then just competing in shows, provided you still train of course.
2)How BIG you are definitely matters, hence the bodybuilding forum name. Of course, the name of the game is to get huge while not being obscenely fat. No one is calling for huge amounts of fat in order to be BIG. And unless the person in question is severely dumb or so genetically disadvantaged, a proper training system would allow him to build a proportionate physique.
Using Arnold and Zane is not a good comparison, because both those athletes are well developed, mind you (Zane had 18 inch arms and was by no means average except for his legs). What the other posters and Prof X in this forum are comparing are 150lb males with 200+lb males, which is definitely a huge difference.
One more point: you seem to be taking posters who reply against you as having macho-bullshit-attitude-types, when they are just really trying to put across truth and facts that for some reason, are being ignored in the face of overwhelming evidence and logic [hint: CC’s long posts and some others].
I don’t see any of such macho-bullshit-attitude, or egoistical stuff; I see straight, no-nonsense answers around here.
There is so much more ego and shit in everyday real life, maybe a year or two in the army would expose you to what real ego and macho bullshit is about.