The unrealistic expectations arose when Joe Weider took over bodybuilding. And, pretty much, he really did just
take over. He dominated publishing and competitions, etc.
One of the ways he made money
(and a way many of the "powers" of the Bodybuilding World - most of them affiliated with organized crime - make money) was to sell "supplements". Supposedly, you could take the supplements, and these would help you
"put on muscle".
The BB magazines, and the books, told us that with enough hard work, and by taking
"supplements", you could pack on the muscle, and do just as well as the guys on steroids. 'Roids' were, supposedly, totally unnecessary.
Selling supplements is about like selling
"miracle skin rejuvenators" - or Snake Oil. Those products won't do diddly for you. But they are high-profit products for those who sell them. And the best way to sell them was to show all these beautiful men on steroids, who SUPPOSEDLY got that way by taking "supplements", and doing the right exercises.
In reality, the beautiful men were taking steroids and Human Growth Hormone. And they were doing cocaine, in order to starve themselves down for competitions
(along with life-threatening amounts of diuretics, in the hours before walking onstage).
But Weider and the others were
not manufacturers of 'roids or HGH. So, those were not what they had to sell. Thus, they attributed the astonishing beauty of men like Mike Mentzer (
https://www.bodybuilding-motivation....7_05-18-25.jpg) to
"supplements" and
"special workout programs", because that's what they
COULD sell.
Basically, the
insiders were doing one thing, while the
Schnooks were being sold other things.
There are a few people who are naturally muscular. And there are a few men who have naturally high testosterone
(generally, because they have huge 'nads). I'm married to one of the latter.
We met in Weightlifting 101. He was scrawny and hideous. He was 17, and a virgin. Neither of us expected to ever go out on a date. We accidentally found ourselves
'on a date', where we immediately took care of our virginities, and continued to carry on like wolverines, MANY times a day
(sex is a HUGE testosterone-booster). We also lifted weights, studied nutrition
(the REAL kind - based on real science), and took vitamins. My husband went into a late-onset growth spurt, and
did gain a lot of muscle. He does about 75 minutes of lifting, and an hour of cardio, between five and seven days per week. He's 51, and still ripples with muscle.
But my husband does
not look like Branch Warren. I'm not going to speculate on what it takes to look like Warren.
The hottest guys in your high school probably were on steroids. There is a network set up in every community, to get 'roids to the current crop of fuhbawl heroes. Occasionally, there is a bust. Usually, there isn't. It's been that way since the 70s - maybe even the late 60s.
'Roids were being used in Nazi Germany. A certain famous Austrian import, whose father was a Nazi, and who married the granddaughter of a rich American Nazi supporter, was using 'roids as a physique champion, back in his
'Vaterland', while still in high school. When he got to these shores, he was very nice to certain wealthy American men, who paid for the chemicals which made him even bigger.
On the other hand, I know somebody who hooked up with
"The most enormous and powerful specimen I've ever seen." - a trucker, who barely exercised, and who had done nothing beyond being born
Polish. This is a wealthy Mississippian who's 'dated' his way through the
Colt Calendar and the
Fox Calendar, as well as being a (natural) bodybuilder, himself. So, he's hard to impress. Same friend hooked-up with
"the second biggest bodybuilder in Omaha", another 'roids-free marvel, who was also pure Polish. This one DID lift consistently.
But, in general, the biggest guys are
'on the juice'. I've overheard a pusher trying to sell my Personal Trainer on gonadotropins:
"Man... dey wuz lak littuh grapes. Now, man, I looks lak uh Brahah Bull." (The spiel may have NOTHING to do with reality, and the offered 'gonadotropin' may be no more than saline solution.) That was seven years ago. I learned, later, that that particular Trainer had gotten hooked on METH, while using it to "get ripped" for a contest. I do
not book sessions with him, anymore, when I'm in that city.
Most recently,
Little Gloria overheard a phenomenally muscular & packin' male stripper, talking to a wunderkind homebuilder
(who's about to be indicted on a whole host of fraud charges, and who's looking to replace one billionaire mentor/sugardaddy with a new one). The homebuilder is gorgeous. But he needs to get extra-gorgeous, if he's to find a new billionaire "mentor"
(a good billionaire is hard to find). So, he was schmoozing the stripper, for "exercise tips"
(a 'roids source he can trust). They talked 'chemicals' while I did three abs supersets
(ten minutes), and were
still talking 'chemicals', when I wandered off, to give myself a back massage on a big blue ball
(good as a live masseur, IMHO). I hear a lot, being little, brown, female, and thus invisible.
There are drugs to counteract the 'nads shrinkage. There are drugs to counteract the 'gyno' your pecs will get from 'roids. The big guys are walking science experiments, and, like Mentzer, they tend to die young.
But smart people have realized that there is a great deal to gain from a fitness lifestyle. If you eat right, get enough rest, lift enough - with good technique, and avoid harmful substances, then you will definitely look vastly better than you would have, otherwise. You will be healthier, and you will be smarter.
You just won't look like Branch Warren.
To see what is actually possible without 'roids and HGH, take a look at Pre-WWII photos of muscle men.
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