bodybuilder

Not at all. Fitness athletes have never had a unified survival template. They are essentially a group of practitioners who choose to "explore the boundaries of physical ability" as their competitive goal. With different tracks and different philosophies, the gap in life and training methods may be wider than the gap between ordinary people and ordinary fitness enthusiasts.

Most of the people you see with low body fat and big muscles that fill up their T-shirts are traditional bodybuilding or classical bodybuilding competitors. I met Akai backstage at the Southern Bodybuilding Open last year during his preparations. He was 1.87cm tall. He drank only distilled water every day for a week before the competition and cut out salt and carbon dioxide. His face was so thin that he couldn’t even stretch his apple muscles when he smiled. While waiting backstage, he squatted in a corner and ate a cherry tomato. Halfway through, he raised his head and complained to me, "When the competition is over, the first thing I will do is to go to the hot pot restaurant downstairs to order three portions of tripe and a special spicy pot."

Of course, when talking about bodybuilding, we cannot avoid the semi-public controversy: who is the right way, natural training or technological assistance? The two groups of people on the forum have been quarreling for almost ten years. The naturalists argue that "the results obtained by relying on drugs do not count, and they ruin one's own body and ruin the industry atmosphere." The technological camp feels that "the limit of human natural muscle growth is right there. If you want to hit a higher level stage, you have to bear the price." But it is interesting. What's more, when we meet backstage at an offline competition, everyone will lend each other posing oil and help adjust the shoulder straps of their competition uniforms. No one is trying to argue with each other about his training philosophy - after all, people who can stand in the same arena know how many late nights the other party has spent training with heavy weights in preparation for the competition.

Don’t think that all fitness athletes should pursue low body fat. Xiao Nan, a female powerlifter I know, has a body fat of around 22% all year round. For powerlifters, low body fat will actually affect their strength performance. Their KPI is never how clear the vest line is, but whether the total weight of the squat, pull and push can break their personal PB. She just won the third place in the women's 67kg category at the National Powerlifting Championships last month. When she received the award, she still held half an energy gel in her hand. Her first words when she came off the stage were, "Let's go have a barbecue to celebrate. There's no need to count calories today."

Oh, by the way, there is another interesting misunderstanding: many people think that bodybuilders have "developed limbs and simple minds" and rely solely on hard work to achieve results. How can it be? Xiaonan is a master's degree in biology from 985 University. She makes her own training plan, calculating the proportion of protein and carbohydrates to be taken in to the gram, and even the rest window after training is stuck. She is much more professional than many half-baked coaches outside who only shout "one more set". Akai has now opened his own fitness studio. When giving classes to ordinary members, he never asks them to learn the way he eats in preparation for competitions. He said, "Ordinary people work out just to feel good and to look good in clothes. If they can't live with themselves, they have to eat boiled vegetables for three months."

As for the question that everyone always discusses, "Are all fitness athletes short-lived?" Does practicing so hard mean you are all injured? ”In fact, there is no unified answer to this question in the industry. Some competitive athletes feel that since they want to achieve top results, joint wear and endocrine fluctuations are the price they must bear, which is no different from athletes in other competitive sports. ； There are also natural fitness groups that focus on "healthy competition". The amount of training is strictly controlled within the body's recovery threshold. Competitions are just a way to test the results of training in stages, and long-term health will never be sacrificed for rankings. There is no right or wrong between the two choices. In the final analysis, they are all personal choices, and you can bear the consequences.

The last time I participated in an exchange competition with the CrossFit team, I met a 47-year-old veteran who has been practicing fitness for 20 years. He is neither a bodybuilder nor a powerlifter. He just loves to play CrossFit. He can do 30 double swings in one breath and deadlift 180 kilograms. He said that he never considered himself a "professional athlete", he just liked the feeling of touching iron and liked to see himself lifting 5 kilograms more than the previous year every year.

To put it bluntly, there is really nothing mysterious about fitness athletes. They are just a group of enthusiasts who are willing to spend more time on fitness and have higher requirements for themselves. Some people are aiming for the podium, while others just want to see what their bodies can do. There is no distinction between high and low, and there are no "rules" that must be followed. If you practice well and have no regrets, it is better than anything else.