Rag-Doll 0 Posted December 11, 2006 Share Posted December 11, 2006 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/photo/2006-12/09/content_754505.htm Anyone see the bodybuilding guys competing in the Asian Games in the past few days. I saw some of it on the news yesterday and I wondered why? Why do that? Why spend so much time and take so many drugs to end up looking like a bronzed coloured plastic doll? Link to post Share on other sites
nzlegend 1 Posted December 11, 2006 Share Posted December 11, 2006 why spend a mint on expensive gear and slide down snow covered mountains? you could ask why do anything - I comes down to whatever floats your boat. Link to post Share on other sites
Rag-Doll 0 Posted December 11, 2006 Author Share Posted December 11, 2006 You could ask that and the answer would be that it is exciting and takes you into the outdoors and nature. Bodybuilding is unhealthy and produces a comical appearance - what is the appeal in body building? Link to post Share on other sites
thursday 1 Posted December 11, 2006 Share Posted December 11, 2006 probably because there's not a lot of thinking to do and it comes naturally to them. You know, looking stupid and saying dumb things. Arnold, great example of what a stupid guy could accidentally stumble upon via the body building route. Link to post Share on other sites
nzlegend 1 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 Quote: Originally posted by thursday: You know, looking stupid and saying dumb things. Arnold, great example of what a stupid guy could accidentally stumble upon via the body building route. seriously that is the stupidest thing I have read today, if you think Arnold is stupid, then you are truly clueless. Read about the man, he is far from stupid he is one of the most motivated, determined, and successful people in history and pretty intelligent to boot, watch the great docu "pumping Iron" to see a glimpse into his mental ablities . He was a millionaire before he made his first movie from investing his bodybuilding earnings in real estate, he made millions from "acting" and if you think you can deduce that he is dumb from the roles he's played you you probably think Tom Hanks was an astronaut and Anthony Hopkins is a psycohpath. Its mind boggling that people cant seem to separate the man from his acting roles. When he was poor skinny kid in Austria he set himself lofty goals (to be the best bodybuilder, the richest actor, marry somenoe famous and be a politician) and worked bloody hard to achieve them. He is not perfect though he took roids( at time when the were common place and not illegal) he can be pretty arrogant and he has too much testosterone with the ladies and he has allegedly done some things in pretty poor form, but if you think he "stumbled his way" to the top then are sadly mistaken - its insulting. Rag-doll as they say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, to you its comical to others it human art, a really fat person to me is not beautiful but to some African tribes is very alluring. I will agree that the excessive bronzing looks stupid, but its done by the Asians and white people to negate the advantage of dark skinned athletes as the dark skin highlights the muscle shape and tone more than paler skin. Yes Its unhealthy at the highest level where drugs and extreme diets rule, but the other 95% of regular bodybuilders and top level natural bodybuilders, train hard and enjoy it. A hard work out, lifting weights is extremely satisfying. Quote: (from pumping iron) The greatest feeling you can get in a gym, or the most satisfying feeling you can get in the gym is... The Pump. Let's say you train your biceps. Blood is rushing into your muscles and that's what we call The Pump. You muscles get a really tight feeling, like your skin is going to explode any minute, and it's really tight - it's like somebody blowing air into it, into your muscle. It just blows up, and it feels really different. It feels fantastic. It's as satisfying to me as, uh, coming is, you know? perhaps there is the final clue to why bodybuilders do it! They seek the pseudo-orgasm that is the pump, just like joggers high. They also set goals, work towards them and sculpt their bodies, just because they do it indoors doesnt give others the right to be sanctimonious about it because they feel the are spending their time and effort doing something they considerable more worthwhile. Many bodybuiledrs are sporty people and are involved in a multitude of sports to complement their bodybuilding. If bodybuilders are weird how about sumo wrestlers? Steroids are rampant in sumo, there is no drug testing, its all swept under the carpet. They gorge and roid themselves to comical proportions living a spartan life dictated by severe heirachal traditions. Their life spans are shortened and the suffer shocking injuries for what? now the question has be asked why? Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 You were doing quite well with the pursuasion there SG, until you lit into sumo. Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 I agree with SG. At the risk of talking about me again: I used to get a lot of satisfaction from setting out to increase my body weight by 10 - 15 kg in pure clean muscle over 6-12 months. Considering I am 172cm and normally 65kg, it was a big change in my body. The huge buzz from the pump and the simple physical challenge and experimentation with my muscles went very well with a life full of mental challenges and mental experimentation. On 4 separate occasions in the last 15 years I have pumped myself up from 65kg to 75-80kgs. I usually stop when I realise that my head looked too small and people thought I was on roids (For a white guy I am/was lucky with natural definition and don't carry any body fat and so... I stood out more than I felt comfortable with). Also it is true that the motivation of appearance creeps into your mind, and that is a negative indicator in my world. I agree that those shaven and painted body builders look a bit (very) funny. And to be frank, many hardcore iron pumpers are idiots, utter simpletons. That kind of caveman person is common in the game of looking like a beast, it goes with the territory. But don't jump too fast to the conclusion that mental and physical determination is seldom found in the same person and that all strong people are also dumb. A very strong and fit body allows the mind to dedicate itself to solving problems and observing the environment, rather than being singularly focused on mind-over-matter which is usually the only way to keep going when the going gets tough and happens at the expense of important mental tasks. Mind over matter works, but its a waste of a good brain. So they look strange all painted and smiling hard on stage. I suppose its a by-product of competition. When I see them I see people that worked harder than we could fathom, every moment of their lives dedicated to seeing what they could achieve with the body that stands between their toenails and their eyebrows. Other people choose to see what they can achieve on an xbox games console. Link to post Share on other sites
