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The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

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Re: The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

#241

Post by kergonath »

roflc0ptic wrote: post #102
rmah wrote: post #82

I usually don't read articles like this, but it was so well written that I was sort of sucked into it. What was most interesting to me was not the various controversies about body aesthetics or even health consequences. What stood out to me was the author's description in the early parts of the article of how much she seemed to crave the approval of strangers, especially men. It was thought provoking and I'm still pr…

Since the pandemic started, my interactions with strangers of the opposite sex have been quite curtailed. Last week a vague acquaintance in my condo complex, 35 years my senior, stopped me and spent a good 30 seconds telling me how blue my eyes looked, and musing on how my outfit made them stand out especially. On the one hand, this is weirdly objectifying, and I kind of wish she had the slightest interest in who I a…

Nice story (first paragraph; third paragraph rings all too true). I don't think being told you have beautiful eyes is necessarily objectifying, though.

Re: The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

#242

Post by andreareina »

leshow wrote: post #223
andreareina wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> it's not fair to judge bodybuilding based on that It's bunk, but if it represents a large portion of the population then I'd say it is fair to judge bodybuilding based on that; community and culture are part of the sport. (I don't know any bodybuilders even from my gym rat days so I don't make any claims as to what the common dieting methods actually are; the ones I knew that did strength sports were pretty much fo…

> It's bunk, but if it represents a large portion of the population then I'd say it is fair to judge bodybuilding based on that; Do you usually judge groups based on the worst actors in them? Part of the problem is that at the high levels of bodybuilding everyone is on steroids and other drugs, thyroid, clenbuterol, diuretics, etc and there aren't any studies to tell people how those should be taken in order to make…

Not the worst actors, but I'd say typical is fair game. And there's a whole lot of nuance there of course, both in terms of what's the scope of "typical" and what you do with that info.

As I said I don't have much exposure to high-level bodybuilders so I can't speak to that specifically. But if you take a look at fittit there's a *lot* of broscience repeated by the majority of posters, and to the extent that the bullshit increases the friction that beginners experience and provide little to no benefit (either in relation to the effort expended, or worse yet in absolute terms), it is detrimental to the casual majority.

I realize we may be talking at cross purposes since I can't speak to personal experience with bodybuilders, just the popular perceptions of their habits.

Re: The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

#243

Post by bluecalm »

jonnyone wrote: post #70
rubyn00bie wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Truly. I do not think most people are aware of prolific steroid usage is... It mostly boils down to people pumping themselves full of steroids up until a week or so before the competition so they test clean. With almost zero body fat, most drugs are metabolized and removed from the body really quickly. It was pretty depressing to realize that body-building is totally gamed and drug based. Not because I was ever into…

>It mostly boils down to people pumping themselves full of steroids up until a week or so before the competition so they test clean. The most common "base" of a steroid cycle is testosterone. If you stopped injecting testosterone a week before a competition, you would still show unusually high levels of testosterone in your blood (even if you were using a shorter ester). But as others have pointed out, they don't tes…

There is also no ester test. You have to inject it daily (or more likely several times a day) but it's detectable for like 4-5 hours. This plus first two no-shows not counting as failed test makes it possible to juice in professional sports which do out of competition testing. Granted I don't think it's popular in BB circles because yeah no testing and injecting as much as frequently would be painful.

Re: The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

#244

Post by Blikkentrekker »

3131s wrote: post #240
Blikkentrekker wrote: post #164

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The article points out that for visible abdominals one needs to maintain less than 10%, typically 8%, and that doctors recommend between 15% and 20% 10% is at the outskirts of what is generally considered acceptable, it is not a disaster such as the 3% that some body builders go for, but gaining more is definitely better and to achieve 10% one must in general consciously malnutitrion and avoid eating food that the bo…

> to achieve 10% one must in general consciously malnutitrion and avoid eating food that the body can use to synthesize fat. No, no! If you are eating foods that humans should eat and exercising about an hour a day, you will naturally fall below 10% no matter what else you do. I never limit the amount of food I eat and in no sense am I "malnourished". I am 80 kilos at around 8% body fat and I still have a lot to spar…

> No, no! If you are eating foods that humans should eat and exercising about an hour a day, you will naturally fall below 10% no matter what else you do.

Perhaps if you mean with that what human beings should eat without that exercise.

> I never limit the amount of food I eat and in no sense am I "malnourished". I am 80 kilos at around 8% body fat and I still have a lot to spare before it would start to affect my athletic performance as a sprinter. Go take a look at the typical 100m sprinter physique and tell me that any of them are malnourished!

Sprinters are very much malnourished to keep weight to a minimum.

You will notice that in other sports that do not rely on reducing weight such as shot put or powerlifting, the athletes tend to develop a very different physique.

