Structural limits to muscle mass

[mt]

My favorite pose has always been the relaxed standing the pose. The way they use to do it in the old days. Not with the arms and elbows flared out (which seemed to flatten out the delts) but just resting comfortably at the sides. There you just see the raw potential power in repose.

I'm not a fan of the freakish physiques of today and prefer the seventies early-eighties look the best but I stumbled across this picture of Ronnie Coleman just standing relaxed and he is truly amazing! Every body part is just freakishly developed. It makes one wonder if the extent of human development has reached it's limits. At some point the skeletal structure can only support so much muscle mass without literally having to redefine the human form. How can Coleman's thighs get much bigger and still be able to walk? How can his upper arms get much bigger and still bend?

I can see why most people would consider him gross and it's not my cup of tea either but one can't help but be awestruck.

I don't know how to attach the pic but I hope you can access this link.

http://digilander.libero.it/mrolympia2/rc82.jpg

More my taste:

http://digilander.libero.it/mrolympia2/fz34.jpg

http://digilander.libero.it/mikementzer/m14.jpg

http://digilander.libero.it/mrolympia/m10.jpg

 

[Nelson Montana]

It's funny. Talking to some of the old timers like Draper and Howorth, they said that the old times from their day used to say they've taken it "too far!"

So who knows? These guys aren't dying so maybe someday the norm will be to inject 1000mgs every hour. Sick, I know. But like I said...who knows? People in general are getting bigger, so...?

But it's an interesting observation. Personally, I think you're right about skeletal structure being a factor. Maybe the freakiness has come close to the maximum limit. As far as I'm concerned, it's already way past what it needs to be.

 

[Silent Method]

mt, I have some AMAZING pics of Arnold just milling around.

 

[The_Eviscerator]

It is sad that some pros are forced to conform to this bigger is better mentality. When Craig Titus won the USA's for his pro card he was 227, but he looked phenomenal. Now he is 247 and he looks terrible. The taper in his waist is gone and he looks blocky. Unfortunately, this was a decision he made because he knew he would never be rewarded for pure aesthetics. Milos Sarcev was another victim. I always liked his physique until he tried to compete with the mass monsters. Now he looks odd.

 

[ham2]

It is sad that some pros are forced to conform to this bigger is better mentality. When Craig Titus won the USA's for his pro card he was 227, but he looked phenomenal. Now he is 247 and he looks terrible. The taper in his waist is gone and he looks blocky. Unfortunately, this was a decision he made because he knew he would never be rewarded for pure aesthetics. Milos Sarcev was another victim. I always liked his physique until he tried to compete with the mass monsters. Now he looks odd.

indeed

 

[mt]

If anybody has tried to do a serious bulking routine and the feeling of nausea you get from the constant force feeding knows that it just can't be healthy.
But for a driven, elite, world class athlete I don't think health has ever (at least not today) been the number one issue and is only incidental as it pertains to athletic performance. Meaning that chances are you will perform better if you are in good health but you will be willing to sacrifice your health if it means superior performance. I'm beginning to think that world class bodybuilding today -- with the training, diet, drugs (not just steroids) and overall lifestyle has got to be one of the most unhealthy sports out there. This is quite ironic when you think that it's original purpose was to promote a healthy lifestyle and was independent of athletic performance per se.

If anyone can think of a sport they consider more unhealthy I'd like to know. There are more physically brutal sports like football and NHB/MMA fighting and I think professional wrestling may be about the worse because they have a lifestyle similar to bodybuilders except it's a year round performance, constant travelling, almost as much drugs and they have to take those brutal falls and stunts. But I think the bulking diets that top bodybuilders have to endure to pack on even more mass (how else could Coleman at the last Olympia pack on about 25lbs more muscle on such an absurdly developed physique when most of us would be happy with a 10 lb gain in a year on our decidedly middling frames?) in addition to the greater drug use compared to wrestlers (which includes the pain killers) are the real killers. I think it's a toss up and as I write this I think probably professional wrestling is worse but, of course, there were never any claims that it was a healthy endeavor whereas bodybuilding was originally design to be healthy (it still is when done old school which does include a judicious use of super-supplements).