nzlegend 1 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 Quote: Originally posted by Ocean11: You were doing quite well with the pursuasion there SG, until you lit into sumo. sorry, that last comment about sumo was actually ironical because I am actually a huge fan of sumo and follow it closely. I was just trying to highlight how it is possible to look at something from a quite negative aspect and highlight only the bad stuff. Its easy to look at something you dont connect with and dismiss it as at foolish. Personally I get sick of people constantly bagging synchronized swimming and Ice Skating, while I am not a big fan of either I can appreciate the hours of hard work and dedication these people put into their pursuit and both are aesthetically pleasing to watch. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 When I was a kid, one of the comics I read ran bogus ads for strap-on muscles. I asked my mum for the money to get a set. I thought I'd go for the big chest first. I felt utterly crushed when my mum told me it was a joke. That experience extinguished forever my urge to get bigger. Link to post Share on other sites
69 5 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 Those dudes were on the tv news last night. I don't get why they need to be bronze-orange as well as all meaty... Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 Well said above SG. I love the pump! Quote: Originally posted by 69: Those dudes were on the tv news last night. I don't get why they need to be bronze-orange as well as all meaty... As has already been stated above that a tanned or dark body shows the muscle definition and separation way more than on a white body. That's why they use the paint on tan (or dye) before comps. And you wouldn't believe the difference it makes. Link to post Share on other sites
Rag-Doll 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Author Share Posted December 12, 2006 The ironic (or is it tragic?) thing about body building though is that a major motivator is the appearance when the end result is a comical, strangely colored cartoonish body with a disproportionately little head stuck on top. Sumo and weight lifting aren't good analogies because the appearance of the competitors is a result of the training for the sport, not an end in itself. Link to post Share on other sites
thursday 1 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 yes SG, he must be a role model for you. Link to post Share on other sites
panhead_pete 27 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 Great post spud! Quote: Originally posted by db le p: So they look strange all painted and smiling hard on stage. I suppose its a by-product of competition. When I see them I see people that worked harder than we could fathom, every moment of their lives dedicated to seeing what they could achieve with the body that stands between their toenails and their eyebrows. Other people choose to see what they can achieve on an xbox games console. This could be said for so many pursuits where others dont like the way someone else looks or dresses including boarders who wear baggy clothes etc etc etc etc but cant achieve 1/2 of what these folks have. Making negative or snide remarks on a computer about things an individual isnt into does not maketh the man. Dreaming and doing, probably do! At least I'm 1/2 way there Link to post Share on other sites
Rag-Doll 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Author Share Posted December 12, 2006 >Making negative or snide remarks on a computer about things an individual isn’t into does not maketh the man PP who is that aimed at? So we're all supposed to be nice and supportive are we? Well, here is the thing....I reckon body builders look comical. I reckon they've taken an ideal or the concept of an ideal and extrapolated it to the point of parody and, I’m going out on a limb here, I reckon the vast majority of people would agree that there is something decidedly narcissistic (not to mention odd) about the whole thing. Body building – it’s a form of masturbation Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 Personally I find the fact that you simply have to eat more to get that big repugnant. There's something not quite right about eating more food to make yourself big. And we don't need to bring sumo into this. You can do sumo without being big, and there's also more to sumo than being big. Link to post Share on other sites
Rag-Doll 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Author Share Posted December 12, 2006 PP, mate, I'm sorry if I've offended you. But body builders look silly to me and I reckon that is a opinion shared by many people and even if it wasn't I would still say they look silly. Simply pursuing an endeavor doesn't automatically validate it – If I wanted to walk around with a flower sticking out of my butt, whilst I may be entitled to do so, would I not also deservedly be regarded with some derision by the rest of the community? Furthermore, to get themselves into the shape they do requires a degree of vanity not usually found or accepted in the wider community. Of course they're entitled to do what they do - it doesn't harm anyone else, so good on'em I say, but that doesn't mean they should in anyway by absolved from the fact that they look like clowns. I'm sure those big burly men can accept some ridicule although I wouldn't be calling them clowns in person lest I trigger a ‘roid rage that I might not live to regret. Link to post Share on other sites
Rag-Doll 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Author Share Posted December 12, 2006 Pete? What happened? If my post above looks more pointless than usual that is because it was written in response to a post by Panhead_pete which has since been taken down. Link to post Share on other sites
thursday 1 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 more pointless than body builders and women body builders? Nah. Link to post Share on other sites
Rag-Doll 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Author Share Posted December 12, 2006 what can I say, it's a slow day in the office. Link to post Share on other sites
panhead_pete 27 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 I pulled my post as after posting and re reading it I just didnt want to get sucked into a negative argument and felt I had probably added fuel to the fire. I am not in a good mood having had to can my trip next week and it sort of showed in the post. We are all diiferent and have different views and I respect that, in fact its cool. God help everyone if the world was full of me Link to post Share on other sites
Rag-Doll 0 Posted December 12, 2006 Author Share Posted December 12, 2006 Mate no worries and what a pisser to have your trip canned because of work so close to the departure date - we all live in fear of that particular demon. Link to post Share on other sites
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