Should bodybuilders be athletic?

[Glycomann]

I remember seeing pictures of Lou Ferrigno running down the beach and looking athletic. Back in the day we would go from the weight room across the hall and play pick up basketball. A lot of guys did martial arts, football, lacross. Of course back in the 80s and 90s BBers were rarely over 240 and guys around 5'9" were probably under 220.

Are BBers still athletic? Do you feel they should be?

 

[Darkness]

They do not appear to be. I bet most couldn't be considered average. I guess it's what you want to be.

 

[bufbiker]

What is the standard of athletic is the question. Is it based on strength? Is it measured by aerobic endurance? I don't consider myself to be athletic per se, but Saturday I did 8 sets of squats (225/25, 315/20, 495/8/5 sets, then for fun tried five reps at 585. Then front squats 3 sets at 225. 3 sets leg extensions with the full load, 3 sets leg curls 150/25 reps each. Then 3 sets leg presses 540/30 partial reps. Is that athletic?
I run out of breath putting my work boots on, but it seems like the entire gym grows quiet on my heavier sets and a lot of people are watching. I wonder why? Do you think they consider me an elite athlete in my field or do they want to see me crash and burn?
So then, by what standard is athleticism measured? Can it be subkective?

 

[liftsiron]

I enter a BB comp in a dozen days, I consider the training I did to get here as athletic. I consider both powerlifting and bodybuilding as sports, trouble is few in the general public realize the work we put in training at the gym.

 

[b52]

I'm sure bb'ers have ok endurance, but they're not going to compare to a runner, or soccer player. Depends on how hard you train your cardio. I think everyone, bodybuilder or not, should have at least some sort of endurance. I know guys that their lips turn blue jumping rope for 3 minutes, but lift all the time.

 

[Glycomann]

What is the standard of athletic is the question. Is it based on strength? Is it measured by aerobic endurance? I don't consider myself to be athletic per se, but Saturday I did 8 sets of squats (225/25, 315/20, 495/8/5 sets, then for fun tried five reps at 585. Then front squats 3 sets at 225. 3 sets leg extensions with the full load, 3 sets leg curls 150/25 reps each. Then 3 sets leg presses 540/30 partial reps. Is that athletic?
I run out of breath putting my work boots on, but it seems like the entire gym grows quiet on my heavier sets and a lot of people are watching. I wonder why? Do you think they consider me an elite athlete in my field or do they want to see me crash and burn?
So then, by what standard is athleticism measured? Can it be subkective?

When I think of athletic I think of strength, speed, agility, stamina and mastery of a sport in its techniques and their application using all the above. Scott Mendlson is a great power lifter and that makes him a great athlete but I wouldn't call him athletic. I don't perceive him as fast or agile and I know he has no stamina at all since he is out of breath sitting down talking. Now take a powerlifter that is 5'6" in the 181 class and maybe you have a guy that is athletic. Same thing in BBing. You can take a guy like Kevin Levrone big as a house 10 weeks into his prep and then shredded to the bone on stage at 260. But in the off season you can find him downsized to 220 running sprints at a HS track because he thinks it's important to be athletic.