81 replies to this topic

[mustardseed41]

Umm yea meant....yes I know that

[Shepard]

Sorry, internet communication limitations.

[The Immortalist]

Who cares what you look like? I value function over form anyday.

Well you care, yourself...obviously. As someone said bodybuilding is a subculture of body transformation, and I'd add - an art of sculpting your physique to the desired end result. For ex. I couldn't care less how much I can squat one rep max. I know some guys who can squat an insane amount of weight and they look like an ordinary Joe. And noone really cares how much can you squat even more. Actually - noone cares whatever you can do really, it's about your personal goals.

BTW - these who think a big guy can't fight - find a M.Pudzianowski vs Nayama video on youtube. That's one of the best strongmans recent debut in UFC. Though it's NOT about fighting. I allways laugh when someone says to me - "But you'd probably get beat by some boxer, eh?". I can't understand why they don't say the same thing to some other athlete, like runner, tennis player, basketballer, etc..

Usually with high function, you get high form. except maybe strongmen and nearly anorexic skinny marathon runners. Most top athletes I've seen have really good looking bodies (exceptions of course, it depends on the sport and what your personal tastes are).

[Mike M]

I'm just realistic. As far as calling me into question, that's funny. One of my companies has put together over 30,000 programs for people to get in the best shape of their life. I've dedicated the past 12 years of my life, on a daily basis, to people getting the most out of themselves. I don't need to read something about the movie 300 to see the obvious signs of drug use by SOME of the people in the movie. Maybe adult males are randomly getting gyno in their 30's. Then after the movie, they lose 20lbs. I stay lean year around, but I'm not a big guy. I'll never weigh over 180lbs and stay at my current BF%. I've helped more athletes and average people than probably anyone on this board, by a long shot. Most of you don't know my name as I don't post in this section. I also had to change my name after sellling a few of my companies.

There are alwayse exceptions to EVERY rule. Nothing is an absolute when it comes to these things. I was making general comments. We can go on for days nit picking at what is said. My point is that the AVERAGE person will not be able to maintain single digit bodyfat year around. I've constantly said there are exceptions to that. My post doesn't show anything, other than a dose of reality. Your results have been great and you should be commended on that. You sample of N=1 is great. My sample size is quite a bit larger. Please don't discuss what you think about in regards to my training and results. At 30, I stay around a true 11% year around. I can dunk a basketball. Can still run a sub 11 second 100 and 51 second 400 with minimal training. I mix my training and work very hard to stay where I'm at. Now, I'm sure once I get married and have a few kids, that will all change haha.

Good day.

[VidX]

Most top athletes I've seen have really good looking bodies (exceptions of course, it depends on the sport and what your personal tastes are).

Exactly! Once you start getting into something seriously - your beliefs and outlook usualy changes a lot once you get the new data. BB'ing changes perception of how you see a physique, A LOT, for a person that's not into it it's probably impossible to grasp that change, but that's expected and natural. There may be a sport that gives a trained body as an additional benefit, but in this sport you concentrate on giving your physique a certain look. Whether someone likes it or not - it's irrelevant really, as the personal satisfaction associated with that is so big..

BTW> Mike M in general speaks the truth imho. For an average person with an average genetics it'd take a shitload of efforts to stay at single digit year round. I don't even want to imagine what would need some of the guys I know, go through, to achieve that, because various factor are in play.

Edited by VidX, 20 February 2010 - 04:23 PM.

[TianZi]

It was a fun video to watch.
While I'm pretty big into fitness (and even piercings, though I have none left -- work), I can't really see the appeal of bodybuilding. It's the least functional kind of fitness in real life. You can look nice and big and bulky, but people can run literally circles around you and knock you out faster than you can think to throw a punch, let alone move your incredible bulk..

.. The worst part of the workout .. 15m of cardio

That made me laugh so hard.

Try doing an ironman or ultraman, and then we can talk.

Yes, but that is your priority and not theirs. A bodybuilder cares only about form over function.

A good example is the movie "300." Those guys were lean and muscled like bodybuilders. Recent research into Roman gladiators showed that they tended to be fat. The reasoning for their weight gain: the more padding you have, the less likely you will have a serious injury in battle. The makers of the movie were going for a certain aesthetic, the actors would never see real combat. Likewise, a bodybuilder isn't trying to be the best fighter or sprinter, they just want to have a certain look.