Re: The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

#245

Post by randycupertino »

SuoDuanDao wrote: post #193
DoreenMichele wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was a ridiculously cute little girl and I'm pretty damn sure a lot of my social issues as a young adult were rooted in getting essentially trained to play to the crowd as a toddler. At that age, it's a form of brainwashing and it's amazingly hard to root out after you become an adult and are puzzled that your antics no longer get you adoration. (PSA: Please don't do this to your own children. It's an awful thing to…

On a tangentially related note, I've noticed that many heterosexual men imagine the comedian Felix Kjellberg (AKA Pewdiepie) must be the height of attractiveness for women, while few heterosexual women find him particularly attractive. I found this very confusing, but after a few discussions with heterosexual female friends of mine we've come to the conclusion that the kind of playfulness and disinhibition this perso…

As a heterosexual female, Matt Bomer is the height of peak male attractiveness. I'd say Charlize Theron would be tops for females. Pewdiepie - ha. I actually find him repulsive, but you are right it's the personality - too loud, too awkward, too ... zany. I think I'd find that offputting in a female as well.

Re: The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

#246

Post by Blikkentrekker »

3131s wrote: post #239
Blikkentrekker wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The issue is not building muscles, in almost any body building competition, what comes with it is lowering body fat to unhealthy levels. Know well that something as simple as visible abdominal muscles already requires a body fat percentage that is lower than what is generally considered healthy.[0] One's musculature should not be “defined” for optimal health, — that requires dropping below healthy fat levels. Profess…

Nonsense, if your abs aren't visible as a man then you are carrying too much fat. What's unhealthy about body bulding, beyond the direct effects of the roids, is that these guys are like 300+ lbs. That and becoming severely dehydrated from taking diuretics before competitions.

Then I'm sure you can produce a source that runs contrary to my own on that matter, because even searching with neutral phrases such as “Is having a sixpack healthy?” returns nothing but results to me with experts saying that it isn't, and that to achieve it one must go below the minimum recommended body fat percentage.

Re: The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

#247

Post by 3131s »

nsajko wrote: post #114
Blikkentrekker wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Leaving all the ridiculous gender politics aside, body building is very comparable to those so-called “ pro-ana ” models in how unhealthy it is, and I believe it should be treated the same, which is, of course: allow a man to do what he wants. However, it strikes me as a particular dual standard that some jurisdictions have tackled models whose body fat percentage is dangerously low, but who do not have steroid-built…

> some jurisdictions have tackled models whose body fat percentage is dangerously low [...] What are you talking about here? > unhealthily large muscles Taking steroids and other activities related to bodybuilding and sports more generally can sure take their toll, but I'm pretty sure nobody has problems because of overly large muscles. > most body builders are unhealthy low in fat Source? > But of course, that is no…

> I'm pretty sure nobody has problems because of overly large muscles.

Well, you're wrong. Your heart has to work harder to pump blood whether you are 300 lbs of muscle or 300 lbs of fat, it doesn't matter. This is well-known, so maybe do a little research?

Re: The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

#248

Post by [deleted] »

falcor84 wrote: post #151
RealityVoid wrote: post #146

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Strong people are harder to kill and more usefull in general.

>Strong people are harder to kill Is that actually so? Looking at US homicide statistics, over 75% of cases involve firearms. Would a bodybuilder have better chances of surviving a bullet wound?

[deleted]

Re: The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

#249

Post by watwut »

TeaDrunk wrote: post #123
cccc4all wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The competition look is wringing out that last 10%. Women can maintain the 90% look indefinitely with basic maintenance diet and exercise. The basic Instagram model plan. The extremes is what’s interesting, that they only go through the cycle if there’s competition. And, it’s fascinating to see in person how their bodies can balloon up so fast.

> Women can maintain the 90% look indefinitely with basic maintenance diet and exercise. The basic Instagram model plan. Is this actually true? I was under the impression the Instagram model was only available to women of certain body types and compositions + photoshop and makeup.

Of course. Plus, you have to do the exact right kind of sport cause wrong sport selection cause change of body.

Re: The Feminine Physique: On Women's Bodybuilding

#250

Post by dorkwood »

temporallobe wrote: post #122
rmah wrote: post #82

I usually don't read articles like this, but it was so well written that I was sort of sucked into it. What was most interesting to me was not the various controversies about body aesthetics or even health consequences. What stood out to me was the author's description in the early parts of the article of how much she seemed to crave the approval of strangers, especially men. It was thought provoking and I'm still pr…

Wanting affirmation from and to be attracted by others around you (total strangers included) is basic human nature. It’s why we adorn ourselves with clothing and perfume, not to mention our skin and hair, whatever gender you are. I am a male and always want to seem attractive in physique and in character to the opposite sex, and even in some level to the same sex. My wife insists she doesn’t care what other people th…

I generally don't care what people think of my appearance, but I'll still shave and comb my hair before meeting people -- not because I want to impress them, but because it says "I value you enough to make at least a little bit of effort if we're going to be seen together in public".
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