Shawn and I attended the finals of the Arnold Classic at the Arnold Sport Festival. We had sorta followed bodybuilding a few years ago and there’s still a few guys that Shawn is a fan of (like Kai Greene), but when we sat down, we both had that, “I immediately regret this decision,” feeling. It was mostly because we were subjected to at least 45 minutes of dudes posing (badly) to (shitty) music. I don’t know what bothered me more, the fact that Branch Warren won best poser with music choices of Limp Bizkit and Kid Rock, or that everyone was whistling, hooting, and hollering during the abortion of a performance. Seriously, what happened to the grace and artful posing I saw in Pumping Iron? The bottom line is that Shawn and I weren’t aroused by this type of stuff.

The culture of today’s bodybuilding is where the disconnect is. When I look at Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding, it just seems different than today’s bodybuilding. Yes, guys were still training to improve their physique, but the drugs resulted in a more streamlined look. They had good shape, and even the bigger guys weren’t uncomfortably bulky; the size seemed to fit each man’s frame. But the issue isn’t that the physiques are significantly different (as a result of the drug improvements), but instead the difference is the culture surrounding it. Remember the scene in Pumping Iron when Arnold visited a prison and did a posing routine? The thugs and gang bangers had an honest appreciation for the beauty of the human body. It seemed like the world was more impressed with bodybuilding and strength sports back then. There were powerlifting broadcasts hosted by Bryant Gumbel in the ’70s and routine public appearances by bodybuilders. It seems like it was all so new to society that there was still that “go see the strongman at the circus” aura behind it. It’s only natural since the preceding century saw the Civil War, World War I, and World War II; society didn’t have the luxury to bodybuild and it was fascinating because it was different.

Yet, today’s culture has gone through a metamorphosis that makes it…weird. The majority of attendees at the Arnold Classic finals were wearing designer clothes, plucked their eyebrows, and applied fake tanning solution — and I’m not even talking about the girls. This crowd also trains to only improve their physique, but there’s also that “we’re going clubbing” feel to it. It seems that if you integrate yourself into today’s bodybuilding culture by working out or competing, you inherently implement the “peacock” mentality of spreading your wings. “Look and be flashy” is not only standard ops, but what it’s all about.

And it doesn’t matter why this is the case, because it doesn’t matter. What matters is that there is a culture that not only prides itself on how good it looks, but on how flashy and shiny they can appear to others in the same group. Ultimately, that’s just weird to me. Sure, I want to be attractive, masculine, and muscular, but to me these traits (at least the latter two) are dependent on ability, performance, and health. Be strong and look strong. I’m not saying that the inherent level of narcissism in today’s bodybuilding is wrong, I’m just saying that it’s different and not my kind of thing.

We’re very accustomed to the “me” generation. Social media like Myspace, Facebook, and Twitter give people the impression that other people give a shit what they have to say. Posting pictures of yourself and how you look is not only standard ops, but expected. Perhaps it’s a result of a generation of bad parenting and society catering towards kids. Unfortunately, marketing to kids is a good idea because parents are able to spend money for their children. We see entire television networks and restaurant menus devoted to kids. Instead of getting told what to do, as they should be, kids get a choice about everything. They are given the impression that someone gives a shit about their opinion. This fills them with a sense of self-importance at an age when they shouldn’t be heard at all (especially in airports, restaurants, stores, or any other public place ever). Once they reach adolescence, they continue to spit their self-important thoughts and image to their peers, and this kind of behavior flows naturally into the bodybuilding culture.

Seeing bodybuilding online is different than seeing it in person. Since we’re subjected to people posting pictures of their clothes or body, it’s not abnormal to see that on bodybuilding forums. Yet when you’re in a building with several thousand people who are trying so hard to be noticed, it’s almost overwhelming. Shawn and I stood in the lobby as the crowds flowed out of the auditorium after the show. There were scarves, v-necks, and overwhelming stenches of cologne. I was unshaven in jeans, boots, and flannel, and I couldn’t have wanted to be further from that crowd (perhaps on the side of a mountain next to a river chopping firewood). It’s not that I thought everyone was wrong, it’s that I just know I’ll never fucking understand it.



(Video of Arnold’s speech at the Arnold Classic finals)