I began as a competitive bodybuilder but gradually moved towards powerlifting and pure strength training as the years rolled on. I'll always love bodybuilding (and consider what I now do to still be a form of body-building, of course) but must state that with each passing year I view competitive physique shows more and more as bizarre, from a powerlifter's perspective. They're like beauty pageants with muscles.
One of the reasons I stopped competing as a bodybuilder is because I found after lifting like a demon for months in preparation ... the actual contest day was a huge letdown. Besides being winded like fuck (which you get), there's nothing athletic when one is actually, you know, competing. Heck, I just wanted to get back into the gym so I could squat, press and hoist again. Tanning, waxing, oiling ... horseshit.
I always preferred offseason appearances better, anyway (and way more preferred a well-built powerlifter's build), so my move to powerlifting made sense from this perspective, as well.
When you're in the heart of obsession with bodybuilding, you don't really see it for how it appears.