Hapless Pellius wrote that he needed bodybuilding drugs even at 47 years old. He wasn't huge or anything like that, he just felt he needed them to give him an edge in his contact sports that he enjoys. He claims that he has tried just about everything and concludes that drugs are a necessity.
Today on the positive board he enquired about supplements and prohormones and wondered if these chemicals would help him in his quest to stay strong, etc.
I thought that Pellius was the epitome of what the thinking is in bodybuilding and that is very sad. Why is it that an intelligent very experienced trainee believes so much nonsense? Or are the current beliefs nonsense?
I notice that the widely respected Milos has posted the drugs required by advanced bodybuilders to compete at the highest level. It is a frightening revelation. Oh, we have read similar prescriptions from others and what a reality it is that exists in the pro ranks. When the most knowledgeable among us deliver a long list of potent drugs what are the beginners and novices to think? Somehow all that information was distilled from decades of experimenting and reading. The human systems were studied and what bodybuilders discovered were various shortcuts to spur muscle growth. Oh, there is a notion that the chemists know what they are talking about because the language is impressive. In the old days we thought muscles were broken down by exercise and then rebuilt. Nowadays there is another language and this is based on the science behind physiology.
What are we to conclude then about the sport of bodybuilding? If it is true that the top guys and their advisers know exactly how to build muscle then that pretty much kills the sport as we know it. It isn't bodybuilding but chemical enhancement plus some specific training.
The question that Pellius wants to know: Is possible to build size and strength naturally? Yes, it is. Even at his age. When I read what he writes I shake my head. Why? Well, because he is informed. He also has tried just about every training method out there. When he gives up the natural way it is because he is convinced the drugs are necessary. It is as if he has read all the ads for supplements and all the steroid literature. Maybe he studied some of the science, too. If this is true, and Pellius represents the informed and experienced trainee, then what will it take for him to believe it is possible to get big naturally and without supplements? In short, Pellius is a victim of the information age and advertising.
I fear his beliefs are held like those who are believers re religions. I doubt there is any argument that can convince him. He and most muscleheads on internet forums are not open to new ideas. They prefer and insist on relying on their own brains. What a pity that is because they will miss important information. You have to be prepared to abandon a lot of what you thought was fact and reasonable. You have to discard some precious beliefs about even basic ideas in exercise and nutrition.
It is possible to build large muscles and get stronger and do it totally naturally. It really is a simple process. It should also be rapid. There is nothing mysterious about it. However, if you insist on keeping your beliefs then you won't be able to accept the truth. How is it that today with super gyms in every major city that we have people believing they need drugs? We don't even need supplements! I honestly think people have been brainwashed and newcomers get the treatment soon enough when they start associating with muscleheads and reading magazines. If you lie down with dogs you are going to get some fleas. In this case, they are false beliefs and nonsense. When that rubbish is established in your brain you will not be open to reason any more. You will then become a believer and you might very well end up like Pellius. Confused, dismayed and disgraced. After all that has happened to him the last thing he will abandon are the beliefs that caused all the trouble in the first place.
To be continued.....