As for the cardio part of Stuart's regimen: for someone who has never done much exercise, doing 15min regularly can be very challenging. Especially after 45mn-1hr of strenuous weightlifting and being in a caloric deficit.

Whether or not Roman gladiators tended to be fat tells us nothing about the typical body fat percentage of an elite Spartan warrior, or member of the regular military of any nation during ancient times. (Besides, it isn't clear from the link why the researchers concluded the gladiators tended to be "fat", although if they were, perhaps it was the case that gigantic men were more entertaining to watch, much as is the case in "professional wrestling" today, or that the rules for matches may have given men with more blubber a competitive advantage they might not have enjoyed on a battlefield.) Gladiators didn't need to march anywhere, nor did they potentially have to fight for days in a row, while at the same time lugging 50-100 lbs of armor, weapons, and other equipment. It seems the Roman legionnaires were typically very fit, and likely had a fairly low bodyfat %, based on their training regimen:

_____________________

The main pre-requisite for a member of the Roman Army was fitness, given the long distances they were expected to march. They commonly trained by running, chopping down trees and doing obstacle courses. Every 3 times a month a legionary had to do an 18 mile route march with 60 pounds of equipment,armour and weapons to carry. It was common practice for a legion being readied for deployment to spend the previous weeks in long field training drills, some of which required that they build three field camps a day. Requirements for non-legionary troops were not as severe. Roman Legions in Imperial Rome were known to march with 66-100 lbs of equipment per legionary at an average pace of at least 4.5 miles/hour for 5 hours and then building a fort for the night, next morning they would take it down and start all over again and even possibly fighting in the same day. Sometimes they played football. This was a grueling,violent sport that sometimes broke bones.

Every day the whole of the legion would practice swimming, running, jumping, fencing and javelin throwing. But, before that happened newcomers would do two sessions of military drill and give their oath of loyalty to their commander and Emperor.

...

In the Roman times training was usually an all day thing, it started at 6am and didn't end until midnight, sometimes they would have to work two days in a row with no break.

As a minimum, it was expected that all troops would be at least minimally competent at swimming, so as to be able to ford any rivers where it was necessary to cross without the aid of a bridge and also some of them would have to swim in their armour so they could continue fighting.

...

http://www.search.co...ence/Roman_Army

(The above is apparently paraphrased from the following book: Davies, Roy W., Service in the Roman Army, Columbia University Press, New York, 1989. A 5 mph pace equates to a 12 minute mile, which is a common jogging pace, albeit not for 18 miles with 60+ lbs. of equipment.)

Edited by TianZi, 14 March 2010 - 10:13 AM.

[hypnotoad]

You do realize many people in the movie 300 were on drugs right? Look at the gyno present in certain actors from that movie after the fact or hell, even during the movie itself. Many of them are far from in that shape now. The "average" person will never achieve that level of conditioning naturally.

That is a ridiculous assertion unless of course you have something to substantiate it.

It would be instructive for you to read this article by the facility that trained these actors and extras:
http://www.gymjones....ledge.php?id=36

My question is this - why WOULDNT the guys in 300 be enhanced (anabolics/DNP/Clen etc) at some point along the way? Is it because they would be tested for a competition? Is it because of the legendary personal ethics and morals actors are renown for? Or because actors are well known for refusing to take drugs or put "harmful" substances in their bodies? Is it because their way of making a living didn't depend on them looking the way the director wanted? The answer of course to all those question is "no", and it some cases "Not a chance in hell"

It would be silly and pointless for an actor needing to gain a lot of muscle and lose fat quickly not to juice for a few months especially when their paycheck depends on it. These guys are hardly the type to live by some "moral high ground" by treating their bodies as pure temples.. look at Butler now - lost everything so its obvious he was no lifelong purist.

Did/does every single person in that kind of shape need to take drugs to do it? Of course not. But is there any good reason why actors wouldn't do it when many of them drink and take other forms of recreational/prescription drugs? The "But my hero Brad Pitt is a better person than that!" rationalization falls flat.

Edited by hypnotoad, 24 March 2010 - 09:00 AM.

