Getbig Bodybuilding, Figure and Fitness Forums
Getbig Bodybuilding Boards => Positive Bodybuilding Discussion & Talk => Topic started by: PTB on January 28, 2008, 08:16:44 AM
-
I was watching Pumping Iron (again) recently and I recall Arnolds retirement speech.
In essence, he said that bodybuilding is a wonderful experience that he will continue for
the rest of his life, and that he only stopped competing, but not bodybuilding.
For you retired, or soon to be retired pros or high level amateurs, do his sentiments echo yours?
Are you still a bodybuilder?
Are you still seeking to find the perfect, yet non-competitive physique?
Do you still set goals for yourselves as to the level of fitness you have and your overall look? What about
your physiological health - e.g. blood pressure, cholesterol levels, etc.
Do you still train with the same level of intensity, albeit without the heavy poundages you used to do,
and without heavy supplements (outside of multivitamins, protein, creatine, etc.)?
Are you still excited about going to the gym? If you still go regularly, how long or often do you train?
Do you still look to eat healthy (relatively)?
Does the pump still feel like cumming? :P
I've seen some guys, when they step away, they REALLY step away. I know Shawn Ray on a couple of occasions stated that he's taken a year or more away from even picking up a weight. And I've heard recently that he hasn't done much since his "fit after 40" video. It seems like to him, it was just a means to an end, just business (and granted, he was pretty darn good at it!)
I just read an interview w/Bob Paris, and he said he really doesn't lift at all, but he cycles and does outdoor stuff.
On the other hand, you have guys like Frank Zane, Ed Corney, Dave Draper, Bill Grant who still train well into their 60's and even 70's, but at the same time, it's partly their business to do so.
What I'm really trying to get at is the mindset of the retired athlete:
If there was no business interest, nothing to be gained by competing, no money, no endorsements, no picture spreads, no fitness models, no glory:
but just for the sheer love of exercise and your life long quest for your personal physical development, mental, and even spiritual development:
Are you STILL, bodybuilders?
And for those of us who've never competed, are YOU a bodybuilder.
-
yes! i have learned that the key to happiness(for myself) lies in the principles that bodybuilding is based upon....joyful and guilt free eating, self improvement, kicking ass in the gym, and constantly working towards a goal.
..bodybuilding keeps me calm and OKAY with life..because without it, i have nothing to look forward to besides school and work..but bodybuilding gives me soemthing to work on and have fun with and see the results from on a daily basis.
-
I've ben a lot happier with my training ever since I decided I wasn't striving to compete - my gains are actually better now that I'm not stressing myself about getting ready in time for some show. There's so much less pressure and enjoyment from training without all that crap.
-
I can't train with weights anymore...but still do some forms of cardio. Couldn't call myself a bodybuilder anymore....at least not as when I competed.
-
yes! i have learned that the key to happiness(for myself) lies in the principles that bodybuilding is based upon....joyful and guilt free eating, self improvement, kicking ass in the gym, and constantly working towards a goal.
..bodybuilding keeps me calm and OKAY with life..because without it, i have nothing to look forward to besides school and work..but bodybuilding gives me soemthing to work on and have fun with and see the results from on a daily basis.
BAHAHAHA are you "chick" or even a PRO?
-
PTB VERY GOOD POST!
I personally know many retired professional athletes that still train and train HARD. They still eat, sleep and live the life. Like they say: "lifting weights is not a hobby it's a lifestyle."
My uncle lives in this small town and there was this older ex-high level power lifter that still trained balls to the wall and ate massive amounts of food. I once heard a story from him and he told me that sometimes he still wakes up in the crack of dawn and goes to his back yard to train with home made gear, just like he did when he was a kid. I'm talking about logs and stuff like that...
Sadly about two years back he died of a heart attack (no suprise there), he was allways red and obviously did not make enough of an effort to take care of his cardio vascular system or his blood pressure...
RIP
-
i only train if it is for a specific contest. it may be 126 days away, but i won't train unless there is an impending show.
-
and for the record, i have never even come close to earning a pro card, though it was my goal for 2 decades. it definately requires more than just a good pharmacist.
-
I can't train with weights anymore...but still do some forms of cardio. Couldn't call myself a bodybuilder anymore....at least not as when I competed.
Moosejay...why do you have competitor status if you don't compete?
-
Chick still has some size but it's obvious he's returning to 'normal'.