What makes Bodybuilders BIG? Steroids?

[mohdgame]

What is the aspect that makes a bodybuilder BIG? Steroids use? Genetics? Diet?

I've seen alot of people on GYM and we all know the hard working type that never seems to get any results. This guy busts his ass on the GYM and drinks his shakes and sleeps well and follows a clean diet and he just can't seem to get BIG.

Then there is another guy, who doesent know what he is doing, following a crappy diet and he GAINS alot of muscles and he looks RIPPED and big.

My close friend lifts REALLY heavy weights, but outside the GYM he looks like a FIT guy, not a BODYBUILDER. So why he still looks like a normal guy and not a bodybuilder?

How can that friend achieve the bodybuilders look? He wants to look like a someone who've been at the GYM for over 4 years.

 

[stevesmi]

depends on a lot of things.

I've seen guys on here claim they eat shitty and still look good blah blah blah. well if you dig ditches all day and have a blue collar job plus you are an ectomorph then you can get away with that and eat hot dogs and ice cream all day and still have an 8 pack at 20 years old.. geniuses they are and they make fun of guys that have solid diets but the reality sets in when they get older and their metabolism slows down and their face turns into moon man

your friend that is strong but doesn't look like a bodybuilder could be an endomorph and will never achieve a bodybuilder body no matter what.. those are the guys who play Oline or Dline and as hard as they try never would never be athletic or fast. but they are strong and fatty .. guys you would see do the strongman, but never guys who would be triathletes

your friend who doesn't try sounds like a mesomorph..

my belief though is as you get older the above even out more... once you get into your 30's and especially 40's I don't care what kind of body you have its gonna come down to who trains best and who eats best.

I was an ectomorph when i was younger... always been skinny.. even got made fun of for being skinny, although it wasn't as bad as the fat kids who got made fun of. had an 8 pack in my late teens, I will never be a pro BB however I look better than 99% of mesomorph's who are my age who sit around eating cheetos all day and drinking beer

 

[mohdgame]

depends on a lot of things.

I've seen guys on here claim they eat shitty and still look good blah blah blah. well if you dig ditches all day and have a blue collar job plus you are an ectomorph then you can get away with that and eat hot dogs and ice cream all day and still have an 8 pack at 20 years old.. geniuses they are and they make fun of guys that have solid diets but the reality sets in when they get older and their metabolism slows down and their face turns into moon man

your friend that is strong but doesn't look like a bodybuilder could be an endomorph and will never achieve a bodybuilder body no matter what.. those are the guys who play Oline or Dline and as hard as they try never would never be athletic or fast. but they are strong and fatty .. guys you would see do the strongman, but never guys who would be triathletes

your friend who doesn't try sounds like a mesomorph..

my belief though is as you get older the above even out more... once you get into your 30's and especially 40's I don't care what kind of body you have its gonna come down to who trains best and who eats best.

I was an ectomorph when i was younger... always been skinny.. even got made fun of for being skinny, although it wasn't as bad as the fat kids who got made fun of. had an 8 pack in my late teens, I will never be a pro BB however I look better than 99% of mesomorph's who are my age who sit around eating cheetos all day and drinking beer

What you're saying is genetics determines whether a person can achieve a bodybuilders look or not? So bodybuilders are born bodybuilders...

 

[RickRock13]

Diet, genetics, and training are the biggest pieces to the puzzle....and when you have all three you can make some serious changes to yourself. Anabolics help it is true, but they only accelerate what you are already doing. If your diet and training are not adequate to make gains, then you won't get much if anything from steroids either.

 

[MattJS]

Bodybuilders are big because they train and eat with that goal in mind... Think of your body as a computer, your diet is your keyboard and your training is your mouse... If you give the computer the wrong command you won't get the results you want... Your body doesn't know that as a powerlifter you want a great power/weight ratio or that as a bodybuilder you want large amounts of muscle mass unless your diet and training are effectively communicating those goals, also training age plays a role, a bro who has trained for ten years as a powerlifter will look bigger than one who has trained for two years as a bodybuilder, the other aspect of genetics plays a massive role, but in my experience, even this will only take a person so far.... Overall if you want good results, whether you take steroids or not, be prepared for year after year after year of hard training and maintaining a diet that suits your goals....

 

[stevesmi]

What you're saying is genetics determines whether a person can achieve a bodybuilders look or not? So bodybuilders are born bodybuilders...

if you ever want to be a pro and place at the Olympia yes you need to be born a bodybuilder.

just like if you want to be Tom Brady or Dan Marino you have to be born a QB.

or Roger Federer and be a tennis player

or you want to be a financial genius you need to be born Warren Buffet.. I can keep going.

certain people are born to do certain things.. I don't care how much training and good your diet is if you weren't born to play tennis you will never beat Federer.. in fact he will crush you 6-0 3 straight sets.

HOWEVER and this is important it doesn't mean you still cannot go out and play tennis or play football or bodybuild and still enjoy that hobby/lifestyle. there are people who play tennis EVERYDAY and they love it. so just cause you weren't born a tennis player or bodybuilder doesn't mean you cannot still enjoy those things and do them.

you can still go to a regional IFBB and do well if you weren't born to be Jay Cutler. so don't give up on it.

