Out of shape bodybuilding writers!!!!!!!!!

[sarcasm]

i've always wondered how guys like Peter McGough and skinny dudes like Greg Merritt and Shawn Perine feel so proud writing about bb'ing when it's obvious that they've never touched a weight in their lives.

[jaejonna]

Shawn is actually in good shape, skinny yes but in good shape...
Peter look like santa claus if santa ate an elf...disgraceful

[bmacsys]

i've always wondered how guys like Peter McGough and skinny dudes like Greg Merritt and Shawn Perine feel so proud writing about bb'ing when it's obvious that they've never touched a weight in their lives.

Shawn is in great shape. I dare you to post some pics for comparison with Shawn.

[Always Sore]

observation and writing skills are the key, do you think some of the meat heads in the magazines actual wrtie there columns??? can you be a sports anouncer or coach without being a all pro? can you become a successfull actor without going to any acting school? did you really by the time you were 16 need to take a class about driving a car? then thats the answer, being and writing about being are two different things.

[kiwiol]

Peter may be fat, but his writings pretty good mate. Have you read any of his Mr Olympia reports or entries in Hard Times? And he always makes fun of himself and brings up the fact that he's fat. Don't you like Peter's writing style Sarcasm

[Naked4Jesus]

Yeah, that's typical.  Sort of like sport commentators who "comment" on boxing yet would fight like an 8 year old epileptic, bulimic girl scout from Beverly Hills if push came to shove.

[LuciusFox]

 What matters is how well they write, and they seem to do a great job to me.

[pumpster]

Usual sports writers' syndrome-can't be one, very little experience with it, wannabe one, so write about it, act the part and some will buy it. 

[Mars]

I wondered about that too. Why they don't workout?

[Cool Black Clyde]

The same way people on bodybuilding boards do.     Actually, though Perine and Merritt are in great shape for naturals.  I believe both have competed.

[Dnizneer]

i've always wondered how guys like Peter McGough and skinny dudes like Greg Merritt and Shawn Perine feel so proud writing about bb'ing when it's obvious that they've never touched a weight in their lives.

They're Bodybuilding writers, not bodybuilders!! Most Basket ball writers aren't 7 feet tall.

[jaejonna]

They're Bodybuilding writers, not bodybuilders!! Most Basket ball writers aren't 7 feet tall.

YEah and most basketballers arent 7 feet tall either..

[pumpster]

There's something to be said for having actually engaged in that which one writes of; precisely why it's relevant that many writers involved in athletics are wannabes. There's a high DF correlation (dweeb factor).

[LuciusFox]

There's something to be said for having done that which one writes of; precisely why it's relevant that most writers haven't but wannabe.

 You don't really need to with physiques, though. Just like movie critics don't need to be able to make movies.

[pumpster]

Sure, in which case Liberace would've made a great judge.   There's something about acquiring depth of insight through involvement though, something that most writers (and sports announcers) lack.

[LuciusFox]

Sure, in which case Liberace would've made a great judge. 

  Did Liberace know anything about bodybuilding?

[pumpster]

That's the point-those who've participated have better understandings in general. Not always, but usually. The best sports announcers are the rare ex-jocks who are able to articulate their insights. Jim Brown was one of the best announcers I've heard, but too controversial to last. Bill Walton's a good example.

There are some writers on that level, many who aren't. Being out of shape's further emphasizes this divide; they're writing from other perspectives.

[BayGBM]

If you can’t be a bodybuilder, write about one.  The fringe benefits are excellent. 

[LuciusFox]

That's the point-those who've participated have better understandings in general.

  What more do they know about bodybuilding than McGough? The process they went through to arrive at their stage physique is entirely irrelevant. McGough does an excellent job of covering contests and giving his opinion. Lifting weight is irrelevant.

[alexxx]

A while back there was an article with peter mcgough compared to Arnold Schwarzenegger. It showed a timeline of them training and what they looked like during the years.

[Joe Roark]

Interesting topic.

Ghost writing, or co-writing, did not evolve for a non valid reason.

Experiencing something does not translate into being able to expertly describe that experience. If so, there would be far more bestselling autobiographies- with no co-authors.

There are some bodybuilders who lack sufficient verbal and/or written skills. Were their unedited and uncorrected offerings printed as they alone composed the words, well, we would then be observing the reason that editors became necessary, wouldn't we?

Some actors, when working without a prepared script- such as when they are being interviewed live, reveal how non-fluent they are when out of their element. The writer cannot perform the function (usually) of the bodybuilder (or of the actor), and usually the only cablegram the bodybuilder can elevate is on a pulley machine. And, shall we say, not a crossover pulley?

[MikeThaMachine]

A while back there was an article with peter mcgough compared to Arnold Schwarzenegger. It showed a timeline of them training and what they looked like during the years.

That was a good article, he basically showed how Arnold made it to the big time and his (McGough's) career basically plateued

[bmacsys]

There are some bodybuilders who lack sufficient verbal and/or written skills. Were their unedited and uncorrected offerings printed as they alone composed the words, well, we would then be observing the reason that editors became necessary, wouldn't we?

Joe, just come out and say it. Lots of bodybuilders are dumb. Not all but many. Ok, take one who I have a training dvd of. This guy can't pronounce words, uses the wrong words etc.. Yet when he supposedly writes training articles his diction is perfect.

[Joe Roark]

Joe, just come out and say it. Lots of bodybuilders are dumb. Not all but many. Ok, take one who I have a training dvd of. This guy can't pronounce words, uses the wrong words etc.. Yet when he supposedly writes training articles his diction is perfect.

My point was not so much that bodybuilders are dumb- there are many intelligent people who are not skilled at writing- but that because some people of whatever IQ level need help, editors and writers (whose workout DVDs you would not watch if they were available for free) come to the rescue.

The reverse situation perhaps illustrates better: Say I offered my workout DVD for sale, and I performed the exercises. Flop. But if a famous bodybuilder performed my workouts (using much less weight than would I, of course), the DVD might sell not because of my workout composition but because of the man 'editing' the visual presentation.

[bmacsys]

My point was not so much that bodybuilders are dumb- there are many intelligent people who are not skilled at writing- but that because some people of whatever IQ level need help, editors and writers (whose workout DVDs you would not watch if they were available for free) come to the rescue.

The reverse situation perhaps illustrates better: Say I offered my workout DVD for sale, and I performed the exercises. Flop. But if a famous bodybuilder performed my workouts (using much less weight than would I, of course), the DVD might sell not because of my workout composition but because of the man 'editing' the visual presentation.

Joe, I was just making light of the situation. Unless you were an english major most people would need proofreading and editing if they composed a tome.