[ToriGibbons]

I think that there is a lot of foods available but you know that which is good for your health.You can also take some type of healthy food and some green vegitables for a better health.And You can take regular workout.

[Esoparagon]

She looks so nasty!

[aLurker]

She looks so nasty!

She personifies the difference between "fit" and "veiny pelvis".

Edited by aLurker, 27 June 2010 - 05:06 PM.

[unregistered_user]

Great documentary. Thanks for sharing.

[Boolean]

I don't think I'll ever run competitions. I've been to 6% bf. Hard to maintain and keep muscle.

[nowayout]

Interesting how his face lost 10 years when the fat came off.

Edited by viveutvivas, 12 September 2011 - 07:47 PM.

[lucid]

Sweet video! Thanks for posting it.

Anyone know if Stuart has kept in shape since the film? I wonder if getting that lean makes staying @12%BF easier or harder. Particularly i'm wondering if getting that lean triggers adipose apoptosis.

[lucid]

Also wonder if he was getting any CR effect when on the 1400 KCAL / day diet.

[niner]

Sweet video! Thanks for posting it.

Anyone know if Stuart has kept in shape since the film? I wonder if getting that lean makes staying @12%BF easier or harder. Particularly i'm wondering if getting that lean triggers adipose apoptosis.

Yeah, that was a great video. I don't have high hopes for Stuart, given that he gained ten pounds in the first week after the competition. I think a CR expert would cringe at the way this was done. Real CR needs to be entered gradually, as I understand it. This was more like a crash diet, with the usual outcome. That's a good question about adipose apoptosis. I don't know the answer, but my suspicion is probably not, or not enough.

[nowayout]

It is very rare for someone who let themselves get fat in the first place to keep the fat off, so I don't have high hopes for him.

For someone who has always stayed lean, it is not that hard to look like "that guy". I think that given his starting point (he pretty much had let himself go a LOT), the story makes it seem much harder than it would be for most (non-obese) guys. For example, the bad food choices that tempt him so much have no attraction whatsoever for me, so the problem of having to resist them doesn't even exist for me.

[Getm]

Here is the picture comparison of the guy after six months of his exercise/diet, picture taken from the movie. Does he look younger after that ? I mean his hair color or baldness.

Attached Files

•  difference.png   300.61KB   43 downloads

[nowayout]

You do realize many people in the movie 300 were on drugs right? Look at the gyno present in certain actors from that movie after the fact or hell, even during the movie itself. Many of them are far from in that shape now. The "average" person will never achieve that level of conditioning naturally.

That is a ridiculous assertion unless of course you have something to substantiate it.

ROFL !

I'm just realistic. As far as calling me into question, that's funny. One of my companies has put together over 30,000 programs for people to get in the best shape of their life. I've dedicated the past 12 years of my life, on a daily basis, to people getting the most out of themselves. I don't need to read something about the movie 300 to see the obvious signs of drug use by SOME of the people in the movie. Maybe adult males are randomly getting gyno in their 30's. Then after the movie, they lose 20lbs.

This.

Edited by viveutvivas, 18 October 2011 - 12:18 PM.

[niner]

Here is the picture comparison of the guy after six months of his exercise/diet, picture taken from the movie. Does he look younger after that ? I mean his hair color or baldness.

No. His hair super short in January, and is longer in July. He has more of a tan in July, and the lighting is a little different. Getting down to a low bodyfat percentage usually makes people look older rather than younger, if anything.

[nowayout]

Here is the picture comparison of the guy after six months of his exercise/diet, picture taken from the movie. Does he look younger after that ? I mean his hair color or baldness.

No, but his face looked younger to me when it leaned out (in the beginning it looked like a typical puffy overweight later middle-aged face).

[Boolean]

The thread sort of turned a bit after some months of being bumped. I'm curious though, as the topic brings up a question for me. When people see somebody who is obviously in shape, what are they thinking? Is it that,"Wow I wish i had a personal trainer so I could look that good", or ,"That bastard. He's probably juicin'.", or what? Some guy came up to me and said,"DUDE. What the f*** are you on? Put a f***ing shirt on." I was wearing a tank top at the time. What is it about a nice body that incites anger in those that didn't strive to attain one for themselves? It's maddening.

I mean, you can do this stuff too. It's not like getting in shape and looking good naked is only allowed for the upper crust society.