One of the biggest concepts behind bodybuilding is the idea of having a balanced, proportional body in every aspect. That means all muscle groups getting an equal amount of development and attention, including legs. While many bodybuilders have impressive upper bodies, with well defined biceps, chest, and shoulder muscles, many neglect important muscle groups such as legs and abs.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, possibly the most famous bodybuilder of all time, admits that early on in his bodybuilding career he did not train legs at all, and that eventually hurt his standing in competitions. You can see in this rare early picture that his legs are quite underdeveloped compared to the rest of his body. Eventually Arnold began not only training legs, but making legs a priority. Arnold would eventually go on to achieve the Mr. Olympia bodybuilding title 7 times, which would not be matched until years later.
Some people may or may not recognize this man known as Gregg Valentino. This photograph is real and has not been doctored using a program. He holds the world record for the largest biceps, measured at an amazing 28 inches. He was also featured in the documentary known as "The Man whose Arms Exploded" which documented his training and diet, in addition to his controversial use of anabolic steroids, legal troubles, and medical problems from using unsterile needles and performance enhancers. Although the arms are impressive, this is obviously not the right path to achieving such an accomplishment, and many bodybuilders and fitness experts frown upon the fact that the only thing that stands out on his physique is his arms, with the rest of his body being grossly underdeveloped. Unfortunately for Mr. Valentino, his glory days are over, as his arms and now permanently deformed due to an infection he developed from using unsafe needles.
This would be a good example of a poorly balanced physique. Many have even come up with slang terms for certain unbalanced physique types. For example, guys who have a huge upper body and skinny legs are often referred to as having the "light bulb" physique. While doing squats and crunches may not be as exciting to some as doing a bench press or bicep curls, those muscle groups are just as important and can hinder an otherwise impressive physique if not developed properly.
I totally agree with you on the fact that a lot of your typical gym rats are under developed and neglect important aspects of a proper strength training routine. I mean, regardless of your motivation for lifting whether it's for overall fitness, sport, leisure or competition, the most neglected body part is of course the lower body. People either tend to forget or are just ignorant to the fact that your legs are the largest muscles in your body. Strengthening them will only result in greater hypertrophy and thus increase testosterone production so the rest of your body can overcome possible plateaus. I always see people in the gym that come in a kill their arms and it's foolish because they're such a small muscle group. Great post, it definitely get's people thinking.
ReplyDelete