NOW I JUST WANT TO CLARIFY to those who have poor reading comprehension and don't understand what I'm saying and will come back and bitch to me about this post. you MUST ALSO have your diet and training down pat too if you want to be a pro at anything. if Jay Cutler sat around eating cheetos all day and ice cream and never worked out he would not look the way he looks even though he has those amazing talents. if Tom Brady was born in Uganda and starved his whole life and never got to play a sport he would of never developed the skills to become a QB. so you also need luck as well. you need to bust your ass at whatever skill you have no matter what.

in the end just don't worry about what other guys do and YOU JUST WORRY ABOUT YOURSELF.. cause no one's body is the same. you have access to amazing supplements, facilities to workout at, ancillaries, and yes hormones so if you want to get there you have all the tools you need. so set a goal and go for it. you aren't a starving orphan in Uganda so quit blaming your genetics or that you don't have time for the gym or you cannot afford enough food.

I can handle reading a lot of things on this forum.. I can handle arrogance, I can handle conceit.. greed... but one thing that gets on my nerves and i've seen on the board lately is SELF PITY. that really chaps my ass. wah wah wah. my friend doesn't workout as hard as me but he looks better. stop bitching and go out there and worry about your own body. you will drive yourself nuts worrying about what every single person looks like.

 

[Typo]

What is the aspect that makes a bodybuilder BIG? Steroids use? Genetics? Diet?

Yes. Yes. Yes.

 

[GymDog99]

if you ever want to be a pro and place at the Olympia yes you need to be born a bodybuilder.

just like if you want to be Tom Brady or Dan Marino you have to be born a QB.

or Roger Federer and be a tennis player

or you want to be a financial genius you need to be born Warren Buffet.. I can keep going.

certain people are born to do certain things.. I don't care how much training and good your diet is if you weren't born to play tennis you will never beat Federer.. in fact he will crush you 6-0 3 straight sets.

HOWEVER and this is important it doesn't mean you still cannot go out and play tennis or play football or bodybuild and still enjoy that hobby/lifestyle. there are people who play tennis EVERYDAY and they love it. so just cause you weren't born a tennis player or bodybuilder doesn't mean you cannot still enjoy those things and do them.

you can still go to a regional IFBB and do well if you weren't born to be Jay Cutler. so don't give up on it.

NOW I JUST WANT TO CLARIFY to those who have poor reading comprehension and don't understand what I'm saying and will come back and bitch to me about this post. you MUST ALSO have your diet and training down pat too if you want to be a pro at anything. if Jay Cutler sat around eating cheetos all day and ice cream and never worked out he would not look the way he looks even though he has those amazing talents. if Tom Brady was born in Uganda and starved his whole life and never got to play a sport he would of never developed the skills to become a QB. so you also need luck as well. you need to bust your ass at whatever skill you have no matter what.

in the end just don't worry about what other guys do and YOU JUST WORRY ABOUT YOURSELF.. cause no one's body is the same. you have access to amazing supplements, facilities to workout at, ancillaries, and yes hormones so if you want to get there you have all the tools you need. so set a goal and go for it. you aren't a starving orphan in Uganda so quit blaming your genetics or that you don't have time for the gym or you cannot afford enough food.

one thing that gets on my nerves and i've seen on the board lately is SELF PITY. wah wah wah. my friend doesn't workout as hard as me but he looks better. stop bitching and go out there and worry about your own body. you will drive yourself nuts worrying about what every single person looks like.

Not necessarily for bodybuilding, but more in response to the examples of exceptional people you gave...I would strongly recommend reading a book called, "Talent is Overrated". It's a very interesting and good read regarding why some people are exceptionally better than most others at certain tasks (like sports, music, etc.)

 

[Zyglamail]

The number of reps your work in also plays a large role how your body adapts. Low reps results in a systemic response that puts an emphasis on CNS coordination with mass being secondary. 8-12 rep range puts the emphasis on mass with CNS coordination being secondary. Rep ranges over that rely less on strength and more on muscular endurance the the muscle cells bloat to accommodate storing more glycogen which results in smooth bloated looking muscle because they are holding more fuel.

If your close friend lifts REALLY heavy weights he is likely doing low rep work and likely a good part of why he isnt as large as someone who does a lot more volume work. Personally, unless you have a reason to carry a lot of mass (ie your a bodybuilder) then its simply overrated. Extra mass is not what the majority of women like. Its detrimental to your agility and overall stamina and in general just makes life a bit tougher. Having to wear goofy fitting cloths or pay for alteration etc is a pain in the ass.

 

[tha_Waco_kid]

The correct answer is all of the above. Genetics, diet, training, etc. The pros are born with natural 'talent' to get big...and with the perfect diets and training regimes the follow, I'm sure they would have pretty impressive physiques being all natural.

However, how do the get BIG? the answer is steroids...all the genetics, diet, and training in the world is not going to make you that big.

In the end, you do need all of those things to every think of becoming a pro BB....but gear is what makes them into behemoths.