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Why Did Bronze Era Lifters Have Flat Chests?

12 points by lots2learn 4y ago

hugozap 4y ago
Looks like body builders were actually fit and healthy back then.
- xupybd 4y ago
  Yeah they're a good example of the upper end of what you can achieve as a natural lifter. Today's steroid fueled gym buffs trick young guys into thinking they can get huge by natural means. That is simply not true for 99.999% of the population.
  - throwntoday 4y ago
    Sure it is, it just takes considerable effort and discipline. Steroids are like a massive shortcut but by no means the only realistic path to getting huge.
    - xupybd 4y ago
      It really depends on what you mean by huge. But I have to emphatically disagree with your statement. It is simply not humanly possible to get as big as a modern body builder without steroids. They are not just a shortcut they allow people to get much bigger than otherwise is possible.
      - throwntoday 4y ago
        Yeah I suppose we have varying definitions of huge. I'm just talking adding on considerable muscle mass. Steroid use is so ubiquitous and far better understood than ever before that most guys don't see a point in doing things natty. We're talking cutting down years of training to months.
AlbertCory 4y ago
I just came back from Planet Fitness, which has three benches for doing bench presses. All of them are always occupied. Instead of asking, "what was wrong back then?" we could ask "what's wrong now? why are people so obsessed with their pectorals?"
- xupybd 4y ago
  Bench is much less effort than other exercises and it produces quick results. Most guys hate leg days. The effort is extreme, chest day is the easy day.
  - throwntoday 4y ago
    Strange. I hate bench press (much prefer dumbbell press) but I have never considered leg day extreme. Legs contain the largest muscles, the effort to make them bigger seems less. It was my understanding that the reason most guys avoid leg day is because they're not "show" muscles. It's rare that you're not wearing pants so most guys who lift purely to increase odds of finding a mate focus on the muscles women do see.
    - xupybd 4y ago
      I think the difference between dumbbell and barbell is just preference often based on the time you've put into each. My dumbbell press is pathetic due to a lack of training. I think lifting for the looks is part of it. I've also read that most women prefer guys butts to other parts so it's probably a little silly that most guys do more upper body to get the girls. When I was last going regularly to the gym I knew loads of other guys that worked out. It was near universal that leg day sucked. I was exhausted after doing squats and deadlifts. I'd recover quickly from most upper body stuff. Leg day was still fun but there was a mental battle to put in the effort required. I remember once not being able to drive home after week 6 of the training program Smolov JR with squatting. I pulled over and had to take an hour to recover. I've not had anything close with upper body lifts. Everyone is different I guess and we are talking about preference.
    - ashwagary 4y ago
tmm84 4y ago
This is interesting from a engineering side. At first they didn't care/want massive chests. Then they want chest but equipment was lacking. People tried different exercises and eventually the eureka moment happened that standardized the exercise. Talk about scratching an itch.

12 points by lots2learn 4y ago

hugozap 4y ago

Looks like body builders were actually fit and healthy back then.

xupybd 4y ago
Yeah they're a good example of the upper end of what you can achieve as a natural lifter. Today's steroid fueled gym buffs trick young guys into thinking they can get huge by natural means. That is simply not true for 99.999% of the population.
- throwntoday 4y ago
  Sure it is, it just takes considerable effort and discipline. Steroids are like a massive shortcut but by no means the only realistic path to getting huge.
  - xupybd 4y ago
    It really depends on what you mean by huge. But I have to emphatically disagree with your statement. It is simply not humanly possible to get as big as a modern body builder without steroids. They are not just a shortcut they allow people to get much bigger than otherwise is possible.
    - throwntoday 4y ago
      Yeah I suppose we have varying definitions of huge. I'm just talking adding on considerable muscle mass. Steroid use is so ubiquitous and far better understood than ever before that most guys don't see a point in doing things natty. We're talking cutting down years of training to months.

AlbertCory 4y ago

I just came back from Planet Fitness, which has three benches for doing bench presses. All of them are always occupied. Instead of asking, "what was wrong back then?" we could ask "what's wrong now? why are people so obsessed with their pectorals?"

xupybd 4y ago
Bench is much less effort than other exercises and it produces quick results. Most guys hate leg days. The effort is extreme, chest day is the easy day.
- throwntoday 4y ago
  Strange. I hate bench press (much prefer dumbbell press) but I have never considered leg day extreme. Legs contain the largest muscles, the effort to make them bigger seems less. It was my understanding that the reason most guys avoid leg day is because they're not "show" muscles. It's rare that you're not wearing pants so most guys who lift purely to increase odds of finding a mate focus on the muscles women do see.
  - xupybd 4y ago
    I think the difference between dumbbell and barbell is just preference often based on the time you've put into each. My dumbbell press is pathetic due to a lack of training. I think lifting for the looks is part of it. I've also read that most women prefer guys butts to other parts so it's probably a little silly that most guys do more upper body to get the girls. When I was last going regularly to the gym I knew loads of other guys that worked out. It was near universal that leg day sucked. I was exhausted after doing squats and deadlifts. I'd recover quickly from most upper body stuff. Leg day was still fun but there was a mental battle to put in the effort required. I remember once not being able to drive home after week 6 of the training program Smolov JR with squatting. I pulled over and had to take an hour to recover. I've not had anything close with upper body lifts. Everyone is different I guess and we are talking about preference.
  - ashwagary 4y ago

tmm84 4y ago

This is interesting from a engineering side. At first they didn't care/want massive chests. Then they want chest but equipment was lacking. People tried different exercises and eventually the eureka moment happened that standardized the exercise. Talk about scratching an itch.