I see a lot of guys posting up pics of pro bodybuilders OR at least pics of some individuals who definitely take steroids.
Let's be realistic here, 99% of us here, me included, will never come close to attaining a physique like Ronnie Coleman, Dexter Jackson, Frank Zane or even Wong Hong.
It's 99% genetics and i'll break it to ya, i may say bodybuilding is 80% diet and 20% the rest, when it comes to the stage on the pro ranks of bodybuilding, genetics are the main factor in deciding how you look like.

I'll give you an example. I got a friend in uni, he's as big as i am, and in some lifts, he's way stronger. He benches over 130 kgs easily for 15 reps. And guess what he eats for breakfast? Doughnuts! He only eats TWICE day, 2 big meals. And i need to eat at least 5-7 times a day maintaining an surplus of calories to keep growing while he grows easily on a crappy diet.

Another example, Boyer Coe a bodybuilder during the golden age of bodybuildign in the 1980's. Started working out at a very young age and came home one day to his dad saying,"Look pa, i got a split in my biceps." His dad, who has NEVER touched a weight in his entire life just flexed his arm showing a bicep separation said, "Me too son". But Boyer Coe had crappy abs, never had it, never will.

Why? GENETICS. For those who're truly genetically gifted, no matter what crap they do, what crap they eat, they will still grow, they will still get stronger. I'm sorry, i know it's not fair, but that's life. Some people are just born with it.

That doesn't mean you have to resign yourself to being small. I sincerely respect a guy who has crappy genetics but works his ass off, eats properly and gets so huge it's hard for some people to believe he's a natural bodybuilder. Believe me it's attainable. While you'll never achieve the physique of those in the pro circuit, you can still get big and strong at your genetic peak. For thos who want to try understanding this concept, look here:-

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopic=337697

For those too impatient to read it, here's a small clip of the article. Read it carefully.

Take a guy that has very little fast twitch fibers, or just very little muscle fibers compared to the average person, or well above average person and this person is NEVER, NEVER going to have anywhere NEAR the growth potential of someone that has more fiber to begin with no matter HOW BIG they hypertrophy them.

Oh, just add steroids and the below average guy is even. WRONG again. In the Soviet Union where the state spent much time researching these issues, they determined that hormone (steroid) sensitivity varied as much as 2 to 4 times. Which means the response and thus results one guy might get from a gram of gear would take 4 grams for another person to achieve. And these were highly technical studies carried out with good controls. Not what a bunch of gym meatheads observed. YES, THAT IS genetics in action.

It's all about genetics. That's why i will never compete in a contest despite some people pestering me to. While i may rival the size of some amateur Malaysian bodybuilders, i have no bicep peak whatsoever despite being able to barbell bicep curl almost 50kgs in ultra strict form. As you can see from my avatar, my arms, while at 17 inches and growing are mostly triceps, that's at least one area i've got good genetics in but it's small consolation.

Just keep working out hard, brothers in iron. Eat right, train smart and i promise you guys will grow.

consistency, discipline, determination. wil definitely help lol

yup.....some time ago i want to ask u also....
urs are big...but lack of definiton.....u know....'kurang bentuk'
since u told it is genetics......then i think my question answered


Chow.

yeah....

Everyone born out is not equal.

My friend who rarely go to gym can even have a nicely V shape and i have to train like a dog and cant even beat his... Genetics.... gona beat that thing hehe

yeah, big part is because of genetic. But i still believe you still can beat those "gifted" one, with the correct things you should do to yourself. No one-fix-all program, you still need to tweak it a bit by a bit. You have to discover it and able to feel it yourself sometimes. It is hard, but once you discover it, you also can consider yourself "gifted". Just that those other "gifted" discovered it earlier than you.

Just my 50 cent.

If a person with TRULY gifted genetics were to do a program and diet which is 70% effective compared to an average hardgainer who does a program and diet which is 100% optimal, he still loses out the the genetic freak.

Sorry but that's life. But it doesn't mean hardgainers can't be impressive.

train hard, rest and eat right is the key...u will be as good as those with genetic...

Not really. There's more to this than just that statement. A multitude of factors are involved. But you can attain very impressive levels of strength and size. If a genetically gifted guy doesn't work his ass off as much as an average hardgainer, the of course the hardgainer would look more impressive, but if he trained as hard as the hardgainer, that's another story.

This is just like saying how Mariah Carey can sing very high notes (even to a high note like the sound of a whistle I heard) compare to other female artists that work their ass off trying la right? its genetics. Something some people are born with, its talent. But she also work her ass off to sing good, and I believe everyone have their own special genetics/talent in something or their own field. Right? . Some people learn by instinct, some people learn by experience and hardwork.

This post has been edited by Iliveunderwater: Sep 11 2006, 03:45 AM