At what age can you spot potential for bodybuilding?

[Bevo]

Back in the 1980s when steroids were legal and you could get them from a doctor upon request, Dr. Walczak, who had a practice in Sherman Oaks, California and was the go-to doctor for all the pros in that area including Arnold and Franco, said that you make about 80% of your gains in the first year and the crucial period to see how you respond to training assuming you are getting enough nutrition and your training is decent. You will continue to improve when you get into your adult stage and then you will have to use steroids to exceed you natural genetic potential and then it depends on your genetic response to hormones. But in the end, provided you don't start too late, it doesn't make too much of a difference when you start. If you started at 16 as opposed to say 24, you'll still end up pretty much at the same level at 32 years old. You don't just continued to grow and when you reach your genetic limit that's it.

Phil Heath started serious bbing at 23 threes years old after college and his basketball phase. Within three years he was already a pro and qualified for the Olympia stage two years later at the age of of 28 at only five years of training. Something the vast majority of bber don't achieved even if they started training to five years old. He pretty much peaked in 2011-2012 at 31or 32 year old. If he started training at 14 he may have earned the same record at an earlier age but he still would end up just as big at 31-32 years old of maybe just start getting worse earlier as what had happened anyway.

Pretty much what you said about Phil, pretty crazy how he peaked around 31/32 and those were arguably his best years. He begin regressing right after. I’m sure the drug stacks have a lot to do with it? Now compare to someone like dexter? I know he’s an anomaly but he looks better than many 20/30 year old pros and at 50 that’s insanely impressive

[Bevo]

Me at 14 years old and had not lifted anything besides my own weight, which was effortless. If someone were looking for someone with bodybuilding potential, I doubt I'd have passed muster. I think it is pretty clear that when I said I was a rail, I wasn't kidding. I was a swimmer, a diver, a runner and an equestrian. I definitely was not a bodybuilder....as if that isn't obvious.

My quads weren't much bigger than my calves, which weren't much bigger than my ankles. My upper arms were same size as my forearms. If I remember correctly, I weighed 144 lbs. and stood 5' 11 1/2" tall. My hands and feet were huge. One thing is for sure. I was definitely cut...almost to the bone. 

On the positive side, I actually had hair on my head...not a lot, but something at least.

So much for the stereotype of big hands and feet 

[Primemuscle]

So much for the stereotype of big hands and feet 

How would you know? 

[pellius]

Pretty much what you said about Phil, pretty crazy how he peaked around 31/32 and those were arguably his best years. He begin regressing right after. I’m sure the drug stacks have a lot to do with it? Now compare to someone like dexter? I know he’s an anomaly but he looks better than many 20/30 year old pros and at 50 that’s insanely impressive

I wouldn't say it was the drugs per se that ruined his physique. I doubt he was taking that much more in his later years than during his peak. I think that it just comes from eating. But that I mean, just trying to get bigger and bigger. He is naturally a small framed guy and there is only so much muscle your frame can carry before you start to distort your physique. Dorian maxed out in 93-94. Ronnie maybe '99, 2000, I'm not that sure and I will have to check but you can see that when he started getting the gut even the look of his abs changed as they started to split apart more and more as his gut expanded. Jay, whom I think is underappreciated on this board, was much smarter and was able to control things reaching his ultimate in size and conditioning in 2009 but coming very close to pushing it too far. His waist got wider but so did his delts. After that he couldn't achieve that same level of muscle mass so his waist looked wider as his delts and quad sweep shrunk.

Dexter was another one who was smart and just made small but steady levels of growth taking years to achieve and being a genetic freak didn't hurt. He didn't make those 20-30 pounds jump that a lot of top guys make once they start making big money and can afford tons of growth and igf. Putting on 20 lbs of muscle on an experience bber in a year is insane. Doing it on a pro-level maxed out physique requires drastic measures and there will be trade-offs. But if you want to win or keep winning you can't come in the same year after year no matter how advance you are.

[JuicedKangaroo]

You'll have a good idea of your potential after your first cycle.

Ugh, not Greg and his annoying voice. Cannot stand him.

[I Sinoda I]

Why do youtubers all yell?

I would love to silence this video presenter for the rest of his life.  How can you stand to watch that?

[Bevo]

I wouldn't say it was the drugs per se that ruined his physique. I doubt he was taking that much more in his later years than during his peak. I think that it just comes from eating. But that I mean, just trying to get bigger and bigger. He is naturally a small framed guy and there is only so much muscle your frame can carry before you start to distort your physique. Dorian maxed out in 93-94. Ronnie maybe '99, 2000, I'm not that sure and I will have to check but you can see that when he started getting the gut even the look of his abs changed as they started to split apart more and more as his gut expanded. Jay, whom I think is underappreciated on this board, was much smarter and was able to control things reaching his ultimate in size and conditioning in 2009 but coming very close to pushing it too far. His waist got wider but so did his delts. After that he couldn't achieve that same level of muscle mass so his waist looked wider as his delts and quad sweep shrunk.

Dexter was another one who was smart and just made small but steady levels of growth taking years to achieve and being a genetic freak didn't hurt. He didn't make those 20-30 pounds jump that a lot of top guys make once they start making big money and can afford tons of growth and igf. Putting on 20 lbs of muscle on an experience bber in a year is insane. Doing it on a pro-level maxed out physique requires drastic measures and there will be trade-offs. But if you want to win or keep winning you can't come in the same year after year no matter how advance you are.

A lot of factors but I reckon the drugs of slin and gh in high amounts especially when you are number 1 in the world and every year getting challenged took its toll on these guys. Ronnie went from 247ish in 98 to 290 in 03 and 04, which wasn’t his best but was his biggest. He prob weighed more, I remember seeing him in person in 03, he was around 305/310 just 2 wks out of the show